§ Jackie BallardTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what plans he has to consult local authorities concerning GM trial sites. [127794]
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§ Mr. MeacherCurrent legislation does not at present include provision for consulting local authorities over the location of GM trial sites.
However, the Government have made clear their commitment to an open and transparent process for informing people about the trials. Locations of all proposed sites for research trials are advertised before sowing commences. Full details of the locations of farm scale evaluation sites are on the DETR website, along with detailed information about the programme. A number of public meetings were held during the spring, to which parish and ward councillors with a trial site in their area were invited. We remain committed to making as much information available to local people as possible and are currently drawing on lessons from the spring in planning for future planting rounds, including earlier notification.