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		News 2009 2008 Cu-cumbersome laws on fruit and veg to be scrapped - Tuesday, 30 June 2009 A decades old political hot potato for the European Commission will finally be repeeled tomorrow when the EU lifts its ban on wonky fruit and veg, Neil Parish MEP, Conservative chairman of the European Parliament's agriculture committee, said today. >> read more Agriculture Payments should be equal across EU - Monday, 22 June 2009 Conservative MEP and Chairman of the European Parliament's Agriculture Committee Neil Parish has called on the EU to radically reform the Common Agriculture Policy (CAP) to ensure that payments are the same for land in all EU countries. >> read more Animal testing laws to be beefed up - Tuesday, 5 May 2009 The European Parliament has today overwhelmingly backed tougher laws on animal testing that were drafted by Conservative MEP Neil Parish. >> read more Working Time Directive opt-out safe - for now - Tuesday, 28 April 2009 Labour MEPs have lost their latest bid to limit the amount of overtime British workers can put in after talks aimed at finding a deal on the Working Time Directive collapsed early this morning in Brussels, Neil Parish, local Conservative MEP, said today. >> read more Conservatives launch campaign for a referendum - Monday, 27 April 2009 The government must grant the British people a referendum on the EU Constitution, local Conservative MEP, Neil Parish, said today after David Cameron launched a new campaign demanding the government honours its manifesto commitment. >> read more IPPC vote is a mixed bag for farmers - Wednesday, 11 March 2009 An EU directive on industrial pollution passed by MEPs today is a mixed bag for farmers Neil Parish, Conservative MEP for the West Country and Chairman of the European parliament Agriculture Committee, said today. >> read more Tuna recovery plan adopted by MEPs - Tuesday, 10 March 2009 Man's appetite for tuna is threatening the fish with extinction in the Eastern Atlantic and Mediterranean, West Country MEP Neil Parish, warned today as MEPs adopted a recovery plan for bluefin tuna. >> read more NHS boilers saved but Britain could face blackouts under pollution control law - Tuesday, 10 March 2009 An EU directive on industrial pollution passed by MEPs today is a mixed bag for farmers and bad for Britain's energy security - but it will not force NHS hospitals to close down their boilers - Caroline Jackson MEP and Neil Parish MEP said today. >> read more Government bees plan welcomed by Conservative MEP - Monday, 9 March 2009 The government's publication of a plan to halt the decline in bees has been welcomed by Conservative chairman of the European Parliament's agriculture committee, Neil Parish MEP. Defra and the Welsh assembly have published the ten year plan - called 'Healthy Bees'. >> read more No chicken tonight, thanks to the EU - Monday, 9 March 2009 Summer BBQ-ers would have to do without their chicken wings and chicken Kievs could become a thing of the past if proposed EU rules for poultry products come into force, Neil Parish MEP, Conservative chairman of the European Parliament's agriculture committee, has warned. >> read more Weak wine rules are 'bureaucracy gone mad' - Monday, 2 March 2009 A company that was banned from calling its product 'wine' due to its low alcohol content has failed in a High Court battle against officious EU rules enforced in an overzealous manner by the Food Standards Agency (FSA). >> read more No to a return of set aside, but new voluntary scheme to protect wildlife desired - Wednesday, 18 February 2009 Conservative MEP, Neil Parish who chairs the European Parliament Agriculture Committee has given a cautious welcome to Hilary Benn's suggestions for a voluntary scheme for farmers to maintain the environmental benefits of set aside, but warned that the government's approach appears to be muddled and that there can be no going back to the days of setting aside whole fields. >> read more Last ditch attempt to stop sheep tagging - Friday, 13 February 2009 West Country MEP Neil Parish today delivered to the European Commission a resolution signed by over 40 MEPs calling for the proposed rules to Electronically Identify all sheep in the EU to be brought in on a voluntary basis. >> read more MEPs back Valencian land grab victims - Wednesday, 11 February 2009 Victims of so-called 'Valencian land-grabs' were given a boost today when the European Parliament's Petitions Committee adopted a highly critical report by Margrete Auken, a Danish Green MEP, calling for Spanish authorities to stop these outrages against innocent citizens. >> read more Pesticides ban: impact of European Parliament's vote becoming clearer - Tuesday, 10 February 2009 The UK's Pesticides Safety Directorate has shown the true extent the European Parliament's vote on plant protection products in January will have on crop production in Britain. >> read more US