There could be other things at play though than pollinating or not. I know the coating was presented as better than just spraying around etc, and is is, but it's not like it ends there. Neonicotinoids are water soluble so some of it will end up in the soil and from theere might leak to surface water. Effects of that are all known yet, but it's not all looking good. Not saying there are problems for bees, just that seed coating could well be more than 'not much of an issue'.

This isn't about neonics specifically, it's about a range of pesticides that are being used. Again, it doesn't affect only honey bees. Honey bees exist in an ecosystem of pollinators of which they contrive only a small percentage.

There's also the fact that neonics ao. are persistent for at least a couple of years, affecting the crops after the one for which they were originally intended. That is why along with temporarily allowing certain pesticides, certain crops are being prohibited or enforced as a follow up crop.

It gets complicated pretty quickly. Laissez-faire indeed...