Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2001-01-31-Speech-3-162"
| Predicate | Value (sorted: default) |
|---|---|
| rdf:type | |
| dcterms:Date | |
| dcterms:Is Part Of | |
| dcterms:Language | |
| lpv:document identification number |
"en.20010131.7.3-162"2
|
| lpv:hasSubsequent | |
| lpv:speaker | |
| lpv:spokenAs | |
| lpv:translated text |
"Mr President, Commissioner, what is positive about this compromise is that obstacles to cross-border freight traffic will be dismantled in the foreseeable future, which definitely improves our chances of being able to transfer freight from the roads to the railways. Our guiding principle must be to create a truly level playing field on the competition front, through harmonisation and by taking comparable cost components into account. But then there is more to competition than a debate about lowest costs and highest profits, it is also about striving for sustainability, social competence, user-friendliness, quality and service. Why should a private-sector supplier be
any better at this than one under public ownership? We have a duty to explain what we understand by general public services, and whether we think they can be provided more effectively by publicly owned operators than private operators, or less so.
I believe that having equal conditions of access for all will not prove profitable in every case. Private companies must make a profit or else face their demise. Publicly owned companies can, in fact, sustain losses in areas where this is necessary for social reasons, on account of their redistribution potential. It will not do for the profits to be absorbed by the private sector and the losses to be borne by society. What we need is for the public and private suppliers of services in a European internal market to adopt an approach that is in the interests of the common good. This will require uniform framework conditions. Experience will show whether the nascent liberalisation of the European railways will mean better services for rail users.
Certain Member States have already implemented more far-reaching liberalisation measures, with very mixed results. Germany – I am sorry to have to say this gentlemen from the Deutsche Bundesbahn – is a prime example of how not to go about it. Stretches of track have been shut down
at regional level, there have been railway station closures, ever-increasing cycle times, repair workshop closures, and drastic cuts in staffing levels. This has nothing to do with competing for services to the general public."@en1
|
| lpv:unclassifiedMetadata |
Named graphs describing this resource:
The resource appears as object in 2 triples