Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2002-07-03-Speech-3-017"
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"en.20020703.2.3-017"2
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".
Mr President, Prime Minister, ladies and gentlemen, this is the last plenary sitting before the summer recess. The Seville European Council is behind us and the extremely important six months of the Danish Presidency have just started. This would therefore appear to be a good point to take stock of the situation.
We must have one single objective: to put the right men and women in the right posts. We must think solely of the general interest of the system and optimising its performance. Our underlying aim is still sounder, more democratic governance of the Union.
The third and last topic I wish to raise today is Johannesburg and the World Summit on Sustainable Development. Sustainability is a recurrent theme in the Commission’s work. We often speak of sustainability and of long-term objectives for our policies in the environmental, economic and social sectors and I hope the Johannesburg Summit will be a substantial step forwards. Apart from anything else, I know that a number of you will be attending this Summit, and that is good for the Union has a guiding role to play in trade, humanitarian aid, development aid and diplomatic relations. Let us not, however, rest on our laurels or be content with the successes of the past. We must build on the momentum of Monterrey and Doha, where the Union played an essential role, and we must tackle the difficult task of convincing our partners to do their bit.
We must undertake to provide practical support for development in the southern hemisphere in line with the priorities laid down by UN Secretary-General, Kofi Annan, of water, hygiene, health, energy, agriculture and biodiversity. In addition, we must not neglect the social and political aspects: developing democracy, good governance, political dialogue and social and economic reform. All these measures will ultimately assist in achieving the major goals of alleviating poverty, securing peace and improving the standard of living of what is sadly the majority of the world’s population.
The income gap between the northern and southern hemispheres is widening, particularly where Africa is concerned. We must reverse the trend and avoid setting up new walls and creating new divides across the world. That means doing much more than we have up to now, fulfilling our commitments and adopting a more coordinated, complementary approach.
The last G8 Meeting in Canada adopted an Africa Action Plan supporting the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD). We must not confine ourselves to just taking part in the initiative: we must also make sure our contribution is worthy of our traditional role as Africa’s special partner and our historical responsibilities towards the continent.
Prime Minister, you mentioned food safety in your speech. The Danish Presidency can count on the active support of the Commission and the newly established Food Safety Authority in its endeavours to maintain the highest standards of food safety for the Union’s citizens.
In the three major areas I have spoken about today – enlargement, institutional reform and sustainable development – the EU must establish itself as a model of democratic efficiency. We must not forget that we are the only working example of democratic, supranational management of globalisation. Other people talk about it but we are trying to make it reality. That is why the world expects us to make a momentous contribution to the debate on sustainability, and it must come from all of us – you, ladies and gentlemen, the President-in-Office, Mr Rasmussen, and his entire Council Presidency team, and us in the Commission.
Prime Minister, I welcome this frank, incisive, active start to our cooperation and the friendly atmosphere too. Thank you. I would also like to thank the Members of this House and, this being the last part-session before the summer recess, wish you all a good holiday.
There are three major interlocking processes among the items on our agenda for the second half of this year. Firstly, as the Danish Prime Minister has said, enlargement. As I said yesterday in this House, most issues still outstanding have been settled and the Commission will say which countries it regards as ready for enlargement at the October European Council. At the same time, we also need to encourage progress among the other candidate countries. Our aim is to push ahead with the process systematically without erecting new barriers across the continent we are seeking to unify. As things stand and assuming current progress is maintained, all ten countries in the first wave are likely to be considered ready for accession. The criterion is still the same: no country is judged in general terms; each country is judged on its own merits.
We shall work resolutely to wind up the accession talks at Copenhagen, but first we must reach an internal agreement with the current Member States on budgetary issues and on direct payments to farmers, although these areas are not closely linked. In this regard, I want to reiterate my conviction that the Commission’s proposal is the only workable basis for reaching an agreement between the current fifteen Member States and the twenty-five of tomorrow. I therefore call on all parties to undertake to reach an agreement that will pave the way for the reunification of the whole continent.
Meanwhile, we will update the roadmap and pre-accession strategy for Bulgaria and Romania. As for Turkey, the Council encourages and fully supports its efforts – as stated in the Council conclusions – to fulfil the priorities defined in its Accession Partnership. The regular report on Turkey’s progress in adopting and implementing reforms to be published by the Commission in October will be a crucial factor in the decisions that will be taken at Copenhagen.
Thus, in December, the Copenhagen European Council will set a date in 2004 for the formal accession of the new Member States and will arrange for the signing of the Accession Treaty to take place in March 2003. Of course, the whole process depends on the ratification of the Treaty of Nice. The Irish will be voting on this in October. I must therefore stress the importance of a yes vote for Europe’s future. Signing the Accession Treaty will not be the end of a successful enlargement process. On the contrary, it will only be the beginning. From 2004, the EU must be capable of performing all its tasks properly and meeting the expectations of the European citizens, who will then number over 450 million.
The latest Eurobarometer results are clear: 67% of those interviewed are now in favour of the euro, which is a figure six points up on the previous survey. There is huge support for the Common Foreign and Security Policy and for enlargement and the majority of the citizens are in favour of a European Union Constitution.
Ladies and gentlemen, these results also tell us that our fellow citizens want maximum effectiveness in our institutions, and that is precisely the idea behind the second topic I want us to focus on today: institutional reforms. Once ratified, the Nice Treaty will introduce the institutional reforms needed for enlargement, but we also need to take fundamental decisions on the political nature and the institutional structure of the European Union of the future. Indeed, Europe must be more present in three major areas: we need a stronger foreign policy and a more effective role on the world stage, closer cooperation between the Member States in the field of security and justice and in combating organised crime and illegal immigration, and better coordination of economic and financial policy.
All these issues are currently being discussed in the debate on the future of Europe within the European Convention. Enlargement, however, is imminent and we cannot just twiddle our thumbs until a new Treaty is ratified. How should responsibilities be divided up amongst the Commissioners once the Union has 25 or more members, in other words as things stand in 2004, not as they are now? How will the Council be able to provide coherent, effective guidance?
The Danish Presidency has been instructed to push ahead with the procedural reforms of the Council decided upon at Seville and the Commission undertakes as of now to give its full support. The Commission has also been moving in this direction. As I said yesterday, I have already put forward similar ideas on reorganising the work of the Commissioners and I would like to stress now that the reforms we can carry out without amending the Treaties need to be synchronised across the institutions. Therefore, when there are 25 Member States, we will have to take appropriate action."@en1
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