| | | | Dear Friend,
Most Urgent --Please Write Back after Reading this Letter | | Much has happened since I wrote to you last month.
We have played unwilling witnesses to the open displays of greed on the part of the European Commission; utterly divorced from reality, ignorant of the sacrifices being made by British people in this time of austerity and recession and instead demanding more money from you: the taxpayer. Frankly I find it grossly inappropriate for the Commission to be seeking another £7 billion whilst British households are expected to go without!!
To add insult to injury even the EU’s own auditors have highlighted the waste and fraud displayed by this cabal of technocrats. For the 18th year in a row the European Court of Auditors has been unable to untangle and sign off on the Commission's expenditures.....and they want another €7 billion... The European Commission is demanding a 5% increase to a budget in which at present 4% is unaccounted for according to their own auditors! Having mislaid 4% of your money (a small insignificant amount of €6.7 billion!) they want € 7 billion more from you instead of trying to track the money they lost or wasted last year!
It is, frankly not only astonishing, it is disgraceful.
In Strasbourg my Conservative colleagues and I vehemently opposed this farce. I argued for cuts to the vast and ever-expanding bureaucracy, starting with an end to the travelling circus between Brussels and Strasbourg which cost you €240 million every year.
Despite some truly impassioned speeches from us, the Liberals, the Socialists and EPP conspired together to defeat us and vote in favour of this increase.
It is easy for these MEPS to vote for AN INCREASE because they don’t raise the money from their taxpayers; it is the UK and other National Governments, our House of Commons and local MPs who do so and transfer the monies to the EU.
Could you please write immediately BACK TO ME if YOU agree THAT THERE SHOULD BE NO INCREASE IN THE EU BUDGET WHATSOEVER so that I can convey to the PRIME MINISTER and your LOCAL MP the strength of feeling about this in my Region; and so strengthen his negotiating arm at the crucial confrontations on the Budget that will start at the European Council on the 23rd November. As you can appreciate this is rather URGENT.
Thank you and looking forward to hearing from you now!
With every good wish,
As ever,
Nirj
| | | | | | | Strasbourg Highlights – Reporting back from plenary session | | | | Barroso Taken to Task over the Budget
I was stunned in the debate over the upcoming EU budget for 2014-2020 to witness the President of the European Commission - José Manuel Barroso side-lining any blame for the current economic crisis. President Barroso's gall in blaming national governments is even more disturbing as it was his paramount responsibility to enforce the 3% annual deficit limit.
Watch full video here!
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| | New Framework to Help the World’s Hungry
I was delighted this month to see my Legislative report, which outlined a fresh approach to alleviating starvation in some of the most under-developed areas of the world, adopted by an overwhelming majority in the Parliament. It is an appalling fact that every day, an estimated 15,000 people die from starvation. With global populations predicted to surpass 9 billion by 2050 food demand will double.
We need to find new ways to feed the starving; otherwise they will be refugees at our doorstep. My new Legislation does so, by moving away from simply donating money to relief agencies to instead giving farmers and food producers in countries with food shortages technical and other assistance to growing more food for themselves and so becoming self-sufficient.
Watch full video here!
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| | SME’s are the Engine of Job Creation and Growth
Napoleon once famously dismissed the British as a nation of shop keepers. I for one take this as a compliment. The powerhouse of any successful economy is indeed its small and medium sized businesses which employ the majority of a nation’s people, as they do in Britain. It was for this reason that I spoke out in favour of this report, which supports our small and medium sized businesses, whilst urging for ever more ambitious measures to cut red tape, to limit regulation and to liberate the entrepreneurial spirit of Europe from the shackles of Brussels legislation. This is the only route that will lead to sustainable jobs and long-term growth.
Watch full video here! |
| | EU Trade Negotiations with Japan
I was also delighted to support the steps this month towards the
signing of a free trade agreement between the EU and Japan. I believe
that this is exactly what the EU should be focusing on, creating a
common market for the free trade of goods across borders.
