Nationwide discussion on GE launched

3.00pm

Decisions about biotechnology are too important to be left solely to government, business or science, Bioethics Council chairman Sir Paul Reeves said today.

Sir Paul was launching the council's first nationwide public dialogue -- on the use of human genes in other organisms.

In the keynote speech in Dunedin to the New Zealand Bioethics Conference, former Governor-General Sir Paul said New Zealand needed a better way than the genetic engineering (GE) debate to discuss the cultural, ethical and spiritual issues that arise from the rapid development of biotechnologies.

The Government established the Bioethics Council in 2002 to meet public concern that decision-making was not adequately addressing such issues arising from GE and biotechnology.

"The Royal Commission (on GE) did a great job in very difficult circumstances, but I don't think we want to have a Royal Commission every time a new technology presents critical ethical questions and I don't think anyone really benefits from a shouting match," Sir Paul said.

"The Bioethics Council was set up to help New Zealanders have these crucial discussions in a way that enables us hear others' viewpoints as we make up our own minds about very difficult questions."

Some of those questions went to the heart of what it was to be human and where the line was drawn between what was possible, and what as a nation New Zealanders believed was right," he said.

The national dialogue on human genes will run until the end of April and will feature a series of face-to-face dialogue events and hui, an online forum and a submission process.

A national advertising campaign in newspapers, on radio and the internet begins tomorrow.

The council had also undertaken focus group research on New Zealanders' attitudes towards human genes, and commissioned essays on the topic from a wide range of interested parties, it said in a statement today.

- NZPA