Newham Borough Liberal Democrats

Sarah's bulletin: 18 December 2009 (Christmas bulletin)

Looking back on 2009 - and forward to 2010!

2009 was of course a European election year, and I am very grateful to all who worked so hard to secure my re-election as Liberal Democrat MEP for London. Next year will be a general election year and Liberal Democrats have a real opportunity to gain more seats at Westminster and make inroads into the cosy Labour-Conservative consensus.

The Labour government has failed the British people in so many ways: civil liberties, climate change, poverty, the economy and Britain's international reputation. Labour failed to 'put Britain at the heart of the EU' as Blair once promised, but the Conservatives would fling the UK to its voiceless and isolated margins.

The Liberal Democrats, although not starry-eyed about everything the EU does, have stayed true to the need for European cooperation to fix common European problems. We don't believe in EU action on absolutely everything. But when it comes to the economy, climate change, crime or foreign policy, it is more effective to act on a European or international regional level. This is why I am so proud to represent the Lib Dems who are at ease with the EU and the European dimension of Britain's policy, and very proud to be a member of the European Parliament.

The same cannot be said for French conservative MEP Rachida Dati. This week an amusing story broke where Ms. Dati was caught unawares on a microphone saying that she "couldn't take it any more" and that "I think something is going to snap before I finish my term". I know as well as anyone else just how demanding being an MEP is, but former justice minister Dati seems to be in fact expressing frustration at having been sent into 'exile' in European politics. I find this frustration rather surprising, given that the Parliament is in fact increasing in weight thanks to the new powers granted by the Lisbon treaty.

Copenhagen - the final hours

It has been a tumultuous week in Copenhagen; among other things there have been mass protests and a halt in the negotiations. Political leaders have arrived now, to make the "political choices" now that the "technical work has been exhausted", as a European Commission negotiator described it. We are entering the final hours of the official negotiations and I hope that more than a vague non-legal agreement can be reached. The main issues are emission reductions (especially those of the US), whether or not to continue with the Kyoto structure, legally binding commitments and verification for China, and funding the developing world's mitigation and adaptation. I join my Liberal colleagues in urging delegates to deliver three 'must-dos': China must start reporting, the Americans must start financing, and the EU must commit to a 30% cut by 2020.

Talk of emissions trading systems at the negotiations have also been jarred by a recent revelation that European emissions markets have lost a total of €5bn in VAT fraud. Criminals buy carbon permits in one country free of VAT, sell them on in another country with VAT added, but then disappear and never pass the tax on to the relevant tax authority. European governments are now cooperating with Europol to close this loophole, another example of how European cooperation can really help in the fight against trans-border crime!

Russian: gas for human rights?

This Wednesday, Russian human rights campaigners Oleg Orlov and Lyudmila Alexeyeva accepted this year's Sakharov prize on behalf of the Russian human rights NGO Memorial at a sitting of the European Parliament. It was awarded for their tireless and often life threatening work to bring the Russian government to account about its lack of respect for human rights, not least in Chechnya, and to honour those who have died for that cause, notably Ana Politkovskaya and Natalia Estemirova. We stood for a minute of silence to remember these and other brave activists, a reminder to never take for granted the rights we enjoy within the European Union as people all over the world are dying for those very rights all the time.

And while we are talking about Russia, this is a good opportunity to mention the ever-present problem of energy security. Over the last few years we have had several Russian-caused gas crises, mostly due to disputes between Russia and Ukraine, whose cold effects were felt as far afield as Vienna. Despite this, I learnt this week that there are still no strategic gas stockpiles in Europe - we hold only 9 days' supply. We must not let energy dependence stop us taking a tough stance with Russia about its human rights record, but liberation from that dependence is another reason for us to promote our own clean, green and domestic sources of energy.

Cyprus and the closure of Turkey's Kurdish party

A rare opportunity is presenting itself to reunify divided Cyprus and the hope is that talks between Greek and Turkish Cypriot officials will gain momentum and make real progress in January. For this reason on Monday the UN Security Council extended the mandate of the UN peacekeeping force in Cyprus (one of the oldest in the world) for another six months.

Last week I mentioned the risk of closure of Turkey's Democratic Society party, and I am sorry to report that the Constitutional court did indeed go ahead and disband the party, and that since then there have a number of demonstrations and outbreaks of violence in protest. The DTP has as expected withdrawn all of its 21 MPs from the Turkish parliament. The law which was used to close the DTP is the same one which nearly closed the ruling AK party, Prime Minister Erdogan said he wanted a 'democratic political option' to solve the Kurdish conflict, but depressingly that seems off the table, and his failure to reform this law is partly responsible.

Read my speech to the European Parliament and press release on this issue.

