Fiona Nash (NSW, National Party, Deputy Leader of the Nationals in the Senate) Share this | Hansard source

I can indicate to the chamber that the government does not support these amendments. I certainly appreciate the detail with which Senator Siewert has applied herself to this piece of potential legislation. But the issue at hand is that the Gene Technology Regulator is not removed as an appropriate government agency. I think we need to be very clear about that. Of course, in the appropriate circumstances when there are issues that are related to the Gene Technology Regulator, FSANZ will still do that. Part of the new definition states:

any other body or officer of the Commonwealth, a State, a Territory or New Zealand that the Authority considers has a particular interest in the relevant matter.

That would clearly call the Office of the Gene Technology Regulator into any of those issues surrounding GMO, GM and indeed—as I indicated in my comments earlier—would future-proof any related matter, rather than having it restricted to those two fields.