International

To have a family life, even if one’s partner lives in another country, is a human right. The European Union must defend this right in the face of the policies of Dutch Christian Democrat Immigration and Asylum Minister Gerd Leers’ policy on family reunification, said SP Euro-MP Dennis de Jong during this morning’s debate on the issue in the European Parliament. ‘Leers is a Christian Democrat,’ said De Jong, ‘and they have always seen the family as the cornerstone of society. So it’s incomprehensible that he of all people should be responsible for despair amongst loved ones who want to live with each other in the Netherlands. In my view it’s completely un-Christian.’

SP Member of Parliament Paulus Jansen wants to see an end put to the statute of limitations when it comes to cases involving asbestos. His call comes in the wake of a verdict from the Italian courts which today condemned two former executives of Eternit, which produces the carcinogenic material asbestos, to prison terms of sixteen years. According to the judge, the two were responsible for the deaths of 3000 employees or family members of employees of Eternity factories in Italy.