Jim Murphy

The next stage of the debate

This week in the House of Commons I opened the debate on a "Bill" which will give effect to the Treaty of Lisbon in UK law. MPs will spend weeks discussing and scrutinising it and, so far, as expected, the debates have been very lively.

The EU is a way to make the UK stronger, more prosperous and more secure, and the Lisbon Treaty is a way to ensure that the EU can take effective action, whilst protecting UK national interests. What I find so surprising is that there is a vocal group of MPs who want Britain out of the EU altogether. What do you think? You can follow the debates as they happen, and read the transcripts on the Parliament website.

Posted at 16:12 01 February 2008 by Jim Murphy  |  Comments[4]

Decision on healthcare in France

Good news. Late last night it was confirmed that the French government has now decided that all inactive EU nationals who were resident in France before 23 November 2007 will be able to access healthcare via the Couverture Maladie Universelle (CMU), both those who were registered in the CMU and those who were an E106 holder at the time.
 
I very much welcome this decision - it follows a lot of contact with the French government about the retrospective nature of their earlier proposals on the implementation of Directive 2004/38EC. I will be speaking to the French Europe Minister again today.
 
I appreciate the lobbying efforts many of you have made, which helped to highlight the significance of this issue for the European expatriate community - an issue which has understandably caused considerable anxiety for many of you. I know that those people directly affected by these changes have been seeking greater reassurance before now. The British Embassy in Paris has been passing on the most up-to-date official information we have received from the French government, but of course they couldn't pre-empt the outcome of our continuing discussions with the French authorities.
 
You can see the reply from French Health Minister Mme Bachelot to our Ambassador in Paris here.

For further sources of information, please contact the following: (also listed on the British Paris Embassy's website www.ambgb.com)
 
CNAM - The French Health Service (English language service): +33 8 20 90 42 12
 
CLEISS - (France's helpdesk for international mobility and social security):

11 rue de la tour des Dames
75436 Paris cedex 09
Tel: +33 1 45 26 33 41
www.cleiss.fr

Posted at 10:44 24 January 2008 by Jim Murphy  |  Comments[23]

Child protection in the EU

Next week we will start debating the Lisbon Treaty in Parliament. Previous EU Treaties recognised animal rights. This is the first to recognise children’s rights. I’m a vegetarian, and in favour of animal welfare but the rights of children are much more important. This Treaty puts that right.

Since the BBC broadcast "Bulgaria's Abandoned Children", in September and November last year, showing distressing images of conditions in the Mogilino Care Home, Bulgaria has pledged to reform its institutional care for children, with help from the EU and member states including the UK. This year, around 5 million euro will be made available from EU funds to help develop alternative care arrangements.

The UK, and the EU, will continue to support the efforts of the Bulgarian government and the NGO community to protect vulnerable children in Bulgaria. On Wednesday, the European Parliament backed an EU Strategy on the Rights of the Child which will include tougher measures to combat paedophilia on the internet and child sex tourism, and enable the prosecution of suppliers of products manufactured with child labour.

Leading UK charities recognise the important role the EU can play on improving the lives of children. As Dame Mary Marsh, chief executive of NSPCC has said, the EU has an important role to play on the objective of ending cruelty to children. The NSPCC, like many other voluntary sector organisations, has recognised that the Lisbon Treaty will have a real impact. It will help improve EU co-operation on measures to tackle child exploitation, for example, through changes in the way decisions are taken at an EU level. It’s exactly those challenges, like child trafficking or online sexual exploitation, that cross borders and can't be effectively tackled by any one country individually.

Posted at 13:14 18 January 2008 by Jim Murphy  |  Comments[6]

New Year's resolutions for the European Union

Kicking off 2008 with good intentions, the EU, like many of us, is aiming to trim back some unwanted surplus. The Lisbon Treaty will help to do just that - streamlining institutions and processes to make the EU more effective, more fit for purpose.

But as well as resolving to tidy up its own affairs, the EU should determine to make the most of the opportunity it now has to play a truly global role. I outlined in my speech to the London School of Economics last night some of the ways in which I believe the EU can act as a force for global progress. A podcast of the speech is available on the LSE website.

2008 should mark a new chapter for the European Union.  This morning, I met representatives from leading British businesses and we discussed three key challenges for governments and businesses in Europe:

Renewed commitment to high levels of growth and employment
Commitment to free trade and openness
Tackling climate change and energy security

The message I took away was that many business leaders share our view of the EU as an opportunity for, not a threat to, the UK, and they too want to see more progress on the liberalisation of the energy, post and telecomms markets and better regulation. Over 3 million British jobs – tens of thousands of jobs in every region of the UK – are directly linked to our membership of the EU. You can see in this study by the Southbank University how many jobs are dependent on exports to the EU in your region. There’s no doubt that British jobs and Britain’s continued prosperity depend on our relationship with the EU.

Posted at 16:46 10 January 2008 by Jim Murphy  |  Comments[3]