THE state's moratorium on genetically-modified crops will remain in place after a successful disallowance motion from Greens MLC Mark Parnell put an end to the state government's attempt to scrap the ban on mainland SA through a ministerial regulation rather than legislation.
Labor and SA-Best elected to support Mr Parnell's motion in the Upper House on Wednesday, claiming the government was not following parliamentary due process.
Opposition primary industries spokesperson Eddie Hughes claimed Primary Industries Minister Tim Whetstone had been acting "like a bull in a china shop" to get the ban lifted, leaving Labor with no other option but to back the disallowance motion.
But Grain Producers SA chief executive officer Caroline Rhodes was highly critical of the Opposition.
"It is now clear that politics has triumphed over policy within the Labor Party, with no clear way forward for the state's agricultural sector," Ms Rhodes said.
"Hiding behind a strawman argument about regulatory process doesn't change the fact that the state government is precisely following the intent of the act, as introduced by the former Rann government in 2004."
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