Malcolm Harbour

Career & Personal Background

Born in February 1947.

Educated at Bedford School and Trinity College, Cambridge, where he graduated in Engineering, and at the University of Aston where he gained a Diploma in Management Studies.
Married Penny in 1969. They have 2 grown up daughters, Louise and Katy.

Has lived in Solihull, in the heart of the West Midlands Constituency, since 1972.

Active worker in the Conservative Party since 1972.

European Election candidate in the 1989 and 1994 campaigns.

Conservative European spokesman on the Internal Market.

Founder Co-Chairman of the European Forum for the Automobile and Society.

Co-Chairman of the European Parliaments Ceramics Industry Forum.

Vice President of the Parliaments' Science and Technology Unit (STOA).

Member of the Inter-Parliamentary Delegation to Japan.

Malcolm and Penny take an active part in their local community. They have been Chairman of school governing boards and Malcolm co-founded the Solihull Town Twinning Association in 1979.

Outside politics, he enjoys choral singing, motor sport, cooking and tasting cheese!

Committee Responsibilities

Malcolm is the coordinator for the centre-right MEPs on the Internal Market and Consumer Protection Committee. He is a substitute member of the Industry, Research and Energy committee and also a substitute member of the Legal Affairs committee.

He regularly tables oral and written parliamentary questions to the European Commission.

Parliamentary Questions

• Interactive Digital Television 30th Oct 2001
• African Children Sold into Slavery 26th Nov 2001
• eEurope 2002 Initiative 22nd Jan 2002
• Regulatory Impact Assessments 18th Dec 2002
• Agency Workers Directive - Impact Assessments 18th DEC 2002
• Hallmarking of Precious Metals 4th June 2003
• Hallmarking 4th June 2003
• Competitiveness in the EU 19th June 2003
• World Coffee Prices 6th Nov 2003
• Sales Promotions 29th Jan 2003
• EU Precious Metals Directive 29th Jan 2003

Oral questions

• Commission Reform 22nd June 2001
• Detached National Experts (1)15th Jan 2002
• Detached National Experts (2) 15th Jan 2002
• European Commission Press Office 5th March 2002
• Staff Reform (1) 20th March 2003
• Staff Reform (2) 20th March 2003

Written questions

Directives and Regulations 13th March 2001
National insurance contributions in EU member states 22nd March 2001
Preparation for the European Council Meeting in Barcelona 1st Feb 2002
Unfair Competition in the Market for Aluminium Scrap 11th Oct 2002

Current Portfolio and Special Interests

Internal Market

As Conservative Internal Market Spokesman, Malcolm is continuing his crusade for more open and de-regulated markets. He is focusing special attention on services - where many barriers still exist. He has recently produced a report on E-Commerce and Financial Services, supporting plans to allow companies to market products across the EU, using the internet. He is now working on policy proposals to achieve effective Regulatory Impact assessment at a European level, ahead of the Barcelona summit in April 2002.

Other projects currently under Malcolm's scrutiny are:

The European Patent (link), allowing companies to protect inventions across the EU with a single application. The big issue is language, with a growing acceptance of English as the basis for all applications.
Public Procurement (link), where he is fighting to ensure that an open market is maintained and that market distorting social and environmental criteria are excluded.
The Machinery Directive (link), where he is supporting a proposed simplification of existing legislation.
Data Protection (link), where he has been leading the fight for effective and workable regulations that will not undermine responsible e-commerce.
Electronic Communications

Malcolm is rapporteur on the Universal Service Directive which is part of the suite of four telecommunications directives currently going through the European Parliament. This will create a single market for telecoms, improving efficiency and giving consumers better choice and lower prices. Malcolm has written reports for the first and second readings.

