Nieuws van de afdeling

19 November 2009

Van Velzen: 'Emergency relief centres for asylum seekers must remain'

SP member of Parliament Krista van Velzen believes that local authorities must retain the right to keep emergency relief centres for asylum seekers open. Secretary of State Nebahat Albayrak wants to force the closure of the centres by the end of the year, a result of the agreement drawn up between the Justice Secretary and the Union of Dutch Local Authorities (VNG) in the framework of a general amnesty.

19 November 2009

Quicker response to crisis needed for inland waterways

Even now that Transport Secretary Tineke Huizinga has made it clear to the European Commission that inland waterway transport is undergoing a crisis, it turns out that it will be a minimum of three months before this leads to any concrete action. According to SP Member of Parliament and transport spokesman Emile Roemer, the industry cannot afford to wait that long. As a result of the crisis, many inland waterway firms stand on the threshold of bankruptcy.

18 November 2009

Parliament limits cuts in finance for fight against aids in developing countries

The SP has joined parties from across the political spectrum in demanding that Development Cooperation Minister Bert Koenders make more money available for combating HIV/aids, malaria and tuberculosis in developing countries. The parties, which included centre-right, centrist and small Christian parliamentary groups, share the view that large cuts in spending on organisations such as the Global Fund and UNAIDS, implemented by the minister, are unacceptable.

17 November 2009

Van Bommel: Lower salaries for top EU officials

Salaries of European Union officials and executives should be substantially lower, said SP Member of Parliament and European affairs spokesman Harry van Bommel during Tuesday evening's debate on the EU's top jobs.

17 November 2009

Kox versus Milliband: 'After war comes peace'

'After eight years of war without anything being achieved, it's time to start talking about peace in Afghanistan. Sending more soldiers simply makes it more difficult to put a stop to this hopeless war.' This was the message which SP Senator Tiny Kox took to Edinburgh for British Foreign Minister David Milliband. The two came face to face during a meeting of the NATO Parliamentary Assembly in Scotland's capital.

15 November 2009

'Dwindling support for war in Afghanistan'

Public opinion appears to be changing in relation to the war in Afghanistan. Ever fewer citizens of NATO member states believe that a military victory can be achieved. The call to bring the soldiers home sounds, therefore, ever louder.

International