Nieuws van de afdeling

21 January 2010

SP: Don't give way to Chinese pressure to relocate Wärtsilä

SP Member of Parliament Paul Ulenbelt is urging Employment Secretary Frank Heemskerk to do all in his power to save 570 Dutch jobs at the firm of Wärtsilä. The Finnish producer of screws for and motor parts for ships is to relocate its production units, including those in the Netherlands, to China. Wärtsilä cites Chinese pressure as an explanation, and Paul Ulenbelt wants to know more about this. Parliament will shortly debate the situation.

21 January 2010

SP: European Commission must take action on KLM-Airfrance 'Obesitax'

SP European Parliament group leader Dennis de Jong has asked the European Commission for its comments on KLM-Airfrance's stated intention to introduce an extra charge - dubbed an 'obesitax' - for seriously overweight people. “In Europe there are rules which protect the rights of people with a handicap who are travelling by air. Obesity is seen by the World Health Organisation, quite rightly, as an illness. People suffering from obesity should be helped, but instead they are going to be punished by KLM-Airfrance. I want to know whether the Commission is going to hold the airline to the rules.”

20 January 2010

A coalition of losers

Tiny Kox argues that a fear of moving away from the neoliberal consensus left Holland with a 'coalition of losers' as a Government and a centre-right consensus that doesn't properly reflect the views of the Dutch

18 January 2010

Davids fells Goliath

by Jan Marijnissen

18 January 2010

SP: ‘Cancel Haiti's debt'

SP Member of Parliament Ewout Irrgang is urging Development Minister Bert Koenders to demand the cancellation of Haiti's debts to the IMF and World Bank. “A terrible catastrophe of unprecedented proportions has hit Haiti. The most urgent priority must now be the saving of as many lives as possible through the provision of sufficient aid. The huge problems experienced in connection with this are already making that an enormous task. But the reconstruction of the country which must follow will be at least as difficult.”

15 January 2010

Weeklog Kartika Liotard : Exam week at the European Parliament

This week the European Parliament fell under the spell of the twenty-seven hearings, one for each of Commissioners-designate, who had one-by-one to take an exam before their appointment to the European Commission could be confirmed. These exams involved the completion of a questionnaire, after which the nominees were given three hours to answer questions from MEPs.

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