Ewen-Street Ian: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers 
Ewen-Street Ian: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers 
[Volume:616;Page:12004] 
11.  
IAN EWEN-STREET (Green) 
 to the  
Minister of Agriculture 
: Will the Government follow the lead of the United States state of Vermont and introduce legislation that holds biotechnology corporations liable for unintended contamination of conventional or organic crops by genetically engineered plant materials; if not why not? 
Hon DAMIEN O'CONNOR (Associate Minister of Agriculture) 
 on behalf of the 
 Minister of Agriculture 
: 
 No because we already have liability provisions now. 
Ian Ewen-Street 
: Is the Minister saying that in the event that a conventional or organic crop becomes contaminated by GE pollen or plant material the biotechnology corporations should be able to sue individual farmers for unintentionally growing the corporations’ seed; if so why? 
Hon DAMIEN O'CONNOR 
: No I am not saying that. What I am saying is that under the current provisions of the Hazardous Substances and New Organisms Act the strict civil liability rule enables individuals who may claim that they have been harmed by GE crops to seek compensation without needing to prove negligence for harm caused by activities involving those new organisms. Those liability provisions are in place for individuals who may feel they have been detrimentally harmed by those crops. 
Jill Pettis 
: Does the Minister have confidence in the system put in place for deciding whether GM crops will be planted? 
Hon DAMIEN O'CONNOR 
: Yes. The system was devised after a comprehensive royal commission investigation into genetic modification. GMOs cannot be grown in New Zealand without the approval of the Environmental Risk Management Authority and all applications are considered on a case by case basis with consideration given to the national interest. 
Hon Brian Donnelly 
: If it is the Government’s intention not to allow local government units any say on whether GE crops are grown in their territories why does the Government not spell that out clearly in legislation rather than putting local authorities at risk of making a decision based on the recent Dr Royden Somerville advice and then facing huge litigation costs? 
Hon DAMIEN O'CONNOR 
: My understanding is that local government will not be liable in any way for any such claims of liability. 
Ian Ewen-Street 
: Is the Minister aware that Western Australia is to ban the growing of all genetically engineered crops in that state so that its farmers will obtain a market advantage for their crops and why is this Government unwilling to give New Zealand farmers a similar advantage? 
Hon DAMIEN O'CONNOR 
: This Government considers that there may be advantages in the technology in the future. That is why it has put in place a very robust process of consideration through the Environmental Risk Management Authority where all the interests of producers in the country—both now and in the future—will be considered before any approval is given. 
Ian Ewen-Street 
: In that case would the Minister support any move by New Zealand local authorities to protect their local farmers and provide economic advantage to their region by declaring themselves to be exclusion zones for the growing of GE crops; if not why not? 
Hon DAMIEN O'CONNOR 
: I think it is considered by all that we do not know enough about all the aspects of GM. That is why we would not expect local authorities to have the wisdom to make such decisions and thereby to make themselves liable for them. That is why at this point they will not be liable. The decisions will be made by the Environmental Risk Management Authority and the Hazardous Substances and New Organisms Act currently has liability provisions within it. 
Ian Ewen-Street 
: Can the Minister name one genetically engineered food product that could be produced in New Zealand for which there is any consumer demand in any of our major export markets? 
Hon DAMIEN O'CONNOR 
: I am not a market expert. There are a number of crops grown internationally—canola maize soya beans—that all have market potential. In Spain the market price for GM and non-GM maize is exactly the same. There are market opportunities for those crops and I am sure the member will be conscious of that.