Nieuws van de afdeling

22 October 2011

Irrgang: ‘Political union no solution for banking and eurocrisis’

SP Member of Parliament Ewout Irrgang today warned the government not to hand over any more powers to Brussels. According to Irrgang, the government, supported by opposition parties Labour, the Green Left and the centrist D66, has embarked upon a slippery slope. ‘They want to rig up a political union for which there is absolutely no support amongst the people. The euro demonstrated that the unification of Europe has gone far too quickly. The people have turned their backs on this en masse and just as this is happening, these parties decide to limit the influence of ordinary men and women still further.’
In the debate, held in preparation for this Sunday’s European summit, Irrgang stressed that the eurocrisis is a direct result of the banking crisis which began in 2008. “This financial crisis can be blamed in its entirety on the bankers who ran crazy risks and on politicians who created the space for this behaviour. Today’s eurocrisis is the consequence of this reckless policy. The bank crisis put the light to the fuse.” In Irrgang’s view it is therefore completely logical that the financial sector should pay for the damage it has caused.

21 October 2011

Fresh chance for Libyan people

SP Member of Parliament Harry van Bommel describes himself as ‘relieved’ that with the fall of Gadhafi the war in Libya appears to be at an end. ‘I congratulate the Libyan people on getting rid of the Gadhafi regime,’ he says. ‘Libya can now begin a new chapter in its history. It is unfortunate that Gadhafi was killed, which makes it impossible for him to be brought to court and for us to find out more about his domestic and foreign policies and all of those who have cooperated with him. It’s of the utmost importance that a day of reckoning between old adversaries be avoided and that things are done according to the rule of law, and that the international war doesn’t continue in the form of a civil war or tribal conflict. That danger has certainly not passed. The EU and the UN must offer support to the development of sound democratic government and the rule of law.'

20 October 2011

Proposal to boost competition misunderstands causes of eurocrisis

Deputy Prime Minister Maxime Verhagen was correct to state in a recent press article that European integration has made the European Union’s member states vulnerable to the consequences of each other’s economic decisions. He misuses this insight, however, to justify profound intervention in member states’ economic policies. Unfortunately this will also form the Dutch government’s approach at the coming European Summit.

15 October 2011

Roemer: Occupy movement offers hope for start of fundamental change

The Occupy movement arrived today in the Netherlands. In Amsterdam the 99% succeeded in occupying the whole of the Beursplein – the square outside the stock exchange – with more than 1,400 people from throughout the country. The turn-out was so big that it quickly became evident that no trams would be able to pass through the neighbouring Damrak. Amongst those present was SP leader Emile Roemer: 'I’m really pleased that here, and throughout the world, so many people are standing up for the wholesale change which absolutely must occur. Those responsible for the crisis must be dealt with, the financial system transformed, and the bill charged to the right address, which isn’t that of these people here. I hope that this is the beginning of a fundamental change.'

14 October 2011

There is a spectre haunting the world!

by Jan Marijnissen, chairman of the SP

14 October 2011

EU Agriculture plans ‘a missed opportunity’

'A missed opportunity’ – this was SP Member of Parliament Henk van Gerven’s initial reaction to the plans for the European Union’s Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) for the years 2014-2020 presented today by the European Commission. Whilst it’s true that there will be more possibilities to reward farmers for their management of the natural environment and a more varied and sustainable production, the Commission fails to act decisively, as Van Gerven notes. 'They fail to put an end to the mass import of soya from Latin America,’ he points out. ‘Neither speculation around food and raw materials, nor price instability is effectively combated. And a lot of money will be pumped back and forth in a bureaucratic fashion. First we pay it over to Brussels for the development of nature and landscape, and then we get it back in an equally bureaucratic manner.’

International