Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/1999-11-03-Speech-3-166"
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"Mr President, I would like to start by thanking Mrs Palacio very much for giving me the opportunity of enlarging upon the strategic plan for the internal market and also for the preliminary remarks she has made. I would also like to thank her for the congratulations she has extended to the Committee and, indirectly, the services which fall under my remit.
The position of Parliament which is, of course, aware of the needs among citizens and within industry, is essential. I would like to emphasise this point. I promise that I will inform Parliament, maybe through its committees, of the development of this type of initiatives right from the start.
Another form of non-legislative measures which can underpin and reinforce the operation of the legal framework is self-regulation or, better still, an approach in which regulation and self-regulation are integrated whereby many aspects are laid down in the legislation and alongside this, many groups of interested parties offer solutions upon joint consultation.
It is only starting to dawn on us what scope this approach gives us in the fast-moving area of e-commerce, for example, with regard to on-line complaints procedures. It cannot be left to the legislator, the Union or the individual Member State to deal with these issues. We have to join forces with those who have most involvement: consumers and industry.
Parliament is ideally positioned to initiate the discussion on initiatives of this kind, probably mainly to highlight the concern of the ordinary citizen whose voice is not always heard in Brussels.
Finally, the new institutional equilibrium established by the Treaty of Amsterdam, requires that Parliament, the Council and the Commission cooperate in the field of legislation. I hope that the strategy for the internal market will allow us the opportunity to extend this cooperation to the preliminary stage when the priorities for action will be established and to the implementing stage when it is to be ensured that rules function fully.
I herewith conclude my response to the question raised by Mrs Palacio. Mr President, perhaps you will allow me to say a few words more at the end of the interventions to complete my contribution to this debate. Thank you for your time.
The action programme is now behind us. What we need next is a strategy. The Commission’s announcement combines a strategic vision for the long term and priorities for action in the short term. The strategy should provide a coherent framework for policy development. The aim is to enhance the internal market’s efficiency, benefiting both citizens and businesses. We need to make all interested parties, citizens, consumers, small and large businesses realise that the internal market is a good thing for them, that because of it, the conditions can be created for a thriving business world and a competitive position which focuses more on the challenges of globalisation.
Also, and this might be an even bigger challenge, we need to convince the consumer that the internal market opens up a wider range of goods and services at lower prices without putting safety and quality at risk.
The integration of fifteen national markets required a new legal framework, a framework which is supported by nearly 1,500 directives at present. This work is on-going. There will always be new decisions. A number of important measures are currently being discussed by this Parliament, for example regarding e-commerce. Your question, Mrs Palacio, highlights, however, quite rightly so far as I am concerned, the increasing significance of measures and initiatives of a non-legislative nature which need to ensure that the agreed rules function well in practice.
The specific actions are not static or long-term. They will be reviewed annually and replaced as soon as they reach completion. It is essential that Parliament is involved in this revision in the capacity of co-legislator. Actions will be adapted and adjusted largely on the basis of the scoreboard of the internal market which is compiled twice-yearly by the Commission and also on the basis of the Cardiff report on the operation of product and capital markets.
Also, the Council’s conclusions concerning the Cardiff report, with regard to which agreement will be reached during the Internal Market Council of February or March, will make a huge contribution. Input from Parliament running alongside this would be ideal. Admittedly, the deadlines are short.
The Cardiff report will be published in mid-January. The Commission will need to table its proposals for new specific actions by April. But I am convinced that your institutionalists are up to the task.
Measures of a non-legislative nature encompass a wide range of activities. There will be areas where the Community, invariably the Commission, will be in the forward line and three elements, by way of example, will prove to be useful in this.
Firstly, the dialogue with Europe’s citizens and industry which provides information on the precise way in which rights can be exercised. Secondly, simplification. Initiatives, such as SLIM and the
are intended to lighten the administrative load for industry. Thirdly, promoting a common European administrative culture with high levels of services for the European citizen. We need to encourage national officials to exchange good practices and solve problems swiftly and informally, thus obviating the need for legal remedies."@en1
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"business test panel"1
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