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Nieuws uit 2013

10 January 2013

De Jong: EU must take action for Syrian refugees

SP Euro-MP Dennis de Jong is demanding immediate action from the European Union and its member states to help the more than a million people who have fled their homes in Syria. ‘According to the UN Refugee Agency the situation is getting completely out of hand,’ says De Jong. ‘Some groups of refugees, particularly Palestinians who have been residing in Syria, have no access to reception camps in the region. For refugees who can reach the camps, it appears that the most essential items, such as a dry shelter and adequate food and water, are lacking. The EU member states have to date been able to play no role in arriving at a diplomatic resolution of the conflict. If the EU now in addition doesn’t succeed in finding a humanitarian solution to the problem of the refugees, it would be a clear admission of failure.’

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9 January 2013

Dutch Finance Minister’s candidature for Chair of Eurogroup ‘contrary to country’s interests’

SP Member of Parliament Harry van Bommel is completely opposed to the candidature of the country’s Finance Minister, Jeroen Dijsselbloem, for the position of Chair of the Eurogroup, fearing that the chances of the Netherlands being able to take a hard line in negotiations in Brussels would be seriously weakened if he were elected. ‘It would make it a bit more difficult for him to hold the line if at the same time, in his position as Chair, he would have to be seen to be seeking a compromise, Van Bommel points out. ‘His nomination will lead to less room for manoeuvre for the Netherlands in the European negotiations game. So this candidature is completely contrary to Dutch interests.’

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5 January 2013

SP demands end to EU subsidies for multinationals

SP Member of Parliament Harry van Bommel wants to see multinationals disqualified from receiving EU subsidies designed to contribute to the development of poorer regions and to this end is calling for a tightening up of the rules governing such subsidies. Van Bommel’s demands were made in response to today’s revelations in the national daily Trouw regarding the use of EU subsidies in Poland. ‘This is the umpteenth example I’ve seen of EU wastefulness,’ says Van Bommel. We have already seen how agriculture subsidies are being paid to golf clubs and to the English royal family. Now money meant to help unemployed people in poor member states is being spent on luxury courses for managerial staff of profit-making corporations such as Unilever, Pepsi, Mercedes Benz and Deutsche Bank. EU subsidies aren’t supposed to be used to beef up the profits of big firms and the European rules should ban this.’

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