On the 22nd March, Brussels was hit by coordinated terrorist attacks, targeting the airport and Maelbeek metro station.
Many MEPs and their staff were in the vicinity of these attacks as Maelbeek is the metro station for the Parliament. These attacks therefore felt very personal to many of us and my thoughts and prayers are with all those who have been affected by these cowardly attacks.
GLYPHOSATE
Many people contacted me regarding the proposed EU ban on the popular herbicide Glyphosate. There had been an attempt to ban this product, which would have had serious consequences for farmers. However, in the end, common sense prevailed and science won the day after the European Parliament recommended relicensing it for seven years.
MAKING TRADE EASIER BACKED BY BY PARLIAMENT
My first European Parliament report, into obstacles to trade within the EU, won approval from MEPs on the European Parliament's Internal Market Committee last week. Tariffs were eliminated half a century ago, yet technical standards and red tape continue to hurt consumers who face higher prices and less choice and damage small businesses ability to grow. Larger companies can often navigate these obstacles, but a lot of small businesses give up before they've even begun when faced with an array of protectionist rules. My report identified some of the many types of non-tariff barriers to trade that remain in the single market, such as non-recognition of product testing, and called for a renewed push on eliminating them. There are times when competing visions of regulation can and do encourage competition, but there are still far too many unnecessary rules in place and my report aims to move the deregulation agenda forward.
LOCAL ELECTIONS
There's only one week of campaigning left until the council and Police & Crime Commissioner elections on the 5th May, I recently joined Philip Seccombe and his team in Kenilworth (pictured) and in the final push I will be campaigning across the West Midlands. In last year's general election we won the ground war against Labour and this time around we have an excellent chance of winning and retaining many seats and increasing our number of PCCs.
CONSTITUENCY VISITS
It’s been a month of meeting schools and welcoming university students to visit Brussels. I took part in a very lively EU debate at Trinity School in Royal Leamington Spa and visited Warwick School my old Alma Mata. In Brussels I welcomed law students from Coventry and young business leaders from Birmingham.