News Releases
Showing: November 2011
Here you can find an archive of all the news items that have been on this website as well as any comments, polls or surveys.
Excellence must be the focus in EU research package
Posted,11/30/2011 3:00:00 PM
Vicky Ford MEP, Conservative spokesman on industry and research, has called for a focus on excellence in a new package of measures to boost research, innovation and competitiveness in Europe.
Conservative MEP opposes EU threat to hospital MRI scanning
Posted,11/30/2011 3:00:00 PM
An MEP fears that the future of MRI (Magnetic resonance imaging) scanners as a surgical tool may be cast into doubt by an EU directive to limit workers’ exposure to electromagnetic fields.
EU mortgage legislation must not penalise buy-to-let landlords
Posted,11/30/2011 2:00:00 PM
Draft EU rules for residential mortgages could hit UK buy-to-let mortgages and severely damage the British private rental market. Conservative MEP Vicky Ford, who is following the report in the European Parliament has tabled over 130 amendments to the draft law including exempting buy-to-let.
EU audit proposals must not undermine audit quality
Posted,11/30/2011 1:00:00 PM
As the European Commission today publishes proposals to reform the audit market in the EU today, the parliament's rapporteur (lead member) on them has said that he wants to ensure that competition is working in the auditing sector, but warns that the EU must think through any unintended consequences from its actions if it over regulates. Syed Kamall, Conservative MEP for London, has said that he will approach the process with an 'open mind' and if investors and audit clients identify problems in the auditing sector, he will aim to address them. However, he says that he wants to hear from companies and investors on whether the auditing sector is broken and if they believe that the 'Big 4' auditing firms should be subjected to "artificially imposed" competition via structural changes. He said: "I am starting this process with an open mind. There may be a case for tackling the dominance of the Big 4 and finding ways to improve auditing quality but I want to hear from investors and companies whether they believe that the current auditing system is broken. After all, the last directive dealing with audit has yet to be fully implemented in many member states. "There could be significant unintended consequences if we legislate more than absolutely necessary. "I'm also not sure that dealing with the dominance of the Big 4 audit firms in this context is the right approach. The OFT has just referred the Big 4 to the Competition Commission in the UK, making clear that competition issues should be dealt with by competition authorities. I would have expected perceived competition issues to have been dealt with by the competition directorate rather than the busy internal market directorate. "If there are genuine problems in the audit market then we should find genuine solutions for them. However, we should avoid imposing "knee jerk" solutions or forced competition which ultimately could make the auditing market weaker."
Better ways for consumers to sort out contract disputes
Posted,11/29/2011 1:00:00 PM
Conservative MEPs today welcomed planned measures to make it much easier for consumers to settle disputes over goods and services without resorting to legal action.
Karim visits Denmark in drive against red tape
Posted,11/29/2011 9:00:00 AM
The European Parliament's drive for better and simpler regulation was at the centre of discussions during a two-day delegation of MEPs to Denmark, organised to help pave the way for the Danish Presidency of the Council of the European Union. Sajjad Karim, the legal affairs spokesman for Britain's Conservative MEPs who is currently steering through the European Parliament a key report on smart legislation, led talks in Copenhagen with Danish political, business and legal leaders which stressed the importance of keeping new regulations simple, proportionate and in line with principles of subsidiarity. Mr Karim was part of a delegation of five MEPs from the parliament's Legal Affairs Committee which also discussed potentially-difficult forthcoming EU legislation on contract law, trade marks and patents. His initial report on smart legislation, accepted by the European Parliament in September, set out ways of reducing regulatory and bureaucratic burdens and their associated costs on British and other European businesses.
EU rules on quad bikes must not make Utility ATVs costly and useless for farmers
Posted,11/28/2011 4:00:00 PM
Proposed EU rules aimed at making quad bikes safer could have a severe knock-on effect on the costs of Utility All Terrain Vehicles (ATVs) used on many farms, Conservative MEP and Chairman of the internal market committee Malcolm Harbour has warned.
Commission proposes to cut red tape on microenterprise, but far more ambition needed
Posted,11/24/2011 11:00:00 AM
The European Commission has announced plans to help thousands of small businesses employing fewer than 10 people, by potentially excluding them from the scope of future EU laws. The plans, announced by Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso, also give small business a bigger role in consultations on future EU laws.
GIRLING TELLS COMMISSION TO STOP WASTING FARMERS' TIME
Posted,11/24/2011 10:00:00 AM
Euro MP Julie Girling has today told the European Commission to stop wasting farmers' time and issue a statement of compliance for electronic identification of sheep (EID).
Swinburne: Where have all the investors gone?
Posted,11/23/2011 7:00:00 PM
UK Conservative spokesperson for economic affairs, Kay Swinburne MEP, questioned EU Finance Commissioner Olli Rehn on the wider implications of the failed German bond auction earlier today, especially with respect to his plans to introduce stability bonds as a future way of achieving common issuance of debt in the eurozone.