Glyphosate should be approved for use in Scotland

Dear Sir,
I am writing in reference to the article in The Scottish Farmer entitled ‘Stark warning on loss of glyphosate’, dated May 27, 2017, as I would like to clearly state the Scottish Government’s support for the continued use of glyphosate.
We are aware of the importance of glyphosate's use in Scottish agriculture in relation to pre-harvest and weed control. Scotland's glyphosate use patterns continue to be monitored using data collected by Science and Advice for Scottish Agriculture, a Division of the Scottish Government.
The Scottish Government's position on the use of glyphosate continues to be guided by science and by advice from our Chief Scientific Advisor for Rural Affairs, Food and Environment. We also take evidence-based advice from Health Protection Scotland, our national experts, and also from Public Health England, which routinely assesses scientific literature on this topic, and keeps it under review.
We are also aware of the importance of effective pesticides, and consider that they should be authorised where the scientific evidence shows they do not pose unacceptable risks to human health, animals and the environment. The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) co-ordinated a detailed review of health and environment data relating to glyphosate's use and identified no safety concerns.
The European Chemicals Agency's Committee for Risk Assessment (RAC) recently reviewed extensive data on glyphosate, and concluded that the available scientific evidence did not meet the criteria to classify glyphosate as a known carcinogen. RAC's opinion is consistent with the EFSA conclusion on the carcinogenicity of glyphosate. Our view, therefore, is that glyphosate should be approved for use in Scotland.