July 2014Newsletter

Design and typesetting by Patrick Robertshaw, Edinburgh: splateagle.com

The campaign was certainly a long one, and the map of my 2014 campaign shows I saw all airts and pairts of Scotland! Up and down the country I was struck by just how exciting are the times we live in. The proximity of the referendum has made people think about independence, in many cases, like they never have before. It has been inspiring to see so many people make the same journey I made (so many years ago!) from unpersuaded to Yes, and I’ve been proud to play my part in that. I have been proud to tell colleagues from other European countries just what a debate we’re having, and how we’re having it. Scotland is a good news story about faith in democracy, and faith in Europe.

It would, however, be difficult to say that the European elections, in themselves, were the talk of the steamie. The low turnout, leading to the election of a UKIP MEP for Scotland should give us all pause. I have spent a lot of time thinking about our campaign and in retrospect I have to say there is little I would do differently. We had a great team, we worked hard, and we won. But, with just over a hundred more votes in each constituency we could have won half of Scotland’s MEP seats and deprived UKIP of a toehold in Scotland.

Going forward I am going to redouble my efforts to make people aware of just how important our involvement in the EU, and Council of Europe, is to all our lives. I am restructuring my office and team to make this happen.

I can also update you on my own moves post election. The SNP is continuing our longstanding co-operation with the European Greens, and Ian and I are confirmed as members of the Green/EFA Group in the Parliament. I’m also delighted to report I am confirmed as a full member of the Parliament’s Foreign Affairs

Welcome to my first newsletter since the SNP victory in the European elections, where I was honoured to be re-elected alongside my friend and colleague Ian Hudghton MEP. This newsletter will give you a bit of a look back on the campaign and let you know what I have been up to since.

Committee, the only full Scottish member. I was drawn to independence because I think Scotland in the world can be a force for good, an advocate for multilateralism and international law and an example to other countries. I will, via the Committee, be able to make a real contribution to the development of EU policy on global issues on Scotland’s behalf. The extent to which the EU is already representing us (rather than the member states) on the world stage has evolved very fast in the last few years, with the EU’s External Action Service making real strides in cohering a European standpoint to articulate. From a democratic perspective I think this needs kept an eye on.

I will of course maintain my links to Agriculture. Farming is close to my heart and a real good news story for Scotland. I have been proud to work with and for Scotland’s rural communities to achieve real results. With CAP Reform now signed off the legislative work of the Agriculture Committee is considerably less, so my membership of the Committee as an Alternate Member will allow me, as the only Scot on the Committee, to continue to fight our corner. Scotland might not be in a position to feed the world, but with our world leading animal and plant scientists, progressive farmers and abundant resources, we certainly have a massive contribution to make to global food sovereignty and security. I’m firmly of the view that many of the

Thank You!

Contact Alyn

alyn.smith@europarl.europa.eu

Techcube, 1 Summerhall, Edinburgh, EH9 1PL

alynsmithSNP

@AlynSmithMEP

www.alynsmith.eu

2014 Campaign Trail

Meantime, Parliament goes into Summer Recess next week, and my focus becomes entirely about the referendum. Since the election I have defaulted to helping out locally in Edinburgh with canvassing and leafletting. I’ll also be doing a number of farmer events nationwide, and whatever other events ask me along, diary permitting. But, it is on the doorstep we’ll win it. If you’re already voting yes, don’t waste time at meetings furiously agreeing with each other, let’s go out there and reach the unpersuaded. The referendum is there to be won.

So let’s get out there!

Yours for Scotland,

Alyn Smith MEP

events in the world are being driven by food scarcity, and food price inflation, interlinked with climate change and petrochem dependent agriculture are our most pressing global issues. Scotland can make a contribution well beyond our size to that solution.

I have also this week been confirmed as a full member of, unusually, two of the Parliament’s Delegations, continuing my membership of the Delegation for Relations with the Arabian Peninsula, but also adding a full membership of the Iraq Delegation. Having grown up in the Middle East I have close links to the region, and the global significance of events in the region resonate well beyond the region itself. I will be working hard for a sustainable peace across the region.

New Office!

Alyn’s Edinburgh team has relocated from SNP HQ to

Summerhall, one of the most exciting arts venues in Scotland,

located in the old vet school just off the Meadows in Edinburgh.

TechCube, part of the Summerhall complex, is home to Scottish

tech and creative start up companies, and we’re already fitting

right in advising a few of the residents on how to access EU

funds. The move will grant us a greater visibility in the arts,

creative and tech communities than we had in the old HQ,

as well as giving us access to a huge range of venues in

Summerhall for events.

New role!

Alyn is recruiting for a Caseworker, based in his Edinburgh team.

Full details of the post are available on the website at

www.alynsmith.eu/caseworker-jul2014

In BriefAlyn drafts European Parliament

position on Iraq

Alyn represented his group as

Rapporteur in the negotiation

of the European Parliament’s

motion, approved this week

in Strasbourg, on Iraq. Alyn’s

speech in the debate can be

found on his YouTube channel:

www.youtube.com/asmithmep

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2014 Campaign Trail

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