Philip Bushill-Matthews

This article is part of the MEPedia project of Spinwatch.

Philip Bushill-Matthews, MEP

Philip Bushill-Matthews (born 15 January 1943, Droitwich) is a British MEP from Conservative and Unionist Party.

Affiliations

• Member, Committee on Employment and Social Affairs
• Member, Delegation for relations with the countries of South Asia
• Member, Delegation for relations with India
• Member, Delegation for relations with Iran
• Substitute, Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety
• Substitute, Subcommittee on Human Rights
• Substitute, Delegation for relations with the People's Republic of China
• Substitute, Delegation to the EU-Armenia, EU-Azerbaijan and EU-Georgia Parliamentary Cooperation Committees
• Substitute, Delegation to the ACP-EU Joint Parliamentary Assembly

Record and Controversies

Declaration of Financial Interests

• In Brussels I employ a full-time Research Assistant, formally accredited to the European Parliament, who deals with all my parliamentary work in Brussels and Strasbourg.
• In my UK constituency I employ my wife as a full-time Assistant, also formally accredited to the European Parliament, who deals with constituent queries and correspondence, local media contacts, and organises my UK diary. This regularly requires working unsociable hours. She is paid within Salary Band C (between £20,000 and £30,000).
• Both assistants have official contracts duly registered with the Parliament and are paid via a Paying Agent, a major firm of UK Chartered Accountants, who ensure that appropriate taxation and national insurance deductions are made.
• Together with my two West Midlands Conservative MEP colleagues, I share a Service Provider "The West Midlands Regional Conservative MEP Office", which acts as a central contact point and fulfils a marketing and communications function across the region, with an official contract duly registered with and paid for directly by the Parliament.

Record of Parliamentary Votes

• Voted against the directive on "establishing a framework for Community action in the field of water policy" (A5-0027/2000). The directive covers all water management aspects in order to achieve a 'good status' of all waters by 2015.
• Voted in favour of the directive on "national emission ceilings for certain atmospheric pollutants" (A5-0063/2000). The amendment allows setting less ambitious national emission ceilings for sulphur dioxide (SO2), nitrogen oxides (NOx), ammonia (NH3) and volatile organic compounds (VOC), which would result in more damage to human health and the environment.
• Voted in favour of the Commission White Paper on "Strategy for a future Chemicals Policy" (A5-0356/2001). The amendment helps avoid the necessary precautionary approach towards some chemical substances that are not proven to be completely safe.the directive on "waste electrical and electronic equipment" (A5-0100/2002). The amendment sets higher reuse and recycling rates for IT and telecommunication equipment. Rejected due to lack of absolute majority.
• Voted against the directive on "waste electrical and electronic equipment" (A5-0100/2002). The amendment sets higher reuse and recycling rates for IT and telecommunication equipment. Rejected due to lack of absolute majority.
• Voted in favour of the report on "Community guidelines for the development of the trans-European transport network" (A5-0135/2002). The Trans-European Network of Transport (TEN-T) is a network of so-called 'transport corridors' through Europe. This amendment calls for a full Strategic Environmental Assessment of these transport corridors and calls on the Commission to improve methods for analysing the environmental and economic impact of the TEN-T.
• Voted against the regulation concerning "traceability and labelling of genetically modified organisms and traceability of food and feed products produced from genetically modified organisms" (A5-0229/2002). The amendment allows customers the right to choose GM free food.
• Voted against the report towards a "thematic strategy on the sustainable use of pesticides" (A5-0061/2003). The amendment proposes to ban or severely restrict use of pesticides in areas around sources of drinking water and nature protected zones.
• Voted against the directive on "environmental liability with regard to the prevention and remedying of environmental damage" (A5-0145/2003). According to the amendment, polluters have to pay for environmental clean-up, and it supports an EU-wide regime which makes polluters liable for the damage they cause to wildlife, water and land.
• Voted against the directive on restructuring the "Community framework for the taxation of energy products and electricity" (A5-0302/2003). The amendment aims at giving tax benefits to environmentally friendly sources of energy, which would make them cheaper and more competitive to conventional (more polluting) sources of energy. It also gives tax benefits to environmentally friendly uses of energy for transport, for instance trains. Rejected due to lack of absolute majority.
• Voted against the amendment on Bulgaria’s progress towards accession (A5-0105/2004). The report objects to extending the life of the nuclear power stations in Bulgaria.

Personal Information

Curriculum Vitae

• Attended Malvern College (1956-1962).
• MA (English Language and Literature), University College, Oxford (1962-1965).
• Harvard Business School (1987).
• Joined Unilever (1965).
• Seconded to Thomas Lipton Inc., USA (1976).
• National Accounts Director, Birds Eye Sales Ltd (1977).
• Managing Director, Iglo Indústrias de Gelados, Lisbon (1981).
• Sales Director, Birds Eye Wall's Ltd (1982).
• Managing Director, Craigmillar Ltd, and Director, Van den Bergh and Jurgens Ltd (1988).
• Managing Director, Red Mill Snack Foods Ltd, Wednesbury, West Midlands, and Managing Director, Red Mill Company BV, Netherlands (1991).
• Member of the European Parliament (since 1999).
• Author of 'The Gravy Train' (2003).

Contact

Address:

Parlement européen

Bât. Altiero Spinelli

14E217

60, rue Wiertz / Wiertzstraat 60

B-1047 Bruxelles/Brussel

Phone:

+32 (0)2 28 45114

Email:

philip.bushill-matthews@europarl.europa.eu

Website:

Resources

• European Parliament, Addendum to Members' Register of Financial Interests 2008: Philip Bushill-Matthews, 13 April 2008, accessed 10 February 2009.
• European Parliament, MEP Directory: Philip Bushill-Matthews, accessed 10 February 2009.
• Friends of the Earth, EU Vote Watch, accessed 10 February 2009.