Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2000-02-15-Speech-2-036"
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"en.20000215.3.2-036"2
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"Madam President, Mr Prodi, I fully support the thinking of the proposals made by my colleague, Mrs Hautala, on the Commission’s strategic objectives for the coming five years.
I myself want to refer to a subject which has not been mentioned but which is on the agenda, namely the Commission’s work programme for 2000. I am aware of the limitations of the exercise given that we have to work within the current Treaty and are therefore restricted by its operational rules. I am thinking in this respect of the important issue of taxation which I am not, however, going to talk about. Rather, I want to start by welcoming certain proposals which you have made in this programme for 2000. These include all the proposals on food safety which are ambitious and important and those on maritime safety which are particularly important given the two oil slicks which have affected the coast of Brittany and Turkey. The Commission should react quickly in this respect.
However, on other issues the proposals could be more ambitious and faster acting. I have some positive suggestions to make, particularly on the social area, the environment and the follow-up to Seattle. Firstly, you have said that the citizens of Europe must be reconciled with the institutions. This is self-evident and it is therefore essential to find out their main concerns. For example, in the social area, it is not enough to announce a communication on a programme of social action. We must move faster. You must submit a new social action programme to us by the end of the year.
The issue of company closures and mass redundancies is one which has been and still is very firmly in the news. We are working on the basis of a directive whose limitations have been clearly demonstrated. I therefore propose that this should be reviewed in order to produce a directive which is more effective in protecting employment and also in imposing penalties on those who do not comply.
On the environment, you have announced a proposal for a decision on a sixth action programme on the environment. This is all very well but it seems that the text to be proposed will not contain any specific objectives or a timetable for implementation. Perhaps you can correct me on this. I personally feel that it is essential to have precise objectives and a proper timetable for implementation. In terms of civil liability for the environment, it is right that we finally have a White Paper. However, Parliament did ask for a legislative initiative six years ago. The White Paper clearly foreshadows this legislation but for when? You must realise that this process needs to be accelerated.
Finally, after Kyoto, we should be able to rapidly produce precise proposals. Finally, on the subject of the WTO, the idea of relaunching a new global round is not necessarily bad. However, in the first place, the Commission should make proposals on changing the operational rules of the WTO. The Commission has a role both within the EU and throughout the world. The European Union must therefore instigate a re-evaluation of the WTO’s operation which must lead to precise proposals being made on its rules."@en1
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