§ Mr. KirkwoodTo ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he has any plans to ban the import of foreign honey bees.
§ Mr. Donald Thompson[holding answer 23 February 1988]: I have no plans at present to ban imports of honey bees which are permitted only under licence. However, our bee import controls are kept under constant review to ensure minimum risk to bee health in the United Kingdom.
§ Mr. KirkwoodTo ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what steps he is taking to prevent the spread of varroasis among bees; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. Donald Thompson[holding answer 23 February 1988]: Imports of bees into the United Kingdom are strictly controlled by licence. Licences are issued only for queen bees, with attendant workers, from countries with a high bee health status. They are not issued for imports coming from countries where varroasis is known to exist. To minimise the risk of accidental or illegal import of bees we are again writing to port authorities in England drawing their attention to this disease and asking them to display a warning poster which the national beekeeping association have prepared.
§ Mr. KirkwoodTo ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what information he has about the number of cases of varroasis among bees in the United Kingdom.
§ Mr. Donald Thompson[holding answer 23 February 1988]: Selective searches which my Department has undertaken in October in each of the last three years in eastern and south-eastern regions of England have found no evidence of varroasis. Nor has varroasis been found in any of the hive debris which beekeepers have themselves sent to us for free examination as part of our campaign to encourage greater vigilance against this disease.