Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2008-12-16-Speech-2-229"
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"en.20081216.31.2-229"2
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"Mr President, this has been a very fine French Presidency. There have been very few discordant voices disagreeing with that conclusion. The 27 Member States have overcome their differences and have reached a series of exemplary decisions.
On the energy and climate package, Europe is taking its first step, and it must be said that this first step is a huge one. It now has the means to assume its environmental responsibilities without, however, sacrificing its economy. It may now take the lead on the issue and carry the other continents with it along the road of sustainable development.
Additionally, Ireland is proposing a way in which it can escape from its isolation. Our Irish friends will once again take a decision on the Treaty of Lisbon, but this time with all the cards in their hands, since practically all the other Member States will have made their final decisions.
The current crises show us that the European Union needs, now more than ever, the best institutional tools in order to be effective. The European Council has adopted a massive, coordinated economic recovery plan, based on long-term investment in production and support targeted at the most severely affected industrial sectors.
President Sarkozy has raised the issue of the reduction of certain VAT rates, and I fully share his views. Let us hope that the Ministers for Economic and Financial Affairs will in March reach the agreement that appeared impossible for the Heads of State or Government last weekend. The challenges facing Europeans offer the EU an opportunity to demonstrate to citizens that they are more united, more responsive and more anxious to protect them.
We are grateful to the French Presidency for having instigated this new dynamism. We, like Mr Sarkozy, hope it will be a long time before we see again the Councils of yesterday, which lasted till four in the morning and hardly succeeded in negotiating anything. During the last six months, Europe has completely changed in terms of outlook, scope and credibility. For this we ought to thank the French Presidency, and we are well aware that this is a role with which it is not entirely unfamiliar."@en1
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