A long, hot and dry Summer has intensified public debates over several issues affecting British insects, including the effect of wildfires on nature and the economic impact of the Bluetongue outbreak affecting Wales and the South West of England.
In this context, it is important for the Royal Entomological Society to cement its reputation among policymakers as the UK’s primary organisation promoting insect science and research, and we have continued our work on several fronts, including the Invasive Species inquiry.
APPG Inquiry on Invasive Species and Pollinator Health
As part of its inquiry into invasive species and their impact on pollinator health, the Bees, Pollinators and Invertebrates APPG followed up on its first oral evidence session with another session on 15 September.
After the first session established the level of risk that UK pollinators face from species such as the Yellow-legged (Asian) Hornet and Himalayan Balsam, this session sought to determine how the UK could more successfully mitigate these threats.
RES organised a stellar line up of witnesses to answer parliamentary questions on this topic. These were: former RES President Jane Stout of Trinity College Dublin; Lawrence Bramham of Rothamsted Research; Larissa Collins of Fera Science Ltd; and David Smith of Buglife.
The parliamentary panel, this time comprising Barry Gardiner MP and Lord Randall of Uxbridge, were very interested in the recommendations put forward by the witnesses, which focused on the need to grant the Non Native Species Inspectorate greater powers to inspect consignments entering Great Britain, and to improve public awareness of how to identify potentially harmful species.
This evidence is being aggregated with the various written evidence RES received to compile a comprehensive report. The report will detail the most pressing species and their transmission pathways, how the UK currently detects and responds to new species entering the country, and recommendations for how to make this system more coordinated, proactive and resilient.
RES and the APPG will then launch the report at two different events this Autumn. In October, Chief Executive Simon Ward, President Allan Watt and Policy and Public Affairs Manager Tom Leeman will attend the 17th Convention on Biodiversity COP in Armenia to publicise the report’s findings before its formal publication. Barry Gardiner MP and oral evidence witness Helen Roy will also be present.
The report will formally be launched in Westminster on 16 November at a parliamentary drinks reception in the coveted Speaker’s House, with RES fellows and partner organisations joining parliamentarians to bring attention to this essential topic. We are also thrilled to announced that the new Minister for Nature, Jenny Riddell-Carpenter MP, will give a keynote address.
Policy Working Groups hold their first meetings
Furthermore, the new RES Policy Working Groups have continued to develop at pace. These three groups (Nature & Conservation, Agriculture & Crop Protection, and Human & Animal Health) now have growing memberships, and the Agriculture & Crop Protection Group met for the first time on 23 September.
The group agreed to commission research reviews into a series of policy areas related to pesticide use, including regulatory modelling, understanding the chronic impacts of pesticide use and biopesticides. These research reviews will consult the wider RES membership to gain necessary insights into these areas, and are intended to help expand the evidence base on pesticide use.
The Human & Animal Health Working Group will hold its first meeting on 5 November.
Consultation responses
RES also submitted responses to two government consultations over the Summer.
The first response was to the Department for Education’s consultation into the subject content for the new Natural History GCSE. RES used its response to highlight the ways in which studying insects can facilitate students visiting a wide range of habitats. The response also pointed out that studying insects enables students to understand life cycles quickly, and on schoolgrounds. RES also made the Department aware of our own resources tailor made for teachers to help them teach entomology in an engaging way.
The second response saw RES direct its attention towards the Senedd in Cardiff. Following the Senedd elections earlier this year, the newly-established Senedd Climate Chance, Environment, Sustainability and Rural Affairs Committee launched a consultation on what its priorities should be for the duration of the next Senedd session. In its response, RES highlighted three priority areas: species recovery, crop protection, and control of vector-borne disease. This, RES said, underscores the need to see the connection between climate change, biodiversity loss and rural economic insecurity, and to direct policy accordingly.
Invasive Species Inquiry Report
The outcome of the inquiry on invasive species will be published in November 2026. If you would like to be notified when the report is available, please sign up using the form on our website linked below and we’ll let you know when it is published.
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