Departmental Media Releases

Joint Communiqué - Gene Technology Ministerial Council

The 8th meeting of the Gene Technology Ministerial Council was held in Canberra on 22 May.

PDF printable version of Joint Communiqué - Gene Technology Ministerial Council (PDF 22 KB)

22 May 2009

The 8th meeting of the Gene Technology Ministerial Council was held in Canberra today. The meeting was chaired by the Hon Ian Macdonald MLC, NSW Minister for Primary Industries, Energy, Mineral Resources and State Development.

The meeting provided an opportunity for the Ministerial Council to meet with the new Gene Technology Regulator (the Regulator), Dr Joe Smith. Dr Smith brings a wealth of experience to the role and was previously the Chief Executive Officer of the Australian Pesticides and Veterinary Medicines Authority.

The meeting commended the work of the previous Regulator, Dr Sue Meek.

The Council acknowledged the work of the Office of the Gene Technology Regulator during the Equine Influenza outbreak, in particular the speed of response in considering the GM vaccine that assisted in the effective management and eradication of the disease. The joint government effort has been recognised as a world class exotic disease emergency response.

In light of this experience, Ministerial Council members approved proposed amendments to the Guidelines for emergency response under the Gene Technology Act 2000 and the Gene Technology Agreement. The amendments further improve the operation of the Guidelines.

Also, the review of the Gene Technology Regulations 2001 being undertaken by the Regulator was supported. The purpose of the review is to ensure that the classification of dealings with genetically modified organisms in the low risk and exempt categories remains current. The review is based on the operational experience of the Office of the Gene Technology Regulator, with input from the regulated community and States and Territories.

Ministerial Council members gave policy approval to the Regulator to commence the drafting of amendments. Following the completion of the drafting, the Regulator will again seek Ministerial Council approval before the amendments are made by the

Governor-General. It is anticipated that the amendments will be made in the first half of 2010.

The Council received a report from the Regulator about the work program since the commencement of the scheme. The highlights included the issuing of 72 Dealings Involving Intentional Release licences, 463 Dealings Not Involving Intentional Release licences and 2780 other authorisations since the commencement of the scheme.

Media contact: Kay McNiece, 0412 132 585