Fianna Fail did not act on a pre-election promise to introduce a moratorium on the development of genetically modified organisms (GMOs) because EU legislation prevented any member-state acting unilaterally to ban them, the Dail has been told.
The Minister for the Environment, Mr Dempsey, said that when he took office "I was advised by my Department that under EU legislation it is not possible for Ireland, or any memberstate of the EU, unilaterally to impose any form of general ban on GMOs".
He also announced during a two-hour debate on GMOs that the promised public debate on genetically modified foods would be a two-part debate, and would take place before an independent panel of four people. It will be chaired by Mr Turlough O'Donnell QC, a member of the Law Reform Commission and a former Lord Justice of Appeal in Northern Ireland.
The other panel members are Prof Dervilla Donnelly, emeritus professor of chemistry at UCD, Mr Sean Cromien, former secretary of the Department of Finance and an ornithologist, and Ms Evelyn Owens, chairwoman of the National Centre for Partnership and former chairwoman of the Labour Court.
However, Mr John Gormley (Green, Dublin South-East) criticised the Minister's claim that he didn't know what the EU rules were before he made his election promise. The Minister was not specific about the rules. "What are they?" he asked.
The Green TD said that a case had been brought which showed that countries could make their own decisions. Austria and Luxembourg had done this and it was a pity, he said, that the Government did not support Austria when it called for a moratorium.
He said that the Green Party was opposed to the uncontained growth of GM foods and said they should be banned until they were properly and openly tested for toxicity in the same way that drugs are tested.
Fine Gael's environment spokesman, Mr Alan Dukes, said that while he accepted the Minister's explanation for not acting on a pre-election promise, "if he had taken even five minutes to think about it he may not have made it had he or whoever wrote it been motivated by long-term consumer safety and not short-term political advantage".
He believed it would be appropriate for the Government and the governments of other memberstates now to consider a moratorium on the commercial planting of genetically modified crops at EU level.
"The fact that it is not possible for a member-state to legally operate unilaterally in this regard in the face of concerns which exist suggests it is time member-states considered introducing a moratorium across the EU."
Mr Dukes outlined the scientific developments from insulin to vaccines for hepatitis B and said that while the public was prepared to accept "fairly readily the palpable and obvious benefits of genetic engineering in the medical and healthcare sectors, there is a reluctance to accept the use of these techniques".
Mr Eamon Gilmore, Labour's environment spokesman, said the Minister's failure to act on his promise "is an excuse to escape from a pre-election commitment which is not convenient now that his party is in Government".
He rejected the Minister's suggestion that his hands were tied by by the EU regarding a ban on genetically modified foods and products. "I know of no European Union law which states that this State should approve either trials or the production of genetically modified food."
He said there were a number of principles which should underpin a public debate - the right of the consumer to food safety, the need to ensure the environment and ecosystems were not damaged by new or old food production methods, the need for the public to be informed and the need for public policy to be formulated.
"The trolley pusher in the supermarket who buys groceries needs to be actively engaged in the debate, which should be conducted on radio and television in an educational rather than entertainment format."