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		Campaigns "No" means no Neil has been a consistent opponent of the European Constitution. Conservative MEPs were instrumental in securing a commitment to hold a referendum in the UK before ratifying the text, but the referendum was postponed in 2005 following the welcome 'no' voted in France and Holland. There are now attempts to bring in some parts of the Constitution through the back door, while some EU leaders are still insistent on resuscitating the dead. >> read more Valencian land grab laws Neil has been campaigning for Spain to change its unjust Valencian land grab law, which has forced many South West residents to lose part of their property or face huge unexpected infrastructure costs on retirement homes or holiday villas. >> read more Single Farm Payments shambles Margaret Beckett may no longer be Secretary of State at the Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra), but in her wake lies a countryside rocked by her shambolic handling of agricultural matters. >> read more Bear Bile Imagine being caged up with a metal catheter permanently drilled into your abdomen. That is the shocking treatment endured by around seven thousand moon bears in China. Bile is extracted from the bears’ gall bladders via crude metal catheters or gaping holes drilled into their abdomens known as the free-drip fistula technique. >> read more Shark fins Neil has been leading a campaign to tighten EU laws against shark finning, which is threatening some shark species around the EU. Often the fins are removed when the shark is still alive and the mutilated creature is returned to the water to die an agonising death. >> read more Refunds for live animal exports Neil recently launched a succesful campaign to stop European taxpayers unwittingly subsidising cattle exported live from the European Union to the Middle East. The campaign was succesful in 2006 when, on Friday 23 December 2005, the European Union (EU) agreed to immediately eliminate subsidies for all EU exports of live cattle. >> read more EU to ban Chinese cat and dog fur The European Union has now agreed to introduce legislation banning the cruel trade in cat and dog fur from China. It is estimated that more than 2 million animals are used in the trade to supply Europe and Russia. The furs and skins are made into coats, fur trim for gloves, boots and clothing. >> read more Bird flu protection Europe's preparations for a bird flu outbreak were beefed up by Neil, who wrote a report for the European Parliament. He is supporting efforts to find a sprayable vaccine for poultry, which would make it far more cost effective and easier to keep bird flu out of poultry - thus keeping it out of humans. >> read more