"There is no requirement in the EU legislation about public consent. I continue to believe that this is a serious problem," Michael Meacher, UK Environment Minister
---

Government forced to apologise for failing to consult on GM crop trials
By Ben Russell
02 May 2001
The Independent, Wednesday 2 May 2001

The government was forced to apologise yesterday after a blunder over controversial plans for genetically modified crop trials.  Michael Meacher, the Environment minister, told MPs the system of trials may be reformed after officials failed to consult farmers over a GM trial in Lincolnshire. He told a debate in Westminster Hall that the site in Low Burnham was also wrongly identified on a map.

The admission comes amid controversy over the Government's decision to double the number of GM field trials.

Fifty-eight test sites for genetically modified crops were announced in March, producing fury from organic farmers, who said the sites risked contaminating their land.

Organic farmers are angry that the Government has ignored requests to leave a protective buffer zone between the GM tests sites and their properties.

Mr Meacher said yesterday: "There is no question that some mistakes were made at Low Burnham and it is an experience from which we need to learn."

He said he was committed to openness and transparency in the Government's farm-scale trials. But he added that it "did not happen in this case and I apologise on behalf of the department -- it should have and it failed.

"There is no requirement in the EU legislation about public consent. I continue to believe that this is a serious problem," he said.

In addition to the lack of consultation, Mr Meacher acknowledged that the wrong grid reference number for the site had been published.

"It is extremely unfortunate, and I could use another word, that both of these errors had occurred at the same site, and I do apologise for the confusion that that has caused local residents," he said.

Mr Meacher said it was essential that local communities, particularly organic farmers, needed to be told the location of farm evaluation sites as early as possible to allow enough time for genuine negotiation.

Mr Meacher was responding to complaints from Ian Cawsey, the Labour MP for Brigg and Goole, who also said the site was not suitable for a GM crop trial because the field was too close to the village, a beekeeping area and an organic farm.

Mr Cawsey told MPs that the trial was inappropriate for the strip-farmingtechniques used at Low Burnham.