The UK Government banned bee-killing pesticides called neonicotinoids in 2018, and resisted industry pressure up until now to make any exceptions.

That’s just changed. The government last week decided to let sugar beet producers in England use seeds treated with the toxic neonic thiamethoxam.

It’s called an “emergency derogation”, and it’s a disaster.

We fought hard to secure that Europe-wide neonicotinoids ban. It’s a lifeline to bees and other pollinators, and we can’t sit by and let the agrichemical lobby cut it off.

The UK Government’s decision to support the EU-wide neonics ban was based on advice from its own advisory body on pesticides which stated that “scientific evidence now suggests the environmental risks posed by neonicotinoids – particularly to our bees and pollinators – are greater than previously understood, supporting the case for further restrictions.”

Since then, scientists have found that neonics are not just harmful to bees and other pollinators, but also to animals in our rivers and streams.

That’s why PAN UK, the RSPB, and a group of academics, farmers and organisations representing a broad range of environmental and health concerns, are urging the UK government to undo this decision.

Our food system, and the future of farming, doesn't need toxic pesticides to thrive -- but it does need nature.

Will you tell the government to reverse this disastrous derogation, and support farmers to adopt non-chemical alternatives to these pesticides?

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