Rules change could lead to more GM in Europe

The European Commissioner for health and social policy, John Dalli, has been working behind the scenes to get an agreement which would allow each country to make its own decisions on whether to allow or ban particular products, provided they have passed EC safety tests.

Until now, everybody has had to agree on being for or against each product. Governments have tended to vote against because they did not want to risk being sued if they imposed a local ban on something allowed in the country next door.

Mr Dalli's solution is to write support for local policy variations into the law, on the basis that each area has its own decisions to make about whether co-existence with conventional and organic crops is possible. Yesterday, he outlined the detailed proposals.

On the face of it, the move makes GM crops more likely in this country, but those against them think it could be made could be made to work in their favour. There will still be complications to overcome in using GM without breaching EC rules on the level of contamination allowed in non-GM foods.