On 19th January 2012, Diana Wallis announced her resignation from the European Parliament. Diana has issued the following statement:
"I have been in the European Parliament twelve years and I think that is time enough. I have thoroughly enjoyed my time and it was truly a huge privilege; especially to serve as a Vice President of Parliament for the last five years. However, I think all of us, whatever our professions, need to turn a new page from time to time."
"At the mid-term of parliament many members come and go, so accordingly this moment following upon my unsuccessful bid for the Presidency is a good time to take stock. I undertook that bid for reasons that I deeply believe in but such a course of action is bound to lead to reflection. I want to take a break from politics and to take time and assess what next."
"I have been at the service of the people of Yorkshire and the Humber for twelve and a half years. I will always be grateful for the trust that was placed in me to carry out this role, but now is the time for someone with fresh eyes to take over."
"I remain a committed pro-European Liberal Democrat."
Fiona Hall, Liberal Democrat Member of the European Parliament for North East England and leader of the Liberal Democrat MEPs said:
"Diana has been a high profile Member of the Liberal Democrat delegation in the European Parliament, which she led from December 2001 until June 2004 and again from June 2006 to January 2007. She was an outstanding and hard working Member and ALDE coordinator of the Legal Affairs Committee. In her 5 years as a Vice President of the European Parliament she made a name for herself as a champion of transparency. In this role, she negotiated the new joint lobby register of the European Parliament and Commission and the new Code of Conduct for MEPs and was a driving force behind greater access to parliamentary documents. A great believer in participatory democracy, Diana was also very much committed to engaging people with the EU legislative process. Her work on the new European citizens initiative ensured that the admissibility criteria and checks were as open, unbureaucratic and citizen-friendly as possible."
"This resignation is an entirely personal decision by Diana. Being an MEP is a very demanding and time-consuming job and after 12 years and having achieved so much, I can understand that she might want to turn the page."
"On a personal note, I am very grateful to Diana for all the help and support she offered to me personally even before I was elected as an MEP"
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