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15 February 2010

NATO seeks new strategy, but so far fails to find one

In November NATO’s member states will meet in Lisbon to agree a new strategic concept for the world’s most powerful military alliance. What must be determined at that meeting is for what purpose NATO exists and where and under what future circumstances the alliance will wish to intervene. That there long been a lack of clarity over these questions was evident this weekend at the NATO parliamentary assembly in Brussels. SP Senator Tiny Kox, a member of the assembly, used the opportunity presented by the meeting in Belgium’s capital to call on the parliamentarians of the twenty-eight member states to ensure that not only governments but also MPs are involved in debate over where, in relation to NATO, we should be heading.

15 February 2010

Weeklog Kartika Liotard: A question of persistence…

If you're a woman I wish you in advance a happy 2010! In advance? But isn't it February already? Equal pay has been in the European treaties since 1957. Since 1957 ... Yet this principle is still not generally put into practice. The European Parliament has worked out that a woman must on average work 418 calendar days in order to earn as much as a man will in a year. So for women 2010 begins just fifty-three days late, on Monday 22nd February..

14 February 2010

'Revolving door' adviser damages EFSA's image

A former employee of the European Food Safety Authority who worked in the area of genetic technology is now an EU lobbyist for Syngenta. Is that possible, just like that? According to Kartika Liotard, Member of the European Parliament for the SP, it should not be. It creates the impression of an entanglement of interests, she argues.

11 February 2010

SP: European policy on gambling: 'Don't bet on profit – play it safe'

The SP in the European Parliament today declared its firm opposition to a free market approach to online gambling. Group leader Dennis de Jong said: "Gambling generally means forking out, because, as a gambler, for the most part you lose. It has far too romantic an image, but especially for young people, becoming addicted is a real threat. Not only that, but gambling is a multi-billion euro business which is too often associated with criminal activities. We shouldn't be gambling on profit, but playing it safe."

10 February 2010

SP stands up for consumers' rights

Consumers must have easier ways of enforcing rights when they become the victim of restrictive practice agreements between corporations, says Dennis de Jong, leader of the SP group in the European Parliament.

9 February 2010

Liotard: Stop trade in polar bears

SP Euro-MP Kartika Liotard called during a debate on Tuesday in Strasbourg for the EU to ban the commercial trade in polar bears. “Do it before it's too late. This trade, and habitat loss through climate change, represent a major threat to the survival of this species."

International