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

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what discussions he has had with his counterparts in European countries on mitigating the spread of the Ips typographus tree pest.

Ips typographus is present in most of continental Europe, where it is not a regulated pest. In recent years, large populations have built up across western and central Europe causing extensive damage and mortality of spruce trees. Beetles routinely caught in traps in south-east England are probably a result of blow over from mainland Europe. It is not possible to prevent this natural dispersal, but the Government has robust surveillance and control measures in place nationwide to detect and eradicate outbreaks as they occur.

The Forestry Commission has visited multiple countries experiencing outbreaks of Ips typographus to discuss different approaches to outbreak management, including participating in a pan-European workshop on outbreak mitigation, and has received critical appraisal of our approach from members of the international community. Experts actively engage with European scientists to develop research projects, including research on the susceptibility of Sitka spruce in Denmark and cross-channel dispersal from Belgium.