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PRESS RELEASE
29 September 1999

Duff calls for regional bank for Eastern England

Following a series of meetings in the last few days with key players in the Eastern region, Liberal Democrat MEP Andrew Duff has called for them to adopt a Ôgreater sense of what is possible in this region, and a more ambitious approach to regional developmentÕ. He has unveiled plans for a new regional credit facility, backed by the European Investment Bank.

In a message to those he has met this week Ñ organisations which include the Eastern England Development Agency, the Government Office for the East of England, BAA, BNFL, the CPRE and Ford Ñ Duff says:

ÔEastern England has to use its own resources to become more enterprising and successful. We cannot sit back and hope that HM Treasury will pay an adequate share of public funding to support rural development and hi-tech development. Nor will there be sufficient public funding to pay for the radical modernisation and expansion of our public transport system.

ÔEuropeÕs increasingly integrated capital market has the potential to back the most enterprising of EuropeÕs regions. Eastern England must be in that rank of top credit-worthy regions. In its new regional economic development strategy to be unveiled in October, the EEDA must concentrate on building the public-private partnerships and the autonomous political credibility that will attract European capital.

ÔI am exploring with the new European Commission and the EIB the possibility of establishing a regional credit facility for Eastern England that will provide some of the investment we need.Õ

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Andrew's work
in the European Parliament since 1999

Andrew is Vice-President of the European Parliament delegation to the Constitutional Convention on the Future of Europe.

Rights for EU citizens

Andrew drafted the Charter of Fundamental Rights which has strengthened the rights of all the citizens of the European Union.

Turkey

Andrew is working for improved links between the EU and Turkey, to encourage improvements in Turkey's human rights record and to enhance its democracy.

Andrew's campaigning in the East of England

Airport Expansion

Andrew has led calls for the Air Travel industry to be subjected to the same rigorous environmental criteria as other modes of transport