Member

I was interested in what the noble Lord, Lord Trees, said, and I agree entirely with him that we also need swift action on precision breeding in animals. We can all see the tremendous potential benefits of improved animal welfare and reduction or elimination of a host of awful diseases which currently affect livestock. Work is well under way on gene editing in pigs to eliminate porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome—PRRS —which costs the world about $3 billion per annum in destroyed animals. We could cut antibiotic use even further in the UK, although we are doing quite well at the moment. However, I am concerned that the Government might be tempted to go no further than gene editing of crops and stop short of encouraging gene-edited animals. As we see public acceptance that gene editing in plants is delivering the expected benefits, will the Minister confirm that the Government will push on with genetic editing in animals?