Labour MEP for Yorkshire & Humber
Leeds Bradford Airport is a major player in the economic fortunes of North and West Yorkshire, connecting us not only directly to the rest of Europe but also, both directly and indirectly, to much of the rest of the world. I’ve been there several times since I was re-elected in 2014, and most recently I […]
I was delighted to be able to return to Drax, a major power station in my constituency and the second largest in Europe, to talk about the EU referendum with staff and management last week. The main event of the day was an exchange of views on European issues — there was standing room only […]
The EU referendum is now just around the corner — and the final deadline to register for this historic vote is almost upon us. It’s very simple and easy to do online. And if you’re not registered by Tuesday 7 June, you won’t be able to participate. There are currently 7.5 million eligible voters in […]
Over the last few weeks, we’ve heard a series of forecasts from independent experts both at home and around the world about the potentially disastrous consequences of leaving the EU for British jobs and workers and our standard of living. But we don’t have to take their word for it. To get the view from […]
Brexiteers’ attempts to drag the NHS into their anti-EU campaign hinges on two dubious claims. The first is that we would be significantly better off if we left the EU. The second is that our government would spend its new-found windfall on plugging the gaps in public spending on the health service. The first of […]
Last week, Boris kicked off his anti-EU campaign with a series of gaffes so embarrassing that even the Daily Mail couldn’t resist pointing and laughing. Has he finally gone off the rails — or is his instinct for self-promotion behind even his latest series of blunders? First he posed in the doorway of his Vote […]
The fight continues against tax-dodging and secrecy for multinational corporations, with an important vote in Parliament yesterday. My colleague Anneliese Dodds MEP, together with Rachel Reeves MP, wrote about this in the Times this week. The full article is not free, but the extract below summarises the key issues: Labour MEPs have pressed the case […]
Europe’s criminal gangs, people-smugglers and terrorist networks don’t respect borders — and it’s vital that our police and intelligence agencies work closely together too. So EU countries have set up a law enforcement network known as Europol. British security services have a great deal of expertise here, and it’s in our own interests to spread […]
Starting this week, an EU-wide agreement has once again slashed the cost of using phones and tablets abroad. Gone are the days when Brits returned home from a short break on the continent to the shock of a massive phone bill. The EU has capped the cost of mobile roaming at a lower level year […]
Yet another misleading allegation by the Brexit brigade is that the European Union is on an escalator, heading for a centralised superstate. They ignore the fact that the basic rulebook of the European Union, the treaties, is agreed unanimously by member states. There can be no increase in the powers of the European Union unless […]
It is typical of the Leave campaign that in response to President Obama’s support for Britain remaining in the EU, they have challenged his right to make the argument, rather than engage in the argument itself. Boris Johnson has even gone so far as to call Obama a hypocrite, on the grounds that the USA […]
We MEPs represent much larger constituencies than MPs. There are two Labour MEPs — and four from other parties — who cover the whole of Yorkshire & Humber, with its 5.4 million people. I get around a lot, but it’s not possible to visit every single town and village in the region every month! (Fun […]
I was pleased last week to visit the British Gas Academy, an impressive facility only a few minutes away from my constituency office here in Leeds, where British Gas engineers from across the north of England are trained in the skills they need to install and maintain energy supply equipment for the company’s millions of […]
It’s a shame that environmental issues have featured so little in the referendum campaign to date. Not only is environmental policy a vitally important part of the decisions we take jointly at European level, but it’s also one of the EU’s biggest success stories. So I was delighted to read the results of a major […]
It’s World Health Day. This annual event, organised by the United Nations World Health Organisation, is designed to shine the spotlight on health-related issues. And healthcare has been in the spotlight in recent days here in the UK too — this time linked to our ongoing debate about EU membership. I suppose, as one of […]