kfajdsl/voxpopuli huggingface dataset:
facilitating experience sharing among member states in the fight against corruption is a key aspect of anti corruption efforts at eu level. in two thousand and fifteen the commission launched the eu anticorruption experience sharing programme. it offers anticorruption practitioners from member states a forum for exchanging views on topics of common interest and on legislative and institutional reforms and policy initiatives in other member states.
furthermore on one february two thousand and eighteen a new code of conduct for commissioners entered into force significantly enhancing the ethics framework at the political level. the modernised rules set new standards for ethics rules in europe for example by extending the coolingoff period from eighteen months to two years for former commissioners and to three years for the president of the commission.
in the past years the commission has increasingly prioritised integrity and anticorruption also in the european semester of economic governance.
the report showed that the nature and scope of corruption varies from one member state to another and that the effectiveness of anti corruption policies is quite different.
other areas requiring improvement are whistleblower protection lobbying legislation assets and interest disclosure and verifications adequate resourcing for anti corruption bodies as well as transparency and public access to information.
we need to get these refugees returned voluntarily to their ancestral homes in safety and dignity guaranteed by the un in white helmets. we need independent investigation of crimes against humanity and the perpetrators brought to justice. we need restoration of citizenship and equal rights to the rohingyas back in myanmar.
nothing has been achieved.
i heard harrowing stories of murder and rape ethnic cleansing and genocide.
we took across six trucks of food and medicine and distributed thirty three zero family packs of food and medicine. but i'm sad to say that i am ashamed to look these two gentlemen in the eye and look in the eye of the refugees because in spite of passing three resolutions and in spite of the fact that we are about to pass a fourth
today we all hope that oleg will be strong enough to withstand the hunger strike.
we all hope and we demand that his two children can see their father immediately at home and in good health.
existing laws and policies are not enforced enough.
but in that report it says that the netherlands lacks transparency in the financing of political parties no evidence is forthcoming of foreign bribery being tackled adequately and there is not a focus on prosecuting corruption in international business transactions.
now this is the point of departure on which commissioner malmstrm when introducing that report in february two thousand and fourteen said we are simply not doing enough. that is true of all member states.
' bulgaria was mentioned yesterday by prime minister rutte;
so instead of depending on perceptions the commission should provide us with a clear analytical report stating the facts so that there is no such totally unacceptable shaming of one or another country.
our political dialogue must be balanced and based on mutual respect and trust first of all.
how do you manage this problem when the individual member states' authorities are not able to effectively step against those international organised crime activities?
mr president tomorrow is the festival of eid a time to feast and celebrate with family and friends. sadly this will be an eid to forget for myanmar's rohingya community.
the next four months threaten catastrophic risk for the refugees especially children.
now heavy rains mark the start of the monsoon season which is predicted to bring with it disease landslides flash flooding and death.
there is a dire need to step up the international support during this critical time to address the humanitarian needs of both the refugees and the whole community. sadly only one fifth of the un joint response plan's appeal for funding has been met.
we need a comprehensive and sustainable approach to this humanitarian crisis because there is no realistic prospect of safe and voluntary return.
but the monsoon season is now so saving lives must be our priority.
without citizenship being addressed ultimately that ethnic cleansing will succeed and without consequences there are no costs to myanmar for that ethnic cleansing.
honourable commissioner if this house was to put a question to you and ask what would your response be if we asked that trade measures to include investigative mechanism under the everything but arms' principles should now be invoked?
is it not time that we made consequences to all of the words that we have spoken on this issue over many years?
by creating a pan european framework it will make it much easier for professional qualifications awarded by one member state to be recognised in another member state thus creating free movement across the european union.
it is my opinion that this introduction will strengthen the reliability transparency and compatibility of professional requirements between member states across the union.
a proportionality test is important to gain insight into the effect that this new regulation could have in professions across the european union.
mr president with any human rights resolution we seek to speak with one voice as representatives of the european people and of different political parties.
this strong united message shows that our support for human rights binds us no matter where in the world those rights are violated and no matter the other differences of opinion and political colour between us here in the parliament.
i have a question for my colleague mr campbell bannerman.
madam president inclusivity and diversity have become our obsession. everything is measured against this one yardstick so that it becomes the primary purpose of every institution.
