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Dear colleague,

Please find attached the January issue of Strasbourg Round-up which I hope you will find of interest.
Wishing you all the best for the festive season.

With best wishes
Gary Titley
.......................................
Euro Office
16 Spring Lane
Radcliffe
Manchester
M26 2TQ
Tel 0161 724 4008
Fax 0161 724 4009
www.garytitley.com
 

“Peace is holy”

2008 is the European Year of Intercultural Dialogue and to mark its launch, the Grand Mufti of Syria, the country's senior Muslim cleric, addressed the European Parliament’s first Strasbourg session of the year. Rejecting the idea of a holy war, he declared that peace was holy.

He went on to call for peace and tolerance between cultures and religions, saying that there was only one civilisation, that of mankind. “Religions - whether Christianity, Judaism or Islamism - have given culture its moral values, by placing the Supreme Being, holiness and human dignity at the centre of everything,” he added.

Speaking on behalf of Labour MEPs, Gary Titley welcomed the Grand Mufti's message of tolerance. He said it tied in closely with the work he had recently been spearheading on diversity and integration within different cultures and religions in Europe. Last autumn, the EPLP produced a DVD ‘Being Muslim and European,’ which premiered at Labour Party Conference. And this month it was shown in Strasbourg to all Socialist MEPs and was very well received. It can now be viewed online at: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gXRkXtmWYMs.

Securing children’s rights throughout the EU

No-one likes to see children being exploited or facing unnecessary risks. Knowing that cross-border cooperation is essential to combat the growing trans-national threats to child safety, Labour MEPs this month voted for measures to ensure that children are better protected across Europe,

They called for an end to sexual exploitation of children by ensuring that sex tourism is covered by extra-territorial laws and that an early warning system on child abductions is introduced. Children will also be protected from known sex offenders through the exchange of criminal record information across EU member states about those who have convictions for abusing children.

The new EU Reform Treaty makes the protection of children’s rights one of the EU's key objectives for the first time ever. Welcoming this ground-breaking step, Gary said: “The Reform Treaty will help to ensure that EU laws and policies are child-proofed, and contribute to promoting children’s rights and interests. The sooner it is ratified by all 27 member states, including Britain, the better”

Health and safety at work

In yet another example of how the European Parliament is working to improve people's lives, MEPs voted this month to adopt a health and safety at work report, drafted by Labour member Glenis Willmott. The report focuses on protecting workers from a new generation of health threats at work. Labour MEPs are pressing for a Europe-wide drive against new, cancer-causing chemicals in the workplace as well as measures to combat musculo-skeletal disorders such as back pain and repetitive strain injuries.

Glenis Willmott’s report also highlights the issue of violence at work, which is a serious problem in the UK. The British Crime Survey showed that over a 12-month period there were around 339,000 threats of violence and 317,000 physical assaults by the public on British workers.

Labour MEPs are also calling for special attention to be paid to disabled workers and vulnerable groups, including migrant workers, young, ageing and temporary agency workers. Studies show that for these workers the rate of occupational accidents and diseases is much higher than the EU average. Most of them are at the lower end of the income scale and at higher risk because they lack training and awareness of either their rights or the risks involved in their work.

European Parliament votes for cheaper loans

There was more good news for consumers this month, as MEPs voted to open up Europe's consumer credit market to help 500 million people get better and cheaper loans. Whether buying a new car or washing machine, consumers will now be able to shop around Europe for the best credit deals. Lenders will be forced to provide enough information for consumers to make an informed choice, while safeguards have been built in to ensure that companies across Europe don't lend irresponsibly.

There will also be guaranteed EU-wide rights including the right to cancel and the right to pay off a loan early. However, an exemption for credit unions was secured, so that they will be able to do business as usual, providing a valuable loan service to our most vulnerable and deprived communities.

ITunes ruling

Another “victory for consumers” and a blow against “rip-off Britain” was struck this month, thanks to a European ruling that has forced IT giant Apple to cut the price of iTunes in the UK. Until now, iTunes customers in the UK have been forced to pay 79p for each download from Apple’s online stores, compared with 74p in continental Europe.

“Apple could have simply brushed off any complaints from its iTunes customers in the UK,” Gary said. “But it could not afford to ignore those complaints when they had the force of the EU behind them and a single market of 500 million people,” he added.

Chronic waste of taxpayers’ money

UKIP couldn't resist causing yet more trouble for themselves and everyone else when they asked for the time consuming "roll call vote" procedure to be used every single time something was put to the vote this month. They claim to be against the EU spending tax payers' money, but their pointless exercise - designed to do nothing but annoy other parties in the Parliament - cost an extra €400 per vote. “What a chronic waste of taxpayers’ money,” fumed Gary.

And Finally....

The European Parliament enjoyed a surprise visit from an orange and a banana this month in Strasbourg, when some people went round dressed as pieces of fruit in order to gather support for a written declaration against 'big supermarkets’. Not exactly what you'd expect to find in an MEP’s office on a normal working day!


Gary Titley MEP
January 2008