Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether his Department has made an assessment of the effect on the bee population of using Sulfoxaflor and Flupyradifurone as alternatives to Neonicotinoids.

Insecticides are only permitted for use if scientific risk assessments find no harmful effect on people and no unacceptable effects on the environment. Assessment and decision making for active substances takes place at EU level and sulfoxaflor and flupyradifurone were approved in 2015. Products containing approved active substances can only be used if authorised by the UK. No authorisation has been given to date for any product containing sulfoxaflor or flupyradifurone. The assessment of any application for such a product would include full consideration of the potential effects on bees.