http://www.nature.com/news/bees-lies-and-evidence-based-policy-1.12443

Misinformation forms an inevitable part of public debate, but scientists
should always focus on informing the decision-makers, advises Lynn
Dicks<http://www.nature.com/news/bees-lies-and-evidence-based-policy-1.12443#auth-1>
.

Saving bees is a fashionable cause. Bees are under pressure from disease
and habitat loss, but another insidious threat has come to the fore
recently. Concern in conservation and scientific circles over a group of
agricultural insecticides has now reached the policy arena. Next week, an
expert committee of the European Union (EU) will vote on a proposed
two-year ban on some uses of clothianidin, thiamethoxam and imidacloprid.
These are neonicotinoids, systemic insecticides carried inside plant
tissues. Although they protect leaves and stems from attack by aphids and
other pests, they have subtle toxic effects on bees, substantially reducing
their foraging efficiency and ability to raise young.

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