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INSIDEEU Feed the world A recent conference in the European parliamentl heard that regional cooperation is the way to go on solving the food crisis. Sarah Collins reports B y 2050 the world’s population will hit nine billion, which will mean a doubling of the global food supply. The chilling figures heard at a conference in the European parliament earlier this month prompted a call to action from EU leaders. With this week’s round of world trade talks getting under way in Geneva, WTO partners will be squaring up to each other to thrash out the best way to solve the food crisis and ensure their economies remain competitive. But for French agriculture minister, Michel Barnier, although Doha is an important forum to discuss the food crisis, the real solution is to find another forum where food and agriculture can be discussed separately to trade. “I don’t think the only place we can talk effectively about food and agriculture is the WTO. We need to find some other rather broader forum to tackle the very serious question of the link between food and agriculture and the way land is shared,” he told a conference asking ‘Who will feed the world?’ on 3 July. He held up a suggestion made by French president Nicolas Sarkozy for a world partnership involving all major international organisations – the WTO, the UN’s food and agriculture organisation, the IMF and World Bank – with the idea that they would be supported by a group of experts, much like the international panel on climate change. However, while Barnier is behind this crucial international dimension, he is also pushing for regional partnerships between developing countries on agricultural issues. “It’s important for countries to work together rather than going their separate ways. It’s a sovereign matter for each country to decide its method of production. But in regional agricultural projects, countries which are close together have an interest in looking at their distribution of production, risk management, water strategy and health and safety.” Europe’s role in all of this, says Barnier, is to encourage a pact similar to the EU’s common agricultural policy, where countries in, say, west Africa come up with coordinated solutions to natural disasters, famine and water shortages. “With the CAP, we set the goal of feeding Europe by joining forces. That’s what we’re developing in terms of regional agricultural countries. They could join forces to reach the same objectives.” Throwing his weight behind the plan, the EU’s development chief Louis Michel added, “The response to the food crisis is linked to a more regional approach rather than a national approach. Reserve stocks, access to water, infrastructure issues, access to land-locked regions – all such issues can be resolved more effectively at regional level.” Not neglecting direct aid, the EU also announced at the same conference that it would contribute unspent farm aid from the CAP to developing countries to enable them to purchase seed and fertilisers and increase their own production. Commission president José Manuel Barroso later confirmed the aid would amount to €1bn. Still, despite EU generosity, agriculture chief Mariann Fischer Boel remained adamant last week ahead of the Geneva talks that European farmers would not suffer an unbalanced deal. “We now have the real possibility of a truly historic WTO deal on agriculture if the other parts of the negotiation can match the level of ambition in agriculture. I have always been open with our agricultural constituency that this will involve a certain amount of sacrifice. We have never hidden that fact. And that is why it’s absolutely crucial that we have payback in other areas. The time has come for a cross-cutting negotiation process with other areas outside agriculture. Much will depend on the readiness of other players to show sufficient flexibility. We intend to be constructive and engaged, but we will not accept a deal at any price. A balanced deal is something we will not compromise on.” EU agriculture and development chiefs thrash out the issues at the ‘Who will feed the world’ conference on 3 July 21 July 2008 PARLIAMENT MAGAZINE 19 Issue 272 21 July 2008 “THE FRENCH IMMIGRATION PACKAGE STRIKES THE RIGHT BALANCE BETWEEN TACKLING ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION AND INCREASING OPPORTUNITIES FOR LEGAL ENTRY TO THE EU” Time for action Inside: More than just good friends? Eastern partnerships and Mediterranean unions Maltese MEP Simon Bu Issue 272 21 July 2008 32 A new beginning France’s grand plan for a revamped partnership with the Mediterranean countries has got off to a good start, but words now need to be turned into action, says Chris Jones NEWSANALYSIS 6 MEP comment MEPs on the European ombudsman’s statute, climate chang CATHERINESTIHLER CATHERINESTIHLER CATHERINESTIHLER EDITORIAL TEAM Managing editor Brian Johnson Martin Banks Sarah Collins Chris Jones Matt Williams International Press Centre Boulevard Charlemagne 1 Box 2 Brussels 1041 Tel +32 (0) 2 285 0828 newsdesk@theparliament. www.theparliament.com EDITORIAL MEP COMMENT Changes to the European ombudsman’s statute are an important step, writes Finnish MEP Anneli Jäätteenmäki “The commission’s proposals would mean access to fewer, not more documents,” European ombudsman Nikiforos Diamandouros said of new plans to update a 2001 law on document NEWSANALYSIS Bronisław Geremek A personal tribute When I think about Bronisław Geremek, or as many friends called him, Bronek, I conjure up the image of an incredible man. This outstanding politician, an intellectual and an erudite, combined two different worlds: the world