Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2007-09-27-Speech-4-053"
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"en.20070927.4.4-053"2
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"Mr President, Commissioner, Mrs Kauppi, ladies and gentlemen, this year we celebrated the 50th anniversary of the founding of the EU and we can also look back over 50 years of milestones with regard to equality between women and men. Yet I find the findings of the Commission’s 2007 equality report a bitter pill to swallow. It shows that in many areas people are still only paying lip service to gender equality, and that it remains far from being a reality.
We have heard many statistics quoted today – there are wide differences in the employment rates of men and women, and in many Member States women have, with few exceptions, a higher rate of unemployment. Almost one in three women work part-time. We know that women are still significantly under-represented in positions of power and leadership. It is indeed a scandal that the average wage gap is 15%, rising to as much as 27% in Germany.
I am also glad that the Commission has addressed the question of obligatory parental leave for fathers. It was quite obvious that the question of reconciling family and work belongs on the Commission’s agenda. Yet in other areas of EU equality policy, the Commission seems to have switched to neutral. I say that because we have not heard any political initiatives, aside from the aforesaid parental leave for fathers, from the Commission.
The Institute for Gender Equality was mentioned, as was violence against women. What is the Commission doing to tackle the wage gap? I hear little more than rhetoric. It is our duty to do far more there, including gender budgeting, which has been heralded for years, but where are the indicators? So I would ask the Commission to propose ambitious legislation so that gender equality policy becomes a beacon again in the EU."@en1
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