International

In October the European Parliament will vote on the report on “Women and Poverty in Europe”. Although this report was written by the Chair of the Committee on Women's Rights, the situation of women is still not fully appreciated. SP Euro-MP Kartika Liotard said: “Women continue to run a far greater risk of finding themselves in poverty, but this fact is not mentioned in the report.”

Harry van Bommel is disappointed that leading supporters of the EU Constitution have allowed the national discussion on Europe to go quietly to its grave. The government, the centre-right VVD and CDA and the centre-left PvdA no longer see any advantage in the proposal to let the people speak out on the existing European Union and the future of the Netherlands in Europe. Mr Van Bommel takes a positive view of such a debate, however, one in which everyone in the country could participate and which would not be limited as to content. "In the end politicians will be forced to listen to what is being said in the general population, but the major parties have clearly more fear of this than interest in it.”