Trevor Sargent (Dublin North, Green Party)
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Question 67: To ask the Minister for Agriculture and Food her views on whether Austria's ban on genetically modified crops, upheld at the December 2006 European Council, leaves the way open for Ireland and regions within Ireland to establish similar restrictions; her further views on whether such restrictions would be consistent with EU law; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [9135/07]

Mary Coughlan (Donegal South West, Fianna Fail)
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I do not accept that the outcome of the vote in the Environment Council on the EU Commission proposal requesting the Austrian authorities to lift their ban on the cultivation of two authorised GM maize crops alters the current EU legislative position on the arbitrary banning of the cultivation of authorised GM crops in Member States.

The rules governing the production and use of GM crops within the Community are set down in EU legislation that has been jointly adopted by the European Parliament and the Council. This legislation is binding on all Member States and does not provide for the declaration of a GM free country or region or the banning of authorised GM crops. There are, however, options available to restrict the growing of GM crops within regions of a country. One option is the concept of voluntarily developed GM free regions, where there is a voluntary agreement among all growers in a region not to grow a GM crop or crops. A second option is to seek a derogation from the European Commission that, on the basis of sound scientific evidence, coexistence of GM crops with non GM crops is not possible in certain regions in respect of certain named crops. The cultivation of these crops can then be legitimately prohibited if the case made is accepted by the Commission.

The provision also exists for a Member State to enact the safeguard clause, i.e where a Member State has detailed grounds on the basis of scientific evidence to show that a GMO constitutes a risk to human health or the environment, then that Member State may provisionally restrict or prohibit the growing of that GM crop in its territory or in a region within its territory. The Commission must be then immediately informed and will decide within 60 days if the ban is scientifically based and give its decision.

Any proposals to introduce bans on genetically modified crops would have to be consistent with the legislative position.