9th parliamentary term Alexandra Lesley PHILLIPS

Brexit Party MEPs voted against the ‘election’ of the European Commission. Brexit Party MEPs believe that the functioning of the European institutions, in particular the Commission, is fundamentally undemocratic. We therefore voted against the Commission in protest against the undemocratic nature of the election of the Commission.

. ‒ Brexit Party MEPs abstained on this budgetary proposal. The EU Solidarity Fund is an EU budget to help areas that have been affected by natural disaster in Europe. This proposal is to mobilise EUR 4.5 million of the fund for Crete (Greece), which suffered extremely heavy rains causing landslides, infrastructure loss and loss of life. While we oppose the EU spending British taxpayers’ money, as this was for humanitarian relief and wouldn’t require fresh funding from the UK, we chose to abstain rather than vote against.

Brexit Party MEPs voted against this budgetary proposal. This proposal was to mobilise an extra EUR 778 million to support EU migration, refugee and border policies. The money would be spread between the years 2020-2023. We oppose the EU spending British taxpayers’ money and cannot support this fund spending on failed policies.

Brexit Party MEPs abstained on this budgetary proposal. The EU Solidarity Fund is an EU budget to help areas that have been affected by natural disaster in Europe. This proposal is to allow a portion of this budget to be fast-tracked as an upfront payment when a natural disaster strikes an EU country. The problem with the solidarity Fund is that it can be very slow in mobilising the money to help on the ground relief efforts. While we oppose the EU spending British taxpayers’ money, as this was for humanitarian relief and wouldn’t require fresh funding from the UK, we chose to abstain rather than vote against.

Brexit Party MEPs voted against this budgetary proposal. This was the final vote to set the EU’s budget for 2020, which was negotiated behind closed doors by the Parliament and the Council. The final figures set the EU budget for 2020 at €168.7 billion (1.5% increase on 2019). This budget also assumes the UK will be making full contribution to the EU in 2020 even though the UK is meant to have left the EU by 31st January 2020.

. ‒ Brexit Party MEPs abstained on this legislative consent procedure. The proposal is for the EU to apply tariffs on certain cuts of meat, which, in the last few years, are being imported from Ukraine. The EU believes these certain cuts of meat are undercutting and distorting the market. The Brexit Party objects in principle to the fact that the EU negotiates deals and decides trade policy for the UK; however, as the UK will be leaving the EU, it is up to them to decide their own trading arrangements with third countries.

Brexit Party MEPs voted to abstain on this non-legislative resolution. Whilst we wholeheartedly support the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, we believe that the implementation of this treaty should be initiated and monitored at Member State level and not by the EU. For many of the amendments to the resolution, a free vote was given to reflect the fact that the Brexit Party is diverse, with members of many faiths or none, and who hold a wide range of cultural opinions.
I wish to make particular reference to Amendment 27, which I strenuously oppose. After two world wars, Europe has a long history of children who have lost fathers (or indeed both parents) to conflict. While it is very important to emphasise parental responsibility (for women as well as men), we must stop perpetrating the myth that a child without both a mother and a father will be weaker or less well rounded than a child brought up in a single parent household. To say that children with both a mother and father will be healthier and have more educational success undermines the value, potential and confidence of those who have not had this privilege.

Brexit Party MEPs voted against this legislative report, which concerns amending the European Union Solidarity Fund to cover the ‘financial burden’ that a no-deal Brexit could represent for Member States. We believe that this is highly political, as it is likening no-deal Brexit to a natural disaster, whilst also taking away funds from genuine natural disaster victims. For these reasons, we cannot support this report.

I abstained on this resolution because it should be a decision made at nation state level and not by the EU for all 28 Member States.

The Brexit Party MEPs voted against many of the amendments on this motion for resolution concerning the effects of bankruptcy of Thomas Cook Group. Many of these are calling for more EU action to be taken and funds to be created in the event of similar events happening in the travel and tourism sector. We also voted in favour of any amendments that would reduce any future harmonisation in this area. Whilst we are of course sympathetic to those who have been affected by the collapse of Thomas Cook, more EU legislation is not the answer.

