§ Mr. DalyellTo ask the President of the Board of Trade, pursuant to the Minister of State's letter of 23 August to the Member for Linlithgow, what assessments she has made of proposals she has received from(a) the Gaia Foundation and (b) other organisations concerning the European Commission's proposed directive on the Legal Protection of Biotechnological Inventions; and what reply her Department has sent. [12860]
§ Mr. BattleConsultation on the proposed directive has so far involved written representations from well over 100 interest groups, including those concerned with health care, the environment, animal welfare and the Church. There has also been a special meeting of the Standing Advisory Committee on Industrial Property which advises the Government on matters relating to patents, at which the Gaia Foundation and others gave their views on the826W proposed Directive. Following this meeting, the Gaia Foundation, the Women's Environmental Network and others met my officials at the Patent Office to discuss the directive. During this consultation, there has been ongoing discussions with all other Government Departments having an interest in the directive.