Euroman Commeth

From 2 to 12 MEP's in 10 years

To get involved, Call Regional campaigns Vice Chair Hilary Stephenson on 0161 406 7070

Chis Davies has highest MEP profile in Britain :-  Making the work of the European Parliment relevant to local people and explaining it in an interesting way is said to be the key factor behind the MEP's high profile. As well as taking on controversial stands on drugs law reform and medically assisted suicide. Has been given the vital job of steering new air pollution laws through the European Parliament. The tough new proposals are aimed at cutting the number of people suffering - and tackling the gases which are poisoning our plants and moorlands. "These gases drift hundreds of miles across national boundaries" said Chris. "This is a classic area where laws have to apply across Europe, not just one country". Chris Davies recently presented his proposals for measures to control ozone pollution to European Environment Committee in Brussels. Ozone is created by the reaction in sunlight of nitrogen oxide and volatile organic compounds. the main source of the pollutants in Britain is road transport. Government estimate suggest that smog levels may be responsible for up to 12,500 premature deaths each year. Ozone pollution impairs lung function, causes coughing, contributes to asthuma attacks, and weakens the body's defences against bacteria and viruses. The problem caused by the 100,000 'old bangors'. cars left dumped and abandoned in Britain each year, could soon be a thing of the past. European plans to force car manufactures to provide a free disposal and recycling service for all vehicles originally manufactured by them. The service will have to be introduced by 2006. The European Parliament recently voted in favour of a measure recommending that biofuels should make up 2% of road transport fuels by 2005. 

NOTES FROM BRUSSELS_01.doc

Saj Karim slams  ID Cards

"ID cards further erode the rights of individuals" said Saj, "We are moving closer to a very controlled society and it is the minority communities that will suffer". "The Liberal Democrats would rather see this money spent on police and intelligence services, this would be a more effective way to tackle crime and terrorism."Sadly ID cards did not stop the awful attacks in Madrid and there is little evidence  to suggest that they will stop a committed suicide bomber here."

Graphic warnings on the way for smokers

Graphic health warnings that could soon appear on cigarette packets have been unveiled by the European Commission. A selection of vivid images to back up written messages are now available for use by any EU Government that chooses to adopt them. The option stems from changes to tobacco marketing law secured by Chris Davies, Leader of the British Liberal Democrat MEPs. He won cross-party support in the European Parliament for amendments he tabled to the legislation, eventually persuading EU ministers and the European Commission to accept the idea. Mr Davies says his aim has been to curb the peer pressure which leads to young people taking their first smoke, often before they are 16 years old. 

UK Sinking in Waste

A tax on plastic bags should be the first of a series of measures to clean up North West streets and cut down on waste, says Euro-MP Chris Davies. With retailers now said to be giving each shopper more than 250 plastic bags each year, the MEP says that hundreds of millions are ending up as persistant litter. The majority of the bags end up in landfill sites where they can take as long as 1,000 years to decompose. A tax on plastic bags in Ireland, which has a population half that  of the North West, is saving one billion bags each year. Enviromentalists warn that plastic bags can be dangerous to wildlife. They can be ingested by cows, and turtles in the sea often mistake them for jellyfish and choke to death.

Saving the taxpayer £100 million 

Chris Davies is hoping to save taxpayers more than £100million. Chris is one of nine MEPs who have founded the Campaign for Parliment Reform. He says that a fortune can be saved by ending the monthly movement of 3,000 MEP's, assistants and interpreters between Brussels and Strasbourg. The Strasbourg Parliment buildings is used for just four days each month and stands empty for more than 300 days each year.

Fuel Mistakes Misery

Every year more than 100,000 people grab the wrong pump at a petrol station, only to realise too late that they have put the wrong fuel into their car. A moment's distracttion can cost each driver thousands of pounds. Now Chris Davies has raised this issue and iscalling for simple measures to be taken to curb the problem across Europe. "The simplest and most effective solution is just to put a hinged metal cover over the diesel pump so that almost no one is likely to make an error when distracted. "

12 European Liberal Democrat Members for 2004

• Mr Chris Davies (North West)  He is the Liberal Democrat spokesman on the Environment, Transport and Public Health and Consumer Affairs in the European Parliament. Committee's):
  C 08 - Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety

