Committees

As a member of the Agriculture and Rural Development Committee and Committee on the Economic Crisis, as well as an alternate member of the Culture and Education Committee, I am able to influence legislation in these areas and to ensure that new developments in these areas suit Scotland's needs.

Agriculture and Rural Development Committee

I joined the Agriculture Committee in January 2007 and have since worked on various topics including Brazilian beef imports into the EU, electronic tagging, GM crops and Blue Tongue disease among other things.

Due to the nature of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) and the large percentage of EU budget that it takes up, this committee is one of the European Union's most powerful. Also, the decisions that it makes affect all of us, whether through food prices or the development of our rural areas.

Find out more information on the Agriculture and Rural Development Committee.

Culture and Education Committee

When re-elected in June 2009 I joined the Culture and Education Committee. This committee works towards achieving the European Union's goals on promoting and reinforcing lifelong learning, linguistic and cultural diversity, mobility and the engagement of European citizens, in particular for the young.

Find out more information on the Culture and Education Committee.

Other Committees

I am also a member of the Temporary Committee on the Financial, Economic and Social Crisis, a committee set up to explore the failures that led to the current economic recession and to examine ways in which we can avoid similar crises in the future. This committee will continue its work until the end of 2010.

Find out more information on the Crisis Committee.