Heather Humphreys (Cavan-Monaghan, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

The main forage for bees in August is undoubtedly heather, followed by herbaceous plants such as knapweed. The main hedgerow nectar resources would be provided earlier in the year by species such as willow, blackthorn and hawthorn.

The All-Ireland Pollinator Plan 2015 - 2020 was published in 2015 and includes a strategy to address pollinator decline and to protect pollination services on the island of Ireland. Almost 70 governmental and non-governmental organisations agreed a shared plan that identifies more than 80 actions to make Ireland pollinator friendly. I agree with Senator O'Donnell that we would not exist without the bees. It is absolutely true. I pointed out on Committee Stage that any regulations I will make under section 8 will take account of our obligations under the EU birds and habitats directive, other international nature conservation conventions and the Aarhus Convention on access to information on the environment. It would not be normal practice to list these various directives or conventions in legislation. EU directives are binding on member states, so there is no need to provide for them separately in legislation.

The All-Ireland Pollinator Plan 2015-2020 includes a strategy to address pollinator decline and protect pollination services on the island and its recommendations will be taken into account in developing the regulations. A number of plans inform our decisions, for example, the national biodiversity plan and the action plan for rural Ireland. These are all taken into account. However, it is not proposed to list them in the legislation. That is not to say that we do not think they are important or that we do not take account of them. I am trying to strike a balance here. The input of the specialist groups and experts will be taken into account when reviewing the pilot project.