Environment Minister Lord de Mauley has announced that the government will introduce a National Pollinator Strategy in a bid to reverse the rapid decline of bees and other pollinating insects seen in Britain and elsewhere in the Northern Hemisphere.

The Defra Minister unveiled the plans at a summit being held on Friday by Friends of the Earth. For over a year, the environment charity has been pushing the government to adopt a 'Bee Action Plan' which would affect all relevant areas of policy, including planning, environment and farm policy to ensure the country's vital pollinating insects are protected.

Raising the issue of pesticide exposure, Lord de Mauley said in London, "I do not deny for a moment that it is important to regulate pesticides effectively and to avoid unnecessary pesticide use." Neonicotinoid insecticides have been the subject of intense scrutiny over the past 18 months, as a weight of evidence suggests their use may be impacting upon bee health.  EU authorities placed tight restrictions on the use of three neonicotinoid pesticides earlier this year.

On Friday, de Mauley continued, "we all know that bees will be vulnerable, whether or not we put more restrictions on insecticides. I don't think anyone would disagree that the picture is very much more complex. Changes in land use, the type of crops grown, alien species, climate change - these all have an impact."

Environment Minister promises to develop action plan

The Environment Minister promised that he will review government policy with the aim of improving understanding and coordinating efforts to prevent pollinator declines, as the complex causes of these declines are not fully understood.

He said, "This urgent review will form the basis of a National Pollinator Strategy, which will bring together all the pollinator-friendly initiatives already underway and provide an umbrella for new action. We will look across different causes of bee decline and across different bee species and across different insect pollinators."

De Mauley announced that a report into the government's current strategies and initiatives aimed at protecting pollinators would be released online this week. He added that Defra is "thinking seriously" about how the successor to Environmental Stewardship under the new Common Agricultural Policy, the broad details of which were finalised following three days of trilogue negotiations last week, might increase support for pollinators, as well as reducing pressures they currently face.

Friends of the Earth "cautiously welcomed" Lord de Mauley's announcements, but said it would await further details from Defra.

The government has come under fire for its refusal to abide by the precautionary principle and back EU measures on certain key neonicotinoids, which were eventually passed in May. When speculation about the future of neonicotinoids imidacloprid, clothiandin and thiamethoxam was at its height in Europe, Defra ministers found themselves amongst a minority of EU governments to oppose restrictions on the pesticides.

The department commissioned and published its own research onto the internet; the study found no clear pattern between neonicotinoid levels in pollen and nectar and colony success. However, the research was not peer reviewed and was subject to heavy criticism by EU watchdog EFSA in June.

Friends of the Earth called on the government to:

• Set out a clear timetable for action. The group wants a Pollinator Strategy in place by spring 2014.
• Set "clear and measurable targets" for reversing the decline of bees and other pollinators
• Take a more holistic approach to the problems facing bees – The plan must involve other Government Departments, not just DEFRA.

The charity said it has seen the assessment, due for publication next week, mentioned by Lord de Mauley on Friday. It said the final report "must be far stronger than the earlier draft" which FoE campaigners have read.

FoE Executive Director Andy Atkins commented on Friday, "We're delighted that enormous pressure for a Bee Action Plan from scientists, businesses and the public has stung the Government into action. We all agree prompt measures are needed to tackle all the threats bees and other pollinators face, but an urgent and comprehensive route map and timetable are needed to ensure this happens."

Pressure on the government to act on pollinator decline is growing. Wild honey bees are nearly extinct and solitary bees are declining in more than half the areas where they are studied. Some species of bumblebee have been lost from the UK altogether.

The Association of British Beekeepers revealed earlier this month that winter 2012/13 had been the worst on record for overwintering bees; nearly a third of all honeybee colonies monitored died over the winter.