International

In the SP’s view the Europhoric vote on the concluding agreement for the banking union is misplaced, because the idea that forms the basis of such a banking union is fundamentally flawed. The SP argues instead for a return to human scale in the banking sector, rather than hanging on to a failing system.

The SP has for years criticised the way in which the European Arrest Warrant (EAW) is applied by the member states. The directive means that Dutch people who are sought by other member states’ authorities in connection with a criminal offence can be extradited without any prior judicial review. ‘The European Parliament now recognises that the rights of suspects are not properly guaranteed in this and that it means that it is too easy for people to be extradited to another member state for relatively trivial offences,’ says SP Euro-MP Dennis de Jong. ‘Now the ball’s in the court of the European Commission and the Council of Ministers, and I want to hear from them before the European elections what they are going to do about this.’