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		UK ports safe after directive rejected Wednesday, 18th January 2006 Strasbourg – East Midlands Conservative MEP Roger Helmer has today hailed a ‘significant victory for the fully privatised UK ports industry as The European Parliament threw out controversial legislation aimed at liberalising port services. The European Commission claimed the Port Services Directive would create a more liberal market for providers of services to EU ports. But Conservatives argued that for British ports, the proposals would have threatened long-term investment, broken up established British businesses and resulted in declining standards of service. Socialist and left-wing MEPs also supported a Conservative amendment to scrap the legislation, arguing instead that it was too liberal. Speaking from Strasbourg, Mr Helmer said: “The UK has now escaped a wholly unwanted piece of legislation which would have taken our ports industry back to the 1970s. “While the East Midlands region is not overburdened with major ports, many exporters in the region do depend on economic and efficient ports to sustain their business. If the proposal had gone through the UK would have seen investment in ports decrease and would have resulted in the destruction of years of hard work that have made the UK's ports the cheapest, best performing and most competitive in Europe.” “Whether it's this directive or the ongoing debate about the European constitution, Eurocrats in Brussels seem unable to grasp the meaning of the word 'no'. I hope the Commission will heed our opposition and drop these plans once and for all." The news has also been welcomed by the UK Major Ports Group, which had lobbied extensively against the proposed laws.