HC Deb 03 March 1999 vol 326 cc749-50W
Mr. Dafis

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if she will make a statement on her Department's role in drawing up the recent joint ministerial written statement on genetically modified food. [74280]

Clare Short

My Department was not involved in drawing up the recent joint ministerial written statement on genetically modified food which focused on concerns within UK and Europe.

We will be publishing a paper later this month on our work relating to genetically modified organisms and how we propose to assist developing countries to strengthen their capacity to handle these important issues.

Mr. Dafis

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what research has been(a) carried out and (b) commissioned by her Department into the economic impact of the growing of genetically modified crops on small-scale farmers in developing countries. [74283]

Total DFID bilateral programme to Southern African countries
£000
Botswana Lesotho Namibia South Africa Swaziland Total
1987–88 7,302 3,993 1,421 3,109 2,487 18,312
1988–89 6,886 5,356 2,129 5,040 3,099 22,510
1989–90 7,113 5,497 2,056 5,423 2,764 22,853
1990–91 6,916 5,859 1,706 8,093 2,733 25,307
1991–92 8,963 6,454 2,366 9,325 2,943 30,051
1992–93 7,199 7,194 3,637 11,558 3,296 32,884
1993–94 6,123 5,379 2,979 14,504 3,087 32,072
1994–95 5,247 5,124 3,569 15,631 2,574 32,145
1995–96 4,005 6,600 4,148 16,865 2,086 33,704
1996–97 4,247 3,911 4,092 18,133 2,733 33,116
1997–98 4,115 4,985 4,482 24,889 3,447 41,918
Clare Short

My Department has not carried out any research into the economic impact of growing genetically modified crops on small-scale farmers in developing countries. However we have commissioned relevant studies from University of Birmingham and the International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics, to assess the environmental and social risks of introducing new or transgenic plant types into the traditional pigeon pea seed production systems of small-scale farmers in India and, from University of Swansea, to undertake social and economic assessments of the potential impact of genetically male tilapia and transgenic tilapia on fish fanning in Philippines.

The results of these studies will be published.