Four papers have been published to initiate the debate:

- TONY JUNIPER, executive director of FRIENDS OF THE EARTH, says: 'Across Europe, consumers are demanding the right to choose GM-free food. The only way to guarantee this right is to have a tough labelling system in place.'

- GREGORY CONKO, director of food safety policy at the COMPETITIVE ENTERPRISE INSTITUTE, says: 'The only thing mandatory labelling is likely to accomplish is to raise the cost of GM products and add to the groundless fears many consumers have about GM foods.'

- LINDA SMITH, of the UK government's DEPARTMENT FOR ENVIRONMENT, FOOD AND RURAL AFFAIRS, says: 'The government will continue to seek workable and enforceable legislation that provides enhanced and genuine consumer choice.'

- TONY GILLAND, science and society director at the INSTITUTE OF IDEAS, says: 'Pointless labelling requirements and the rhetoric of consumer choice are little more than an attempt on the part of the European Union to hedge its bets. It is time that politicians came off the fence and presented a political motivation for agricultural biotechnology.'

Several reader responses have also been published, and the debate is open to contributions from anybody.

To submit a reader response, click on 'Join the debate' in the right-hand menu.

If you have any enquiries about this online debate, or would like further details, contact:

SANDY STARR at spiked

I think boards should link together for a smoother flow of information.