International day of women for peace

Today we celebrate the international day of women for peace. The 24th of May is a day to recall that women play an important part in transforming global conflicts; by searching for solutions to end violence, by looking for opportunities for the growth and development of societies, and by contributing in the resolution of political differences.

We want to send the message today to affirm that we can work together in the campaign for peace, and to encourage that even more women get involved.

We are women from Scotland, Wales, Flanderen, Catalonia, and Euskal Herria, who are involved in the debate on the future of our nations. We believe it is essential to use political incentives in order to overcome the present confrontations and conflict.

The respective political struggles that our nations are undergoing are united in that we are stateless nations aiming towards full recognition on a European and international level. We share the desire to recognise the rights of stateless nations, and form a new political landscape within the United Kingdom, Belgium and Spain.
Our aims as nations will be resolved through dialogue, negotiation and involvement of the people.

Our goal is to achieve peace and political standardisation. We believe in defending our nations in a peaceful and democratic manner, and we condemn all violations of human rights and demand justice and equal rights for all people.

We therefore give our full support to this routemap presented by the Basque Government. It is a legitimate and democratic political initiative, based on dialogue and the will of politicians and citizens. We believe that the aims and policies presented in the routemap are the way forward in solving the Basque political conflict.

Celebrating the Diversity of Our Planet!

I was pleased to sponsor ‘Planet Diversity’, the world congress on the future of food and agriculture that took place in Bonn, Germany between the 12th and 16th of May.

The aim of the congress was to celebrate natural and agricultural biodiversity, the cultural diversity of food and agriculture. Engaging farmers, consumers, food producers and their communities, is in my mind a great step in raising awareness of, and protecting our biodiversity.

One biologist recently referred to the ‘evil quintet’ responsible for the biodiversity crisis that we are now facing: over-exploitation, habitat loss, alien species, climate change, and the disruption of food chains are leading to major changes in our environment. Changes in the seasons, species fleeing their normal habitats, and mistiming between breeding season and high food supply are causing major disturbances to the environment.

Other important issues raised were GMO-free regions and the need to help the women farmers of the developing world to get access to means of production to help combat poverty and to aid rural development.

There is however some good news! The EU’s Natura 2000 scheme is a network of conservation areas - the best conservation tool Europe has. I backed proposals to make funding available for this project back in 2005. By now, Natura 2000 is made up of nine geographical areas and by the end of 2008 will cover 20% of Europe! The project is based on the principle that man is part of a living landscape, so farming and fisheries etc are allowed. This makes it both ecologically sensible and compatible with the economy.

In brief, it’s great to see all this attention now being focused on biodiversity. Natura 2000 should keep expanding, meaning that nature will be considered a top priority in vast areas of Europe. The ‘Planet Diversity’ congress in Bonn did well to focus on ecological issues without excluding food and agriculture, the industries that we depend on the most. Here’s to the continuation of their good work!

Carbon Capture: Don’t get carried away

Following months of heated debate on the controversial new European waste laws, I am now speaking for The Greens / European Free Alliance (EFA) Group in the debate on Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS). In January the European Commission published what they called the “Climate Change Package” - a set of directives looking at various aspects of combatting and adapting to climate change. I will be speaking for The Green / EFA group on the CCS issue.

Of course, for someone born and brought up in the Rhondda, coal has always been close to my heart. When I was growing up we waited for the school buses alongside the miners waiting for the NCB buses. It was still the major employer and a massive part of Rhondda life.

I was active in the support groups across the coalfields in the 1984/85 miners’ strike. In fact, I believe I was the only woman ever to go underground in Maerdy pit before it was closed. I still have the lump of coal I brought home.

But things have changed. It was never a secret that coal was a massive polluter. Miners’ lungs,old coal tips, felled forests and dirty rivers bear testimony to that. But no now we also realkize there’s a climate change crisis to which coal is contributing to in a big way. In Wales, Aberthaw power station is a major polluter, despite efforts to reduce emissions. The UK government seems intent on building new coal fired power stations, despite the damage they do.

Now a new technology is being hailed as the saviour of coal - CCS. It literally means extracting the CO2 from power station emissions and storing it at high pressure deep underground. This is not reducing our pollution, it’s moving it to another place. If the storage facilities are not available near the power station, the CO2 will have to be taken by pipeline (and we all know about the ongoing controversy over the LNG pipeline) to where it can be stored. It will have to be kept there for ever.

