We know things may have seemed quiet, but we’ve been very busy behind the scenes preparing for our case.
We’ve now completed the second evidence stage of our judicial review. We’ve submitted additional witness statements and supporting material – over 800 pages in total – responding further to the Government’s case. It’s a substantial body of evidence, reflecting both the depth and breadth of concern around these regulations.
The process now shifts to the legal teams and the Court, who will decide which parts of this evidence are admitted and form part of the final case to be argued at the hearing.
In the meantime, the Government is continuing to issue ‘release notices’ – which allow experimental trials of gene-edited precision bred organisms (PBOs) in England – as well as marketing notices, which confirm PBO status in preparation for their sale. We’ve made these easy to find (and, unlike the government website, searchable) in our PBO field trial tracker and in our new PBO food and feed tracker. We expect to see more of these ahead of the hearing.
We’ve also seen reports of public investment in new industrial (rather than agricultural) uses for PBO plants. These also fall within the new regulations. One example is a £2.4 million grant for researchers to develop gene-edited dandelions as a domestic source of rubber. This is an absurd notion, and one that aligns closely with the concerns raised in our Turbo Charging Nature? report. We’ve published a short addendum on this development, which you can read here.
We’ve also released new reports looking at what comes next for gene editing in the UK, including micro-organisms and farm animals. It’s not happy reading, but forewarned is forearmed.
Our hearing on 12-13 May has had some coverage in the press. Check out articles in the Riverford Organic magazine Wicked Leeks, at Farming UK and in The Grocer magazine, each picking up different aspects of the case. You can also read the Leigh Day press release here.
The hearing will be open to the public. If you are in London and would like to attend for all or part of it, you are welcome. The proceedings are formal and the advocacy is technical, but there is something powerful about simply bearing witness. We may not have the courtroom number until closer to the date (it will be posted here, under the London Administrative Court option), but we’ll share details as soon as we have them.
Finally, we continue to fundraise to support the legal fees for the case. If you can contribute – for the first time, or again – we would be very grateful. And please do share our appeal with friends, family and your wider community.
Thank you for standing with us.