Genetic Technology (Precision Breeding) Bill (Fifth sitting)

Katherine Fletcher Excerpts

Tuesday 5th July 2022 Public Bill Committees

The only distinction made in the Bill is between processes that could have occurred naturally or through traditional breeding techniques and those that could not. That is where things start to get difficult. As the Labour party, scientific societies and stakeholder groups have said a number of times, that is a weak definition, which could feasibly include just about anything—that is what Professor Henderson admitted. [Interruption.] The hon. Member for South Ribble looks sceptical.

[Katherine Fletcher (South Ribble) (Con)]

I am not looking sceptical. You are describing nature. You are describing the fact that bits of genetic material will get swapped around in a series of different vehicles, especially in plants such as plasmids. What you are asking us to do is—

[The Chair]

Order. The hon. Lady has been here long enough now. I am not proposing anything; the hon. Gentleman is.

--- Later in debate ---

[Jo Churchill]

It has to go through the regulatory framework to be defined as precision bred, to ensure that any of those precise changes are changes that could have occurred in nature, because we are describing what would happen in nature.

[Katherine Fletcher]

In nature there will be random deletions continually within the genome, so the idea of sections of DNA being taken out or added in is part of the process.

[Jo Churchill]

I thank my hon. Friend.