enveloped by the traged CYPRUS Solving the ‘Cyprus problem’ If upcoming talks go well, northern Cyprus could be brought into the EU fold by next year, Mehmet Ali Talat tells Martin Banks “H ighly fragile” is how Mehmet Ali Talat, leader of the de facto Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) describes the cur NEWSANALYSIS Cyprus factfile Cyprus gained independence from Britain in 1960 but was hit by inter-communal strife three years later It has been divided for the last 34 years. The split dates from 1974, when a Greek military junta supported a coup against thenpresident Archbishop Makarios. Turkey res “QOL Measures” International Conference Measuring Quality of Life in the Workplace for People with Intellectual Disabilities Internationale Konferenz “QOL Measures” Messung der Lebensqualität von Menschen mit intellektueller Behinderung am Arbeitsplatz Conférence Internationale “QOL Me NEWSANALYSIS The political imperative Pierre Sellal is convinced that the EU needs to be a stronger and more active presence on the world stage T he twelfth French presidency since the start of the European project follows the first Slovenian one. For a member state that joined the EU in 2004, t SUBSCRIBE NOW The essential monthly title about lobbying, with authoritative coverage of EU and UK public affairs “Public Affairs News provides useful insights on the public affairs profession and developments affecting it. It is a helpful tool for the public affairs specialist.” Robert Mack, ch NEWSANALYSIS Preventive measures The recent report on water safety guidelines highlights the advantages of taking a proactive approach to improving consumer safety, says Meglena Kuneva E arlier this month the European child safety alliance, EuroSafe, released a new report entitled ‘Protecting REVIEW | Sir Julian Priestley Battle honours Winning the hearts and minds of EU citizens could be parliament’s most important battle yet, writes Sir Julian Priestley B Sir Julian Priestley was the European parliament’s secretary general from 1997 to 2007. Six battles that shaped Europe’s par NEWSANALYSIS From talking shop to major political force For years, Brussels players, commentators and spectators have wondered who penned the pithy sentence in the damning independent report on the management of the EU’s finances that, in 1999, led to the first ever resignation of the European com The Max-Born-Institute for Nonlinear Optics and Ultrafast Spectroscopy in Berlin coordinates an European consortium working on novel lasers for neurosurgery 19 representatives of the 9 partners and 4 guests took part in the kick-off meeting of the EU project MIRSURG on June 24-th in Berlin. After g INSIDEEU Green skies Emissions trading will incentivise airlines to clean up their act – if we get it right, says Andy Harrison T here is no doubt that climate change is a real and imminent danger. We must take responsibility and act intelligently to ensure that we leave the planet in good shap SAFEFOODERA (an ERA-net in FP6) has now launched its second transnational call on the following topics concerning food safety:          DETECTION OF TRACES OF ALLERGENS IN FOOD BIOACTIVE INGREDIENTS: Safety of bioactive ingredients in functional foods CHEMICAL FOOD CONTAMI INSIDEEU Feed the world A recent conference in the European parliamentl heard that regional cooperation is the way to go on solving the food crisis. Sarah Collins reports B y 2050 the world’s population will hit nine billion, which will mean a doubling of the global food supply. The chilling fi TV | Subtitling Turn on, tune in The introduction of full subtitling across all their programmes will be a revolution for many public TV channels, writes Lidia Geringer de Oedenberg D uring the April mini-plenary in Brussels, parliament’s president Hans-Gert Pöttering announced the adoption of NEWSANALYSIS Polish MEP Lidia Geringer de Oedenberg is vice ing TV. Many people appreciate the different facilities subtitles That was the idea I had. Although we will have to wait chair of the legal offer. Children can learn to read while watching their favourite some time for the new directive and MEP PROFILE | Simon Busuttil Malta’s EU champion He’s one of only a handful of Maltese MEPs but, as Martin Banks reports, Simon Busuttil has certainly made his mark T he recent choice of Simon Busuttil to draft parliament’s position on a future EU immigration policy has put paid to the noti NEWSANALYSIS are generally not moved on to mainland Europe once they arrive in Malta. Born and raised on the island, Busuttil’s father and mother used to run a small business but, rather than following in their footsteps, he took up law at university. The youngest of three children, he took his m EASTERN PARTNERSHIP Embracing the east A focus on the Mediterranean should not be done at the expense of relations with Eastern Europe, says Jan Olbrycht I Commission president José Manuel Barroso with Moldovan president Vladimir Voronin n the wake of the rejection of the Lisbon treaty by Irish SPECIALREPORT COVERSTORY IN THIS SECTION 24 Embracing the east A focus on the Mediterranean should not be done at the expense of relations with Eastern Europe, says Jan Olbrycht IN THIS SECTION feel entitled to wonder why such an initiative is needed when the European Neighbourhood Policy has bee EASTERN INITIATIVE | Union for the Black Sea The Black sea beckons The EU needs to give equal if not greater attention to the countries in the Black Sea region, and must involve Russia and Turkey in the process, Jan Marinus Wiersma tells Matt Williams A s Nicolas Sarkozy’s Mediterranean union w COVERSTORY “If you look at the energy issues, if you look at the security issues, the problems in Georgia and in Moldova, they cannot be solved without Russia. Turkey, too, is a key player when it comes to energy distribution” show how important it is for the EU, by playing this role in linking General characteristics of the CEPOL EuroMed Police II project November 2007, France. General seminar on the Fight against Terrorism countries. The topics dealt with should concern concrete police cooperation. 