14Scientific Committee

(1) The Food Authority shall constitute Scientific Committee which shall consist of the Chairpersons of the Scientific Panels and six independent scientific experts not belonging or

affiliated to any of the Scientific Panels.

(2) The Scientific Committee shall be responsible for providing the scientific opinions to the Food Authority, and shall have the powers, where necessary, of organising public hearings.

(3) The Scientific Committee shall be responsible for the general co-ordination necessary to ensure consistency of the scientific opinion procedure and in particular with regard to the adoption of working procedures and harmonisation of working methods of the Scientific Panels.

(4) The Scientific Committee shall provide opinions on multi-sectoral issues falling within the competence of more than one Scientific Panel, and on issues which do not fall within the competence of any of the Scientific Panels.

(5) Wherever necessary, and particularly, in the case of subjects which do not fall within the competence of any of the Scientific Panel, the Scientific Committee shall set up working groups and in such cases, it shall draw on the expertise of those working groups when establishing scientific opinions.