• Mr Sajjad Karim (North West) Councillor in Pendle for eight years and is regional Vice Chair for Membership Development Committee(s):
  C 03 - Committee on International Trade

            
SC01A - Subcommittee on Human Rights   

Mrs Elspeth Attwooll (Scotland)
Liberal Democrat
Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe (ALDE) Committee(s):
C 12 - Committee on Regional Development
C 14 - Committee on Fisheries

Mrs Diana Wallis (Yorkshire & Humber)
Liberal Democrat
Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe (ALDE) Committee's):
C 16 - Committee on Legal Affairs
C 20 - Committee on Petitions

Mrs Liz Lynne (West Midlands)
Liberal Democrat
Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe (ALDE)  Committee's):
C 07 - Committee on Employment and Social Affairs

Mr Bill Newton Dunn (East Midlands)
Liberal Democrat
Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe (ALDE)  Committee(s):
C 10 - Committee on the Internal Market and Consumer Protection

Mr Andrew Duff (Eastern)
Liberal Democrat
Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe (ALDE) Committee(s):
C 18 - Committee on Constitutional Affairs

Mr Graham Watson (South West)
Liberal Democrat
Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe (ALDE) Committee(s):
C 16 - Committee on Legal Affairs

Mr Chris Huhne (South East)
Liberal Democrat
Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe (ALDE) Committee(s):
C 06 - Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs

Baroness Nicholson of Winterbourne (South East)
Liberal Democrat
Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe (ALDE)  Committee(s):
C 01 - Committee on Foreign Affairs
SC 01A - Subcommittee on Human Rights

Baroness Sarah Ludford (London)
Liberal Democrat
Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe (ALDE) Committee(s):
C 17 - Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs

10 Things You Didn't Know About The European Elections

1. 47% of the propective Liberal Democrat candidates are women - the highest proportion of female candidates ever fielded by a major UK political party.
2. Polling takes place Thursday 10th June - but the count will not begin until 9pm on Sunday 13th June GMT when the polls close in other European Union countries.
3. There is expected to be a national expenditure campaign limit for the first time in a British election.
4. The quota system for allocating the number of seats for each party is thed'Hondt system - which was chosen by the Government as it favours larger parties & tends to give smaller parties less than their proportional share of seats.
5. Returning Officers will have a choice odf declaring the number of votes cast in each Westminster consistuency or across a council area. The totals will then be aggregated for each region.
6. Just one leaflet for each household in one of the regions.
7. Over 1200 key Liberal Democrat activists have been trained in how to prepare for the elections on May 6th and June 10th in a series of 40 "Election Planning Workshops"!
8. paddy Ashdown's last campaign as leader will be the first UK wide election using proportional representation - whicjh means that every Lib dem vote will count towards electing more Lib Dem MEP's
9. The new Registration of Political Parties Act means that all ballot papers used in May & June can have party logos on and that only official candidates can call themselves Liberal Democrats - providing that candidates have followed advice in mailings sent to them about obtaining a certificcate confirming that they are official party candidates.
10. The launch of all the Liberal Democrat election campaigns for 1999 will be at the Edinburgh Conference rally on Friday March 5th at the Edinburgh International centre in Morrison Street at 18:45 GMT- All Members welcome.

A Liberal Democrat Europe

Our vision is of a European Union which is democratic, decentralised and diverse. It is one which matters to everyone, not just Business people and buraucrats:

In this Europe,legative decisions of the Council of Ministers must, as a basic principle, be taken in the open and by majority voting. The European Parliment will have equal legislative rights to the Council - and members of the European Commission will be appointed by it and accountable to it.

A decentralised Europe, close to its citizens, where power is exercised by local issues. The European institutions should exercise power only over policies which cannot effectively be dealt with at national or local level - foreign and security policy, trade and currency. trans-European competition, cross boundary pollution, consumer protection in the single market. Powers should be decentralised from national governments. An MEP answerable to their local communities.

A diverse Europe, which respects cultural traditions, regional identities and feelings of patriotism. Much of Europe's strength derives from its ethnic and cultural diversity.

