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Agenda item

Joint Report of the Head of Planning, Transportation and Environment and Head of Business Strategy & Support (PTE/16/36) incorporating the final draft of the proposed Pollinators Plan, relating to the Notice of Motion on Protection of the Bee Populationpreviously submitted by Councillor Hook referred to Cabinet by County Council on 10 December 2015, attached.

 

The Cabinet will also wish to have regard to the views of the Farms Estate Committee (Farms Estate Committee Minute 15/28 June 2016 and the Head of Business Strategy & Support’s Report BSS/16/11), also attached.

Minutes:

(Councillors Brazil, Connett, Owen and Westlake attended in accordance with Standing Order 25(2) and spoke to this item).

 

The Cabinet considered the Joint Report of the Head of Planning, Transportation and Environment and the Head of Business Strategy & Support (PTE/16/36)incorporating a  proposed Pollinators Action Plan which was commended to the Cabinet and County Council. This was in response to the Notice of Motion (set out below) submitted by Councillor Hook having regard, in particular, to the views of the Farms Estate Committee (Farms Estate Committee Minute 15/28 June 2016 and  Report BSS/16/11 refer).

 

The wording of the original Notice of Motion were:

 

‘‘Bees play an essential role in food production. The Bee population has been in alarming decline in recent years, due to various external influences. One such harmful influence is the use of neonicotinoids, an aggressive pesticide. Devon is heavily reliant on agriculture and this council will therefore prohibit the use of this pesticide on all land that it owns or manages in a proactive effort to reverse the destruction of the Bee community here in Devon. The Council will also explore other ways which, in addition to banning this particular pesticide, will help the survival of the Bee population. A report on other potential actions will be brought to Place Scrutiny’.

 

The Heads of Service Report summarised representations received on this matter and the earlier considerations and views of the Cabinet on 13 January and 13 April 2016, of the Place Scrutiny on 7 March 2016 (when that Committee heard from the Devon Wildlife Trust) and of the County Farms Estates Committee on 28 April and again 28 June 2016 (when that Committee also heard from a NFU Representative), culminating in the preparation and submission of the Plan now before the Cabinet.  

 

The Cabinet had previously asked the Farms Estate Committee for its views on potentially prohibiting “the use of neonicotinoids on land under the control or ownership of the County Council including existing and new tenants of the County Farms Estate”  - as part of a wider Pollinators Action Plan - and acknowledged the considered views of that Committee now reported, following a survey of existing tenants. 

 

The production of a Pollinators Action Plan had, in principle, previously been agreed and had been supported by the Place Scrutiny Committee recognising, at that time, that the final content of the Plan would be considered by the Cabinet in light of the Farms Estates Committee’s views.

 

The Action Plan now proposed recognised that prohibiting the use of neonicotinoids on land under the control or ownership of the County Council generally would be unnecessary and irrelevant given there was no routine use of such insecticides.  Furthermore, and in relation specifically to the Farms Estate, and again given the limited current usage of such products and the legal constraints outlined in Section 8 of the Report, the Plan instead outlined a series of positive actions to further reduce the use of neonicotinoids by tenants together with a range of similarly positive measures in support of pollinators generally.

 

The Mover of the Notice of Motion had previously spoken at the Cabinet in support of his original proposal and the prohibition of neonicotinoids, and having regard to the views of the Place Scrutiny and Farms Estates Committees, the matter was subsequently debated having regard to the aforementioned, the relevant Head of Services Report and any suggestions or alternatives or any other relevant factors (e.g. public health, financial, environmental, risk management and equality and legal considerations and Public Health impact) and:

 

It was MOVED by Councillor Croad, SECONDED by Councillor Hart, and

 

RESOLVED

 

(a) that the advice of the Farms Estate Committee (Minute 15/28 June 2016) be noted;

 

(b) that in accordance with Standing Orders  6 and 8, and in response to the original Notice of Motion submitted by Councillor Hook, the County Council be recommended to approve the Devon County Council Pollinators’ Action Plan appended to Report PTE/16/36.

Supporting documents:


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