Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2003-09-02-Speech-2-021"
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"en.20030902.1.2-021"2
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"Mr President, this initiative aims to drive the European Union forward by propagating the Community method to develop European policies for European regions, rather than nations, and to establish a legal basis for new structural support for enlargement countries under the proposed constitution. However, even the rapporteur admits that on enlargement, Europe's regional income disparities will increase dramatically.
The Commissioner stresses that in the EU of 15, 48 regions – accounting for 18% of the population – had a per capita income below 75% of the average, whereas in an enlarged Union a total of 67 regions will fall below the 75% threshold – representing 26% of total population. Yet instead of structural funds being granted to economically deprived areas, the rapporteur proposes that, on enlargement, money should be channelled to disadvantaged mountainous, remote or island regions – a much narrower definition for distribution. So a system that is already inherently bad becomes even worse.
Individual nations know precisely where help is needed within their own domains and yet the European Union is determined to exert its authority by controlling structural support for what it considers to be impoverished regions. If control of funding were to be returned to national governments, I am confident that the UK Government would be aware of the serious need for funding in my own region – the South-West – where we have suffered tremendously from the effects of the EU's disastrous common fisheries policy and common agricultural policy.
Funding administered by our own government would ensure that the whole transport infrastructure – rail, road and air – receives the attention it deserves for the benefit of all our small businessmen in the South-West, and all of those people involved in our vital tourism industry. We know where funding is needed far better than the bureaucrats in Brussels."@en1
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