More IP and TV

9.00 Straight to group after checking emails. A long discussion takes place on Roma and their treatment, which has been held over from yesterday. Also a discussion on the rest of the ‘package’ of how positions will be shared out among the national delegations. There has been a suggestion that the number of vice-presidents per committee be increased to 4. This is obviously a ruse to prevent anyone having to give anything up to accommodate Bulgarian and Romanian colleagues. Andrew Duff says it will take great skill then to avoid being a VP and can he have Group agreement to vote against it in the constitution committee. Although for a few of the busier committees it might be useful, it is generally agreed we think it a bad idea and agree to vote against it.

Chris then explains the deal on REACH for plenary. Rather aggravatingly, just as we get onto the important plenary items a speaking time limit is introduced because we have spent so much time on the other items. Discontent is expressed that this is again happening on legislative items. Back to REACH and there is general acceptance of the negotiated package, but discontent that too much of the negotiation with Council means things become secret rather than transparent. Also, only the biggest issues get dealt with and lots of the smaller things that are important to the Parliament get lost. I agree, this is what I can see happening on Payments. We should try to achieve a better solution.

We then discuss Audiovisual Media. Ignasi takes 25 minutes to introduce it, most of which is background. Other speakers are then limited to 2 minutes each. This is not fair on those, like me, who have submitted significant numbers of amendments, on key point, to Group. I make a bit of a fuss about it and how legislative items should be top of the agenda. Desk banging and clapping from colleagues in support (again!). Others who have made similar complaints in the past speak up, so let’s see what happens in the future. We get towards voting time and Lib Dems and Germans thin on the ground so I signal to Carol to go out and get summoning. Impressive response and I need not have panicked on time because Ignasi takes another 13 minutes to wind up! This really is not fair to give him so much time to bash the amendments I have no time to explain. The same applies to the Italian amendments even though they are the opposite direction to mine. He does not like my amendments in the main, but I win the important votes thanks to full voting from Lib Dems, Germans and some last minute switching of Dutch votes. So we will be submitting my amendments, which will keep the sports organisations, channel 4 and ITN happy. Meeting ends at 12.35

13.00 Down to the Member’s restaurant for lunch with the Board of SEEDA.

14.30 An interview for one hour with Dr Sebastian Haunss of the University of Hamburg Institute of Political Science. All about IP again. He records everything I say. He asks questions about what influence I think others have in the Patents debates. I am not sure he realises that I am so busy with my head down doing what needs to be done that I have not been looking at it from that perspective.

16.00 – 17.00 Meeting with the Commission on Purchasing Price Parities, for which I am the Rapporteur (main). We compare the Commission and Council proposals and I check some of the queries I have. It all looks straightforward.

17.30 Meet with ECON secretariat on Fiscal Fraud for which I am also Rapporteur. We discuss having a Hearing and an outline of possible invitees.

18.30 Just about time to print off the 141 pages of the Gowers Report on IP, browse briefly and head off to my European Patent Reform dinner.

19.00 Dinner.It is run on Chatham House rules. We go through a highly specialised analysis of EPLA and the role of the EU institutions versus that of Member States, lead by Jaques Borgeois. We examine all kinds of scenarios. It is great to be among IP professionals for this and just what we needed. We agree that having a meeting like this every couple of months would be a good thing.