The EU's role in the Middle East

I made a speech in Parliament this week during a debate about the EU's role in the Middle East conflict. I greatly welcome the EU's intention to play a much stronger political role in the US-EU-Russia-UN 'Quartet', but I also made the point that the idea - put forward by some - of boycotting Israel is self-defeating: how can you engage and boycott at the same time? EU sanctions to punish one side or the other are completely unproductive and undermine the pressure we should be applying to both eyes to get back to the negotiating table.

Islington's road bumps and Whittington hospital A & E

Research published recently in the British Medical Journal showed that the introduction of 20mph zones and road bumps is associated with a 42% reduction in road casualties, and had an especially marked reduction in accidents for young children. My home borough of Islington has long had 20mph combined with speed bumps to slow the drivers down, and I'm glad to see that this extensive piece of research has proven us right.

I would also like to use this opportunity to express my support for the LibDem campaign to save the Whittington A & E department. Its closure would mean that the distance to the nearest A & E would double for some people, and we all know how time is of the essence when it comes to emergency treatment. Please take a few minutes to sign Jo Shaw's petition here, and make sure you tell everyone you know in north London near the Whittington about the NHS' plans.

Mass rape in the Democratic Republic of Congo

Following up an item I included a couple bulletins ago, it would appear that the 2010 EU budget includes a pilot project to help rape victims in the western provinces of the Democratic Republic of Congo. In addition to this, this week the European Parliament passed a joint resolution deploring the terrible massacres in the Congo and encouraging the EU mission in the Congo to continue in its important work. All most welcome in this most dire of conflicts.

Anti-gay discrimination - and the effort to stop it - continues

The European Parliament this week debated the draconian anti-homosexuality law being considered by the Ugandan parliament; the law would introduce at least a minimum life sentence and in some cases the death penalty for anyone found guilty of having gay sex. As Vice Chair of the Lib Dem LGBT group DELGA, I put out a press release to point out that this proposed bill is an appalling violation of personal freedom and human rights, the worst possible kind of state-sponsored homophobia. In addition, the legislation contains an obligation for everyone to report possible homosexual activity - or face 3 years in prison. This would fuel a state-led witch hunt for homosexuals. We can only hope that Ugandan parliamentarians will see sense and vote down the law...

But do not think that anti-gay discrimination is something that only occurs across oceans and in faraway lands... The UK is in breach of the EU employment equality directive due to the wide latitude it gives faith organisations to discriminate against gay employees on the grounds of religiously-motivated prejudice. The European Commission, which I have been urging to take action on this issue ever since I was elected in 1999, is now really starting to show its teeth on this and threatening a European court order. Read more about this here.

But some good news too: I am pleased to report that just this week a Court of Appeal ruled against the Islington registrar who famously refused to conduct same sex civil partnership ceremonies. Lillian Ladele objected to officiating for gay couples on religious grounds, but the court ruled that 'staff conscience' could not be used as a pretext to deny services to homosexuals. This again underlines that although everyone is entitled to their own opinion and religious freedom, religious prejudices must never override the principle of equality of treatment.

The European Court of Human Rights: defending media freedoms

Showing itself as always to be a staunch defender of human rights, the European Court of Human Rights this week overturned a UK High Court ruling regarding the right for journalists to protect their sources. The court cited freedom of expression and the right to respect for one's home and correspondence. The journalists were from the Times, the FT, the Guardian, the Independent and Reuters, and the ruling has defended the important right to protect a source, one of the lynchpins of investigative journalism.

Photographer, ergo terrorist?

The other week the photographer Grant Smith, like many others, was stopped and searched under the Terrorism Act. What for? For taking photos! The City of London police released a ridiculous statement saying that "in absence of an explanation" for his photography, which was considered "apparently hostile behaviour", they felt compelled to search him on the suspicion that he was a terrorist. Are we now all guilty of terrorism until we have proven ourselves innocent? City Hall and Alan Johnson must act on this authoritarian arrogance in the Met as well as City police.

Read my letter to the Independent on this subject.

The British Airways Strike and EU passenger rights

As you may have heard, the threatened British Airways strike has now been blocked by the High Court. But it was good to see the Telegraph of all newspapers this week informing people in a Q&A of their EU passenger rights. Under EU law, when an airline cancels a flight due to strike action it is has to offer you as necessary drinks, meals, 2 free phone calls while you are stuck at the airport and hotel accommodation as well as a choice between a refund or a reroute. What is still argued over is whether the airline also has to offer passengers financial compensation for the inconvenience caused. This depends on whether the airline can show that the cancellation was 'beyond its reasonable control' or 'force majeure' as it is known in French. There is bound to be litigation on this in future.

And finally, all that is left to say is that I hope you all have a very merry Christmas or festive season, and a happy new year. May your holidays bring lots of rest (and hopefully not too much travel-induced stress) and 2010 bring both you and the world peace and happiness.

Best regards,

Sarah Ludford