Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2001-09-06-Speech-4-034"
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"en.20010906.3.4-034"2
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"Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, I should like to start by saying that serving as rapporteur for this report is a matter of great personal satisfaction for me. This is because I am one of those firmly convinced of the value of the European Parliament’s Committee on Petitions for society at large.
Some reaction to this negative situation is called for. At the very least, we should appeal to the President of the House to ensure that, if appropriate, publicity could be given to this reluctance to tackle problems and flagrant injustices which continue to afflict certain sectors of ordinary European society.
In conclusion, I should like to draw attention to the considerable importance attached to maximising personal contact between petitioners and the European Parliament through the Committee on Petitions, so as to ensure that the Committee’s work bears good fruit. I should also like to express our appreciation of the splendid service provided by the European Parliament’s Directorate-General for Research and by STOA.
The reason is that the system enabling citizens to present petitions is the most direct channel available to Europeans when it comes to denouncing the loopholes still remaining in Community legislation. It is also invaluable for highlighting cases where commitments resulting from directives and regulations already adopted are flagrantly disregarded either because the latter are not being implemented or because they have simply not been transposed.
In addition, the European Ombudsman has a key role to play in this great task. It has also been a matter of great personal satisfaction for me to note the high degree of consensus between members of the Committee during debates and votes.
The figures speak for themselves. All sixteen conclusions in the report were adopted by unanimity. The same was true of the five amendments tabled following minor adjustments in the interests of compromise. Accordingly, I should like to thank the entire Committee and its secretariat.
As you are already familiar with the content of the report, ladies and gentlemen, I shall only refer to what I consider to be its most innovative features. For instance, the European citizens’ right to petition, which as I see it is a fundamental right, is extended to include natural or legal residents, together with those who have registered in a Member State. There is also the recommendation that in future debates this fundamental right should be ascribed the importance due to it, and that it should be included in the possible convention on the building of Europe. Further, it is clearly necessary to grant the Committee on Petitions the status it deserves, given its social importance resulting from direct contact between individuals and the institution.
This must come about, because something has to be done to break down the barriers between the people and the remote European institutions highlighted by all the surveys undertaken. One way forward might well be to encourage more own initiative reports, particularly concerning issues on which the citizens appear to be particularly anxious to be more closely involved with the institutions. It also seems reasonable to try and devise ways to carry through legislative initiatives stemming from civil society itself. They are usually indicative of serious shortcomings.
All this serves to highlight once again the legitimacy of this Committee’s right to have access to all relevant interinstitutional documentation. Indeed, this is essential if the Committee is to undertake its important task effectively.
In this connection it is only fair to mention the ongoing help received from both the Commission and the Ombudsman. Their support is invaluable and much appreciated. Unfortunately, the same is not true of the Council. It remains conspicuous by its absence.
Clearly, at this stage the citizens need to become far more aware of the petitions system. This could be achieved through programmes aimed at informing and educating or more specifically, through information technology. User-friendly guidebooks are needed. This is an outstanding task. Apathy on the part of certain public authorities at all levels, community, national, regional or local has been detected all too often when it comes to finding fair solutions to the problems arising."@en1
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