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Following a recent poll which revealed that 35 per cent of Europeans believe
the statement “ordinary tomatoes do not contain genes, while genetically
modified tomatoes do,” a European Union committee of scientific experts
concludes that scientific research should be much higher on the European
political agenda. The 11-member group, appointed by EU research commissioner
Philippe Busquin, calls for an urgent drive to get more women and young people
interested in science to stop future European “skills shortages”. It also
advocates more speculative research projects, which although riskier could have
better pay-offs.