Graham's blog Friday 21 November 2008

Published on Fri 21st Nov 2008

In Strasbourg this week for our formal debates and votes, the European Parliament turned its attention to immigration. The Commission has proposed the first two planks in what will eventually be a common immigration policy. They must be agreed unanimously by the member states before they become law and Parliament is only asked for its opinion. We backed with large majorities a measure to open the door to legal migration for highly skilled migrants (the so called blue card scheme): and a proposal to give them the same rights as our own workforce. My Group abstained on the Blue Card proposal because Parliament voted so many amendments to the Commission's text we would have wrapped the blue card in red tape! But we support the principle.

The day before, the European Commission published a report on freedom of movement of workers within the EU. 15 member states (including the UK) still apply restrictions to workers from Bulgaria and Romania, though the Commission provides convincing evidence that there is no need to. It would be indefensible to allow in workers from outside the EU but maintain restrictions on EU citizens.

The main piece of political theatre this week was the statement from Council and Commission on the G20 summit in Washington. For the first time ever at the G20, the European Commission had been invited in its own right; yet without Barack Obama there it must have felt like attending a performance of 'Hamlet' without the Prince. I welcomed broadly the agreements at the summit but told them to take sustainable development much more seriously. My speech can be found at http://tinyurl.com/64nudv.

I scored something of a hit for pensioners this week by amending a report on equal pay to include equal pensions. The Plymouth Senior Citizens Forum had brought a petition to Parliament demanding action to end the inequality between UK pensions for women (under fifty quid a week in some cases) and those for men (over eighty quid). I took it through the Petitions Committee some months ago, but nobody took if further: so I persuaded colleagues to amend a parliamentary initiative on equal pay to include pensions. Our report has no legal force but substantial moral force; and adds to pressure which was felt at the ministerial meeting in Lille last week at which ministers undertook to reinforce gender equality. And while the pension gender gap in the UK is wider than in other countries, some others discriminate against women too.

Fighting climate change continues to be our main area of work. I met French environment minister Jean-Louis Borloo in the middle of a series of meetings he was chairing between MEPs and Member State representatives to try to narrow differences over the Commission's proposals for cutting overall carbon emissions, encouraging carbon capture and storage and tightening the emissions trading scheme. And on Thursday and Friday we welcomed parliamentarians from member states to a joint conference with MEPs on energy and sustainable development. There appears to be enough of a head of steam behind the proposals to reach a deal which Parliament and Council can vote to approve next month.

On Wednesday night I addressed the British Chamber of Commerce in Belgium (meeting for their annual dinner with MEPs in Strasbourg) and found myself facing a barrage of questions from Tory and UKIP MEPs present and hardly any from the businesspeople. But events like that accelerate the coursing of political blood through the veins and I thoroughly enjoyed it.

European Commission President Barroso and first vice-president Wallstrom both came to meet the political group leaders this week: he to discuss what the Commission should do to help Europe out of economic crisis (the Commission is putting the finishing touches to proposals it will publish next week) and she to discuss improving Parliament's Question Time with Commissioners. My colleagues' verdict on Barroso's performance thus far is mixed, but on economic policy we generally support his approach. 'Would we vote to give him a second term?', I was asked at my press conference. It's too early to say. His Commission still has another year to run.

Rabbi Jonathan Sacks addressed parliament on Wednesday, the latest speaker in our Year of Inter-Cultural Dialogue. Since I had proposed him I was pleased to hear him make a very good speech, in which he reminded us that dialogue is an elitist occupation and told us we had to move beyond dialogue to the building of a shared global society.

Parliament voted on Tuesday and the Council of Agriculture Ministers confirmed on Wednesday the allocation of ninety million euros to a scheme to give six to ten year olds free fruit and veg in schools. One child out of every five in Europe is overweight and runs the risk of obesity, with poor diet the main culprit.

I am in France today but will be back tomorrow to attend the Somerton and Frome constituency annual dinner. On Sunday I lead a delegation of MEPs on a one week visit to the Far East.