it is there to have a representative intake.
a company board isn't there to defend the interests of shareholders; it's there to look like the rest of society.
a parliament isn't there to represent the opinions of the voters but to resemble them physically.
and of course it's no surprise that we're extending our thinking into the field of culture.
even so isn't there something just a little bit redolent of an insecure dictatorship that we're now making culture the business of politicians?
wasn't european culture in full flower for centuries before the state started trying to regulate it?
in fact wasn't every attempt at state patronage a repression of the truly creative instinct?
i wonder whether we're aware of how this comes across?
surely we should hold ourselves to a higher standard than some tin pot country that defines its national greatness in terms of state controlled cultural activity?
i believe that individual countries within the european union should work with each other.
i think we should work with each other.
we always have in the past we can in the future.
it's not a complicated problem. i think that an overarching federal bureau of investigations as some people want to have it as they have in america is not a good thing.
as a child rights campaigner i'm appalled at the conditions in which rohingya children are living.
their most basic rights are not respected and they suffer grave physical and psychological distress as they have witnessed crimes against humanity. the situation of girls in particular is terrible they face specific risks such as sexual violence and child marriage.
organisations present on the ground should adopt a gendered approach and take particular care of girls and women present in the refugee camps.
many became internally displaced persons.
and now ten years after the conflict there is still only limited hope that we will soon reach an agreement and a resolution to that conflict. quite the opposite russia continues contracting new bases bringing in new troops putting fences and barbed wire across new parts of the region and we let it happen. the eu should never forget georgia because what is at stake
is the belief that the international community should respect the territorial integrity of all states and should respect international law.
the date of provisional application will be decided at a later stage by the council.
i hope that the next meetings between parliament the council and the commission which i understand will be organised in the near future will bring substantial progress and allow an agreement to be reached even on the most difficult issues.
for instance an agreement was reached on such important issues as granting eu industry the right to request initiation of a safeguard investigation and the inclusion of internal rules on duty drawback in the safeguard regulation.
not only because once adopted it will provide the necessary protection for the eu industry if needed but also because this is the first trade dossier on which the european parliament is involved as colegislator.
finally let me also use this opportunity to inform you about the latest developments concerning the adoption process of the eu korea fta by the council.
however i can only say most likely' because it is not up to me to say what the council should
i think it is very important for us in the european union to have good free trade agreements particularly with countries whose political philosophy we can sympathise and agree with.
certainly there are huge benefits.
i think it is important that we emphasise those benefits to all our citizens so that they can benefit.
national courts must do the heavy lifting of implementation of the convention and that is why the convention needs to be incorporated and remain incorporated in domestic law as in the uk human rights act. the strasbourg court must not be a routine court of appeal but an effective and respected watchdog for forty seven states and the eu.
madam president i have already affirmed the full commitment of the uk conservative liberal democrat coalition government to eu accession to the convention.
not least britain which used to be the pioneer and the advocate of fundamental rights but unfortunately now seems to be suffering from acute withdrawal symptoms.
i was there to make sure that this law applies and i will go on insisting that human rights apply to internal eu extradition.
wearing my other hat which i used to be able to do in the british parliament helped secure an amendment to the two thousand and three extradition act which requires the judge before agreeing to extradition under the european arrest warrant to decide whether someone's convention rights would be breached. i do not know why that has never succeeded in a uk court but
by the way the strasbourg court did not prevent the extradition of abu hamza to the united states.
so accession also means that the eu reaffirms the pivotal role played by the convention system in the protection of human rights in europe. much has already been done on the way to accession.
but some important steps still remain.
by acceding to the european convention on human rights the european union will integrate itself into a pan european legal space of fundamental rights protection.
it has always been my view and it has been the policy of my party that britain should leave the european convention on human rights and that we should repeal the human rights act. one thousand nine hundred and ninety eight so i think i and my party have been entirely consistent in that.
i cannot stress enough how worried the european court of human rights the ngos and human rights defenders are about some of these proposals.
the brighton conference drafts are accessible only because of leaks.
the file is stuck in the council due to the objections of the uk government and partially of the french government.
this is not the way we should deal with fundamental rights issues in europe. i think it is time for the commission and the council to make this clear to all member states.
this is a violation of the regulation on access to documents.
