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Nieuws uit 2012

24 October 2012

Gesthuizen: refugee policy must change

Since a number of weeks ago asylum seekers whose applications have been rejected have been camping out in tents in Amsterdam and The Hague. On Tuesday, SP Member of Parliament Sharon Gesthuizen joined MPs from a number of other parties in a meeting with a number of those involved and several experts on related issues. Amongst those present alongside people living in the camps were Amsterdam’s Labour mayor Eberhard van der Laan, Professor Thomas Spijkerboer, a specialist in migration law, and John van Tilborg from the Nationwide Consultation of Municipalities on Reception and Return Policy (known by its Dutch acronym, LOGO).

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19 October 2012

SP Survey: Police officers don’t want the ‘weed pass’

Police officers can see no advantage to the so-called ‘weed pass’ and would like to see the new scheme, under which people wishing to smoke cannabis must register and must be resident in the Netherlands, abolished. Abolition is advocated by more than 70% of police officers interviewed by SP Member of Parliament Nine Kooiman. Almost 90% of the officers are against the pass being introduced nationally, as opposed to in the southern part of the country where it is already in operation. ‘This is a cry for help from the people who are daily seeing what a disaster the weed pass has been,’ says Kooiman. ‘I hope that the minister is not deaf to these appeals. We must take the only correct decision as soon as possible and abolish the weed pass

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18 October 2012

‘Bring Dutch soldiers and police trainers home from Kunduz’

SP member of Parliament Harry van Bommel will take advantage of the next debate on the Dutch mission in the Afghan province of Kunduz to bring forward a proposal that the operation be ended earlier than scheduled. His decision was prompted by reports that the operation has been halted. ‘According to the government it seems that police officers trained by the Netherlands are being deployed outside of Kunduz,’ says Van Bommel. ‘This is contrary to agreements made with Parliament. There are, furthermore, now enough Afghan trainers in Kunduz capable of giving basic training to police officers. With a bit of luck our boys and girls can be home for Christmas.’

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16 October 2012

Visa liberalisation for Balkans: De Jong wants Commissioner to comment on likely consequences

SP Euro-MP Dennis de Jong wants to hear what European Commissioner for Home Affairs Cecilia Malmström has to say about the liberalisation of visa requirements for citizens of Balkan states. Six EU member states have asked the Commissioner to clarify the rules, known as the ‘emergency brake procedure’, which will kick in to suspend visa liberalisation in the event of problems arising. ‘The spokesperson for the European Commission speaks in terms of “major concerns”,’ says De Jong. “I want the Commissioner to say how many people this involves. I also want the Commission to produce a speedy elaboration of this proposed procedure.’

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15 October 2012

Van Bommel: ‘Don’t make Europe into a debt union’

SP Member of Parliament Harry van Bommel is urging outgoing Prime Minister Mark Rutte to cast his veto in Brussels against plans for a ‘Euro-budget’, a European Union ‘national debt’ and an EU finance ministry. These proposals for far-reaching European integration may be brought forward this week, and Van Bommel wants the national parliament to return from recess on Wednesday in order to hold a debate on the matter with the government, which in the interim until a new coalition agreement is reached continues to have the same make up as it did before the elections. In this debate Van Bommel will be seeking guarantees that these proposals will be subject to a Dutch veto at the earliest possible stage of the procedure.

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11 October 2012

Enquiry into EU agencies confirms SP’s suspicions over conflicts of interest

SP Euro-MP Dennis de Jong believes that the European Court of Auditors’ enquiry provides confirmation of the conclusion of an earlier investigation commissioned by the SP, that the danger of conflicts of interest arising in EU agencies is extremely grave. The investigators state that there remain, despite previous calls for action, no clear rules governing conflict of interest. ‘The Agencies under investigation have not dealt adequately with affairs involving conflicts of interest,’ says De Jong. ‘For that reason I will be requesting a plenary debate in which those responsible must be held to account.’

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