Many people who hear of the Bill for the first time will be concerned that the intention is to allow GM, which is genetic modification, as we heard the Minister say. But, that's not the meaning of 'gene editing' at all.

At the moment, gene editing is part of genetic modification legislation, but it shouldn't be, because they are two very different things, and the intention of the bill is to separate these and to give the ability to scientists and food producers to do what happens naturally in nature. It’s not introducing new genes—that’s not the intention. It’s not some Splice horror film. Gene editing delivers what is already happening naturally in nature, but cuts out the long time that it takes, sometimes hundreds or thousands of years, for genes to cross-pollinate. Indeed, all the food that we eat today comes from plants that have been bred. There are 3,000 plants in use today that have come from extreme plant breeding—for example, pink grapefruit. If you look at seed catalogues, you will see different kinds of vegetables or fruit that breeders have selected and cross-pollinated in order to get a particular breed for sale.

New genes will not be introduced, but rather this will enable minor mutations or changes to DNA in a way that is specifically targeted. This happens naturally, and it can be achieved through screening millions of plants, for example, in order to find the mutation. But, for example, screening every blade of grass is not practical. This could also lead to changes in nutrition in food, making some foods more nutritious and securing resilience in food production.

The new Bill recommends changing the law in order to create a new category of PBO—the precision-bred organism. So, if one uses gene editing to make a new plant or animal, which could have happened naturally anyway, then this will be exempted from the GMO legislation. That’s the intention. This will also mean that smaller companies, such as producers in Wales, could have better opportunities to develop breeds of food, because, as things stand, the current regulation and the cost of making a bid for a right to do this under the GMO legislation is huge, which means that only large multinationals can do this, locking out indigenous Welsh businesses.

There’s also an environmental debate. We need more plant diversity in order to face the challenges of climate change. For example, this could mean that we could develop seeds that could cope in a drier climate with more drought. A recent example is the work of the Scottish agricultural institute, which has been looking at PRRS, which is the porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus. The Scottish institution has developed pigs that don’t suffer from this particular disease. And it’s possible to see this technology at work as scientists develop ways of tackling various diseases, such as leukaemia. So, the principle is one to support, and it’s regrettable that the Welsh Government hasn’t brought its own legislation forward in this area.

But, finally, I want to note that we are disappointed to see political games being played by the Government. There are valid concerns and that have been listed by the Minister as to the democratic failings of the Bill and the process undertaken, and this is being used, in turn, to justify opposing the LCM. But these same problems that have been highlighted today have also been highlighted with other LCMs in the past, but LCMs that the Government has supported and encouraged others to vote in favour of and support. It would be good to see some consistency from the Government when it comes to LCMs. Thank you very much.