§ Lord Beaumont of Whitleyasked Her Majesty's Government:
Why Members of Parliament should be charged the sum of £30 when lodging an objection to the introduction of a genetically modified crop with the Department of the Environment, Transport and the Regions. [HL2139]
§ Baroness HaymanNo charge is made to anyone objecting to the DETR or the FSA about the approval of GM crops or foods. If any new in formation is provided which calls into question the relevant safety assessments, this would be considered carefully and appropriate action taken. The Novel Foods applications process has, from December 1999, been made yet more open by the publication of UK applications for novel foods on the Internet.
The fee in question appears to relate to the statutory requirement under the national list regulations for making written representations about proposed national list decisions and applies equally to GM and conventional varieties. The requirement pre-dates the advent of GM plant varieties and was introduced to help meet the cost of operating the representations and hearings arrangements in the national list system.
11WAThe national list system does not itself address the safety aspects of GM traits. This is dealt with under quite separate legislation. No GM plant variety may be proposed for addition to the national list until the appropriate GM consents have been obtained.