Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2003-01-16-Speech-4-019"
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"en.20030116.1.4-019"2
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"Mr President, Commissioner, Mr Lemierre, I would like to begin by thanking you and your staff for your work. The balance-sheet is impressive. We are pleased that the balance-sheet which you have delivered today gives no cause for criticism.
Secondly, I endorse your priorities. Despite your specific role, I think it is very important, as you have said, that the Bank is also an agency for the implementation of the Commission's priorities, as well as for cooperation with the Commission and the Parliament. We must not spread ourselves too thinly. We must set priorities in order to be able to fulfil our political and economic responsibilities in the world – for the Member States, the accession countries, and the surrounding countries. We cannot adopt divergent priorities.
I believe that the following points are important. I hope that next time round, you will also report on the impact of your operations in the transformation countries, since it enhances awareness of the Bank's strengths if we have not only a balance-sheet but also information about the macroeconomic effects of its activities.
Secondly, I think it is important to continue and intensify your work on boosting small and medium-sized enterprises. We are all aware of the key role played by SMEs in creating and consolidating training places and jobs. Our expectation is that you will increase this commitment, especially by strengthening the focus on equity investment for SMEs and supporting the development of an SME infrastructure. I would simply point out that in Russia, only 10% of the workforce is employed in SMEs.
It is also very important that in a week when we have spoken a great deal about the Lisbon process, you are keeping the Lisbon strategy in mind when evaluating projects and enterprises and making this one of your criteria.
Furthermore, of course, we need a priority headed ‘accession countries’. However, EU enlargement will not be complete in 2004. The issue of the Balkans – i.e. the former Yugoslavia – is important for the European Union, as is the establishment of a security belt, and economic development on the European Union's borders is integral to this process.
I therefore ask you to continue your policy course and to take Parliament's ideas on board. We will support you in this approach."@en1
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