Japan
is already the EU's second largest trading partner. The successful
conclusion of such an agreement promises to deliver an estimated 420,000
jobs to the EU as well as boost the EU's GDP by almost 1% (0.8). As of
2009 there were already some 3,300 Japanese companies who have invested
in Europe, bringing in €135 billion. We
must, however, ensure that the agreement works for both sides. While
Japan exports heavily to European markets, it has in the past been cagy
towards importing our goods. We must guarantee that any reduction of
tariffs on our side must be reciprocated with a parallel elimination of
Japanese non-tariff barriers. Such
an agreement would prove a great advantage for British exporters,
allowing for unprecedented access to the Japanese markets.
Watch full video here! |
| | Opposition to Financial Transaction Tax
The vote in favour of a Financial Transaction Tax is a contemptible example of the EU shooting itself in the foot. Despite my repeated attempts to break through the ignorance within the European Parliament, they continue to impose self-defeating burdens upon us driven by failed Socialist ideologies. They fail to acknowledge what David Cameron has defined as the global race: if we unilaterally impose this tax on the City of London our financial services will simply flee our shores in favour of our competitors in New York or Hong Kong, who inflict no such tax. Make no mistake; this continued hostility towards financial services will hurt Britain more than any other EU country. 14% of our GDP now hangs in the balance because of the EU’s reckless short-sightedness.
Watch full video here! |
| Irrelevant and Incorrect: EU Unjustifiably Hits Out at the UAE
I deplore the tabling of this irrelevant, incorrect and misguided resolution, which calls into question the UAE's human rights record, at a time of increasing tension in the gulf region. Extreme Salafists groups supported by militant members of the Muslim Brotherhood have been trying to disrupt the stability the peoples of the UAE enjoy. Their disruptions and activism has quite rightly led to their arrest. The UAE is home to over 150,000 British people who live in a relatively free and tolerant society; this is in stark comparison to the hideous practices being perpetuated on human beings in Iran and the more extremists Islamic countries. With Syria ablaze and Iran rapidly making progress to nuclear proliferation, a sense of perspective is sorely needed in our priories towards the Middle East.
Watch full video here!
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| | | | | | | I get up to a thousand letters and emails each week from concerned constituents. Each one is treated with importance and we strive to answer all as quick as possible. Below are the two issues which have been raised most frequently in the last month. If you have a query or concern, please do not hesitate to contact at office@nirjdeva.com – I shall be happy to help. | | ACAA trade agreement with Israel
I was heartened to see that the much delayed approval of ACAA (The EU-Israel Agreement on Conformity Assessment and Acceptance of industrial products) has finally occurred. ACAA in essence will simply ensure that EU and Israeli pharma standards match. In passing this agreement we have allowed leading Israeli products to reach EU markets more expediently and at a lower cost. In real terms having to retest them for Europe would take up to 3 years longer and cost, on average, the European market about 10 billion EUR). The resulting availability of high-quality and affordable medicines is commendable and will save British lives. |
| Safety of bee population and crop rotation
A
great number of constituents have contacted me exploring ways in which
we can better protect our bee population and whether crop rotation could
play a role in this. While I appreciate the concerns for the honeybee
population, I do not believe adding further, catch-all legislation onto
the burdens of our farmers is the right approach. All lessons of
history teach is us that when the state attempts to restrict farmers
with overbearing frameworks it usually ends in disaster. While I remain
open to the practice of crop rotation, this is ultimately something
that should be decided by individual farmers, who are far better placed
to determine what is best for local agriculture. |
| | I will be back in touch with you again very soon. In the meantime you can check my website www.nirjdeva.com for regular updates and if I can be of any assistance to you on anything raised here or anything else for that matter, please do not hesitate to contact me at nirj.deva@europarl.europa.eu.
Best wishes,
Nirj Deva MEP |
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