Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2006-10-11-Speech-3-140"
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"en.20061011.16.3-140"2
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".
Mr President, we feel that the problem with the measures decided by the Council is that they are overdue, that they will have a limited impact and that they fall short of what is needed in a sector that has a good future ahead of it and that is very important to Portugal and the EU.
Commissioner, you will certainly be aware of the reality of the closure and relocation of many companies and the loss of jobs in the footwear industry in Portugal, the result of which has been an increase in unemployment and the danger of thousands of workers falling into poverty. Once again, let me highlight the case of the workers of the multinational C [amp] J Clark in Castelo de Paiva who, three years after the company’s closure and following repeated promises, remain without alternative employment. In other words, with the liberalisation of world trade, the workers employed by innumerable micro-, small and medium-sized enterprises in the footwear industry in the EU have been the losers. Those who have gained most, on the other hand, from the huge rise in footwear imports from third countries have not been the so-called consumers but, rather, the large multinationals and the major importers and distributors, which have made tremendous profits, as the Commission has acknowledged.
If international trade as a whole were properly looking after the consumers’ interests, it could have long since significantly reduced the selling price of imported footwear.
As we have pointed out, the responsibility for this situation does not lie with third countries, but with the EU and its policies of promoting competition and liberalising international trade, as well as maintaining the value of the euro, a policy that hampers manufacturing industries such as the footwear industry. Just last week, as a matter of fact, the Commission declared its intention to increase bilateral free-trade treaties, thereby launching a fresh crusade to liberalise world trade.
It is this policy that should be brought into question."@en1
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