Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2007-11-28-Speech-3-129"
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"en.20071128.17.3-129"2
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"Mr President, after seven years of negotiations, to say that we are not where we should be is perhaps an understatement. I am not sure that is correct to say that we have turned the corner.
Over the last few weeks some ACP members have grown increasingly uneasy at the prospects of the limited – as the Commissioner himself described it – GSP tariff regime that awaits them on 1 January should they not sign up to an EPA agreement. The European Commission claims to have been successful in its pursuit of an interim agreement with both individual states and subregional groups. As the Commissioner said, it signed with the East African group yesterday, while the SADC signed last week – but without South Africa and without Namibia! What sort of economic agreement is it that misses countries out? It is reported that the Commission is pushing West Africa into an agreement without Nigeria, which is one of the biggest countries in Africa and has huge trade negotiations on the table with the European Union. What is the long-term effect of these so-called framework agreements being signed? What about regional integration? As far as I can see these are breaking up the very regions described in my report that are what EPAs are all about.
Parliament’s resolution, prepared by a political group, sets out clearly the need to look forward to these now fast-moving negotiations. We may not like these arrangements, but the deadline is almost upon us and at the moment there are no alternatives. The Kigali Declaration was extremely heavy and critical. Our resolution today in Parliament is forward-looking, and I hope that we can look forward.
As their name suggests, EPAs are a stepping stone to full and comprehensive trade relations between the EU and the ACP. I am disappointed that the PSE Group has decided not to vote on them.
I leave the Commissioner with one final thought. In the United Kingdom there is a saying which goes there are three great lies in the world: ‘the cheque is in the post’; ‘it was not my fault’; and ‘I am from the European Union and I am here to help’."@en1
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