Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2008-02-19-Speech-2-210"
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"en.20080219.30.2-210"2
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"Madam President, the application, albeit imperfect, of the Lisbon Strategy has enabled the European Union to move forward in many areas. Jobs have been created and there has been greater investment in training, research and the new technologies.
There are still challenges to be faced, however. The world is on the move, and new problems are emerging. The Minister, Mr Turk, and Commissioners Verheugen and Almunia have just made this clear. Even if the subprime crisis started in the USA, bankers, insurers and fund managers in Europe have been just as greedy, this being the main driving force in the financial world. While some top bosses have opened their gold parachutes, workers and the general public are paying for the mess.
There has been a credit squeeze pretty much everywhere. The real economy is marking time, the USA is clearly in recession, growth in Europe is running out of steam, inflation is taking off again, oil products are shooting up, as are food prices, while fertiliser prices are rocketing, indicating more expensive harvests to come.
The European Central Bank is doing nothing more than trying to keep a lid on inflation. Workers and trade unions are being asked to tighten their belts, yet purchasing power is declining just about everywhere.
Mr Verheugen, all of our countries are now having to deal with poverty and social exclusion. 68 million people in Europe are living below the official poverty line in their respective countries. 13% of workers have unstable contracts and no lasting social protection. There are 23 million false self-employed. At the same time 1% of the population owns more than 15% of the available wealth in Europe.
Combating climate change will make poverty more likely for many people in Europe. The polluter-pays principle sounds good, but it is still consumers who ultimately foot the bill. In the UK the public authorities are working to combat fuel poverty, yet the Commission tells us that the EU has not liberalised its energy market enough, as if, in a world where 90% of the energy resources are dependent on sovereign States, consumers are free to choose their suppliers.
Faced with these increasing problems the Commission, and particularly President Barroso, has only one response: do not change the Lisbon Strategy. The Integrated Guidelines are apparently carved in Portuguese marble and cannot be altered, as far as President Barroso is concerned.
On behalf of the Socialist Group, let me give President Barroso a solemn warning. We will not accept this Cold-War style
from the Commission about the Guidelines. The context of the Lisbon Strategy is changing. The document guiding our actions also needs to adapt to the new European and international situation."@en1
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