Rupert Matthews (ECR). – Madam President, the use of pesticides in agriculture, horticulture, and indeed in gardening, is absolutely essential, but of course we all recognise that there are some hazards that go along with the use of these chemicals. This is an important report and when it started its progress through this Parliament I was intending to support it. Unfortunately, as it has progressed, various things have been changed and we have now reached a position where some of the targets, some of the figures that are being used, bear little relation to best scientific advice or indeed to any scientific advice. We are getting figures being plucked from the air by pressure groups, by NGOs, and by those with an axe to grind. We even have the situation where they want to control all chemicals that go onto land that might end up in groundwater – which is pretty much all chemicals.

Sadly, this is an example of the bad lawmaking, which so often characterises this place. It could have been great, it could have been worthwhile. Unfortunately, it isn’t, and I won’t be supporting it.