2) 21 training sessions including: • 9 training sessions dealing with general topics con national Police, and who also managed the previous EuroMed Police I project. So far, 6 seminars have been carried out, on the fight against terrorism (France, November 2007), on the fight against drugs-trafficking (Cyprus, January 2008), on the fight against NRBC terrorism (France, February 2008), o MEDITERRANEAN UNION | Launch A new beginning France’s grand plan for a revamped partnership with the Mediterranean countries has got off to a good start, but words now need to be turned into action, says Chris Jones W hen French president Nicolas Sarkozy first announced plans for a grandiose un COVERSTORY the sustainable development of the Mediterranean basin.” He detailed some of the projects already underway in these areas: cleaning up the sea, investment in solar energy, land and sea infrastructure development, a Euromed university and cooperation in the field of civil protection – A ONE DAY CONFERENCE 18 SEPTEMBER 2008 W hat is the role of the modern regulator in a fast changing world where stakeholders’ expectations are often in competition? This conference represents a unique opportunity for Government, business, consumer groups and all UK regulators to consider the fut SPECIALREPORT SPECIALREPORT Fighting the fakers IN THIS SECTION CHINA 35 Fighting the fakers The Olympic Games present a multitude of opportunities for China’s counterfeiters, which is why Brussels and Beijing are working together to fight the fakers, says László Kovács 38 Rules of engagemen EU-CHINA | Counterfeiting Fake mascots of the Beijing Olympics are sold on every street corner in Beijing László Kovács is European commissioner for taxation and customs union our imports. But another reason is that, according to 2007 statistics, China remains the main source of counterfeited European Week of Regions and Cities Brussels 6 – 9 October 2008 Regions and cities in a challenging world More information and registration at www.opendays.europa.eu EU-CHINA RELATIONS | MEP friendship group Rules of engagement Nirj Deva says the EU’s task is to engage China in all aspects of international relations T he EU-China friendship group in the European parliament was founded in 2006. When I was setting up this group, seven MEPs emailed me to expre SPECIALREPORT 21st century in partnership with China. To do so, we must preserve and enlarge the institutions that underpin our rules-based global liberal economy and values, otherwise we are finished. This means China playing a full and active role in all the post-war Bretton Woods’ institutions CO-REACH TO LAUNCH SOCIAL SCIENCE CALL C O-REACH (Co-ordination of Research between European and China), is a network of European S&T policy and funding organisations involved in promoting research cooperation with China. This network is intended to further coherence and synergy in Europe’s S&T SPECIALREPORT SPECIALREPORT SPECIALREPORT Making friends China’s EU ambassador believes the upcoming Olympics in Beijing are a unique opportunity to promote mutual friendship and cooperation F or the first time in history, on 8 August, a developing country will host the Olympics. China, the wor EU-CHINA RELATIONS | Beijing Olympics Greening the Olympics In winning the bid for the Olympics, the Chinese government promised to bring the world a ‘green, high-tech and people’s Olympics’, ambassador Song Zhe told the Parliament Magazine. “China has taken this commitment seriously and wi European and Chinese Cooperation on the Grid Chinese partnerships on grids. The high-profile panel of experts will share knowledge in key areas of mutual interest to pave the way for future collaborative developments. Following this conference, EchoGRID organises an EU-China Cooperation workshop on EU-CHINA RELATIONS | Olympic Boycott Getting the balance right China has undoubtedly failed to meet its commitments on improving human rights, but boycotting the games is not the way to respond, says Graham Watson C Graham Watson is leader of the ALDE group in parliament hina’s Communist gover SPECIALREPORT of violence or intimidation against foreign journalists. Third, they should use every meeting with senior Chinese officials – up to and including Hu Jintao – to raise, publicly and in specific terms, concerns over both China’s general human rights record and its failure to keep EU-CHINA RELATIONS | Olympic Boycott Falun Gong members have been singled out for torture by the Chinese authorities up the majority of torture victims. Falun Gong is a harmless and popular Buddha-school set of spiritual exercises, which was founded in 1992. By 1999 the movement had between 70 to 1 11th European Health Forum Gastein Values in Health – From visions to reality 1st – 4th October 2008 Bad Hofgastein, Salzburg, Austria The main objective of the EHFG is to facilitate the establishment of a framework for advising and developing European health policy while recognising the princi Sustainable living CO 2 -neutral housing of the future B uildings are major consumers of energy, representing about 40% of total energy consumption in Europe. To reach the global objective of CO 2 reduction, a new agenda for house building must be introduced. We need to look at a building’s tota