CCU 7^th Floor

Eastbury House

30-34 Albert Embankment

London

SE1 7TL

Email: [email address]

Website: www.defra.gov.uk

Dear Mr Holmes,

HONEY BEES

Thank you for your email of 18 November about honey bees to which I have been asked to reply.

Funding for Defra's bee health programme is £1.3 million each year; this has remained at the same level for the last five years. We expect to spend a further £190,000 in 2008/9 on specific bee health research projects, similar to previous years' research expenditure. Bee health also benefits from other research projects such as those on the impact of pesticides on pollinators and those looking at biodiversity.

Reports of significant colony losses are being investigated as a high priority. £90,000 of additional funds have been allocated to the National Bee Unit to expand investigations started last year under a Horizon Scanning project into significant losses and to meet the demand for increased inspections of bee imports consequential to the colony losses.

On 12 December 2007, Lord Rooker the previous Minister for food and farming met the British Beekeepers' Association, which represents the hobbyist beekeepers, and Ian Gibson MP, to discuss their demands for considerably more funds to be allocated to bee research. He made it clear that he was open to considering suggestions for relevant work which are supported by an appropriate business case.

Decisions on the priorities for future activities and the levels of funding that support them need to be considered on the basis of a clear strategy in relation to bee health policy. This is why we are developing a bee health strategy with stakeholders which will set out the objectives and priorities for the bee health programme over the next 10 years. This approach should make the best use of available resources. We expect to publish the strategy in the new year.

Finally, as part of the Government's commitment to protect the health of the honey bee population, Defra is developing a contingency plan, in consultation with stakeholders, for use if there is an outbreak of exotic bee pests or diseases in England or Wales.

I hope that this letter addresses your concerns.

Yours sincerely,

Frances Pierre

Defra - Customer Contact Unit