let me also express concern about the fact that these two issues are being dealt with without any transparency.
if accepted these counter reforms would severely diminish the rights of the victims of human rights violations.
concerning the so called reform of the european court of human rights the uk chairmanship of the council of europe is now as we speak holding a conference in brighton where several proposals are being discussed.
involving the eu is a recipe for ensuring that no further reforms ever take place.
madam president i am proud that the united kingdom was one of the founding members of the european convention of human rights.
my group is committed to protecting human rights but we do not believe that the eu should sign the convention.
the recent decision to prevent the uk deporting abu qatada is one example.
the convention has noble aims and my group supports them but we do not support the conduct of the european court of human rights.
this is an opportunity for the eu to strut on the world stage and make very little difference to human rights and what difference it does make will be negative. we will have two courts adjudicating within the eu introducing competing jurisdictions which will only complicate matters.
the demand of the court that prisoners be given the right to vote is another.
far too often the court departs from its role of upholding fundamental rights and interferes with how democratic governments govern themselves.
it seems to me that the chief beneficiary is the eu itself which gets to use its new legal identity granted by the treaty of lisbon.
given that every member state is already a signatory to the convention what benefit is there in the eu signing as well?
it must be reformed with most cases dealt with at national level and national courts given a greater margin of appreciation for making decisions.
it also raises the issue of the eu itself having a role in any future reform of the court of human rights.
this was designed to protect fundamental human rights the right to life the right not to be tortured and the right to a fair trial.
in several eu countries and signatories to the convention people can be and are jailed for heretical opinions on academic subjects and for political opinions that are disapproved of by the political class.
proclamations about freedom of expression are a bit like the word democratic in the title of a state it appears most prominently in the titles of states in which it is suppressed most obviously.
furthermore people have been prosecuted for the careless use of a word such as debate' to refer to a historical event.
madam president i am fully aware of the commitment given in the conservative party manifesto. regrettably we did not win the general election.
we are part of a coalition and this is a policy of the coalition government of which the european conservatives and the british conservatives do not approve.
in july two thousand and ten the commission opened technical negotiations on behalf of the union with a group of fourteen experts appointed by the steering committee for human rights of the council of europe.
the institutional rules of the accession agreement are very important.
good progress has been made in solving the issues raised and i would like to thank the polish and danish presidency for their work on this. i would like to stress that the amendments envisaged preserve the overall architecture and balance of the draft accession agreement.
madam president i think that some of this debate is profoundly depressing when we are talking about how to keep the european union out of human rights provisions. this is about accession to the european convention the european court rights for all within the european union.
this is about the rule of law within a human rights context;
there are some that i am not too happy about.
so the purpose of the convention the purpose of the court is that it requires governments to meet certain standards just as many of us want it to require the eu to meet certain standards and to call governments and other authorities to account.
but the whole point is that it is not a pick and mix.
now there may be judgments from the european court that we do not like.
about how governments and other authorities respond to being held to account.
if you do not like the judges argue for the reform and training of the judges and then when you are making those arguments also remember that a lot of court findings are against countries such as russia and ukraine the very places we have heard complaints about.
it closes the gap which is there at the moment and which leaves eu legislation and actions outside the european court of human rights.
the european convention on human rights has been used by people like abu hamza and terrorist suspects to prevent their extradition to countries like america on the basis that their human rights might be abused. but i have sat in courts dealing with european arrest warrant cases and one in particular where the european convention was invoked because it was almost certain that in being extradited to greece
but the government prosecutor put the point that since greece was a signatory of the convention on human rights it could not be deemed to be in breach of it.
but treaties are ratified by acts of parliament and any act can be repealed.
instead he betrayed his promise and his guarantee turned out to be worthless.
as usual the tories betrayed britain. now they are in denial about the consequences of that betrayal. they had a solution and they did not use it.
but this is not true either.
britain could not opt out of or reform the convention even if it wanted to because we are bound by the lisbon treaty.
the coalition government replied that they were obligated to accede to it and that in any case it would not change the existing situation regarding the uk.
now the government tells us not to worry anyway because it makes no difference.
now the only solution is the one advocated by the uk independence party which is for britain to leave the european union.
if he had wanted to he could have repealed the ratification act and then submitted lisbon to a referendum of the people.
