Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2007-12-12-Speech-3-335"
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"en.20071212.30.3-335"2
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"Mr President, I shall be brief, because I understand we are under pressure of time.
I just wish to make three or four points. Firstly, this is a problem that affects the whole population and this is the message we try to convey. It is no longer a question of risk groups and that the rest of us need not worry: it is an issue for the general population – young people, women. We must raise awareness about this, and the political message has to go through as well.
In particular – because it was mentioned – on the issue of immigrants we take a particular approach. The Portuguese Presidency had the issues of health and immigration as a theme of its Presidency, and access to treatment, testing and treatment and healthcare of the immigrants – even undocumented ones – is an important aspect. This is something we are discussing not only for their protection and the human rights aspect of it, which, of course, is a priority, but also for the protection of society as a whole.
The issues that were raised, such as the possibility of the exchange of needles for drug-users, promoting condoms, sexual education in schools, the problems in prisons, are all part of our discussions with the Member States and the civil society. We have a think-tank where everybody is involved: they have discussions and exchange best practice and experiences. But, of course, within the European Union we realise that we do not have the competence: it is the responsibility of the Member States to implement these policies. Therefore, we raise the profile at a political level, we hold discussions at technical level but, at the end of the day, it the responsibility of the Member States to take specific initiatives.
On the other issues raised by Mr Agnoletto, I have taken note with great interest of the issue of TRIPS. I have noted that and also the effect it would have on access to medicine in developing countries and all the other issues he raised concerning dealing with countries outside Europe. I will raise them with my colleagues who are responsible for these particular areas and I will inform them of the points raised by the honourable Member.
Finally, when it comes to access to ARV within the European Union, initially – and then hopefully we can extend it to other areas – we are supporting very actively the initiative of the German Presidency after the Bremen Conference to achieve access to cheap and affordable ARV treatment for all patients and those who need it. We already have, if one can call it that, a first success story with Bulgaria. But, of course, we will pursue it in the Presidency, with the support of the Commission, and hopefully once the model is established we can extend this approach outside the European Union. We always have this as a target.
Once again, I should like to thank the Members for a very interesting debate and I have taken note of all the issues raised."@en1
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