letter to the editor from Richard Corbett MEP |
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06 September 2007 |
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The Morning Star |
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Dear Editor, Chris Purnell (letters, 3rd September) is right to say that some significant progressive legislation (such as the Working Time regulations and the protection of part-time workers) has emanated from the European Union (and the European Parliament in particular) over the past few years but that there is no guarantee that this will continue – the European Union is, after all, another political battleground where there are both risks and opportunities, and that the Labour party and Trade Unions ignore at their peril. That being said, the forthcoming battle over the EU Reform Treaty will be critical. It is strongly opposed by some of the most reactionary forces in Britain, precisely because it would strengthen the capacity of the EU to act and it would strengthen the powers of the European Parliament over the Commission. However, debates on the left have tended to focus on the Charter of Rights contained in the treaty, but this is anyway largely symbolic – the more entrenched social rights contained in the Reform Treaty and the enhanced protection for public services protocol, are far more significant and in themselves make the Reform Treaty worth ratifying. It will ,of course, not turn the EU into a paragon of virtue, but it will make significant improvements in the fucntioning of an organisation that is, at times, capable of delivering progressive legislation Yours, Labour MEP for Yorkshire & Humber |
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