Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2005-07-05-Speech-2-101"
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"en.20050705.22.2-101"2
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We must record both the strengthening of the euro on the international markets and the policy of price stability pursued by the European Central Bank as extraordinary success stories, but we cannot settle for this situation in the long term. The confirmed, legitimate rigour of the Stability Pact does not in itself guarantee growth if inertia persists. It will continue to be difficult to see the positive effects of the euro if there is no coordinated management of either national budgets or the direction taken by the Member States’ economic policies. It is only on these foundations that the Union will be able to entirely achieve its potential, bestowed on it by the single currency, of being a global economic player and of consolidating an economic and monetary bloc capable of promoting the interests of the citizens and the rhythms of its balanced development.
Ladies and gentlemen, it is the duty of the European Parliament to reintroduce the European Union as a general feeling among people. It is your responsibility to respond to citizens’ requests for even greater democracy, transparency and governability. Ever since 14 February 1984, when the European Parliament presented Altiero Spinelli’s draft European Constitution, this House has constantly demanded greater involvement in amending the Treaties. Now, the most representative of the European institutions has the historical responsibility not to squander the founding heritage and to ensure that the period of reflection on the Constitution does not fall by the wayside.
The very conclusions of the European Council of 16 and 17 June encourage a debate designed to generate interest and invite the European institutions to contribute to it.
Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, a long time ago now, I had the opportunity, as a university student in Italy and Germany, to witness the extent of the stupidity with which the European Member States, by means of the Second World War, began the slaughter of an entire generation.
For that reason, I look with concern on every slowing down, on every crisis in the European integration process. I hope, however, that you have detected in my words a calm faith in the future. Halfway through the last century, great and wise men built a structure that cannot be destroyed, but, like lighthouse keepers, we have to take care to warn young people about new dangers.
In the not too distant future I will come to the end of my term of office as President of the Italian Republic. Six years ago, after being sworn in, I concluded my address to the Italian Parliament with a declaration saluting and affirming my commitment towards Italy and the European Union, to which I believe I have remained loyal in these recent years brimming with history and changes. It is a commitment that I am pleased to reaffirm before you now. Long live Europe, long live the European Union!
We now also confidently await an agreement on the financial perspectives of the Union. An open and frank political debate on the priorities for the Union’s actions is a positive step, but a Community budget needs to be approved as soon as possible that not only reflects a balance among the various requirements of the Member States, but is also based on consistent, inclusive objectives. I express in this House the earnest hope that the British Prime Minister, Tony Blair, President-in-Office of the European Union, succeeds in the work he pledged to carry out before this Parliament.
The vitality of the European model will also depend on the ability to mobilise new forces within our countries. Only by developing a dialogue and constructive coexistence between European citizens and non-European residents, in fact, will we succeed in strengthening the best aspects of our society.
Finally, the future of our Europe calls for policies of security and peace. The international vision of the European Union, based on the primacy of the law, on trust and on the multilateral system, raises expectations and hopes throughout the world. Europe, however, will only be able to influence international balances if it is united. By acting alone, we would be at the mercy of events greater than us, events that threaten peace and European security.
Consistent with that approach, the European Parliament has long raised the issue of the united representation of Europe in the United Nations. The resolution adopted in June, like the previous resolution of January 2004, stipulates that a single seat for the European Union in the UN Security Council is the objective that Europe must set itself.
This clarity of vision is a credit to the European Parliament. The awareness of our common roots and the shared memory of the good and bad times of our history bear witness to a higher European interest harmonising national interests, protecting them from the excesses that plagued our past and promoting them within a common vision of our relations with the world.
Enlarged Europe has now touched the boundaries of its cultural and historical identity. Although geography does not enable Europe’s borders to be identified with certainty, the common area of principles, values and rules conveyed by the European Union is today fully identifiable.
Enlargement of the Union was an historical duty towards peoples who regarded accession to the Union as the guarantee of their regained freedom, the conclusion of nearly half a century’s anticipation. We expect the new Member States, which are entitled to live in a Union that is effective and united in relation to them as well, to provide a constructive and enthusiastic contribution, and we have already seen them do so. The enlarged Union will proceed as one. Precisely because it has become enlarged, however, it will require, more so than in the past, progressive measures indicating the path to follow in order to complete the union of Europe."@en1
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