| Previous Section | Index | Home Page |
GM Crops
10. Mr. Simon Thomas (Ceredigion): What recent discussions she has held with EU Commissioners on enabling European regions to ban GM crops. [139839]
The Minister for the Environment (Mr. Elliot Morley): DEFRA Ministers have not had specific discussions on this matter with EU Commissioners.
Mr. Thomas : Will the Minister therefore take the opportunity to have such discussions? He will know that the National Assembly for Wales and 10 other regions in the EU have declared themselves a network of GM-free regions, and they want European legislation to recognise their right to be GM-free, if that is a decision taken by their legislators. Will he make sure that that can happen, bearing in mind that David Byrne, the EU Health Commissioner said a couple of weeks ago that if it were proven that GM crops harmed the environment, that would be sufficient grounds to allow areas and regions within the EU to ban them? Surely the time is now right to ensure that that can happen in Wales and in other parts of the EU.
Mr. Morley: On the latter point, it is fair to point out that some of the Commissioner's comments were misinterpreted. It may well be possible for certain specific areas to be declared GM-free where there is evidence that GM crops could cause harm, but in reality they are likely to be small and to have specific reasons for that. There will have to be evidence that the GM crops will cause harm, and that is not likely to apply to a region as large as Wales. My understanding was that the Welsh Assembly had not specifically argued for Wales to be a GM-free zone, but for some very strict regulations in relation to GM, and I understand the arguments for that. As things stand, there is no provision in EU law for taking such action; again, evidence is needed. Of course, if there is voluntary agreement among farmers and landowners, they can declare their area a GM-free zone.
Roads Used as Public Paths
11. John Mann (Bassetlaw): What discussions she has had with non-governmental organisations on the consultation paper on proposed amendments to legislation to reclassify roads used as public paths as restricted byways. [139840]
The Minister for Rural Affairs and Local Environmental Quality (Alun Michael): In deciding to issue the consultation paper, I took account of the views of Members of Parliament and their constituents, who have called for action to deal with the inappropriate use of traditional byways by mechanically propelled vehicles, and strong pleas for firm action. My hon. Friend has been at the forefront in making those pleas. In addition, I have provided an opportunity for the rights of way review committee to comment on the draft proposals. That committee consists of representatives of
20 non-governmental organisations and 15 other organisations that are consultees and which receive papers.
John Mann : Increasingly, a new plague is engulfing the last vestige of tranquillity and sanity. Down our country lanes, dog walkers, horse riders and families merely seeking a Sunday morning breath of fresh air are being confronted by hordes of motor bikes. Is the Minister sympathetic to my view that where once a horse and cart ambled, an automatic upgrade for a motor bike to roar is neither logical nor acceptable?
Alun Michael: I do share that view, which is why it is included in the consultation paper. We must look at the implications of the sort of change that my hon. Friend proposes, and we are considering the matter with care. We need to balance the interests of different people and ensure that there are no unintended consequences, but the consultation will give an opportunity to look at the way forward that he urges.
Mr. Edward Leigh (Gainsborough): May I warmly commend to the Minister what the hon. Member for Bassetlaw (John Mann) said? There is a famous path called the Berkshire Ridgeway, which is some 2,000 years old and which I have often walked myself. In recent years, it has been being utterly ruined by people who ride motor cycles along it. For God's sake, we have some of the busiest roads, and people can ride their motor bikes wherever they want, but do they have to ruin the last vestiges of rural England and paths that have remained unspoilt for maybe hundreds of years? It has got to stop.
Alun Michael: I share the hon. Gentleman's concern. Indeed, I have been to the Ridgeway to look at the impact. I have also had meetings with Members of Parliament and Members of another place, along with local authorities, because the Ridgeway is a complex path, as he knows, which runs through the areas of a number of authorities. We have a detailed plan that is rightly a matter for local management, but I, my officials and the Countryside Agency have been working with local authorities specifically to address the concerns of Members of this House, which the hon. Gentleman has articulated, and to try to ensure that we get the balance right and use the powers that are already available, as well as considering the sort of changes that my hon. Friend the Member for Bassetlaw (John Mann) has urged on the House.
