Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2008-02-19-Speech-2-155"
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Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, it is a very great honour for me to stand here today. It is true, as has been said, that I have not been here before in my present capacity. Nor have I been in this very Chamber but, as a young politician, I was in Strasbourg and came to the European Parliament dreaming that one day I would see my country in its place, fully represented. I know what it is to dream of getting to this place, something I no doubt share with many here today.
I want to work for a modern Europe geared to the citizens’ perspective.
We are all aiming for the Treaty to come into force on 1 January 2009. As the President noted, Sweden will ratify the Treaty during the autumn of 2008. In 18 months’ time, Sweden will hold the EU Presidency. It will be an interesting Presidency with a newly elected European Parliament, a new Commission and the new leadership positions created by the Lisbon Treaty.
I look forward to very close cooperation with the European Parliament on all these matters.
Some of the key issues during the Swedish EU Presidency will be climate and energy, the Hague Programme, jobs and economic growth, Baltic Sea issues and the EU as a global player. We are already working intensively on preparations. We will also be ready should the unexpected occur.
In other words, there must be a large dose of flexibility and the possibility of adapting to the prevailing situation which, in spite of everything, may influence the process.
The issue of climate and energy is one of the biggest challenges faced by society in our time. We have a major responsibility to future generations to ensure that we succeed in formulating a policy for long-term sustainable development. Together we must work hard to reach an international agreement at the UN summit in Copenhagen in December 2009.
Thanks to historic decisions taken at the spring Council last year, the EU has taken on a leading role. But the EU cannot shoulder this responsibility on its own. It will require close cooperation with a large number of other countries, including India, Japan, China, Russia and the United States.
Some calculations indicate that total world demand for energy is not declining, but may be expected to rise by 50% by 2030. The key to tackling climate change lies, of course, in how this anticipated increase in energy needs is dealt with.
The first question is how do we improve energy-saving and energy efficiency? But the challenges of climate change also call for a new political approach. We must dispel the myth that growth is the enemy of the environment.
Sweden is a living example of the opposite. Since 1990, the Kyoto starting point, our economy has grown by 44% at the same time as our emissions of greenhouse gases have declined by nine per cent. We have invested in research and new technology, combined with a revision of taxes and regulations. This has opened the door to a development in which the environment becomes a springboard for both new companies and new jobs.
It is thus a great honour for me to have this opportunity to present some thoughts on European issues to this Assembly.
I am convinced that we can reach the goals set out in the EU’s climate and energy package. But we have to introduce the right policy instruments to encourage our societies and our companies to make the right choices.
The price of polluting our environment must be high, and the rewards for opting for carbon dioxide-free solutions must be tempting.
As many have pointed out, green technology already exists. Governments have a huge responsibility for the transition that has to be made. But so do ordinary people. We should see this as a kind of pact between governments and the public to support environmentally friendly alternatives. This will increase competition to the benefit of a more environmentally friendly society. We all stand to gain from this.
As regards the Lisbon strategy, the United States has been the world’s largest economy for over a hundred years. Now new players are influencing the global economy. India’s and China’s economies are growing by leaps and bounds. Globalisation has led to positive development in many parts of the world. Globalisation is a force for democracy, and brings the difference between open and closed societies into sharp focus. But globalisation also increases competition.
The policies that gave us work, security and prosperity yesterday must be constantly modified for us to achieve the same success tomorrow.
Today one third of Europe’s working-age population is outside the labour market. This is an untenable situation. We must increase labour supply and combat exclusion. By reforms of national labour markets. By investment in education and skills. As economic integration grows increasingly stronger in the Union and around the world, successes and shortcomings – which also exist – in national reform efforts will no longer be solely an internal affair; they concern us all.
Our future prosperity in Europe is heavily dependent on how we Member States jointly create better conditions to seize the opportunities and meet the challenges of globalisation. Not least, it is a question of how we tackle demographic trends and cross-border challenges in the environmental field.
A progressive EU energy and environment policy is a prerequisite for long-term sustainable growth, and hence also for prosperity in Europe. But it is also an important factor in our future competitiveness.
Through the Lisbon strategy for sustainable growth and employment, the EU has created the means to meet these challenges. The strategy exists. Unfortunately, we got sidetracked when it came to implementing it.
Let us make a determined effort to strengthen the EU’s global competitiveness by continued structural reforms and by investing in research and paving the way for new technology. Let us make a real effort to complete the internal market and create a more innovative business climate in Europe. Let us ensure that it is worthwhile to work. Of course, there is still a great deal to be done at both national and Community level. I only need say the words ‘patent’ and ‘Working Time Directive’ for you all to understand what I mean.
Some far-sighted politicians, after the Second World War, understood that the only way to secure peace was to bind the countries of Europe together into a form of European integration. As was the case then, today’s European integration must also be guided by a clear vision. We must ask the fundamental questions: where do we want to go and how do we get there?
