Re: [Fsfe-uk] Chaos in the EU Council....

[Ralph Janke]

Alex Hudson wrote:

> On Fri, 2004-07-09 at 23:44 +0100, Ralph Janke wrote:
>  
>
> > IHT: Europe's software patent policy under siege:
> >
> > http://www.iht.com/articles/528268.html
> >
> > I have always suspected the EU Council is not very democratic.... but so bad
> > ??????????
> >    
>
> You'll be please to know, then, that the legislative influence of the
> European Parliament has been "exhausted":
>
>         http://kwiki.ffii.org/?Helmer040705En
>
> Malcolm Harbour MEP is now telling people that the amendments that were
> tabled made the proposal "unworkable", and that it's now up to the
> Council and the Commission to make something workable. (Harbour tends to
> be the one who drafts responses on this issue, which other MEPs
> regurgitate on demand).
>
>  
It shows again that Malcolm Harbour is one of the biggest spinmeister in 
the European hemisphere.

> Roger Helmer MEP finishes his letter with:
>
>        "However, I am grateful for your sending it. Since Parliament's
>        legislative influence is now exhausted, any lobbying should be
>        done toward the British Government * either directly to the
>        relevant minister, or through your MP."
>        
> ... so we should probably take them up on their offer, and lobby the
> British Government. If there is any chance of increasing the pressure
> that Governments are feeling nationally about this issue (witness the
> Dutch, the Danes, the Poles, etc.) we should probably take it, even
> though our own Government seems irreversably in favour of the Council
> proposal.
>
>  
1) I believe the lobbying efforts should happen everywhere possible. I 
would also suggest to start to lobby professional
associations with our points. Especially SME associations must be 
convinced that MH's nonsense is not to be believed.
However, we should lobby all kinds of professional associations, esp. in 
the engineering and computing area.

2) I haven't looked up yet in which are patent law falls within the EU 
treaties. It makes a different if a directive needs
only consultation by the EUP, or if it needs agreement. However, EUP's 
agreement also makes a difference about what
majority the Coucil must have to show in order to pass a directive.

Ralph Janke