Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2007-11-14-Speech-3-026"
| Predicate | Value (sorted: default) |
|---|---|
| rdf:type | |
| dcterms:Date | |
| dcterms:Is Part Of | |
| dcterms:Language | |
| lpv:document identification number |
"en.20071114.2.3-026"2
|
| lpv:hasSubsequent | |
| lpv:speaker | |
| lpv:spokenAs | |
| lpv:translated text |
".
Mr President, Mr Vice-President of the Commission, to my mind, something major is absent from the document before us and it was absent, too, from Mr Barroso’s speech. The missing element is effective analysis of the proposals being made on the operation of international financial markets, on the existence of international tax havens, on the fight against international financial crime, and on tax treatment at international level – on capital flows in the strictest sense.
I believe that international debate needs a reality check here. Neither in the documents nor in the words of the Commission President do I find any remotely incisive policy initiatives on what are, after all, extremely serious subjects and I cannot help making the connection with climate change and the forthcoming debate in Bali, where the financial dimension will be crucially important, particularly in relation to helping the most vulnerable countries sign up to the second Kyoto Protocol.
We all know that this will require very large sums of public money. Where will they come from? While I realise it is extremely hard to push these issues to the top of international agendas, I believe that if we fail or refuse to do so we will inflict damage on our own international policies.
My second comment concerns the global battle for standards, especially environmental and social standards, and more specifically environmental standards.
The Commission document is very general, as Mr Watson says, and I share his opinion of it. You tell us on page 6: ‘A new international approach focusing on regulatory cooperation, convergence of standards and equivalence of rules is emerging as a result of sectoral bilateral discussions with third countries.’ Well, Mr Vice-President, I should like to know exactly what that implies for the preservation of European environmental standards. What does it mean in terms of developing those standards and what are its practical implications in terms of promoting them internationally as Mr Barroso envisages?
My concerns are only heightened when I read newspaper reports of the negotiations currently taking place between the European Union and South Korea, suggesting that when it comes to upholding standards – or at least social standards – our stance is weaker than that of the USA.
You owe us detailed answers to these questions."@en1
|
Named graphs describing this resource:
The resource appears as object in 2 triples