Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2007-11-12-Speech-1-125"
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"en.20071112.19.1-125"2
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"Mr President, I believe we readily agree that an effective approach to crime deserves our support, and of course there is never any excuse for murder, but I believe we also agree that the right to reside in the Schengen area is a great asset and is tangible proof of European citizenship. Anyone seeking to curtail it must be able to present very good arguments. In particular, we must also beware of collective arrangements in this context, as when one talks about collective arrangements, one soon finds oneself talking about one group, and at this time we happen to be talking about the Roma. I think this very unfortunate.
I am pleased with Commissioner Frattini’s remarks about the Roma and about the fact that the European Union could do more for this group, but I remain unhappy, of course, with his earlier remark about the Roma in connection with events in Italy. There is a good deal of talk today about the consequences of the migration that has been taking place since the enlargement of the European Union and that also took place previously within the enlarged Union, and of course there are consequences to contend with. I believe we must also look to some degree at the causes, however, and at ways in which we, the European Union, can do more for people travelling into the EU, as they are simply seeking better living conditions, employment, and better conditions for their families and children.
I am very much in favour of making better use of European funds in order to do more for the Roma, particularly in the new Member States, but I should like to reiterate that in the past this Parliament has already called for recognition of the Roma as a European minority – that is, a very special group, not comparable with other minorities. Making the Roma a European minority would directly open up many more opportunities for the Union to do something about the problems.
I would reiterate our appeal to give a single Member of the Commission responsibility for Roma policy, rather than the current situation, where various Commissioners deal with this area, with one coordinating. Competence must rest in one pair of hands.
Finally, as far as discrimination and social exclusion are concerned, these have been priorities of this Parliament, including during negotiations with the new Member States. I am pointing the finger at the new Member States, but we know that there are also problems in the older ones.
At that time, all kinds of agreements were made with the governments of the new Member States, but these are being implemented unsatisfactorily or not at all. I think that the European Union, the European Commission, must also play its part by revisiting the agreements made at the time of accession, particularly those concerning improving the situation of the Roma. The issues concerned here are discrimination and social exclusion.
Hence our group’s appeal to discuss this once more with these new Member States. We shall certainly be doing this ourselves, but this is also an appeal to the Council and particularly to the Commission: not only Commissioner Frattini, but also his colleagues."@en1
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