January 2009

Published on Tue 27th Jan 2009

January always seems to be a short month - perhaps because we do not start back until the 5th - but a lot has been packed into it all the same.

The start was dominated by discussions on pesticides, with people out from the National Farmers' Union for Scotland out in Brussels to engage our help in making the package more sensible where crop production in Scotland is concerned.

Although we did not succeed in getting the hoped for amendments through in Strasbourg the following week, at least the final version was better than it might have been and we now have to do our best to make sure that decisions taken on the new rules have a proper scientific basis. Strasbourg also saw a resolution on the situation in Gaza, about which we'd all receive a lot of correspondence.

Brussels turned out to be busy for fisheries. There was the vote of my report on whaling, which went much more smoothly than I had feared, and a lively discussion of my report on the governance of the Common Fisheries Policy. We had meetings, too, with Ministers from the outgoing French Presidency and the incoming Czech Republic one.

We were inundated with protests, too, about a Commission plan to bring recreational sea fisheries under a new control regulation. Although this is not meant to be nearly as far reaching as many correspondents fear, it certainly needs sorted and we are encouraging those concerned to write to fisheries ministers, as it is them who shall have the final say.

Life had its social side as well, with two Burns Suppers - the one annually organised by the Scottish MEPs and another at Scottish government level with guests from the Czech Republic. Both were really enjoyable and our own raised a goodly sum for Mercy Corps Scotland.

Of course, there were quite a few things to attend to back home as well, including people coming to see me in the office on some rather complicated issues. The Scottish MEPs, too, are just after their annual meeting in Dunblane with representatives of the Scottish churches. As ever, the discussion was wide-ranging, challenging and thought-provoking.

The first week of February shall see another Strasbourg session. I have to confess that I am now counting the number of these before my retirement.