Patricia McKenna (Independent)

candidate EU elections
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Dear ,

Thank you for your optimistic question and I do hope that this will be a decision I will be making in the next few weeks.

As member of the European Parliament for ten years I know only too well the ˜horse trading" etc. that goes on after the election results come in. Going by past experience, I feel that I will be able to take my pick when it comes down to joining a group. All groups bend over backwards to get new members and members from as many member states as possible in their groups as both these aspects are taken into account when it comes to the parliament giving out extra resources, chairs of committees, special positions in parliament, etc.

What group I actually decide to join will be based on the political ethos of the group itself. Although MEPs have the freedom within their group to deviate from the group position I would like to be part of a group that is closest to my own political beliefs. Within some groups there are separate factions. For example, within the GUE/NGL group - the faction is the Nordic Green Left; within the Greens/EFA group - the European Free Alliance, which is a regionalists faction including parties such as Plaid Cymru. There are also other groups such as the IND/DEM group, of which Kathy Sinnott is a member. In the past the independent Dana was a member of the EPP, the group that Fine Gael is a member of. So at the end of the day this will be a decision that will be made after the election. Furthermore no one even knows if all the current groups will survive after the election or change in some way. This happened with the Green group which was at one time a faction of a rainbow group made up of three separate factions, later they became a group on their own and currently they are a group of two factions. Some of these changes are due to the number of returning Green MEPs after the elections.

The issue of big groups verses small groups in also interesting, as there are advantages to both. I remember in the past some Fine Gael colleagues telling me I was lucky to be in a small group as got a lot more opportunities in relation to drafting reports, speaking in parliament, etc. as within in the big groups unless you have an extremely high profile you get lost in the group and the high profile MEPs get all the opportunities. On the other hand the big groups do have much more voting power and more senior positions within the parliament. Personally I like to work within a smaller group as I would have a lot more freedom.

As I have been an MEP in the past I do have the added advantage of knowing exactly what the political ethos of all the current groups is and if they still survive after the elections I will be in a position to make what I consider will be the right choice.

All the best,

Patricia.

Dear ,

To briefly answer your question, as an MEP I would indeed support campaigns for Member States to meet their aid targets and for greater aid transparency.

To do this I would work with likeminded MEPs on campaigns that highlight these issues at the European level. I would also work here in Ireland to make sure that our own government is sticking to the pledges it made on aid targets. In a time of crisis it is quite typical for richer countries to renege on earlier promises of aid. We should remember that although we ourselves are going through a crisis, the crisis is affecting the globe and will hit the poorest the hardest. The World Bank has estimated that around 200-400 thousand more children will die each year if the financial crisis continues. 100 million people are expected to fall into extreme poverty this year alone. Aid is needed now more than ever to help those most vulnerable.

As for aid transparency, the governments of both donor countries and those receiving aid should be able to be held accountable for how the money is being used. I believe that citizens should be able to see where their money is going and that it is being used efficiently and effectively to fight poverty. Aid transparency helps to achieve this aim and therefore if elected as an MEP I will endeavour to campaign for greater aid transparency.


All the best,
Patricia.

Dear ,

Thank you for your question. One of the most effective things an MEP can do
in regard to this issue is to push the Commission to follow up and force
member states to live up to the Directives that they themselves have agreed
to. To date Ireland has been sadly lacking in respect to compliance, plus
the Commission process is long drawn out and the Commission is always
reluctant to fine member states for failure to comply. I think however this
is starting to change. Furthermore, the Environment Commission is under
resourced and needs more support, ; which is an issue that I have been
pushing for years. But there is no doubt that having MEPs fighting for this
issue is of great benefit to NGOs working at the local as well as
international level.

All the best,
Patricia.

Dear ,

I am sorry but this is the first time that this issue has been brought to my
attention and I am not familiar with the current state of play. I would be
extremely reluctant to give you a reply before I have had a chance to carry
out further research on it. I always feel it is unwise to comment on
something that one is not well informed on. When I have done some research
on the issue I will get back to you. Thank you for your question.

All the best,

Patricia