SCOTTISH ministers have been urged to back a new UK law on gene editing, with Boris Johnson's environment secretary promising it will “tackle the challenges of our age”.

George Eustice has pleaded with counterparts in Edinburgh to overcome their reluctance and back the relatively new technology.

However, the offer to legislate in a devolved area with the Genetic Technology (Precision Breeding) Bill risks sparking a constitutional row. 

The Scottish Government’s position on gene editing is to stay aligned with the EU’s position.

But Scotland’s ban on genetically modified organisms (GMO), means that gene editing is also effectively banned, as a 2018 ruling from the European Court of Justice determined the two should be regulated in the same way.

In a letter to the First Minister and Scottish environment minister, Màiri McAllan, Mr Eustice, urged them to accept that precision breeding techniques, which include gene editing, are “different to genetic modification”.

He also pointed out that the EU has recently launched a consultation on “bringing forward similar legislation for plants and food and feed produced from New Genomic Technologies” while countries such as the USA, Japan and Argentina “have already made changes to remove precision bred organisms and food and feed from GMO regulations.

In the letter – which was also signed by Scottish Secretary Alister Jack –Mr Eustice said: “Precision breeding technologies have great potential to enhance food security and help this country and communities around the world to adapt to the impacts of climate change and reduce agricultural greenhouse gas emissions, enabling natural resources to be used more sustainably and efficiently.“

He said the technology could improve crop resistance to pests and diseases, reduce the need for pesticides, increase crop yield, and free up land for alternative uses.

“Precision breeding techniques also have the potential to improve the health and welfare of animals and improve the sustainability and resilience of farming systems.

"The legislation that we are introducing will allow us to use genetic resources to tackle the challenges of our age,” Mr Eustice promised.

Gene editing involves switching genes on and off by snipping out a small section of the plant’s DNA, whereas genetic modification involves putting genes in, sometimes from a completely different species.

There is widespread support for the technology from academics and industry.

The Roslin Institute, the James Hutton Institute, and the National Farmers Union of Scotland have all backed new legislation on gene editing.

Mr Eustice said the industry in Scotland was worried about “being left behind in this innovation”.

The Scottish Government has previously expressed anxiety about the “potential impacts of the UK Internal Market Act in this area.” 

While agriculture and legislation around GMOs is devolved, Scottish ministers have previously expressed fears over the remit of the controversial Internal Market Bill introduced by the Tories after Brexit.

That could mean that even if ministers in Edinburgh refuse to decouple precision technology from GMO laws, food that’s been gene-edited could still be sold north of the border. 

Deputy First Minister John Swinney told the BBC: "The government wants to make sure we operate to the highest environmental standards and that we protect the formidable strengths in Scottish agriculture that exist today, have been stewarded for so many years, and we want to maintain for the future."

The Scottish Green MSP Mark Ruskell said his party would "scrutinise the specifics of the UK Bill with interest."

He added: "It is of great concern that the post-Brexit internal market power grab act means that any change to regulations in England will impact us here in Scotland, regardless of the position adopted by the Scottish Parliament, even though these powers are devolved.”

Aileen McHarg, a Professor of Public Law and Human Rights at Durham University, was sceptical of Mr Eustice's offer. "Nice of the UK Govt to pretend that the devolved govts have much of a choice here," she tweeted.

"It's almost as if they realise that allowing English gene-edited crops to be sold in Scotland/Wales even though the devolved institutions don't want it might be a teensy bit politically unpopular."