Asian hornets that can eat up to 50 honeybees a day could ‘wreak havoc’ if they become established in UK, expert warns
Asian hornets that can eat up to 50 honeybees a day are almost certainly “breeding and living in the UK” and could “wreak havoc” if they become established here, a bug expert has warned.
Paul Hetherington, director of communications and engagement at the Buglife charity, made the remarks after the earliest UK sighting of one of the hornets was confirmed on 11 March.
The sighting has led conservationists to warn Asian hornets may have become established in the UK.
The flying insects measure at around 25mm in length while queens are approximately 30mm long. Their abdomens are mostly black and they are distinguished from European hornets by the fact they have yellow ends to their legs.
They prey on a wide range of insects including honeybees and bumblebees.
They were first spotted in the UK in 2016, with Mr Hetherington saying this year’s earliest ever sighting is “extremely worrying”.
Speaking to Sky News presenter Sarah-Jane Mee on The UK Tonight, he said: “An adult Asian hornet can eat roughly 50 honeybees a day – that transpires to an entire nest of bumblebees for one hornet.
“So imagine what a nest of Asian hornets could be doing to our population of bees… They could have a catastrophic impact on bees because they’ve come in from abroad, there are not a lot of things that are going to predate them in this country.
“So it’s very, very worrying.”
Mr Hetherington added that it is “virtually certain” Asian hornets are “breeding and living in the UK” – with 14 of their nests destroyed in the UK across August, September and October last year.
He added that the hornets appear to be establishing in southern England where some of the UK’s rarest bumblebees exist – such as the Shrill carder bee and the brown-banded carder bee.
“It’d be quite easy for them to have a devastating impact on populations like that,” Mr Hetherington said.
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Asian hornets have yellow ends to their legs
The bug expert added that the presence of Asian hornets could be “absolutely catastrophic” for consumers if too many bees, which pollinate a wide range of crops, are eaten.
Mr Hetherington continued: “If we lost all our pollinators, it would put about £2bn a year on our food bill for selective foods like fruit and peas, because we’d have to pay people the minimum to go out and hand-pollinate.
“The knock-on effect for consumers in this country alone would be absolutely catastrophic if they get established and wreak havoc.”
Mr Hetherington said that it is already clear that Asian honeybees have established themselves in northern France and keeping them out of the UK is going to be very difficult.
Asian hornets, native to Asia, were reportedly spotted in Europe for the first time in southwest France in 2004.
They are thought to have come over in a consignment of pottery from China.
They are now reported to be established in Spain, Belgium, the Netherlands, Portugal, Italy, Switzerland, Germany and Jersey.
Nigel Farage has told Sky News he “can’t be pushed or bullied” by anybody after Elon Musk said the Reform MP “doesn’t have what it takes” to lead his party.
In an interview with Sky’s political correspondent Ali Fortescue, Mr Farage said he has spoken with the billionaire owner of X since his criticism on 5 January, when Mr Musk said: “The Reform Party needs a new leader. Farage doesn’t have what it takes.”
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Asked if the pair are still friends, Mr Farage said: “Of course we’re friends. He just says what he thinks at any moment in time.”
He added he has “been in touch” with Mr Musk, though wouldn’t divulge what they had discussed.
“Look, he said lots of supportive things. He said one thing that wasn’t supportive. I mean, that’s just the way it is,” Mr Farage said.
Musk and Farage met in December. Pic: PA
Asked if he was afraid to criticise the tech mogul, the Clacton MP said the situation was “the opposite”, and he openly disagreed with Mr Musk on his views on far-right activist Tommy Robinson.
Mr Farage said: “What he [Musk] was saying online was that effectively Tommy Robinson was a political prisoner and I wouldn’t go along with that.
“If I had gone along with that, he wouldn’t have put out a tweet that was against me.
“By the way, you know, I can’t be pushed or bullied or made to change by anybody.
“I stick to what I believe.”
Mr Musk has endorsed Robinson and claimed he was “telling the truth” about grooming gangs, writing on X: “Free Tommy Robinson”.
But Mr Farage said that Robinson, who is serving an 18-month jail term for contempt of court, isn’t welcome in Reform UK and neither are his supporters.
He said: “If people within Reform think Tommy Robinson should be a member of Reform and play a central role in Reform, that disagreement is absolutely fundamental.
“I’ve never wanted to work with people who were active in the BNP. I’ve made that clear right throughout the last decade of my on/off political career. So that’s what the point of difference is.”
Despite their disagreement, Mr Farage said he is confident Mr Musk will continue to support Reform and “may well” still give money to it.
The entrepreneur has previously spoken positively about Reform UK and there have been suggestions he could make a multi-million-pound donation in its favour.
Devolution plans ‘denial of democracy’
Mr Farage was speaking from Reform’s South East of England Conference, one of a series of regional events aimed at building up the party’s support base.
Elsewhere in the interview, he hit out at the Labour government’s devolution plans which could see some local elections scheduled for May postponed.
This would apply when councils seek permission to reorganise, so that smaller district authorities merge with other nearby ones to give them more sway over their area.
Mr Farage, who is hoping to make gains in the spring contests, claimed the plans are not about devolution but about “elections being cancelled”.
“I thought only dictators cancelled elections. This is unbelievable and devolution or a change to local government structures is being used as an excuse,” he said.
Reform UK leader Nigel Farage earlier this month. Pic: PA
He claimed Tory-controlled councils are “grabbing it like it’s a life belt”, because they fear losing seats to Reform.
“It’s an absolute denial of democracy,” he added.
Mr Farage was also asked why many Reform members don’t like to speak on camera about why they support his party.
He said he did not accept there was a toxicity associated with Reform and claimed there was “institutional bias against anybody that isn’t left of centre”.
Specialist search teams, police dogs and divers have been dispatched to find two sisters who vanished in Aberdeen three days ago.
Eliza and Henrietta Huszti, both 32, were last seen on CCTV in the city’s Market Street at Victoria Bridge at about 2.12am on Tuesday.
The siblings were captured crossing the bridge and turning right onto a footpath next to the River Dee in the direction of Aberdeen Boat Club.
Henrietta Huszti. Pic: Police Scotland
Eliza Huszti. Pic: Police Scotland
Police Scotland has launched a major search and said it is carrying out “extensive inquires” in an effort to find the women.
Chief Inspector Darren Bruce said: “Local officers, led by specialist search advisors, are being assisted by resources including police dogs and our marine unit.”
Aberdeenshire Drone Services told Sky News it has offered to help in the search and is waiting to hear back from Police Scotland.
CCTV of the sisters. Pic: Police Scotland
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The sisters, from Aberdeen city centre, are described as slim with long brown hair.
Police said the Torry side of Victoria Bridge where the sisters were last seen contains many commercial and industrial units, with searches taking place in the vicinity.
The force urged businesses in and around the South Esplanade and Menzies Road area to review CCTV footage recorded in the early hours of Tuesday in case it captured anything of significance.
Drivers with relevant dashcam footage are also urged to come forward.
CI Bruce added: “We are continuing to speak to people who know Eliza and Henrietta and we urge anyone who has seen them or who has any information regarding their whereabouts to please contact 101.”
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