Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2000-09-06-Speech-3-165"
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"en.20000906.5.3-165"2
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"I have no objection to our attempting to resolve the outstanding problems associated with the right of residence of EU citizens, who are, after all, at liberty to move freely throughout European Union territory and reside wherever they choose, particularly when they are pensioners or students.
However, I am unable to support this report in principle, because it takes advantage of the situation, with a view to demanding freedom of movement and establishment for all third-country nationals who have the right of residence in a Member State.
There are millions of third-country nationals who fit this description, and it is completely unacceptable to saddle other Member States with the consequences of giving freedom of movement to millions of people, without taking the individual Member States’ absorption capacity into account.
Many people have doubts about admitting Malta to the European Union. If the demands made in the Boumediene-Thiery report in respect of freedom of movement for third-country nationals were to be met, this would have a far more serious impact than if we were to grant the citizens of the candidate countries in Central and Eastern Europe freedom of movement and establishment, without a transitional period, which is something no one in their right mind would consider.
If we really want to fan the flames of xenophobia within the Community, then I can think of no better way than to support the excessive and unreasonable proposals contained in the Boumediene-Thiery report, which thank God, was adopted in committee by only 23 votes in favour to 15 votes against.
It is asking too much of the other Member States as it is, for the German Government to allow several million third-country nationals resident on its territory to hold German citizenship in addition to their own. In so doing, with a single stroke of the pen, it creates several million new EU citizens entitled to freedom of movement and freedom of establishment, and in fact they even have the right to vote at local and European elections. Yet at the same time, your colleague Mr Verheugen, is calling for a referendum on eastwards enlargement. What about our right to a referendum against Germany’s being able to decide completely independently, and without reference to the other Member States, to present us with several million more EU citizens?
We cannot cope with the consequences of such generosity, as well intentioned as it may be, because it will be open to exploitation, particularly by gangs of human traffickers.
I say ‘yes’ to a rational immigration policy that we can sustain, but ‘no’ to the chaos that the Boumediene-Thiery report would inevitably cause."@en1
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