Nieuws van de afdeling

1 February 2012

Asbestos plus lax government equals lives lost

Almost a year ago, on 16th February 2011, Secretary of State for Infrastructure and Environment Joop Atsma gave his word that by 1st July 2012 all schools built before 1994 would be expected to have drawn up an asbestos inventory, stating where on their premises asbestos was to be found and in what condition. The promise was made in reaction to the discovery that in 25% of schools in which such an inventory had already been performed, dangerous loose fibres of asbestos had been found to be present, meaning that immediate decontamination was necessary.

1 February 2012

Van Bommel: struggle for Afghan ‘hearts and minds’ fails

NATO’s strategy to win the hearts and minds of the Afghan people is failing pitifully. This was the conclusion drawn by SP Member of Parliament and foreign affairs spokesman Harry van Bommel on the basis of a leaked report which reveals that the Taliban enjoy broad support amongst the country’s population. ‘There was always something fishy about NATO’s optimistic official statements on the progress of the war,’ says Van Bommel. ‘Now it turns out that NATO didn’t really believe in these itself.’

31 January 2012

Labour and SP call for ban on bonuses for all banks and insurers

The PvdA (Labour Party) and the SP are urging a ban on bonuses for all banks and insurance companies in the Netherlands. In order to realize such a ban, the two parties will bring forward a legislative proposal.

28 January 2012

Concerns over human rights in Europe in times of crisis

‘There are many reasons to be concerned over human rights in Europe in times of crisis’, according to SP Senator Tiny Kox. Meeting in Strasbourg this week, the Council of Europe held a debate on ‘human rights under pressure’ and the future of the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR). Also during the session, a new Commissioner for Human Rights was elected.

28 January 2012

SP Senator Kox to head Council of Europe observer team for Russian presidential election

At the invitation of the Russian parliament the Council of Europe will send observers to the presidential election scheduled for March 4th. SP Senator Tiny Kox, who led the team for the recent parliamentary elections, will be in charge once again.

26 January 2012

SP to vote to reject ACTA

The SP will vote to reject the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA) when it comes before the European Parliament in the near future. Recently concluded behind closed doors, the treaty’s aim is to improve protection of intellectual property rights and has already been signed by a number of parties, including the US and Japan.

International