European and External Relations Committee, 26 Jan 2010

Meeting date: Tuesday, January 26, 2010

Official Report 167KB pdf

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Brussels Visit

Item 6 is our Brussels visit report. The committee has discussed it and the clerks have now provided a detailed report, for which I thank them very much. It will be helpful, and we will retain it for future reference and for the next visit to Brussels.

It is worth reiterating that it was a positive visit. It was a good opportunity to meet key figures from the EU institutions. It was good for us as a parliamentary committee to say, "We are here, and we are interested in what is happening." To have the first "Holyrood Highlights" programme broadcast live from Brussels was a feather in the Parliament's cap. We obtained some early intelligence on the shape of what is coming up—on the Lisbon treaty, the EU budget and a number of other areas that are of interest to the committee.

Do members have any comments? Are we happy to note the contents of the report?

It is a good and honest report. In some of our meetings, other politicians, particularly Catalan politicians, were very honest with us. The discussions were noted verbatim, hence some of the questions that were put in relation to the Spanish presidency regarding subsidiarity and representation. I am very pleased with the report, and I congratulate the clerks on the work that they did.

Jamie? You will be sorry that you missed the visit when you read through the report.

I am very sorry that I missed the visit. I was not part of the delegation, but it is clear from the report and the feedback that it was a very useful exercise. I hope that the committee can repeat it in the future.

We have agreed to take the next item in private. I thank members of the public for their attendance.

Meeting continued in private until 12:30.