Mr. Speaker, it is an honour to present a petition on behalf of the constituents of Saanich—Gulf Islands who are concerned with the global issue, which is also local, of the threat to our pollinators, including honeybees, which are an essential part of our food system.
We know that without pollinators, agriculture would crash, yet as petitioners point out, there continue to be extreme declines in pollinator populations across North America and Europe, particularly among bees. It is no surprise that this has been linked to insecticides that are particularly toxic to bees. The particular class of insecticides that the European Union has taken action to control but Canada has not are the ones called neonics, which is a short form; they are nicotine-based insecticides, neonicotinoid insecticides.
The petitioners ask that Canada follow the European Commission's lead, apply the precautionary principle and restrict the use of these dangerous chemicals to protect our bees and our agriculture.