Taunton MP Rebecca Pow is championing beekeeping following a visit to Taunton Beekeepers’ teaching apiary at Bradford-on-Tone (on Saturday, April 2). She pledged to write to the Environment Secretary Liz Truss to call on her to protect the bee inspectorate, an expert team which helps to stop the spread of highly contagious bee diseases and warn of the arrival of new pests. “Anything I can do to support beekeepers, I will do,” she said after the impact of recent cuts to the Inspectorate was raised by club members. Currently there is one regional and seven seasonal bee inspectors monitoring many thousands of colonies in the South West, which includes Somerset, Devon, Cornwall, the Isles of Scilly and Avon. Taunton Beekeepers’ chairman Peter Maben explained the funding for this “essential and very important service” had been cut in recent years despite the growing threat from new pests, including the small hive beetle and the Asian hornet. “We are delighted that our MP has come to talk to our members and discuss the issues that affect beekeeping in today’s challenging conditions,” said Peter Maben. Ms Pow met the club’s beginner beekeepers as they enjoyed their first practical session in the apiary. Also, she was given a tour of the beekeeping centre and joined a group making beehive frames in the workshop. “The centre of beekeeping excellence in Taunton Deane is really impressive,” she said. “And I will take away members’ concerns about neonicotinoids and the importance of maintaining the Regional Bee Inspectorate.” The European Union has banned a group of neonicotinoid pesticides after a number of scientific studies concluded that they were responsible for large-scale honeybee demise. Currently the ban is being reviewed by the European Commission. In recent years honeybee numbers have been badly hit by pests, diseases and changes in the environment. The government launched a 10-year National Pollinator Strategy two years ago to restore bee-friendly habitats throughout England.