madam president i would remind mr duff that the treaty of lisbon was ratified without a referendum in the united kingdom as was promised by the prime minister gordon brown and therefore my position is that we should seek to amend the treaty so that this obligation no longer exists.
to return to the subject as we speak it is true that ken clark our uk justice secretary is indeed trying to convince forty six other ministerial colleagues in the council of europe to reform the intrusive powers of the european court of human rights which in my view now seems far too often to champion the phoney human rights of the criminal or terrorist rather than protect the victims.
so i like most conservative meps support the view that we should be doing everything we can to prevent this happening.
terrorists criminals and illegal immigrants with and without cats.
more often than not judges who apply human rights law decide that those rights trump those of the majority decent honest hard working british people.
it is the lisbon treaty that allows the eu to sign up to the echr which further imprisons the british public who never got a chance to say no through a referendum.
simply the court of human rights leaves britain unable to defend its interests.
they introduced the human rights act which gave the british public the right for british courts to intervene in these matters.
would she agree with me that if the uk took her line and withdrew from the european union the rest of europe would breathe a sigh of relief?
if someone knows how the european court of human rights functions they understand that there is always the possibility of having the right decision.
so far the jurisprudence of the european court of human rights which was literally applied also by the luxembourg court of justice has proved that it was a very good court with very sound decisions.
maybe this would be an argument for actually having the european union within the european court of human rights framework?
then you could actually bring those cases there could you not?
the european union is based solely on absolute fundamental universal human rights.
yes the court needs reform nobody argues with that but the way to reform it is by being engaged with it.
in order to have coherence between national law and eu law it is vital that the eu accedes to the european convention on human rights.
because they are there to give a voice to people who are often trampled underfoot.
i want you to imagine that there are citizens living in one country of the european union who are not allowed to serve in the military who do not have a right to a family life who have no succession of housing when their partner dies whose very sexuality is criminalised
their only recourse those citizens living in the united kingdom those lesbians and gay men and bisexuals was to the european court of human rights and because of their judgments they were afforded eventually universality and respect for their human rights.
that is exactly what happened when the judgment was given that the ban on prisoners being forbidden the right to vote was in contravention.
the uk parliament merely had to note that and continue with what it was doing.
the world is a better place if somewhere like the european court of human rights makes the lives of politicians more difficult.
surely as a british citizen you would respect the right of the british prime minister to use all legal instruments available within the council to delay the day for as long as possible given the fact that the european court of human rights is deeply unpopular now in the united kingdom?
the benefits of such accession are that it will close the gap in human rights protection in the eu as applicants will for the first time be able to bring a complaint before the strasbourg court directly against the eu for alleged violation of convention rights which you should applaud enable the eu to defend itself directly before the strasbourg court create legal certainty and so on.
so are you telling us that you refute the view of a conservative led government?
they do not speak for me and they do not speak for my group they speak for the coalition government. we are a conservative party and we have a different policy on this issue which we believe is far more in tune with the british people.
some of these judges have no judicial training they are political appointees.
why should these foreign unelected and unaccountable judges be able to decide on matters of our own national security and our criminal justice system in the united kingdom?
i am afraid there is no confidence in the integrity of this court.
it needs to be reformed and its powers need to be reined in. i am very sorry but that is the feeling of most of my constituents.
indeed the liberal democrats even want to enhance it as the gracious lady said. so the conclusion is very clear if britain wants to get out of the european convention of human rights which i think we should there is only one way and that is for the british people to vote and support ukip.
now what is this european court of human rights?
well members of this house are rightly exercised about ukraine where the former leader of the opposition has been put in jail for seven years on what appear to be trumped up charges and has even come to court again.
i am pleased that the report recognises this need. as the report highlights establishing regional innovation incubators is vital.
in tough economic times we must ensure that funding in research and innovation is not spread too widely or haphazardly.
furthermore it is good to see the potential behind the smart region' concept which is being worked on by omagh and fermanagh councils.
instead investment should surround a limited a number of priorities and be targeted where there is the greatest economic potential.
in my own constituency of northern ireland i was delighted to visit the innovation growth centre in omagh which opened last may.
and if you cannot trace it back to the farm how can you reduce the risk of diseases?