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Nieuws uit 2011

9 December 2011

‘Ten billion extra in spending cuts in the middle of a new crisis is idiotic’

Far from cutting a further ten billion from expenditure, the government should be stimulating the economy, argues SP Member of Parliament Ewout Irrgang. 'New cuts can push the Dutch economy over the brink and into recession and will make the Eurocrisis even worse,” he says.

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9 December 2011

Van Bommel urges UN enquiry into CIA prisons

SP Member of Parliament Harry van Bommel is urging the UN to launch an enquiry into secret CIA prisons in Europe. Van Bommel’s call comes after yesterday’s revelation of a secret detention facility in Romania. ‘For years we have been asking questions about secret prisons in which prisoners of the Americans may be suffering torture, yet on numerous occasions our government has denied their existence. Now it’s time to leave no stone unturned in this affair.’

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7 December 2011

Fearful Brussels sides with bankers, not with the people

President of the European Council Herman van Rompuy’s plans to give the European Commission major new powers to control member states' budgets and punish countries that break financial budget rules without the need for treaty changes are undemocratic, says SP Euro-MP Dennis de Jong. `Van Rompuy is trying to make any initiative for a referendum impossible. Not only that but he’s taking national parliaments out of the game, as according to his report ratification won’t be necessary.´

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7 December 2011

Dutch Ombudsman proposes Code of Conduct for European Expert Groups

The Dutch Ombudsman, Alex Brenninkmeijer has proposed the creation of a Code of Conduct for the work of European Expert Groups. Established by the European Commission, the job of the Expert Groups is to offer advice on EU legislation and policy. Brenninkmeijer issued his call during a meeting organised by the SP in the European Parliament. SP Euro-MP Dennis de Jong explains that ‘there is a great deal of criticism of the working of these Expert Groups, which as things stand operate to far too great an extent in a secretive manner. With a Code of Conduct we could avoid a lot of the problems which currently arise.”

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6 December 2011

Van Bommel welcomes government’s apology to Rawagedeh survivors

SP Member of Parliament Harry van Bommel has welcomed the government’s promise to offer the Netherlands’ apologies to the survivors of the massacre in the Indonesian village of Rawagedeh, which occurred during Indonesia’s war of independence. In December 1947 Dutch soldiers murdered hundreds of men and boys in the village during so-called policing actions. The soldiers were involved in a manhunt for an Indonesian rebel.

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4 December 2011

Criminalising unauthorised immigrants

By Arjan Vliegenthart - Next week the Senate will debate the implementation of the European Union’s Returns Directive and the criminalisation of unauthorised entry and residence. This is a controversial proposal, towards which much justified criticism has been directed by local authorities as well as churches. In addition to consideration of the likely effectiveness and the humanitarian aspects, the debate will probably also focus on the question of whether the Dutch government has incorporated the EU directive into our national legislation in a proper manner, as on this matter the last word has not yet been spoken.

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