Nieuws van de afdeling

22 December 2004

Talking Turkey doesn’t mean an instant ‘yes’ to EU membership

SP Member of Parliament Harry van Bommel has expressed his approval of the government’s approach to the question of Turkish EU membership as demonstrated in their actions since last weekend’s Brussels Summit. “I’m particularly pleased with the maintenance of the so-called ‘emergency stop procedure’. The opening of accession negotiations should not be seen as automatically signalling that Turkey’s application will inevitably be successful.”

21 December 2004

SP supports Amnesty International action for Darfur

As part of an international write-in action for parliamentarians, Harry van Bommel has written to the Sudanese parliament expressing his concerns over the situation in the country, and above all in the province of Darfur.

15 December 2004

Time for emergency landing for JSF

Now that Minister Zalm and Secretary of State Van Gennip are embroiled in a scrap with industry over payment for the JSF project, there is, in the view of SP Member of Parliament Krista Van Velzen no other possible course than to withdraw from the whole project, abandoning plans for the American bomber plane. “Either we cut our losses and get out now or throw good money after bad,” said Ms. Van Velzen.

30 November 2004

A people’s Europe

Dutch Socialist Party MP Harry van Bommel speaks to the Morning Star about his country’s social strife and the EU. Harry von Bommel is a man on a mission. The charismatic Dutch Socialist MP is travelling Europe to speak to left-wing opponents of the European Union constitution.

26 November 2004

No Tomahawks - yet - for Dutch defence minister

While the Dutch government remains committed to a broad package of extensive spending cuts, Defence Minister Henk Kamp wants the country to beef up its military capability by buying Tomahawk cruise missiles. It’s a controversial wish on his part at a time when most people in the country are feeling the effect of government cutbacks. On Thursday, parliament in The Hague blocked the plans, with only Mr Kamp’s liberal-conservative VVD actually backing his proposal. The left-wing opposition is opposed, and even the VVD’s main coalition partner, the Christian Democrats, wants to wait and not take a final decision until 2006.

25 November 2004

Broad European protest against services directive

Today, several thousand trade unionists gathered in Brussels to demonstrate against Frits Bolkestein’s proposed services directive. Delegations from throughout Europe formed a colourful procession through Brussels’ EU district, where the European Commission and Council of Ministers are based. SP Euro-MP Kartika Liotard joined a delegation of trade unionists in presenting a petition to Dutch Secretary of State for Economic Affairs and current President of the EU Economic Affairs Council Karien van Gennip.

International