We must conclude the Doha Round of the WTO. This would provide a strong impetus for economic recovery around the world. We need an open world trade system and continued liberalisation if we are to increase Europe’s competitiveness in the spirit of the Lisbon strategy.
At the same time, many know that winds of protectionism are blowing through Europe. We must resist this. Protectionism is not a solution. In the long term it damages those it was meant to protect. And there is no time to lose. The window of opportunity in the WTO is closing.
But when we talk about the Lisbon strategy, let us not just complain like Eeyore the donkey in Winnie the Pooh. Let us stop for a moment and look back on the period just gone by. When we do so, we see the considerable success and progress that have actually been achieved. Factors that have led to the Lisbon process being a working process since 2005. A process that has strengthened the commitments of the Member States and has driven implementation and yielded results.
A great deal is due to the Commission’s resolute efforts and Commission President Barroso’s strong personal commitment. But I would also like to thank the European Parliament for your very constructive role.
How do we find the best way to meet future challenges? How do we jointly ensure long-term prosperity in Europe through sustainable growth and full employment? To enable Europe to hold its own in global competition? I see the Swedish Presidency in autumn 2009 as an excellent time to launch the discussion on a future European strategy for sustainable growth and employment during the coming decade.
Let me say something about the EU budget. We think that it has long since passed its sell-by date. The budget should be the primary instrument for realising the Union’s goals. This being so, it must also reflect the goals better. Today, 40% of the budget goes to agricultural subsidies. To a sector that accounts for 2% of employment in Europe. This is unreasonable.
Imagine if instead we were to increase the EU’s contributions to research and development, the fight against organised crime, environmental issues and external relations. Imagine if we also dared to engage in a frank discussion of what should be financed at EU level and what should be financed nationally.
Europe is facing a demographic trend with a rapidly ageing population. A trend that will put our welfare systems under increasing pressure in the years ahead. A few facts will suffice to show how quickly this has changed the face of Sweden. In 1913, just short of 100 years ago, the pensionable age in Sweden was set at 67. Note that, at the time, the average lifespan in Sweden was around 56 years. The truth is that the pension system was for the few who could survive their working years and enjoy a few years more. Most just worked and died. And they worked from a young age. Now, at the same time as we have a falling retirement age, we see the average lifespan in Sweden lengthening to the present 80 years. We have moved from a situation in which we worked for virtually the whole of our lives to one in which a Swede born now can expect to work for only half his life. An incredible development over only a couple of generations. But it means that fewer and fewer people will have to support more and more people.
Together with significant exclusion from the labour market, this reinforces the need for a job creation policy. More people must enter employment in order to maintain good welfare, given these challenges. More people must work for a longer portion of their lives, given the way we are living at present. The growing percentage of older people in Europe is not matched by the number of people of working age.
This is precisely where migration comes in. Properly handled, this can be an important and actually necessary piece of the puzzle for maintaining a welfare system that is worthy of the name. Imagine if all those newcomers, positive, expectant and eager to make a contribution, got a reception which sought to benefit from the positive energy they bring with them.
Our world is changing at a rapid pace and we are changing with it. We are becoming more and more dependent on one another. Hence we need to know what the fundamental principle has to be.
We must create political opportunities for those people who have made their way to Europe. Opportunities that allow them to enter the labour market quickly.
Migration has become a burning issue for many Member States. But control measures and readmission agreements must never be the only answer to the challenges that arise from increased migration. Those who think it is enough to tighten border controls in order to resolve the many and varied issues of migration are oversimplifying the matter. A broader approach is needed – both for the EU and for the countries of origin.
Sweden supports the ambitious objective of having a common European asylum system in place by 2010. If it is to be successful, the work to achieve it will require intensive efforts.
Sweden also regards it as a priority to further the integration of the EU’s external relations and to increase consistency between migration and development policy. And we must remember that it is only by efforts to deal with the causes of migration in the form of poverty and oppression that we can achieve real results. A global approach is needed here. Not least within the framework of the UN High-Level Dialogue on Migration.
The EU has an important role to play in giving these ideas more concrete content, not least in the form of broad and partnership-based cooperation with the African countries concerned.
We want to pursue an ambitious and forward-looking programme for 2010-2014 that will replace the Hague Programme. We attach great value to the active participation of the European Parliament in this process.
International terrorism is one of the greatest global threats to our open societies. As terrorist networks grow, we see how more people are acting increasingly independently and terrorist attacks are becoming less predictable.
Organised crime is an ever-growing problem in Europe. Individual countries are finding it increasingly difficult to combat serious, organised international crime on their own. Much organised crime often originates outside the EU. The Lisbon Treaty provides us with new tools in the fight against terrorism and other serious cross-border crime. The European Parliament will have a central part to play in this connection. Approximation of regulations must continue. The possibilities for mutual recognition of judicial decisions must continue to be developed. The EU agencies Europol and Eurojust must be strengthened, and the exchange of information between national police authorities improved.
At the same time – and this is important – there must be a balance in what we do. When we strengthen crime-fighting operations we must also strengthen the rights of the individual. We rely on the efforts of the European Parliament in particular here. It is important for us to agree at EU level to strengthen legal security in criminal cases and the rights of victims of crime.
