§ Dr. David Clarkasked the Secretary of State for Scotland what steps he has taken to draw to the attention of the Forestry Commission the presence of the east European elm bark beetle, Scolytus laevis, in southern Scotland and north-east England; what assessment he has made of the threat that this beetle poses to the population of Wych elms which had previously been little affected by Dutch elm disease and what measures he is taking to combat this.
§ Mr. John MacKayThe Forestry Commission is aware of all the current information on Scolytus laevis which is widespread in northern Britain and has probably been present for many years.
Its potential role as a vector of Dutch elm disease is being investigated by entomologists at the University of Salford. The adult beetles hve been shown to carry the spores of the fungus causing Dutch elm disease to both English and Wych elm trees, but they seem to carry fewer spores than Scolytus scolytus, the larger species of bark beetle which was responsible for the rapid spread of the disease in the 1970s.
Measures are taken under the Dutch Elm Disease (Local Authorities) order 1984 and the Dutch Elm Disease (Restriction on Movement of Elms) Order 1984 to combat the spread of the disease, but there are no known methods of controlling the beetle vectors.