farm bill sets a bad example to the EU - Monday, 9 February 2009 The new US Farm Bill could mean higher payouts for American farmers, may create a dispute at the World Trade Organisation and will make it much harder to reform the Common Agricultural Policy, Neil Parish MEP, Conservative chairman of the European Parliament's agriculture committee, warned today. >> read more Money can be found to help struggling West Country sheep farmers - Monday, 9 February 2009 Central Devon Conservative Parliamentary Candidate Mel Stride and West Country MEP Neil Parish have called on the government to help struggling hill farmers in the West Country after it was confirmed by the European Commission that money from the Article 68 of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) can be used to compensate farmers that are losing out under Margaret Beckett's scheme to bring all land, including that in less favoured areas under an area based system. >> read more ‘Inhumane’ farming techniques should be subject to EU-wide ban - Tuesday, 3 February 2009 An EU-wide ban on the use of ‘sow stalls’ should be brought forward to ensure a level playing field for pig farmers across the European market, Neil Parish, Conservative MEP and President of the European Parliament’s Animal Welfare Group said. >> read more Save Angling Petition launched by Conservative MEP - Saturday, 31 January 2009 Conservatives in the West Country today launched a petition aimed at stopping sea angling from falling within the rules of the Common Fisheries Policy (CFP). MEP Neil Parish and Truro Conservative PPC Sarah Newton jointly launched the petition at Falmouth Watersports Centre in Cornwall. >> read more West Country MEP raises concerns over EU sheep tagging plans - Wednesday, 28 January 2009 A special hearing raising sheep farmers’ concerns over electronic tagging is being hosted today by Conservative West Country MEP and chairman of the European Parliament’s agriculture committee, Neil Parish. >> read more More bad news on unemployment figures - Thursday, 22 January 2009 Commenting on figures announced this week that unemployment in Tiverton and Honiton had risen by 91% over the last year, Conservative Prospective Parliamentary Candidate for the Tiverton and Honiton constituency, Neil Parish said: >> read more Valencia land laws must change! - Tuesday, 20 January 2009 Neil Parish today called for an immediate moratorium on demolitions and seizures of homes in Spain as the European Parliament debated the impact of Spain's urbanisation laws on the individual rights of the many people who face hefty bills or the demolition of their homes in the Spanish region of Valencia. >> read more Recreational fishing to fall within the Common Fisheries Policy? - Tuesday, 20 January 2009 A proposed EU regulation that would bring recreational fishermen under the direct control of the Common Fisheries Policy will be fought tooth and nail by Conservative MEPs, West Country MEP Neil Parish , said today. >> read more UK recession will be deeper and longer-lasting than expected, thanks to Labour - Monday, 19 January 2009 Labour's policies are making the recession deeper and Britain's recovery tougher, Neil Parish, MEP for the West Country and Prospective Parliamentary Candidate for Tiverton and Honiton, warned today as the European Commission slashed its growth forecasts and issued a warning over Britain's soaring levels of debt. >> read more EFRA select Committee report on pig industry - Wednesday, 14 January 2009 Commenting on the findings of a report into the future of the pig industry from the House of Commons Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee, Neil Parish MEP warned that without decisive action to deal with the unequal rules applied to imports of pigmeat from animals fed on GM feed, the industry was likely to face further difficulties in the years to come. >> read more Food prices will rise thanks to European Parliament pesticides ban - Tuesday, 13 January 2009 The European Parliament has voted to ban a large number of the plant protection products available to British producers, despite a concerted effort by Conservative MEPs to restore some balance and proportionality to the plans. >> read more UK contribution to the EU set to rise thanks to Labour's 'buy now, pay later' tactics - Monday, 12 January 2009 Labour's weak negotiating stance in 2005 over the seven-year EU budget deal means West Country taxpayers are now going to face increased contributions to the EU budget just as the recession begins to bite, Neil Parish, local Conservative MEP, warned today. >> read more Parish continues the fight for sea anglers - Friday, 9 January 2009 Local West Country MEP, Neil Parish today vowed to continue to fight against new proposals from Brussels which would force sea anglers to keep records of fish they catch and all boats which they use to be registered as fishing vessels under the Common Fisheries Policy. >> read more