Reacting to French Government rejections of Parliament's criticism this week over the mass expulsion of Roma people during the summer, Guy Verhofstadt (ALDE group leader who initiated the whole debate on the issue) insisted that Parliament's resolution would not be the end of the matter:

"The reaction from several French Government ministers to our criticism is regrettable.  This is not a question of political diktat but an appeal to a better sense of judgement based on commonly shared European values for tolerance, non-discrimination and respect for free movement. The Roma are European citizens just like any other."

"Parliament this week was perfectly entitled to point out that bribing or forcing one ethnic group to return, en masse, to another Member State, is not in conformity with EU laws, nor in the spirit of the Treaties."

"The European Commission may have buried its head in the sand over the summer but there can be no more dodging the issue. The Liberal group in particular has pledged this year to argue for a far more rigorous EU monitoring and enforcing of Human Rights standards within our Union. If not, we can hardly preach to those who do not respect them elsewhere."