Politics
Thursday May 8, 2003
EUROPEAN COMMISSION INITIATIVE TO ESTABLISH UNIT TO MONITOR PRO-LIFE GROUPS
TODAY'S HEADLINES
E-MAIL
PRINT
BRUSSELS, May 8, 2003 (LifeSiteNews.com) - The Society for the Protection of Unborn Children (SPUC) in the UK has added its support to opposition to a European Commission initiative establishing a unit to monitor pro-life organisations. A SPUC release issued late yesterday noted that Mrs Dana Rosemary Scallon, the Irish pro-life member of the European parliament, is leading opposition to the unit. She is questioning whether the commission can legally use EU taxpayers' money to fund such a unit and says it compromises the commission's impartiality. She has asked for details of the unit's scope, budget and staffing, and suggests that its funding would be better spent on more deserving causes.
Peter Smith, SPUC's representative at the European Parliament, said: "I am a British taxpayer working for a voluntary organisation. It is galling in the extreme to know that my taxes, some of which are used to fund the commission, will go to employing people whose job could be to refute the good-quality material which I give to MEPs on matters such as abortion. Not only do pro-abortion non-governmental organisations get EU funding, but EU money is now also going to this attempt to thwart our good work in defence of mothers and their unborn children. However, in the end, the truth will out."
Mr Paul Nielson, the EU's aid commissioner, has referred to well-funded American groups which he says have extreme views on religion and sexuality.
Mrs Scallon was a signatory to a letter to Mr Nielson which sought clarification of his allocation of 32 million euros to organisations which promote abortion in developing countries. 56 other MEPs signed the letter, including Dr Ingo Friedrich, vice-president of the parliament, Mr José Maria Gil-Robles Gil-Delgado, former president of the parliament, Mr Francesco Fiori, vice-chairman of the European People's Party, and Messrs Brian Crowley, Liam Hyland and Sean O'Neachtain of Ireland's Fianna Fáil party. The letter pointed out that support for the promotion of abortion in the EU and outside it conflicted with EU treaties.
(with files from SPUC UK)
Back to TopLatest Headlines
- Cardinal Rigali: You Can't Claim to be "Reducing Abortions" but Publicly Funding them in D.C.
- General Electric to Use Embryonic Stem Cells for Testing, Phase out Lab Rats
- Ohio Supreme Court Allows Planned Parenthood to Conceal Abortion Records in Sexual Abuse Case
- LifeSiteNews Canada Day and Independence Day Message. Taking a few days off. LSN returns Monday July 6
- Heroically Pro-Life Brazilian Archbishop's Resignation Accepted Under Cloud of Vatican Newspaper Misrepresentation
- Pro-Life Groups Announce New Colorado Personhood Initiative
- Judge Puts Kibosh on DC Gay "Marriage" Referendum
- Al Franken Win Hands Supermajority to Senate Democrats
- Group Funded by Canadian Bishops' D&P Joins with Others to Denounce the "Natural Family" and "Family Rights"
- Financially Troubled Planned Parenthood of El Paso Closes Doors
- Abortion Linked to Subsequent Pre-Term Births, New Research Again Confirms
- New Orleans Homosexual Couple Ask Fed. Court to Overturn Marriage Amendment
- Slim Hope Of New Ontario Progressive Conservative Party Leader Promoting Pro-Life, Pro-Family Issues
- Pope Accepts Resignation of Bishop Caught Involved in Homosexual Encounters
- Young Children Removed from UK Schools for "Inappropriate Sexual Behaviour"
- Northern Ireland Politician Cleared of Wrongdoing after Reiterating Christian Teaching on Homosexual Acts
- UK Conservative Leader Speaks at Gay Pride Fundraiser
- More Letters to the Editor on Canadian Catholic Development and Peace Scandal (July 1)
- Letters to the Editor - Readers Respond to Development and Peace Scandal
- Watch This Dramatic New Video on Catholic Bishops Conference Funding of Pro-Abortion Groups
Most Read this Week
- Homosexual Duke U. Director Charged with Offering Adopted 5-Year-Old for Sex
- Famed Fr. Corapi Calls Canadian Bishops' Dissent from Humanae Vitae "Catastrophic"
- Pope: It is a Childish Faith to Oppose the Church Teaching on Life and Family
- LifeSiteNews Detailed Response to Canadian Bishops' Whitewash Report on Development and Peace
- Heroically Pro-Life Brazilian Archbishop's Resignation Accepted Under Cloud of Vatican Newspaper Misrepresentation
- Young Children Removed from UK Schools for "Inappropriate Sexual Behaviour"
- General Electric to Use Embryonic Stem Cells for Testing, Phase Out Lab Rats
- Is Pro-Choice the New Pro-Life?
- Swedish Parents Won't Tell if Child is Boy or Girl as Gender Experiment
- Cardinal Rigali: You Can't Claim to be "Reducing Abortions" but Publicly Funding them in D.C.
MORE NEWS: 
LifeSiteNews.com Home Page Last 10 Days Archives Special Reports
Copyright © LifeSiteNews.com. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-No Derivatives License. You may republish this article or portions of it without request provided the content is not altered and it is clearly attributed to "LifeSiteNews.com". Any website publishing of complete or large portions of original LifeSiteNews articles MUST additionally include a live link to www.LifeSiteNews.com. The link is not required for excerpts. Republishing of articles on LifeSiteNews.com from other sources as noted is subject to the conditions of those sources.