The Scottish Government

Inquiry into the health aspects of GM crop trials - Scottish Executive Response

The Scottish Parliament's Health and Community Care Committee (HCCC) undertook an inquiry into the health impact of GM crops following receipt of a petition. The HCCC published its report on 14 January 2003. In its report the HCCC argued that the basis for risk assessment is unsound and not in accordance with the precautionary principle - it also questioned the competence of the statutory Committee, ACRE, to assess the health implications of applications for deliberate release. The Scottish Executive has now published a substantive response which rejects the Committee's conclusions as being fundamentally flawed.

The Executive's response stresses Ministers authorised the farm-scale evaluations only after a wide and rigorous range of safety assessments had been completed to the satisfaction of independent expert advisers. No substantive evidence has emerged which might call into question the safety of any of the crop trials. The available scientific evidence supports the view that the FSE programme is well-founded, well-regulated, and designed to increase our knowledge about GM crops, while taking proportionate measures to protect the public against potential adverse effects.

The Executive is required to reach a view on new applications for the release of genetically modified organisms (GMOs) - such as the FSE trials - on a case-by-case basis using the criteria laid down in Directive 2001/18/EC. Such assessments involve particular consideration of the possible risks to human health and the environment. The Executive's view is informed by advice from a number of independent expert groups and by specific scientific concerns arising from public consultation. The views of the HCCC members are clearly at odds with those of these advisers. It would, however, be irresponsible of the Executive to ignore the advice of the expert bodies whose role is precisely to provide such advice. In particular the Executive supports ACRE's case by case approach in considering the risks associated with the release of GMOs. This approach enables factors such as the variety of GMO involved and the proposed location and scale of the release to be taken into account. The Health Committee has ignored the volume of evidence recording confidence in ACRE's approach to risk assessment and the quality of scientific advice it offers Ministers.

In contrast, as this response makes clear, the HCCC report is not supported by evidence and, as such, reflects the Committee's acknowledged inability " to deliberate definitively on the complex scientific questions that GM crop trials raise or to adjudicate on competing interpretations of scientific evidence. The Committee has not given sufficient attention to the evidence it has heard on the science of GM crops, genetics more generally and the precautions which Government and its advisers have recommended and put in place. A Report which should have explained a matter of concern to the public has served to obscure the facts and heighten concern.

For further information see:

Full Executive response to the HCCC report