By Chris Davies, Liberal Democrat MEP for the North-west: A CLASS of sixth formers from the North-west came to see me last week, completing a research project on MEPs and the European Parliament.

The questions they put were simple but intellgent, and, in truth, I didn't know the answers myself until a couple of years ago. Here's how the scoresheet went.

1. Do MEPs sit together in national delegations? No, the European Parliament is not the United Nations. Every MEP is a member of a political party. In my case I belong to the Liberal Democrat group which has 53 members from 11 EU countries.

2.Is the European Parliament just a talking shop? It used to be, but during the 1990s its powers grew hugely. In most of the areas where law is made at a European level the Parliament can be on equal terms with ministers, and individual MEPs can have much more influence over the shaping of laws than backbench MPs at Westminster. But we still have no power over the Common Agricultural Policy or the Common Fisheries Policy, which are controlled by EU governments.

3. What language is used? We have MEPs from 15 countries speaking 11 different languages. In meetings you simply put on your headphones and the interpreters translate the words of whoever is speaking into the language of your choice. But almost all informal meetings take place in English.

4. How much time do you spend in Brussels or Strasbourg? Each week is different, but I usually spend three days away from home on the law-making side of the job, and one day each visiting companies around the North West, catching up on individual inquiries in my office in Stockport, and campaigning with my political party. I'm supposed to keep one day free for my family, but my wife complains that I use it to write.

5. Why does the Parliament meet in both Brussels and Strasbourg? Because in 1992 John Major gave in to French demands that the European Parliament would meet 12 times a year in Strasbourg, and Westminster MPs backed him up. Most of the work is carried out in committees which meet in Brussels, and the full Parliament assembles in France one week each month. Given a choice, MEPs would meet only in Brussels rather than travel around.

5. Is the travelling difficult? Not usually. With 10 flights a day from Manchester Airport to Brussels it's as easy to get to the European Parliament as to the House of Commons!

7. What do you like most about the European Parliament? The fact that your ideas matter more than the political colours you wear, which makes a pleasant change from Westminster, where good suggestions are dismissed if they come from someone in the 'wrong' party. And I enjoy working with people from different countries who have different outlooks. They force you to challenge your own preconceptions.