The financial incentives the Government is providing must make it economically viable to plant trees. The overall direction of travel is laudable, and the interim English Woodland Creation Offer (EWCO) provides better incentives than previous schemes. However, getting to net zero may be held up by a lack of progress and clarity on the Government’s Environmental Land Management (ELM) schemes, and how the EWCO and ELM schemes will fit together. We recommend that Defra and the Forestry Commission urgently prioritise the publication of a clear and detailed timeline for the introduction of the ELM schemes, including how the EWCO and ELM schemes will fit together, by May 2022. It is essential that Defra does this promptly give farmers and others the certainty they need to kickstart planting. By September 2022, Defra should also publish and invite comments on its modelling that underpins the new incentives regime for tree planting.