Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2000-03-13-Speech-1-059"
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"en.20000313.2.1-059"2
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"Mr President-in-Office of the Council, Mr President of the Commission, it is gratifying and encouraging to hear this House speak of a new strategic objective for the next decade. This objective consists of creating a European Union which, on the world stage, forms a more dynamic and competitive economic and social area, based on new technologies, innovation and knowledge, so that we are capable of increasing levels of economic growth, with more, and better, jobs and greater social cohesion.
It is clear that we must redefine the role of Europe in the world economy, creating a competitive Europe, opening the way to new and better jobs and organising this process with an appropriate strategy for social cohesion. The central role of employment and social policy, in the creation of this new society, is based on two factors. On the one hand we have economic efficiency, since, in this new technological context, the quality of human resources is essential. On the other hand, we have social equality, because, despite the economic upturn which we are witnessing, we still have an enormous degree of social inequality.
Unemployment, social exclusion and the danger of future imbalance in the social security systems, are problems which are exacerbated by the unavoidable challenges of globalisation, an ageing population, technological changes, demographic slowdown and the increasing incorporation of women in the workplace. Europe needs to achieve full employment. This full employment should be adapted to the society taking shape, with greater possibilities for its men and women. European citizens must believe in this project and this state of affairs. They must not see it as something abstract which we only speak about in Brussels or Strasbourg.
We are asking right now for a transition to a new society, to an economy based on innovation, and on the information and knowledge-based society. We must learn quickly, create new practices more suited to the new society and invest in technological change, but we must never forget the people or the institutions.
Lisbon will be a step forward and we must achieve a renewal of the European social model because that is the only way we can achieve greater employment and, at the same time, greater social cohesion. To this end, we must concentrate on a series of priority issues. We must improve the effectiveness of active employment policies. We must strengthen the synergies between adaptability, education and lifelong training. We must increase employment in the sector consisting of services which facilitate business initiative and reduce the administrative burden on small- and medium-sized enterprises, reducing non-wage costs. Lastly, we have to promote the integration of general equal opportunities policies for all men and women, with particular stress on aspects which help to reconcile professional life with family life.
All of this has to be done thinking of the European citizen. It has to be done thinking of the men and women who live and work daily in our countries. The Special Lisbon Summit must fundamentally reaffirm, for the European citizen, the notion that the European Union still believes in the idea of a society which favours inclusion and social cohesion."@en1
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