Asian hornets: Kent on front-line after record number of reports

There have been 108 sightings of Asian hornets since 2016, of which 56 were in 2023, according to government figures.

Eight have been reported in the UK so far this year.

The South East - and Kent in particular - is on the front-line of the battle to tackle the invasive species.

The British Beekeepers Association confirmed an Asian hornet was found in a potting shed in Ash, near Sandwich, in March.

The association said the finding was about five miles from a nest found and destroyed in 2023, near Canterbury.

A report of a hornet in Folkestone was submitted in April.