NDP GMO bill defeated
By Boundary Sentinel
New Democrat Agriculture Critic, Alex Atamanenko MP (BC Southern Interior) chastised the Harper Conservatives and their Liberal counterparts for defeating his genetically modified organisms bill in the House of Commons.
“Once again we see these two major parties putting the interests of their big business buddies ahead of everyday farmers whose livelihoods can be destroyed in an instant from contamination by genetically engineered (GE) seeds and crops,” stated Atamanenko.
“It has been an honour for me to bring this important debate to the forefront in the House of Commons. While the fight for C-474 has been lost, New Democrats will continue to fight for Canadian farmers and consumers.”
The bill was up for a vote on Feb. 9 when it was defeated. Bill C-474 called for an amendment to the federal Seeds Regulations Act that requires “an analysis of potential harm to export markets” before federal permission can grant the sale of a new GM seed. All Conservative Members of Parliament voted against C-474, and out of the 58 Liberals who voted, 40 voted against.
Atamanenko introduced the bill in the spring of 2010.
For more information on the impacts of GE seeds and GMO’s:
http://www.policyalternatives.ca/publications/monitor/importance-bill-c-474
