Well I didn't know about the exemption for thiacloprid and don't understand it, but that doesn't mean that we're "mostly wrong." As I understand it, almost all neonics are banned for field use, being allowed in greenhouses only (a ludicrous and pusillanimous exemption), and thiacloprid will be allowed on foliage only (ditto). Reminds me of Shirley Williams banning grammar schools, except for a few, and banning foxhunting, except for dragging smelly carcasses that the dogs can still smell, and banning dogs from Summerleaze Beach in Bude in the summer...unless they're on leads...everybody knows that no dog on a lead ever shits...