Of course, this may be a way of reducing the CO2 we pump out into our atmosphere and that would be a good thing - if it works. At the moment we don’t know if it will work. Yes, there is a lot of research going on. We also know that it is massively expensive, which is why so many trial projects have been abandoned already.

One of my concerns is the leaking of CO2 from underground storage sites. In a meeting with the European Commission I proposed that one of the criteria for approving a storage site should be that there would be NO risk of leaking instead of the no “significant” risk of leaking they had suggested. They will look at the draft again to see if it can be changed. If we are going to pursue this new technology we have to have all the safeguards possible to protect against anything going wrong.

We are still at the early stages of this fascinating debate and development. But one thing is clear to me: CCS is not the answer to the problem of climate change. We need to make very fundamental changes. We need to conserve energy and we need renewable energy. Wales is extremely rich in that resource. CCS is not the green light for going back to coal - even if that was possible or we wanted to. The monster that is Ffos-y-Fran opencast site in Merthyr Tydfil should teach us that.

We have to wait and see whether CCS will work and where it will be used. There has been talk of using old coal mines for storage - which sets alarm bells ringing for me - but for now it’s just talk. If we could use our past legacy in the coalfields of Wales to help ensure a cleaner future I would be the first to welcome it. But we’re nowhere near that yet. Let’s not get carried away.

In vino veritas: the alarming truth about pesticides in wine

A first-of-its-kind study by the Pesticides Action Network Europe, presented at the European Parliament recently, had some alarming findings on pesticide residues in European wines.

I was amazed when I read some of the report’s comments quoted by German Green MEP, Hiltrud Breyer. She said,

“For the first time, 40 wines were tested for dangerous pesticides. The results are alarming, but also predictable given the intensive use of pesticides on grapes. All conventionally produced wines in the sample were contaminated and each of these bottles had an average of four different pesticides present. A total of 24 different kinds were found. Among these, five are classified by the European Union as being carcinogenic, mutagenic, reprotoxic (CMR) or endocrine disrupting.

We are particularly concerned that so many different kinds of pesticides have been detected. Even if the pesticide concentration is lower than has been recently found in fruit and vegetables, the residues contain a higher quantity of pesticides - a toxic cocktail with unknown additive or combined effects.

The study’s results highlight an urgent need for Europe to get to grips with the problem of dangerous pesticides. Europe produces and consumes two thirds of the world’s wine, and is also the world’s biggest exporter.

Now the EU is reviewing the authorisation of pesticides, it must seize the opportunity to ban those that are dangerous. Contrary to claims by the chemical industry and lobby groups, a ban of CMR pesticides and those harmful to the hormone system would only affect 4.5% of the 507 currently authorised in Europe. This would represent a small step for industry, but a stride forward towards better protection of health and the environment.

As the EU Council of Ministers prepares to adopt a common position in May 2008, we call on all EU Member States to support the drive towards better food safety and a ban of dangerous pesticides.”

Good news for Gwynedd

In Gwynedd on Friday I paid a visit to Siemens in Llanberis, where I met Finance Director Judy Owen. This is a real success story and recent developments there have given a great boost to the area.

The work which is carried out at present in their Los Angeles plant will now be transferred to Llanberis, meaning the creation of almost 200 new jobs in Gwynedd, and the consolidation of the existing 327 jobs in Llanberis.

As you can imagine, this has been very well received, not only in Gwynedd, but across Wales, and great credit is due to the management team in Llanberis, as well as the work force. Not surprisingly, Judy Owen told us that they had already received a large number of applications for the new vacancies.

Electric Disability Scooters

Some of you may have seen pieces in the local media and television recently highlighting the preceived problem of using electric disability scooters or mart carts.

The issue was brought to my attention when Rhondda resident Keiron Shepherd of Ton Pentre, was asked by staff to leave Asda’s Tonypandy store while shopping with his mother. The 13 year old schoolboy, who suffers with cerebral palsy, says he was left bewildered and embarrassed as he was escorted to the front of the store.

I have finally succeeded in securing a meeting with Asda management in an attempt to resolve the store’s ban.