Ceramics Industry

With special responsibility within the Conservative team for the Potteries region, Malcolm Harbour is jointly leading the Ceramics Industry Forum in the European Parliament. The Forum has a full time research officer, and is supported by European Ceramics Companies and Trade Unions. It aims to raise the profile of the industry and its major concerns at EU level. In September 2001, Malcolm met US trade regulator Bob Zoellick and called on him to lift the restrictive 31% tax on imported hotelware in an attempt to strengthen the position of local firms in the lucrative American market. He also met European Commissioner Frits Bolkestein to discuss the problem of counterfeit ceramic goods being sold in the EU member states.

Relations with Japan

As a Member of the European Parliament’s Delegation to Japan, Malcolm Harbour is using his previous experience as a Director of Rover’s Japanese subsidiary to help European relations with Japanese Parliamentarians. He has also taken a special interest in the role of Japanese companies investing in Europe, and in helping EU companies achieve success in Japan. In October 2001 he visited Japan and attended joint debates with MPs and meetings with Ministers, with a particular focus on economic policy. He also visited West Midlands companies active in the Japanese market such as Land Rover (link to www.landrover.com) and Portmeirion Potteries (link to www.portmeirion.co.uk) to see how they are faring in the tough Japanese market.

Business Liaison

As Deputy Chairman of Conservative Enterprise Europe (link to www.conservatives.com/ep_enterprise.cfm) - the UK delegation business liaison group - Malcolm organised strong Conservative MEP participation in the 2001 CBI conference in Birmingham, the only UK MEPs to attend. A new publication on the business activities of Conservative MEPs, Delivering for British Business (link to www.conservatives.com/ep_dfbb.cfm) was produced especially for this event. Malcolm visits many regional business organisations to understand their concerns and to help them raise issues at a European level.

Car Industry

Malcolm is co-chairman of the Forum for Automobile and Society (link to www.autoandsociety.com). This is an independent European think tank on the car's role in society. It provides a valuable forum where the main automotive stakeholders and policy makers can meet. Malcolm has been engaged in a number of key policy issues, including new proposals for improving pedestrian safety, the future of car distribution and the automobile industry's response to new recent proposals from the Commission. He has organised and chaired meetings with Commissioner Liikanen and Commissioner Busquin, and senior car industry executives. His proposal for a greater involvement by Parliament in examining the strategy for car industry regulation has been agreed by Commissioner Liikanen and will take effect in 2002. In November 2001, Malcolm spoke in a Parliament hearing on car block exemption (link) where he spoke on the need for European legislators to provide the right framework within which consumers will get the best service and where competition will stimulate the development of an innovative and profitable sector.

European Commission Reform

Malcolm was rapporteur for the white paper on reforming the European Commission in October 2000. In his report (link), he advocated staff reforms so that advancement is on merit and staff performance is fully recognised. Malcolm continues to lead for the Centre Right on this issue and is pressing for speedy introduction of the planned changes. He was the lead speaker in a recent debate (link) with Commissioner Neil Kinnock in response to his oral question (link). He is pressing for reform to be extended to the Parliament's own staff, and his points of order in the Strasbourg plenaries have finally produced a response from the President. He is now preparing the Parliament's scrutiny of the revised Staff Regulations, which will start in early 2002.

Motor Industry Career

Malcolm Harbour began his motor industry career in the BMC Longbridge Plant as an Austin Engineering Apprentice in 1967. After working as a design and development engineer, he spent 8 years planning and managing new product programmes in the Rover Triumph Division. He became Overseas Sales Director for Rover in 1986. His career has given him wide experience in all parts of the car industry, from shop floor to showroom. He has carried out business in many countries and has special knowledge of Europe and the Pacific Rim.

In 1989, he jointly founded the Motor Industry Consulting and Research Company, Harbour Wade Brown, and in 1992 became a founder Director of the International Car Distribution Programme. In 1998, he initiated a 3 year research study into the automotive supply chain (the 3DayCar Programme), involving two UK universities, with funding from 20 automotive companies and the UK Research Council. His companies have carried out business research and consultancy for all the major European, US and Japanese car makers, Governments, Dealers and Suppliers. In a 1997 survey by a leading car magazine, he was listed among the 200 most influential people in the world car industry.