GM Food
12. Joan Ruddock (Lewisham, Deptford): What her policy is on new approvals of GM foods in Europe. [139841]
The Minister for the Environment (Mr. Elliot Morley): Applications for approval to market GM foods are subject to collective EU decision making under the novel foods regulation. The independent Food Standards Agency leads the UK assessment of any application based on scientific evidence of risk to human
health. Any food exceeding the EU threshold for GM ingredients must be labelled to provide consumers with information and choice.
Joan Ruddock : Will my hon. Friend confirm that the EU regulatory committee meeting on 10 November saw the UK Government indicate their willingness to give approval to GM sweetcorn Bt11? Can he tell me why he wants that product in our shops when neither the new labelling and traceability arrangements nor the new GMO approval regime, with its compulsory post-monitoring regime, are in place? What is the haste to end the EU moratorium on GMOs?
Mr. Morley: In the UK submission to the Commission, we made it clear that marketing should not go ahead until the traceability and labelling regulations had been resolved. That remains our position, and it is why the decision to address that specific point was deferred. On the other issues that my hon. Friend raised, the one criterion that we apply is
whether such products are safe. That is subject to review by the Food Standards Agency, which is advised by the Advisory Committee on Novel Foods and Processes.
Paul Flynn (Newport, West): GM foods are now at a commercial disadvantage. Is it not true that the Canadians, who have grown GM foods in great quantities for a number of years, are turning away from them for that reason and because there is international repugnance regarding their use? Should we not wait for scientific proof that such foods are harmless and insist that the biotech companies prove that themselves?
Mr. Morley: The basis of the applications is that there must be careful evaluation of whether there is risk to people and, indeed, the environment. We expect any application for GMs to go through that process. My hon. Friend might have a point about whether such crops are marketable at present—that was addressed by the strategy unit report—but whatever the future for GM, there must be clear traceability and labelling so that people may have the choice of whether to buy the foods.
Terrorist Attacks (Istanbul)
12.31 pm
The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs (Mr. Jack Straw): With permission, Mr. Speaker, I should like to make a short statement in respect of the bomb blasts in Istanbul this morning. The House will, I am sure, understand that as information is coming in all the time, it has not been possible to make copies of the statement for distribution to hon. Members in the usual way. Copies will be placed in the Vote Office as soon as possible.
There were a series of explosions this morning in Istanbul, one of which was targeted at the headquarters of the HSBC bank and another at the British consulate general building. It is too early to establish all the details, but these are clearly appalling acts of terrorism. It is sadly already clear that a number of British, Turkish and other people have been killed in the explosions. Latest reports are that 17 have died and that more than 300 have been injured. A number of members of the British consulate general staff are still unaccounted for and, in addition, a number are injured. We are obviously working very hard to establish the full scale of the tragedy to British consulate general staff, staff of HSBC and all others caught up in it. I know that I speak for the whole House in my utter condemnation of these atrocities and in expressing my condolences to the families of those killed and sympathy to those who have been injured.
I spoke about an hour ago to the Turkish Foreign Minister, Abdullah Gul. I expressed to him my sincere condolences to the Turkish Government and people for the Turkish casualties, and stressed our solidarity with Turkey and the Turkish authorities. I also spoke to Peter Westmacott, our ambassador in Ankara, who is travelling right now to Istanbul in the company of the Turkish Interior Minister, Mr. Aksu. The Foreign Office will this afternoon be sending out a consular rapid deployment team to join staff travelling there from the embassy in Ankara. We have opened emergency units in London to co-ordinate our response.
Following the horrific attacks on synagogues in Istanbul last Saturday, which killed people of both the Jewish faith and the Muslim faith, we had already revised our travel advice to take account of those attacks and to warn of a significant threat from terrorism. We are revising the travel advice again in the light of these explosions to warn against all but the most essential travel to Istanbul. Although it is too early to say precisely who was behind the explosions, they have every hallmark of the cowardly and indiscriminate acts of terrorism of al-Qaeda and its associates.
These attacks are an affront to democracy and to the entire civilised world. They are an affront to people of every faith and religion in the world. We shall stand united with the international community in the fight against this appalling global terrorism.
| Next Section
| Index | Home Page |