When omission is a lie: The Sun and EU healthcare
We all hear or read EU horror stories in the media. Many are distorted versions of the truth, some are pure fabrication. MEPs spend considerable time refuting incorrect stories, as so many exist. My...
View ArticleWhen omission is a lie: The Sun and EU healthcare
We all hear or read EU horror stories in the media. Many are distorted versions of the truth, some are pure fabrication. MEPs spend considerable time refuting incorrect stories, as so many exist. My...
View ArticleInternational Women’s Day
This week is International Women's Day and activities are going on all over the UK and the world. International Women's Day seeks to celebrate the achievements of women and promote the role of women in...
View ArticleHow should the EU regulate e-cigarettes?
Background: revision of the tobacco directiveThe European Parliament is currently examining the proposed revision of the EU tobacco products directive. The tobacco directive regulates many aspects of...
View ArticlePrivacy Under Threat – Public Meeting in Hebden Bridge, Friday 12th April
On Friday 12th April I will be joining Phil Booth of the newly launched MedConfidentiality campaign (medConfidential.org) in Hebden Bridge for a public meeting to discuss important changes affecting...
View ArticleEuropean Commission NOT seeking to restrict seeds; another Euromyth busted!
During the last week I have received a number of emails from members of the public expressing concern about European Commission plans to "make seeds illegal unless they are registered with...
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Clinical trials committee vote: a good day for transparency!
Today the European Parliament's Environment, Public Health and Food Safety Committee voted on the new EU regulation on clinical trials. The MEP responsible for the report is British Labour MEP Glenis...
View ArticleEssay Competition!
Please find below an advert for an essay writing competition I recently sent around local universities. The competition is open to undergraduates from Universities in the Yorkshire and Humber Region....
View ArticleLegal Affairs Committee vote on tobacco: good news for e-cigarettes, bad news...
The European Parliament Legal Affairs (JURI) Committee voted today on the opinion of Committee chair Klaus-Heiner Lehne (EPP, Germany) on the tobacco directive. JURI is one of several opinion giving...
View ArticleENVI vote on tobacco directive – what happened, what it means & what’s next
The European Parliament's Environment, Public Health and Food Safety (ENVI) committee voted yesterday on the Tobacco Products Directive (TPD). The current tobacco directive dates from 2001 and there...
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My support for the ‘Sandwich Protest’ against unfair internships in Brussels
Hundreds of trainees working for organisations across Brussels descended on the sunny Place du Luxembourg last week to stage what has been dubbed the 'Sandwich Protest' - a demonstration to raise...
View ArticleTime to expose UKIP MEPs for what they really are – lazy & unprincipled
By Rebecca Taylor, Liberal Democrat Member of the European Parliamentand Petros Fassoulas, Chairman of the European Movement UKThis blog post was first published on www.euromove.blogactiv.euUKIP MEPs...
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RIP Brian Harry Taylor: Liberal legend & my grandfather
Brian Harry Taylor, long serving stalwart of Bromley and Chislehurst Liberal Democrats, died peacefully in the Freeman hospital, Newcastle on Monday 12 August aged 93.Born in Putney, London in 1919,...
View ArticleWorried about the overregulation of e-cigarettes and want to do something...
Following an agreement among the leaders of the European Parliament's political groups last week, the final EP vote on the Tobacco Products Directive (TPD) has now been pushed back to the 8th of...
View ArticleEU tobacco directive: delayed vote politics
The week before last, the EPP (centre right group) made a request to delay the vote on the tobacco products directive (TPD) until 8 October (it was scheduled for the September plenary session). This...
View ArticleE-cigarettes and tobacco directive: what’s next?
I am pleased to have played a role, along with my colleagues Chris Davies, Lib Dem MEP for the North West of England, and Belgian Liberal MEP Frédérique Ries in getting amendment 170 on e-cigarettes...
View ArticleThe Tobacco Directive & E-cigarettes: Trialogue update
Negotiations between the European Parliament and national governments ("trialogues") on the tobacco products directive have begun and several meetings have already taken place. There is a strong desire...
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Use of electronic cigarettes: blanket bans are not appropriate!
I am hearing about blanket bans on people using e-cigarettes on public transport and in some public places like bars and pubs e.g. Wetherspoons, etc. I have even seen a notice banning the use of e-cigs...
View ArticleOutdated, outmoded and increasingly inaccurate: is it time follow our...
It has long been unfair that women can be identified by their marital status through the use of "Miss" or "Mrs" whereas men cannot via "Mr". "Ms" was introduced as an alternative for both married and...
View ArticleGood news for tobacco control; less so for e-cigarettes
Today I abstained on the final Tobacco Products Directive vote. My position on this Directive has always been clear: I wanted strong tobacco control measures and sensible regulation of e-cigarettes....
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