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Labour should critique the EU but not undermine it
Perusing today’s Sunday Telegraph underlined to me what we know already – that the EU is under attack. The main lines of this attack are: It’s undemocratic. Eurosceptics paint a picture of unelected...
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There are no bishops in the European Commission
The most frequent argument presenting the EU as undemocratic is that European Commissioners, the people responsible for proposing and drafting legislation, are appointed, not elected. But this ignores...
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“Sixty reasons to loathe the EU” makes one very good reason to stand for it
The Express, or rather the Taxpayers’ Alliance using the Express as their mouthpiece, came up with this list recently, to mark sixty years since the formation in 1952 of the Coal and Steel Board, the...
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The UKIP surge is not all about Europe
While Lord Ashcroft’s research on UKIP considerers reveals that half of the UKIP surge comes at the expense of the Tories, it also shows that 22% of those currently considering UKIP voted Labour in...
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Britain Overrun by Gypsies (courtesy the Mail)
Christmas Eve’s Mail featured a two-page spread about impoverished and excluded gypsy communities in Romania and Bulgaria. Facing prejudice it’s very difficult for people in such communities to find...
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Are 29 million benefit tourists about to arrive in the UK?
David Cameron today said that it should be more difficult for people to come to the UK from other EU countries just to claim benefits, implying (but not actually saying) that benefit tourism is a real...
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The Euro economic saga – learnings so far
There are still plenty of chapters to come in the saga of Europe’s economic crisis, but here are three things we have learned so far from the events of the past few years. Firstly, there is a huge...
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Douglas Alexander on Labour and Europe
The speech given by Douglas Alexander on the eve of what was scheduled to be David Cameron’s “Amsterdam” Europe speech, is well worth a read. Precise and wide-ranging, it puts the issue into context...
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Referendum: let’s be ready
First, it needs to be repeated that Cameron’s promise of an in-out referendum represents reckless leadership. In an effort to appease Eurosceptics and go into the next election with a populist promise,...
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There’s gas in them there downs
The South Downs near Balcombe Fracking – hydraulic fracturing to extract gas from underground seams – is an issue we in the south east should have a view on, because there are significant shale gas...
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UKIP: Using the right language
Years ago I was on a flight from Heathrow to Budapest. When we were boarding the plane, the predominant language I heard people using was English. But once we had landed in Budapest and were preparing...
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Who will represent us in Europe and why does it matter?
Labour Party members are about to be given the opportunity to decide who will be top of the list in the European Parliamentary elections in 2014. The task in brief is: Ten people for the south east...
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Fracking: views from Labour’s Euro candidates
As it’s a key concern in the south east, I asked all ten candidates to send me their views on fracking. So far, only two have done so – here are the responses. I’ll add more if and when they come in!...
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European Selections: who to vote for?
We had a great discussion and hustings event on Monday June 3rd, which a number of people said was very useful in terms of making a decision on how to vote. Here are my views of the candidates so far –...
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Rarely mentioned: Labour’s record on the environment
We were delighted to welcome Michael Jacobs to the city recently to address Sera (the Labour-affiliated environment group). Michael was heavily involved in the work of the last Labour government to...
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Why I don’t support fracking
The large-scale protests at Balcombe are fulfilling an important job of raising the issue of fracking in the national media. However, they are also prompting accusations that this is a knee-jerk...
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How I feel about becoming an MEP candidate
In the last few days I’ve been asked to go onto the list of Labour candidates for the European election on May 22nd. This is to fill a vacancy left by the tragic death of Del Singh, who was killed in...
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Labour and the European Elections – it’s not easy
It probably doesn’t look it, but I was almost childishly pleased at the weekend to share a platform with Glenis Wilmott (far left), the current leader of Labour’s MEPs in the European Parliament, and...
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Clegg versus Farage: the missing arguments
Public response to the Farage/Clegg BBC debate seems to strongly favour Farage, and Farage certainly performed well, as he so often does in front of a camera. I found it impossible to judge them on...
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The future of international trade
This excellent post by the Labour MEP candidate John Howarth highlights many of the issues around EU trade with the rest of the world. It includes issues such as promoting fair trade, the EU’s...
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