Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2000-12-15-Speech-5-020"
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"en.20001215.2.5-020"2
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"Mr President, 100 years ago, two of my relatives lived to be almost 100 and, in those days, the age of 110 was also reached, albeit sporadically. Those were the exception to the rule, for the large majority of people died at a relatively young age due to adverse conditions. Nowadays, an increasing number of people live longer thanks to better health care, provision of information, care, housing and pension schemes. Some researchers anticipate that people could actually live up to 120 years, but they invariably die earlier because a vital part of their body ceases to function. Provided we organise our care and social security well, we can allow an increasing number of people to reach the maximum age. Collective expenditure on public services prolongs our lives. Over the past decade in Central and Eastern Europe, we have seen a fall in life expectancy as soon as governments have withdrawn and left elderly people to their fate. The shortage of employees in a growing economy puts pressure on older people to stay in their jobs for longer. In fact, this shortage is being seized upon as an argument for increasing the pensionable age and for nipping in the bud such initiatives as there have been to lower it. That is a development in the wrong direction. Needless to say, people above the age of 60 or 70 can still do many useful things, but it is wrong at that age to make their income dependent on completed working hours. These people are far more useful as a bonding agent in society who help others function more efficiently. It is precisely in voluntary work that they can pass on their life experience and promote cooperation in their own living environments. By forcing them to continue in paid work, they cannot fulfil those useful tasks, and it is likely that their life expectancy will be reduced if we impose obligations such as these on them.
I have a feeling that the aspects which I have mentioned, namely the importance of collective care and the importance of timely retirement, are considered to be of slightly less importance by the rapporteur and that, moreover, she is too optimistic about the possibility of the elderly thriving without our creating the social conditions to match. One way in which we could strengthen their position would be to adopt Amendment No 4, tabled by my colleague, Mr Alavanos, which aims to better adapt housing and transport to the needs of the elderly. I hope that the House will adopt this amendment."@en1
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