The rejection by Lyttelton people in the recent Holmes telecast on TV One of the Green Party's scaremongering on genetic modification is but the tip of an iceberg of public realisation of the extent to which they have been misled by the Greens' hysteria. This has been stated today by Terry Dunleavy, national convener of Bluegreens, an independent advisory group set up to advise the National Party on environment and heritage issues.

"The Greens can't continue to conceal the fact that they pressured the Labour Alliance government into a Royal Commission on Genetic Modification, and welcomed its appointment. But they have behaved like spoiled attention-seeking brats since the commission recommended that New Zealand should proceed with gene technology, albeit with caution.

"Here are some simple, stark facts about GM as it relates to food showing the numbers of people who -
… Die from food poisoning every year (US alone): 9,000
… Children who die from hunger every day: 32,000
… Suffer chronic malnutrition: 800 million
… Have died from eating GM food, in the history of the world: 0

"What right have we in the well-fed state of New Zealand to turn our backs on technology which has the potential not only to reduce malnutrition and starvation, but, in addition to cure human ills, and solve environmental problems like sterilising forest-chomping opossums an reducing, if not eliminating green gas emissions by sheep and cattle.

"Bluegreens welcome the forthright and commonsense declaration by National leader Bill English that a National Government will uphold the recommendations of the Royal Commission. This is consistent with National's philosophy of being guided by science in its approach to environmental protection and conservation.

"New Zealanders who are willing to face facts rather than being browbeaten by the emotional claptrap and downright fear being propagated by the red Greens, will agree with Bluegreens that the best safeguard for a happy, healthy and prosperous future for us and those who come after us, is a vote for National, the only alternative to Labour," said Mr Dunleavy.

"Comparison of the policies of the two major parties on these issues, shows clearly and decisively that National stands for sensible action, while Labour sits for idle talk - and the Greens, as Bill English has said, are irrelevant.

"And for worried pessimists who fret that the Green tail may wag a Labour dog, there is a sure and simple answer: vote National on the party list. All it will take is 50.1% of us to make Labour as irrelevant as the Greens," said Mr Dunleavy.

Website: www.bluegreens.org.nz

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