Blog Archive
My trip to Gaza- Thursday and Friday
Posted on January 18, 2010
If the imposing city of Cairo wasn't enough to take in on the first day of my trip to the Middle East -anyone who has been to Egypt will remember the organised chaos of the city- the experience of getting to know the fifty or so other European MPs and MEPs who are part of our delegation has made for a very interesting start.
Labour MEP in Gaza as part of largest ever political delegation to the strip
Posted on January 18, 2010
The delegation includes over fifty MPs and MEPs from 12 separate countries and the visit has been organised by the NGO 'End the Siege on Gaza'.
Environment Commissioner Potočnik seems to pass test while Friends of the Earth provide food for thought
Posted on January 13, 2010
As an MEP I often receive requests from various groups for a meeting in my office, in order to discuss the position of their organisation in advance of an upcoming vote in the European Parliament. As any legislation passed or dismissed by the parliament can often have a profound impact on these organisations (as well as many citizens in the EU), I regularly hold meetings with such groups in order to gain a wider perspective of the issue at hand.
Ashton first in line as grilling of new Commission begins
Posted on January 11, 2010
The latest prospective European Commission is being grilled by the parliament all this week, and the interrogation kicked off today with its most controversial and high-profile new addition, Catherine Ashton.
Shocking treatment of Lenihan family breaches letter and spirit of media privacy codes
Posted on December 29, 2009
The shocking treatment of Minister for Finance, Brian Lenihan and his family in the context of media reports into the Minister’s health is a ‘clear and disturbing breach’ of the Broadcasting Commissions of Ireland’s Code of Programme Standards and the Press Ombudsman’s Privacy Code, according to Labour MEP, Nessa Childers.
“Even a cursory reading of the relevant sections of these Codes shows that the media outlets who went public with the revelations about the Minister’s health status drove a coach and four through the letter and spirit of the frameworks governing print and broadcast media standards in Ireland.
Something rotten in state of Denmark
Posted on December 20, 2009
Irish MEP Nessa Childers described the Copenhagen Accord reached in the Danish capital this weekend as "terribly disappointing and largely pointless. Something really was rotten in the state of Denmark this week," she said.
The Labour MEP who sits on the European Parliament's powerful Environment Committee and was in Copenhagen this week said, "Essentially the world's two biggest polluters, the US and China, have failed to show any leadership on the greatest threat facing humanity. For this they must be condemned by all who care about the future of our planet.
Leaving a snowy Copenhagen...
Posted on December 17, 2009
As I leave Copenhagen today, the soundings coming from the conference do not sound good. It seems we are suffering from a lack of leadership from the US and China is particular and also a less than satisfactory stewardship from the Danish hosts. The shambolic UN organisation of the event, leaving people queuing for hours in the cold didnt help.
For more updates and photos from my Copenhagen trip, check out my Facebook page...
Now to the airport. I hope all the visiting Head of States dont mean the transport options will be blocked off...
Irish NGOs locked out of Copenhagen talks
Posted on December 16, 2009
Speakingfrom outside the UN Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen, LabourMEP Nessa Childers has slammed the decision by conference organizers to ‘lock outnon-governmental environmental groups from witnessing a defining moment inhistory’.
COP15 Latest - Despondency creeping into Copenhagen talks after walkout
Posted on December 15, 2009
We are currently sitting down with the EU Environment Commissioner, Stavros Dimas and S&D Group colleague Jo Leinen (the Chair of my Committee, the European Parliament’s ENVI Committee) where we are being updated on the EU’s up-to-the-minute negotiating position.
I am sorry to report that there is an air of despondency creeping in at the COP 15 after yesterday’s walk-out. Trust and confidence has taken a real knock but it is crucial that the talks get back on track. Momentum has to be restored.
COP15 Latest
Posted on December 14, 2009
While there was considerable trouble today as I arrived in Copenhagen, when the G77-China group of developing countries temporarily suspended talks, the mood in the city remains optimistic as participants attempt to work through the many and varied disagreements here over the next six days.
Division
The largest outstanding point of division remains emission cuts, with very few countries prepared to follow the EU's lead in committing to upward of 20% cuts in 1990 levels by 2020.