I want to see a Europe stepping forth as a voice for peace and reconciliation, even in parts of the world that are troubled by war and conflict. In Africa, Asia and Latin America, but of course also here in Europe.
Our European integration model must be so strong that neither fanatical nationalism nor religious fanaticism can be a threat to peace and stability in Europe.
Sweden has initiated a broad discussion on the further development of Europe’s common security strategy. In 2009 we will be working hard to get the European External Action Service in place. Helping to settle the conflicts in the Middle East must be one of the European Union’s most important tasks in the years ahead. A future settlement between Israelis and Palestinians must build on a two-state solution under which both parties can live within secure and recognised borders. We need an intensified dialogue with the Muslim world. An important aim should be to build up increased trust, respect and understanding between ‘the West’ and the Muslim world.
We are aiming for closer ties in all areas of society with Russia. It is our hope that the remaining obstacles to Russian membership of the WTO can be overcome. It is in our interest that Russia should develop into a modern, successful and democratic state. Unfortunately, the move in a more authoritarian direction that we have seen over the past few years suggests a different kind of development. We are concerned about a possible continuation of this trend.
The situation in the western Balkans continues to be one of Europe’s greatest and most difficult challenges. For a long time to come we shall be deeply involved in assisting the state-building process in Kosovo. The challenges we face must not be underestimated. The economic and social situation in Kosovo is very difficult. There is a long way to go before it is a functioning constitutional state. State-building takes time – but we must be prepared to be there and offer help. That is our responsibility. But our commitment is to the region as a whole. It is important to stress that, not least in times like this.
European crisis management will be one of the most important questions in future European foreign and security policy. Our country seeks – as far as we are able – to play an active role in the continued development of European security and defence policy. Sweden has participated in most of the operations which the EU has initiated. We are now prepared to participate in the EU mission in Chad.
Stockholm is closer to Minsk than to the most northern parts of Sweden. Belarus is Europe’s last dictatorship. It is our duty to do more to support democratic forces in that country.
Developments in the Baltic Sea region are a European concern. Eight out of nine countries around the Baltic are now Member States of the EU. Almost a quarter of the EU’s population – about 100 million people – are affected by the sensitive environment of the Baltic Sea. This requires a concerted European effort. The Baltic strategy which the Commission has been given the task of preparing before the Swedish Presidency in 2009 will, I hope, meet the challenges in the region.
The strategy may serve as a model for how, in the enlarged EU, we meet challenges related to specific regions – in order ultimately to strengthen the EU as a whole.
I would like to end by saying a few words about enlargement. As you all know, this is a matter close to the hearts of the Swedish Government and the Swedish people. Enlargement has been one of the EU’s greatest challenges, but also a prime opportunity.
For those travelling through countries that in recent years have become EU Member States, it is striking to see the development and faith in the future. Unfortunately, more and more critical voices are being raised against enlargement. Let me be clear: the most stupid thing we can do is to forget what we set out to achieve. Why the concept of European integration came into being.
Without enlargement Europe would not be what it is today. Without continued enlargement we risk instability on our own continent. Because enlargement is our most important strategic tool for spreading the values on which European integration is based. We have torn down one wall in Europe. We must not now build a new one against Turkey or other European countries. We know now that there was so much more that could only have been done – or done better – by working together in Europe and globally.
We must not be scared of a strong Europe. On the contrary, we must fear a weak Europe. A strong Europe takes on a greater responsibility for global problems. A strong Europe combines economic growth with climate-friendly policies. A strong Europe looks out for its citizens’ best interests. A united Europe – and this is a point worth making at a time like this – dares to give Kosovo a clear European perspective.
Let us never take European integration for granted. We need a strong Europe! In which we dare to aim even higher, fully confident in ourselves.
Thank you for your attention.
I look forward to meeting you again in the summer, when our turn for the rotating EU Presidency comes around.
The Swedish Government believes in the possibilities of Europe. As I said, Sweden must have a clear and unquestioned place at the heart of European integration. Since the present Government came to power in the autumn of 2006, we have also seen how popular support for the European Union has grown in Sweden.
There are people who say that this is just a matter of luck. To those people I say: the more you practise, the luckier you get. And we have certainly been practising. As early as 1962 my party campaigned in a local election with the slogan ‘Yes to Europe’. We had to wait 33 years before we could actually send Members to the European Parliament.
It feels as though we can now take a breath, after several years of tough treaty discussions. Chancellor Merkel did a tremendous job in helping to resolve the issue. My special thanks also go to Prime Minister Sócrates, who skilfully guided the Treaty to a successful conclusion. The Lisbon Treaty creates better conditions for more open, effective and dynamic European integration. But above all, it opens up new opportunities to discuss issues that are important to the future: climate and energy, jobs and economic growth, demographics, migration, and the EU’s role on the international stage. I intend to say something on each of these subjects."@en1
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