PARLIAMENTARY WRITTEN QUESTION
Insects: Conservation (12 November 2018)

In October the Government announced £50,000 to support two large-scale pollinator projects in Devon and Hampshire and £60,000 of funding to develop and test pollinator habitat mapping and to help voluntary bodies and land managers to create pollinator-friendly landscapes.

We have supported two major events in 2018 to raise awareness of the importance of bees and encourage people to take action. In July, we put on a week-long ‘Bees’ Needs’ event in Carnaby Street (renamed ‘Carnabee’ Street for the week). In November, in collaboration with the Green Flag Award scheme, we organised the Bees’ Needs Champions Awards at Kew Gardens to recognise and celebrate exemplary initiatives undertaken by local authorities, universities, community groups, universities and bee farmers to support bees and other insects.

To improve our understanding of the status of pollinators, we have been funding a new UK-wide Pollinator Monitoring Scheme which will report next year. Following scientific evidence that neonicotinoid pesticides are harmful to bees and other pollinators, all outdoor usage will be withdrawn from 19 December 2018.

To improve honey bee health, we have maintained an extensive programme of advisory visits and training events to improve beekeepers knowledge of bee pests and diseases and good husbandry practices. Early reporting of Asian hornet by beekeepers has been instrumental in enabling us to tackle several outbreaks this year.

These build on the work undertaken, with the invaluable support of a range of partners to the deliver the National Pollinator Strategy for England, published in 2014. Furthermore the Government introduced a Wild Pollinator and Farm Wildlife Package to Countryside Stewardship in 2015 to make it easier for farmers to take action to create habitat for pollinators.