EU trade negotiations with Australia and New Zealand

By

Debate: Wednesday

Vote: Thursday

The pace at which the Commission is negotiating trade deals is worrying. Not only are we losing sight of transparent negotiations on a multilateral agreement — apparently, Doha is well and truly buried — but the fast-track that Mr Juncker proposes completely ignores the resistance the general public have against these free trade agreements with their complete disbalance between public and private interests.

Workers’ exposure to carcinogens or mutagens

By

Debate: Wednesday

Vote: Wednesday

Work-related cancers are the number one cause of death for workers in Europe. This problem must be tackled from its roots with stricter and binding limits for employers. Workers must have access to health monitoring before, during and after exposure - in addition to long-term check-ups - as a minimum requirement to safeguard their health - the protection of workers and their well-being must come before profit.

Entry/Exit system (EES)

By

Debate: Wednesday

Vote: Wednesday

This is the final chance for the Parliament to not endorse the EES - a complex, expensive instrument that conflates irregular immigration, border security and the fight against terrorism. Another reason for rejecting the EES lies in the recent ECJ decision on EU-Canada Passenger Name Record, and how the proposed data retention periods are incompatible with human rights laws such as the European Convention on Human Rights.

EU Budget for 2018

By

Debate: Tuesday

Vote: Wednesday

In addition to helping to introduce amendments that would protect Ireland from the effects of Brexit, my focus in working on the preparation and delivery of Budget 2018 has been on delivering economic growth that will lead to long term sustainable jobs, concentrating specifically on youth unemployment, reducing the effects of climate change, investment into educational research and development along with putting citizens’ interests first.

EU Budget for 2018

By Younous Omarjee

Debate: Tuesday

Vote: Wednesday

The 2018 budget is just a repeat of the 2017 version as well as previous ones. Austerity remains a top priority across the European Union, and it once again fails to address the expectations of EU citizens in terms of environmental concerns as well as in the field of taxation and democracy.

Monitoring the application of EU Law in 2015

By

Debate: Thursday

Vote: Thursday

The report criticises the practice by EU institutions which double up as international lenders to force member states to adopt and implement austerity measures as they breach constitutional and fundamental human rights. It is almost impossible to litigate against such infringements and it significantly reduces the functionality of member states and impacts negatively upon many EU citizens. The measures adopted in the area of asylum and migration is one such example. EU institutions must therefore be encouraged to respect their own law at all times.

Protection for whistleblowers

By

Debate: Monday

Vote: Tuesday

Proper protections for whistleblowers and their assistants help to promote a democratic culture of accountability in public and private institutions. It is therefore vital that a comprehensive regulatory framework which guarantees a high level of protection, including a clear procedure for properly handling disclosures, is adopted. In any case, the role of whistleblowers in reporting unlawful or improper conduct must be strengthened further in compliance with basic fundamental rights.

Fertilisers

By

Debate: Monday

Vote: Tuesday

This revised regulation should create new common requirements for quality, safety and labelling of products. We need to avoid the contamination of the food chain and to limit environmental damage, so tightening the maximum amount allowed for heavy metals such as cadmium, chromium or arsenic is crucial. Currently, an intensive debate concerns the limit for cadmium. However, the right-wing parties seem to be heavily influenced by business interests that work against consumer health protection.

EU summit conclusions

By

Debate: Aucun

Vote: Aucun

EU governments want to close off our borders to refugees whilst ignoring human rights and international law. The shocking conditions in Libyan detention centres and huge number of deaths in the deserts are ignored, whilst the lower number of deaths crossing the Mediterranean is emphasised. We must have a reform of the Dublin system, built on solidarity and shared responsibility. The militarisation of the EU has also now reached a frightening and extremely worrying level. This comes when Europe already faces crises on economic, political and social fronts. We are therefore against any further military ‘solutions’ and an increase in the EU Defence Budget.