Home > FOE Cymru > Press Releases > 2000: Officials in shambles over GM mistake

Making life better for people by inspiring solutions to environmental problems

Ymddiheuriadau. Dim ond yn y Saesneg mae datganiadau i'r wasg Cyfeillion y Ddaear i'w cael. Am ragor o wybodaeth gweler ein Cynllun yr Iaith Gymraeg.

Officials in a shambles over GM mistake

Friends of the Earth (FOE) Cymru has discovered that there were plans to grow a GM crop in Wales [1] This was part of the Government's farm scale trials into the effects of GM crops on the environment. After a day of confusion, Assembly officials contacted the UK Department for the Environment, Transport and the Regions (DETR) who admitted they had made a mistake. The site had never been intended for Wales after all.

FOE Cymru was concerned that news of the site should come at a time when the National Assembly is in recess and many Assembly Members would be unaware of the site. If the crop was to be grown in Wales then the Assembly should have been consulted. FOE Cymru contacted the Welsh Agriculture Secretary's office to alert them of the situation. Initially, Assembly officials had assured the Secretary's office that the site was in England, but have now confirmed that it was in Wales.

Raoul Bhambral, FOE Cymru's GM Campaigner said:

" This has been a complete shambles. DETR now say the trial was never intended to be in Wales, but rather in fields across the border in England. We have now been told that the DETR will be contacting the biotech company concerned, who will either direct the farmer to move the site, or remove his authority to do the trial.

" I am surprised at the complete lack of organisation and coordination being shown here. It does not inspire confidence in the Government's handling of the GM issue. No wonder people up and down the country are demonstrating against the trials. Yet again the farm scale trials are looking like a farce! "

Rhodri Glyn Thomas, Plaid Cymru's Agriculture spokesperson and Chair of the Committee, said:

" I am very concerned with this news. Plaid Cymru - The Party of Wales believes that there should be a moratorium on any of these developments until we have been assured of the safety of such experiments. Even if the farm is sited over the border in England, it's proximity means there is a danger of cross-pollination. This incident should be investigated at the earliest opportunity. "

Mike German, Leader of the Liberal Democrats in the National Assembly for Wales, commented,

" The DETR's ultimatum introduces an element of farce into the equation. Whether the crops are three inches in Wales or three inches in England the risk of cross pollination remains. When you have a GM trial within metres of the border the implications for Wales' status as a GM-free environment is still the same. "

Nick Bourne AM, Leader of the Conservative Party in the Assembly, said:

" Friends of the Earth Cymru are yet again having to bring the Government's mistakes to light. The Assembly has voted overwhelmingly for Wales to take the lead in the control of GM crops, now the Assembly Cabinet must get a grip on the situation."

The sites have been selected without any consultation with local people, and there is no statutory right to object. However, FOE Cymru is urging people to campaign against the trials.

Notes

A 2-sided FOE Media Briefing - What's Wrong with the Farm Scale Trials of GM Crops - is available from FOE's Press Office. More Info on FOE's Real Food Campaign can be found on our website: www.foe.co.uk

1 The site is indicated on the Department of the Environment, Transport and the Regions' website as being near Sealand, Cheshire. But Sealand is in Wales, as is the farm intended to grow the GM crop.

2 On the 29th of March 2000, the Agriculture Committee voted 6-0 (Labour abstained) for the Agriculture Secretary, Christine Gwyther to reject a proposal to put the first GM seed onto the UK National Seed List. However, Ms. Gwyther ignored the Committee's advice and approved the proposal. The National List is the final regulatory hurdle that a seed variety has to clear before it can be marketed in the UK.