Brexit Party MEPs voted against this motion for resolution, which calls on the Council to break its deadlock and allow legislation on the CBCR proposal to progress forward. We voted against this because we do not want the European Union to continue making more legislation, as this is the prerogative of Member States.

The Brexit Party voted against this non-legislative and non-binding resolution. We are opposed to further expansion of the European Union and are pleased to see the vetoing of further progression for these countries. We are opposed to expansion whilst the UK is currently a member of the EU, in any future transition or whilst we retain financial liabilities towards the EU. We think the EU is a poor choice for other Member States but after the UK makes a clean exit from the EU and at a time when we have no liability it is for those states to decide themselves.

The Brexit Party voted against any increases to individual EU budget lines and voted in favour of any cuts to EU budget lines. This vote was a series of amendments to the actual figures and size of each EU budget for the year 2020. Before it arrived in Parliament for amendment, the Commission had initially proposed a budget worth EUR 168.3 billion (+1.3% compared to 2019). The Council then adopted its position of EUR 166.8 billion (slightly lower). Now it was Parliament’s turn, which ended up being much higher than either the Commission or the Council positions. There will now be a negotiation period with the Council to find a compromise. A full UK contribution for 2020 is included in the proposal.

The Brexit Party voted against this non-legislative, non-binding resolution on the EU budget for 2020. The resolution was a shopping list of what MEPs wanted from the EU budget in 2020, with many calls for radially increased funding in many areas of EU policy. The Brexit Party voted against any calls to increase the EU budget and voted in favour of any amendments to decrease the budget.

The Brexit Party voted to refuse granting discharge to the Asylum office. The discharge procedure is a process by which the European Parliament looks at the individual budgets and spending of each EU institution to give a positive or negative appraisal.
In this specific case, the asylum office has had a number of problems, such as errors in payments amounting to EUR 7.7 million, breaches of procurement procedures, misappropriation of funds, mismanagement, abuse of position in human resources issues, breaches of data protection rules, harassment and inappropriate behaviour towards staff.
The Brexit Party voted to refuse discharge due to all these problems, along with our principled position that we oppose British taxpayers’ having to pay for all these EU institutions and agencies.

The Brexit Party voted to refuse granting discharge to the Council. The discharge procedure is a process by which the European Parliament looks at the individual budgets and spending of each EU institution to give a positive or negative appraisal.
Historically the Council refuses to cooperate with the Parliament in this discharge procedure, as it contests the legal base for the Parliament to oversee its budget and 2017 was no different.
We voted to refuse discharge as we believe there should be more transparency in how the Council spends its budget, along with our principled position that we oppose British taxpayers’ having to pay for all these EU institutions and agencies.

I abstained on this resolution because it should be a decision made at nation state level and not by the EU for all 28 Member States.

The Brexit Party have voted to abstain on this legislative report. Firstly, we do not believe that a no-deal Brexit would lead to significant job losses. That being said, as the UK would have left the EU by the time this legislation takes effect, and the UK would therefore have no legal obligation to contribute to this fund, the decision should be a matter for the remaining Member States to take as to how they wish this for this fund to be utilised. For this reason, the Brexit Party abstained on this report.

. ‒ The Brexit Party voted against this legislation for access to waters between the EU and the UK because the proposed arrangement is in practice very one-sided: the EU gets far more benefit than the UK and would therefore be able to continue to plunder UK waters, just as it has for decades.

. ‒ Brexit Party MEPs voted against this piece of legislation. This proposal is to allow the UK to continue making full budgetary contributions to the EU in 2020, in the event of a no-deal Brexit. The UK will have to meet a number of conditions such as adhering to a deadline to inform the Commission in writing that payments will be made, that the payment schedule is made on time and into a specific bank account, that the UK allows OLAF and EU auditing of EU funds on its territory.
This will mean the UK can still get EU funding for 2020, that UK entities can bid for most (but not all) EU public tenders, and ensure payments for EU contracts to public and private entities in 2020 continue. However, some rights for the UK will be curtailed such as not having representation on management committees or expert groups.
The Brexit Party voted against as we want a clean-break Brexit to stop making full budget payments to the EU and we believe that the UK Government should make up the shortfall for UK entities and universities that are currently receiving EU funds.