Ensuring Convergence in the single market

Ensure that economic prosperity and enviromental sustainability are lasting features of Europe. A single currency converging national economies - in particular low inflation, the precursor of the European Central Bank

A Secure and Peaceful Europe

The European Union needs to maintain worldwide interests, receptiveness and influence, and isolationism must be challenged whereever it occurs.

• A common European policy for arms procurement.
• EU Armed forces.
• A common EC export policy, involving export control guidlines and criteria for the categorisation of importing countries andcommon lists of arms and dual-use technologies subject to regulation.
• A mandatory and publicly available EC register on arms and dual-use technology, with eventual incorporation into the UN register.
• Total arms embargoes and Development assistance denied on countries engaged in external aggression or in gross violation of human rights

Intervention, whether civil or military, in conflicts between people or factions should only be undertaken with broad international backing, ideally expressed through the institutions of a reformed United Nations. Military intervention should not be restricted to the provision of humanitarian aid , but should aim, where practicable, to enforce international law and basic human rights and to defend ethnic communities in defending their right to existence and security.

A Common Approach to Immigration and Asylum

The free movement of peoples is one of the central principles of the European Union.

• A common approach to immigration and asylum rules
• An agreed policy on dispersing refugees from particular conflicts round the EU.
• Effective development assistance to countries suffering substantial emigration to Europe.

A Constitution for Europe

Liberal Democrats are strongly in favour of the principle of having this constitution.

The European Parliament

Euro MP's have to vote on up to 400 different resolutions and amendments after all of the week's debates have been held anything from  pet passports to new country membership. Any group of 30 members can table an amendment and we vote on them all. Voting by a show of hands or pressing buttons on the electronic voting machine. Averaging five votes a minute. 

The Euro in Your Pocket

January 1st, 1999, marked the birth of the Euro. Many bankers will tell you that it has played a crucial role in buffering all our economies from the financial crises that continue to swirl in Asia, Russia and South America. Britain will gain jobs from a home market of 55 million people; our mortgages drop by a good 2% and get a major say in what happens in "big time" . Britain late in joining the Euro.

Davies Condemns Climate Talks Chaos

Hague failed to make prgress on reducing the levels of greenhouse gas emissions. Lib dem MEP Chris Davies - internationally respected as an enviromental campaigner - said that the outlook was now grim and that th EU should consider "symbolic sanctions" against the Us iff it tries to wriggle out of its enviromental ressponsibilities. "The recent severe flooding provess that action on climate change is a matter of urgency" said Mr Davies. "The United States must not be allowed to pollute the globe at will without regard for the damage its actions cause." "It was right to insist that no deal was better than a fake deaql. However grim the situation looks now we must work to ensure that we get a deal that protects the planet for all our futures."

Hazardous Waste Scare

Hazardous waste could end up being illegally dumped in large quantities claims MEP Chris Davies. The EU Landfill Directive comes into forces in July 2004 and will require specialist treatment of hazardous wastes. Currently hazardous wastes including those from industrial chemical processes, as well as clinical waste are dumped in household landfill sites across the North West. Enviroment Agency statistics swhow 2001, 874,625 tonnes of hazardous waste were produced in the North West and almost 40% of this was landfilled in the region. Chris Davies is a member of the European Enviroment Committee and has welcomed EU moves away from landfill. "Hazadous waste should not have been mixed with inert materials for so long." The aim of the new legislation is to reduce damage to water supplies, soil, air and human health caused by landfilling. The negative health impacts of landfilling are well documented, with babies born to women living near to landfill sites having above average levels of birth defects.

Constituency Office : 87a Castle Street, Stockport SK3 9AR. Tel. 0161 477 7070 Fax. 0161 477 7007 email: chrisdaviesmep@cix.co.uk

                                     20a/22a Manchester Road, Nelson, BB9 7EG.Tel. 01282 611 899 Fax. 01282 611 988 email: info@sajjadkarim.org.uk

Brussels Office : Tel. 00 32 2284 7353 Fax: 00 32 2284 9353 email: cdavies@europarl.eu.int website: www.chrisdaviesmep.org.uk

                             Tel. 00 32 2284 7640 Fax:  00 32 2284 9640  email: shkarim@europarl.eu.int website: www.sajjadkarim.org.uk

Liberal Democrat European Office : Email: euro_office@cix.co.uk