POLITICAL BOSSES BACK WEST MIDLANDS MEP

6.10.02pm BST (GMT +0100) Tue 6th Sep 2005

Liberal Democrats in the European Parliament have won strong cross-party support for their campaign to force ministers to debate new EU laws in public.

In a remarkable and unique display of unity, the leaders of all the UK political groups in the European Parliament have joined with Liz Lynne MEP in demanding that Britain uses its current presidency of the EU to inject new openness into decision-making.

Conservative and Labour leaders, MEPs Timothy Kirkhope and Gary Titley along with UKIP's Nigel Farage and the Green Party's Jean Lambert, joined the Liberal Democrats by signing a joint declaration to the Parliament.

The MEPs stated "it is unacceptable that Europe's most senior law-making body, the Council of Ministers, continues to meet behind closed doors when its members are debating new laws and it is acting as a legislative assembly.

"The principles of openness and transparency should apply whenever European laws are being made. They are essential if national parliaments are to fulfil their role and hold ministers to account for their actions."

The show of unity by the Britain's political bosses in Europe will increase pressure on Tony Blair to take a lead in bringing about change before the end of the year. The MEPs point out that the improvement requires only a simple change in the standing orders of ministerial meetings, needing the support of just 13 of Europe's 25 member states.

EU laws are drafted by the European Commission and then amended or rejected both by the European Parliament and by the Council of Ministers. While MEPs meet in public, government ministers meeting in Brussels debate new laws behind closed doors.

Liz Lynne MEP described the support the Liberal Democrats received from political rivals as "remarkable", and congratulated them for taking political risks in signing the joint declaration.

"It shows the European Parliament at it best," she said. "Instead of point-scoring against opponents MEPs frequently bridge party differences when we share common cause, although rarely to this extent."

Liz Lynne MEP commented: "We are agreed that it is quite wrong for ministers to continue debating new EU laws behind closed doors in Brussels. If MPs in national parliaments are to do their job of holding ministers to account they have to know what is being said in their country's name.

The MEP said that Labour's Gary Titley had shown independence by taking a position that may embarrass the government. The Conservative's Timothy Kirkhope had put the public interest first by calling for the change even though the proposal was included in the EU constitutional treaty and has not been put to a referendum.

"Even UKIP's Nigel Farage may take some flack from within his party for backing this move. It would be a sensible reform but it hardly amounts to "wrecking" the EU."

ENDS