I refer the hon. Gentleman to the answer I gave on 20 May 2008, Official Report, columns 171-72W.
I refer the hon. Gentleman to the reply I gave on 12 May 2008, Official Report, column 1324W.
The possibility of the small hive beetle arriving in the UK is a recognised threat to the health of honey bees and the National Bee Unit remains vigilant for the arrival of this and other exotic pests and diseases. To promote early detection, publicity material has been distributed to help raise individual beekeepers’ awareness of the risk. Plant health import inspectors and horticultural marketing inspectors have also been alerted, as one possible entry pathway is imported fruit. To help mitigate this threat, DEFRA has developed a contingency plan in consultation with stakeholders and is also pressing the European Commission to introduce tighter contingency arrangements to reduce the risk of spread should the small hive beetle be introduced into another member state. Additionally, DEFRA is funding research into a “lure and kill” monitoring system for rapid deployment should the small hive beetle be detected.
The relative priorities that should be given to the various pest and disease threats to bees are addressed in the draft bee health strategy that is currently out for public consultation.