International

SP Member of Parliament Renske Leijten is urging Sports Minister Ab Klink to oppose the establishment of a subsidised European 'Sport Action Programme'. "Encouraging sport sounds like a good thing, but it's something which each EU member state should do for itself. Giving member states money back to spend on sport, money which they've paid to the EU in the first place, is completely senseless."

Next week Klink will meet to discuss policy with other European sports ministers. “The minister has said that he thinks such a programme would be a positive development," says Leijten. "In the SP's opinion, this is a matter for the member states themselves. I'm afraid that all this will be is an unnecsssary subsidy. We should call a halt to this as quickly as possible."

With the coming into force of the Lisbon Treaty (the successor to the rejected European Constitution), Brussels is now interfering in the sports policies of the member states. "Less than half a year after the Treaty took effect, the European Commission is already generating policy in areas like this. It's a nonsense. Europe has absolutely no need to reach its tentacles into member states' policies on such matters.”