Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2004-09-14-Speech-2-097"
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"en.20040914.8.2-097"2
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"Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, Mr Nicolaï, you have noticed that as far as your restrictive draft budget is concerned, you are dealing with a European Parliament which has a great deal of self-confidence. As we have heard, there is a consensus across all groups that we cannot accept the Council’s draft budget in its present form, and I would like to start by echoing Mr Lewandowski and the Budget Commissioner, Mrs Schreyer, in saying that we must give pride of place to the concept of solidarity and the spirit of solidarity in Europe.
As we have heard, the 2005 Budget is the first for 25 Member States, and budgetary allocations must therefore do justice to the new historical context, in which the division of our continent is finally being overcome. In our opinion the draft Budget as it stands does not measure up to this great European challenge, and I would like to go on to give a number of examples to make this clear.
The results of the European elections showed us that together we face a serious acceptance problem, and that we do not really get across to the public. It is therefore a mistake to make savings on information policy; on the contrary, this is an area in which we must be able to be pro-active in addressing our electorate.
The same is true for the cuts you have proposed for the European agencies, including those for food safety, environmental protection and maritime safety. Who exactly should pursue truly ecological policies in Europe, if not us? We therefore also consider these proposals for cuts to be inappropriate.
I would also like to comment on the budget for culture. I very recently became the second Vice-Chairman of the Committee on Culture and Education, and after finding out that the entire budget for culture amounts to 1%, the equivalent of that for tobacco subsidies, I cannot believe that this does justice to our continent, which aspires, after all, to be the continent of culture and the arts.
Exactly the same is true with regard to the opportunities available to us to further reduce the traditional role of farming subsidies. If we really want to make a success of the Lisbon strategy, or in other words the economic reconstruction and renewal of Europe, we must increase our margins for manoeuvre. Investments in youth and intelligence are the real resources of the future, and we must work on these tasks together.
I would therefore also like to make it clear that, in our opinion, the letter from the six Heads of Government who wish to fix the budget at 1% in the Financial Perspective is a mistake. This would not allow us to meet new challenges. Corrections must be made, and we will also push for this in our Member States."@en1
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