Monday 19th Jun 2000
Gerry Eckhoff
Media Release -- Environment

The Greens are subverting the course of democracy with their continued rhetoric on biotechnology issues, said ACT Agriculture spokesman Gerry Eckhoff.

Today the Greens criticised New Zealand trade officials and diplomats in Canada for distributing a questionnaire to Canadian scientists on behalf of NZ Lifesciences Network. The questionnaire requested information on how other countries have handled biotechnology issues.

“How can a Royal Commission reach a balanced decision for New Zealand’s future if the Greens continually censor views that differ from their own.

“Their record for contradiction is unequalled in Parliament. They espouse pro-cannabis smoking views yet they allocate Budget money to stop cigarette smokers. They say New Zealanders need to debate the biotechnology issue but they suppress opposing views..

“Their biggest flip-flop however is their labelling of the NZ Lifesciences Network questionnaire as “a classic Timberlands-style public relations campaign”. This from the party who orchestrated supermarket pamphlet drops, coined the term “Franken-food”, and organised a splinter group, the Wild Greens, as a militant protest squad. Shandwick International would be proud of their public relations record.

“This is clearly a case of the pot calling the kettle black.

“ACT has repeatedly stated that New Zealand’s future lies in science, especially agricultural science. While the pros and cons of biotechnology are yet to be debated it will be a public tragedy if the Greens successfully spin their opinion as unbiased, scientific fact.

“The only credibility the Greens are harming with this spurious attack is their own,” said Gerry Eckhoff

For more information visit ACT online at http://www.act.org.nz or contact the ACT Parliamentary Office at act@parliament.govt.nz.

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