I’m pleased that Adsa have finally responded to my repeated attempts to contact them. I’m hoping that an amicable agreement can be made, so that young people under the age of 16 are able to use their scooters in store.

I don’t understand Asda’s stance on this, as there’s no legal age limit to drive these scooters. It would seem that this policy was introduced ‘off the cuff’ by the Tonypandy store, as I understand that Keiron has used these scooters in several other Asda stores around south Wales with no problem.

I will be asking that Tonypandy Asda change their policy, but the least Keiron deserves is an apology for the way he was treated.

I sincerely hope that this issue can be resolved, as I find it unacceptable that some of our young people are discriminated against. I’ve been in contact with the Equality and Human Rights Commission and if I don’t get a satisfactory answer then I’m prepared to take this further.

My reports from Palestine

I’m visiting Palestine this week, and as a member of the European Parliament’s Delegation we’ll be meeting with UN (UNRWA and OCHA), Members of the Knesset, Members of the Palestinian Legislative Council, the Mayors of Hebron, Bethlehem and Nablus, and representatives of various Israeli and Palestinian NGOs.

I’ll be reporting on my visit via The Daily Post. You can find the latest update here.

Wales disadvantaged yet again!

Today the official proclamation of the European Charter of Fundamental Rights took place in Strasbourg, and the UK Government insisted on opting out of the provisions of the Charter.

The opt out puts Wales at a disadvantage compared to the rest of the European Union and proves the need for Wales to have its own voice in Europe. The UK is opting out from the Charter whilst the Polish government has indicated that it intends to drop its opt out, leaving the UK as the only member state not to sign up.

Nothing highlights our disadvantage in Europe more than watching everyone except Britain and possibly Poland sign up to the Charter of Fundamental Rights. We have called for many years for a written charter of rights. Now the EU has it but we in Wales don’t. Our human and social rights are less protected.

This charter is an instrument for political action on social rights, the environment, workers rights, equality of men and women, rights for children and the elderly. Members of parliament stood and cheered as the charter was signed. Those of us who are denied the protection of the charter could only stand on the sidelines.

The lesson for today is that Wales can not afford to be on the sidelines and needs to have its own voice in Europe.

The European Charter of Fundamental Rights was signed at a special proclamation ceremony in Strasbourg by Hans-Gert Pöttering, European Parliament President, José Manuel Barroso, Commission President, and José Sócrates, Portuguese Prime Minister and President-in-office of the EU Council.

The event was designed to publicise the Charter and give a legal basis article which refers to the Charter in the EU Reform Treaty (the Lisbon Treaty). The United Kingdom has an opt out from this part of Treaty and the UK Prime Minister will not be present in Lisbon for the joint signing ceremony which takes place tomorrow.

From Pontypridd to Brussels

I attended the Welsh-themed British Beer Club Christmas Reception in Brussels on Monday. A total of forty five brewers from Wales were invited to take part, one of which was the Otley Brewery from Pontypridd.

Events like this are important in promoting Welsh produce overseas and I’m always keen to lend my support. My congratulations to the British Beer Club for their work, and to those Welsh brewers who took part.

It was great to see a number of local brewers from Wales taking part, and both Nick and Matthew Otley from the Otley brewery in Pontypridd were there to promote their selection of real ales.

I hope this will help open new markets for their fine Welsh produce, perhaps not in time for this Christmas, but certainly in time for the next!

International AIDS Day

Today is International AIDS Day. I will be wearing my red ribbon to help raise awareness of this terrible disease. In the year 2000 all the EU countries signed up to the Millenium Development Goals. Fighting HIV/AIDS is a real test of their commitment.

5 million children have been orphaned by AIDS. Many pregnant women are denied the drugs to prevent them passing on the virus to their unborn children.

A few years ago I did a report in the Parliament on this issue and worked closely with Medicines Sans Frontiers. I learned a lot about their fantastic work but also about the scale of the problem. Then in 2002 I visited Kwazulu Natal in South Africa. There I saw it at first hand. We had a meeting with the King of the Zulus who had made fighting AIDS his top priority because they were burying a child in the village every week and he just couldn’t stand it any more. But I also went to watch a group of young people performing a play for schools which was really inspiring. It carried a very strong message about the importance of using condoms.

Wearing a ribbon isn’t much but it is important. If nothing else it reminds people who make promises that we expect them to keep them.