§ Mr. BakerTo ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what powers the Government have to ban the import of genetically modified food. [74828]
§ Mr. Rooker[holding answer 5 March 1999]: Under Article 12 of the EC Novel Foods Regulation (258/97), a Member State may act to either temporarily restrict or suspend the trade in, and the use of, an approved novel food or food ingredient in its territory if as a result of new information, or a reassessment of existing information, it has detailed grounds for believing that its use endangers human health or the environment. In such cases it is required to immediately inform the European Commission of its decision. The European Commission then has three months from the date of referral to resolve the matter or adopt the Member State's proposed measure. Under the World Trade Organisation Agreement on the Application of Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures, WTO members have the right to take measures necessary for the protection of human, animal or plant life or health, provided that these are based on scientific principles and are not maintained without sufficient scientific evidence.