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Strasbourg Round-Up Oct 06

Bulgaria ready to roll

This month the European Commission gave Romania and Bulgaria the final thumbs-up in their long quest for EU membership. Before the two officially join on 1st January 2007, Gary Titley was invited to Sofia by the Bulgarian Socialist Party to help with final preparations. On his return Gary said: "It’s amazing to see just how far Bulgaria has come. This was once a poor country ravaged by totalitarianism, but now it has tremendous potential. I have seen at first hand how Bulgaria will help to secure thousands of British jobs."

Gary dismissed as “utter rubbish” media stories that cheap labour from Romania and Bulgaria would swamp the UK. He said: "Workers from countries, which have recently joined the EU, have made a valuable contribution to our economy and our communities. Romanian and Bulgarian workers will do the same, if they come. But the evidence suggests they are more likely to follow their traditional links with Latin countries. That's why I hope the government's recently announced restrictions will be only temporary."

Labour supports Spanish peace process

MEPs gave a resounding endorsement of the Spanish peace process this month. The Basque separatist group ETA recently agreed to lay down its arms, with its political wing signalling its readiness to negotiate with the Spanish government. This followed a long-running terrorist campaign for an independent Basque state, similar to the IRA’s campaign here during the 1970s and 1980s.

Gary, who recently attended the Spanish Socialist Party conference on the issue, said: "It is no business of the European Parliament to interfere with the delicate peace process. But we are sending a clear signal to all sides in Spain that the rest of Europe is behind their efforts to find a peaceful solution. Terrorism is always an attack on the EU’s most basic principles."

The Parliament's resolution was strongly backed by Labour MEPs. It expressed solidarity with the victims of terrorism and also welcomed the decision to fight terrorism through democratic means. For their part, British Tory MEPs backed an alternative resolution by the European People's Party (EPP), which rejected the continuation of dialogue and the search for a peaceful solution.

Protecting migrant women from slavery

There was outrage in Strasbourg this month, when British Conservative MEPs voted against a report protecting immigrant women from enslavement and violence. The report sought to establish standards on the role and place of immigrant women in the EU. It showed that, despite the many policies in place, a large number of immigrants still live segregated lives. Commenting on the Tory stance, Gary said: "It is outrageous that, at home, David Cameron preaches equality with slogans like 'Women to Win' while, in Europe, his own MEPs vote against something as basic as protection from slavery and violence."

EU call for free breast cancer screening

The lives of 31,000 women a year could be saved across the EU if proper breast screening was available throughout member states. That was the message delivered in a report, approved by MEPs this month. The report demanded more standard EU-wide screening every two years for those in the high-risk age group of 50 to 69 years old. It also called for nationwide specialised clinical breast units to be set up in all EU countries by 2016.

Currently there are wide discrepancies in treatment standards across Europe and more than 88,000 women die of breast cancer each year. It is estimated that, with more mammography screening, breast cancer mortality could be reduced by up to a third. Gary said: "It is completely unacceptable that, for many women, it is a matter of chance whether they get adequate treatment or not. Survival chances for women treated in specialised clinics are much better and the number of mastectomies is lower."

Cameron out in the cold

Before the European summit in Finland earlier this month, centre-right parties from the 25 member states met to discuss their strategy on the future of Europe. But whilst Germany's Angela Merkel and France's Nicolas Sarkozy got down to hammering out policies on key issues like energy and climate change, one person was notably absent - David Cameron. With more important things to do than discuss how to save the planet, Cameron opted to stay at home, much to the frustration of his European partners.

This is not the first time Cameron has stood up the German Chancellor and France's presidential hopeful. Both are on record stating how they would have difficulties working with the Tory leader, should he ever become Prime Minister. "The Tories continue to play games with their position in Europe,” declared Gary. "They are neither in nor out of Europe. This latest affront by Cameron shows he has no idea of how important it is to work with our international partners on serious issues that affect the UK. With Cameron, Britain would become isolated - a very scary prospect indeed given the world we live in today."

And Finally...

At this month’s Strasbourg session, a written declaration calling for a ban on the use of seal products became formally adopted, when over a half of all MEPs had signed it. This coincided with Roger Helmer MEP getting the Tory whip back after having previously been thrown out of the EPP. But just a day after his return to the Conservative fold, Helmer found himself in the headlines for his less than caring, sharing, Cameron-style attitude.

Responding to a letter from a 17-year-old constituent asking him to sign the declaration, Helmer told her he would not be signing, as beating seals over the head “is humane” and her attitude was “mawkish, sentimental and unhelpful.” It is also alleged that Helmer encouraged her to stop caring for “dumb animals”. Taking the advice on board the student went straight to the media to ensure Helmer got a beating of his very own in the local and national press.



Gary Titley MEP
October 2006