Government Caves in over GM Seeds

The Government has been forced to admit that its attempt to speed up the commercial development of genetically modified (GM) crop seeds is illegal. The humiliating U-turn followed a legal challenge by Friends of the Earth (FOE) and an all-party group of MPs - Norman Baker MP (Lib Dem, Lewes), John Randall (Con, Uxbridge) and Alan Simpson (Lab, Nottingham South).

The Ministry of Agriculture (MAFF) had planned to short-circuit the statutory seed approval system, taking at least two years off the time needed to bring GM crops to the marketplace. MAFF will now need to amend the legislation -- which it hopes to do by the end of July -- to allow GM seed commercialisation to be fast-tracked. However, FOE believes that any attempts to speed up certification could be against European law.

Charles Secrett, Director of Friends of the Earth said: "We are delighted that the Government has caved in rather than confront us in court. But MAFF's illegal plot to speed up the commercial development of GM crops shows just how far some elements of Government will go to help the big biotech firms succeed in covering the British countryside in GM crops".