Welcome to my Strasbourg Roundup. This is a very brief update to let you know what happens at the plenary meetings of the European Parliament.

This month's Strasbourg session was a busy one, dealing with several important issues. MEPs debated and / or voted on the following:

• Situation in Kenya - This week myself and colleagues debated what role Europe could play in restoring democracy in Kenya after the tragic deaths of 600 people following the widely contested elections last month. I argued that humanitarian aid from the European Union should continue as the EU has a duty to support the many poor and needy people in Kenya. I do believe however that we must rechannel our aid through international agencies rather than through a government which has shown itself to be corrupt and one which cannot hold free and fair elections.Europe needs to send a message that good governance is a prerequisite for aid from the European Union.
• Consumer Credit - Myself and colleagues voted on a report which will allow consumers across Europe to benefit from cheaper loans.The new EU law allows banks and financial institutions to offer loans in other European countries. For consumers, this means that they can shop around for   the best deal.My Labour colleagues ensured that the level of consumer protection will still remain high despite the increased competition in the market. We have guaranteed that consumers will receive detailed information on the loan before signing a contract. In addition, UK credit card companies will still have an obligation under the new law to help credit card holders with problems with suppliers.
• Securing Rights of the Child - MEPs debated the introduction of new measures to guarantee the rights of the child throughout the EU. We are fighting for cross boundary cooperation on issues such as sharing criminal records in order to identify known sex offenders and prevent them from gaining employment. Cooperation is also needed to ensure that sex tourism is covered by extraterritorial law in order to put an end to child sex exploitation. The Lisbon Treaty makes child protection a key objective for internal and external policy. The European Parliament will therefore have increased power to tackle child threats with the entering into force of the Lisbon Treaty in 2009.
• New Slovenian Presidency - Slovene Prime Minister Janez Janša outlined his country's priorities to MEPs for the 6 month rotating Presidency of the EU. Slovenia plans to focus on key issues such as the ratification this year of the Lisbon Treaty by all 27 EU Member countries. In external policy Slovenia wants to work towards a resolution on the issue of Kosovo, its status and the need for stability in the Western Balkans.

Other matters that came up in Parliamentary business this week included:

• As a member of the Friends of Pakistan Group in the European Parliament, I met this week with the Ambassador of Pakistan, Mr M. Saeed Khalid, to discuss the impact to Pakistani democracy of the assassination of former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto. Myself and colleagues pressed the Ambassador for assurances that a full investigation would be held into the assassination. President Musharraf plans to attend the Foreign Affairs Committee of the European Parliament next week in order to debate with MEPs on the correct path to restore democracy.
• I met with the Chief Executive of the European and Travel Retail Council, Frank O'Connell, regarding the problem of confiscation of duty free goods from passengers travelling from non EU airports. I have been involved in the implementation of a sealed bag system between the EU and third countries such as Australia and the US. For Scotland, the duty free market is of prime importance to whisky sales. An agreement was reached between the EU and Singapore which took 6 months. I will push for a speedier conclusion to the agreements with the US and Australia.

During Question Time with the Council, I had the opportunity to ask the Council why import taxes are being levied on motorised scooters (used by disabled people for transport). These vehicles have been classified as a ‘vehicle for transport’ rather than a ‘carriage for disabled persons’ which makes them liable for import tax at a rate for 10%. I see this tax as discriminatory and am pushing the Council to reconsider the levy of this tax.

The next Strasbourg Roundup will be published shortly after the next plenary session which takes place 18 - 21 February 2008.

 David Martin MEP