Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2003-11-05-Speech-3-181"
| Predicate | Value (sorted: default) |
|---|---|
| rdf:type | |
| dcterms:Date | |
| dcterms:Is Part Of | |
| dcterms:Language | |
| lpv:document identification number |
"en.20031105.14.3-181"2
|
| lpv:hasSubsequent | |
| lpv:speaker | |
| lpv:spokenAs | |
| lpv:translated text |
"Mr President, I too am concerned that there is so little interest in discussing this type of matter, but I wonder whether this is a consequence of the way in which our activities are timetabled or of our approach to these matters. Ultimately, what is at stake is basically the use of taxpayers’ money.
I therefore believe that the European Parliament’s discharge of the budget must always allow for meaningful political debate. Fortunately, this has to some extent happened – quite recently – thereby contributing to the credibility of Community budgetary policy. Our examination of the budget of the five agencies that are the subject of this report should be seen in the context of these objectives and is geared towards achieving these priorities. All of the report’s proposals to grant discharge are accompanied by Parliamentary motions for resolutions and it is precisely in these motions for resolution that Parliament must exercise its political power. It can do so by drawing up recommendations or by expressing the hope that the activities of the agencies take a particular direction, both as regards the need to improve internal operations and supervision and the urgent need to increase their effectiveness in undertaking these activities.
The report makes various observations and suggestions – which I will not list, because I have so little time – praising the words and the opinion of the Committee on Employment and Social Affairs on the European Agency responsible for health and safety in the workplace. There is, however, one aspect of a general nature that I believe warrants particular mention. This is the report’s proposal to change the composition of the agencies’ boards of administration, so as to ensure that they have more of a role. There are many financial reasons for such action, and in some cases operational reasons, which would mean that these boards could not function if they were larger than a certain size. Symptomatically, these concerns arise, as the Commissioner’s speech has just made clear, at a time when we are rapidly approaching a process of welcoming – at political level – new countries into the Community family. Without denying the validity of these concerns, the European Parliament must cautiously reflect on the true nature of the positions it will be adopting, because options that take a purely economic view are quite unacceptable. Safeguarding the principle of representativeness and total equality between Member States is, in the current context, absolutely crucial."@en1
|
Named graphs describing this resource:
The resource appears as object in 2 triples