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MPs condemn pesticides secrecy

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25 MPs from across the political spectrum have condemned the secrecy surrounding moves to allow banned-bee harming neonicotinoid pesticides (neonics) to be used by farmers this autumn.

In a letter to the Secretary of State for the Envionment, Liz Truss, the MPs say that documents supporting the application by the National Farmers Union are being kept secret.  And this “raises serious potential conflicts with the public interest.”

They call for all the evidence to be made public before a decision is taken, to allow public scrutiny.

Bees campaigner Dave Timms said:

The lack of transparency is a complete scandal and biases the system in favour of pesticide firms, with the public and campaigners unable to scrutinise the case being made for their use.

This is bad for democracy, bad for science and bad for our bees.

Neonics could come back again this year

Friends of the Earth is fighting against the application to use the banned neonics on oilseed rape seeds.

Last year a similar application was allowed by Liz Truss, despite growing scientific evidence of the threat to bees and other pollinators (such as butterflies) from these pesticides.

We have submitted evidence to the government’s Expert Committee on Pesticides (ECP) opposing the application, and have published this so that it is available to anyone to see.

Find out the 7 reasons why the Government must not allow bee-harming pesticides back on our farms.

You can help too

We can’t protect our bees if we’re being kept in the dark.

A decision to allow bee-harming neonics back in our fields could be made any day now.

Tell Liz Truss to keep neonics out of our fields

 

 

Written by Emi Murphy,  20th June 2016.

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