Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2000-06-15-Speech-4-137"
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"en.20000615.4.4-137"2
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"(
) President, Commissioner, ladies and gentlemen, this Sixth Periodic Report on the social and economic situation of the regions of the Union, which was adopted last year by the Commission, indicated that the 25 richest regions of the European Union still had an average GDP per head that was two and a half times higher than that in the 25 poorest regions, and my fellow Members have also reminded us of this. The development gap between the Member States has certainly been reduced, but there are still disparities between the regions, not only with regard to the GDP per head, but also, particularly, in terms of unemployment.
Despite the economic upturn, the unemployment rate in the Union as a whole stood at around 10% at the end of 1998. Moreover, the distribution of unemployment is extremely uneven. Whereas the 25 regions least affected are experiencing a relative stabilisation of the rate at around 3 or 4%, the trend has not been reversed in the 25 worst affected regions, with a rate which is still higher than 20%.
In its 1998Annual Report on the Structural Funds, the Commission notes, rightly so, that high regional unemployment leads to social exclusion, hence making unemployment even more resistant to economic improvement. An integrated strategy combining measures to boost the economic base of the regions and measures to improve access to the job market, particularly through training, is essential if this situation is to be resolved. It therefore seems to me that structural actions must continue to step up their efficacy and impact in terms of job creation in order to sustain the current economic growth, especially in the regions most affected by unemployment.
Furthermore, the work carried out under the European Spatial Development Perspective follows the development of the organisation of the European territory from a traditional, rather centralised model, towards a polycentric model which is the only way to promote a more balanced geographical distribution of work in Europe. The Commission has promised that the emphasis in the new programming period for the Structural Funds will be on improving transport networks, particularly in the peripheral or outermost regions, and on creating sustainable and effective transport systems that provide a balance between the different modes of transport.
I must stress particularly that the priority objective of this increased coordination should be to reduce structural divergences between the central part of the Union and the peripheral and outermost regions, as specified in one of the amendments adopted by my committee."@en1
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"Sudre (PPE-DE )."1
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