Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2005-06-08-Speech-3-010"
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"en.20050608.3.3-010"2
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Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, the European Council that will begin its work on 16 June will have to discuss two issues that will decide the future development of the European Union: the ratification process for the Constitutional Treaty and the conclusion of a political agreement on the financial perspectives.
Following the rich debate that you had yesterday, the vote that Parliament will take shortly on the resolution could send a signal of prime importance, a signal of encouragement. You can be sure that the Presidency will do everything in its power to facilitate a compromise that is acceptable to all. Mr President, in addition to these decisive questions, the European Council will be dealing with other matters that are no less important for the citizens.
We now need to implement the relaunch of the Lisbon Strategy in the interests of growth and employment. To this end, in accordance with the new approach adopted in March, the European Council will have to approve the integrated guidelines for growth and jobs 2005-2008. That is how, on the basis of the work of all the relevant configurations of the Council, the implementation of macroeconomic and microeconomic policies and employment policies can be based around 24 integrated guidelines. By the autumn, the Member States will have translated these guidelines into coherent national programmes promoting growth and employment. This must not be a formality, but an enterprise involving all those concerned and, in particular, the parliamentary bodies and the social partners.
I would also like to mention that, in line with the decision taken in March, the European Council will be invited to approve a declaration on guiding principles for sustainable development. This should enable us to adopt a revised sustainable development strategy, if possible before the end of 2005.
The European Council will also have to look into certain important aspects of the creation of the area of freedom, security and justice. In this field, we owe it to ourselves to demonstrate that the EU is able to respond effectively to the citizens’ expectations. The citizens of Europe expect, quite rightly, that the European Union will adopt a more effective common approach to cross-border problems, such as illegal immigration, people trafficking, the fight against organised crime, the fight against terrorism, which you debated yesterday and which we consider to be very important.
Last November, we adopted the Hague Programme which, quite rightly, sets the priorities over the next five years for the creation of a true area of freedom, security and justice. In this vein, the next European Council will be presented with an action plan translating the objectives of the Hague Programme into concrete measures. In that regard, the Presidency would stress that it is crucial for the Member States to implement the various measures included effectively and within the deadlines. The European Council will in particular review the efforts made to combat terrorism. You have emphasised its urgency, and the need for a comprehensive approach that combines security and freedom. The European Council should, in particular, identify certain high-priority areas of action for the coming months: for example, police and judicial cooperation, the ongoing work to prevent the recruitment of terrorists, the fight against terrorist financing or strengthening our civil protection capacities, in particular in order to combat any bioterrorist threat.
Finally, and I am now coming to the end, Mr President, certain important issues need to be raised with regard to external relations. I am referring in particular to the reform of the United Nations, which will be the focus of the United Nations Summit in September. We consider it to be essential for this summit to reach a balanced and ambitious result, which will make it possible to reform the UN in order to respond more effectively to the multidimensional threats and challenges identified in the report by the Secretary-General of the United Nations. I think we are going to discuss this, particularly this afternoon.
Among the other international issues, preparations for the International Conference on Iraq, jointly organised by the European Union and the United States, which will take place in Brussels on 22 June, will be up for discussion. The aim will be to set up a new framework to coordinate the aid effort in Iraq. In this regard, it is appropriate to stress the prime, essential, fundamental role of the Iraqi Government in the period of transition and reconstruction of that country.
As you can see, from these various subjects, Europe must continue. We must show that it has retained its full ability to make decisions and take action. I think that the debates you are going to conduct now must be a spur in that direction.
Following intense debates, first of all the citizens of France, and then the citizens of the Netherlands, rejected the draft Treaty establishing a Constitution for Europe, signed in Rome on 29 October 2004. There were many reasons for these no votes, some of them contradictory. Many of us expressed our disappointment and our regrets at the outcome of those votes. But a democratic debate took place and we must, of course, fully respect the democratic choice made by a clear majority of the French and Dutch electorates.
I cannot help but recall the huge vote that the European Parliament expressed on 12 January 2005 in favour of the draft European Constitution. This vote was driven by a great hope; a conviction that the European Union, following enlargement with ten new members, could strengthen its democratic basis, operate more effectively and more transparently, anchor its future in the common values that are so close to our hearts and, in this way, finally regain the full confidence of its citizens.
Ten countries have ratified the draft Constitution, including one – Spain - by referendum. In these cases, too, we must respect their democratic decision. Nevertheless, the votes in the Netherlands and France, two of the founding countries, have still created a new situation that we must face up to. Via these polls, the people have expressed their worries, their aspirations and expectations, but also their disappointments.
Unfortunately, European unification no longer seems to be this mobilising project that has enabled us, over decades, to reconstruct our continent in peace and prosperity, before reconciling it by means of enlargement. Is hope changing sides? Does Europe now only inspire anxiety, incomprehension? Is it bringing upon itself all of the social unrest that many of our fellow citizens feel, quite rightly, faced with difficulties, faced with long-term unemployment for too long? I do not think so.
The message sent by many French and Dutch citizens is twofold. True, there is dissatisfaction with the form and operation of Europe, but, at the same time, for a large proportion of the citizens who said no, there is still considerable support for the idea of Europe and for the necessity for it, but it is support for a Europe that acts differently in a world that is undergoing a process of transformation. The European Council will have to listen to these messages, expressed following a democratic debate that, certainly, has been lacking for too long. All those who justified their choice to refuse by referring to a hypothetical Plan B must now realise that there is no easy escape from a situation that has become extremely complex. We must note, today, that Declaration 30 nevertheless provides for a situation in which, at the end of the ratification period, several countries have not managed to complete this procedure. We must also take into account the fact that ten countries have successfully completed the ratification procedure while more than half of the Member States have not yet expressed their opinion. It is not easy to deprive these people, or these parliaments, of a democratic debate and of the opportunity to express their opinion in their turn.
Let us also remember that the draft Constitution is the result of an overall compromise, that it has its own coherence, and that we cannot easily have one element without another. The European Council should therefore carry out an in-depth collective analysis of the situation before defining clearly how the process will continue. One thing seems certain: the European Union must not slide into a sort of permanent uncertainty, opposition to change or, even worse, paralysis. Our institutions work, and will continue to work. Our decision-making capacity is intact, even if, obviously, the provisions of the Treaty of Nice are inadequate, in view of the political, economic and social challenges that the EU and our Member States must deal with ever more urgently. The citizens expect concrete action, better consideration of their concerns, whether in economic and social matters or with regard to their security. The world is wondering about the future of the EU, which has for a long time fascinated many peoples on all continents. The European Council must therefore broaden its thinking. It cannot limit itself to procedural issues, when peoples’ expectations are, above all, political. A political EU must remain our aim, and the construction of a true European democracy is still the only way of achieving it.
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In that context, the negotiations on the financial perspectives take on a very particular dimension. Failure, an inability to reach a satisfactory compromise, would be, for our own citizens and above all for the outside world, the sign of a dangerous impasse. These financial perspectives may not reflect all the ambitions of one party or another, but they will nevertheless enable the EU to take action in the interests of competitiveness, employment, economic and social cohesion, better protection of the environment and internal security and in favour of a more active international role. Indeed, if we can adopt them now despite our differences, this will provide the political impetus that the EU now needs more urgently than ever."@en1
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