Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2009-10-21-Speech-3-253"
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"en.20091021.10.3-253"2
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"Madam President, I would like to thank all of the honourable Members for their contributions to this debate. There is a high level of consensus on the importance of deepening our cooperation with the American administration and the summit that we are about to hold. I am very pleased that the American administration is showing such a desire to deepen and develop our relations. I think that we have done our homework and we are very well prepared to take some important steps. We have a number of problems in common with our partner, the US, and it is therefore appropriate to find common solutions.
I think that we will be able to make progress with regard to the climate, the economic crisis and the Doha round – and once again confirm how important it is to conclude this – and that we will be able to get extremely important processes off the ground in the legal sphere. The economic partnership is a particularly important forum for us. We also understand the importance of discussing important regional issues – Afghanistan, Pakistan and the Middle East, for example.
There were a few specific questions for me. As regards the question of visas raised by Mrs Ludford, both the Council and the Commission are doing everything they can to ensure that visa-free travel will apply to all EU Member States. It is regrettable that we do not have this in place yet, but we are continuing to work very hard to make it happen.
With regard to the so-called Tobin tax, I know that there are Members of this House who strongly support this. I will say this: a Tobin tax can only work if it is global and if it has global control instruments – otherwise, it will simply be another protectionist measure. There is currently no basis whatsoever for an international, global agreement on a Tobin tax and therefore the Presidency will not push this issue. I want to be clear on that.
With regard to SWIFT, we are in agreement with the US on the importance of being able to exchange information on financial transfers. This is valuable in the fight against cross-border crime and terrorism. We now need a new agreement, as the Belgian company SWIFT is moving to Europe, but we are both keen to retain the programme in order to prevent the financing of terrorism.
As a transitional phase, we need to find an agreement that can apply for a short period until we have the new Treaty of Lisbon in place. Experts have looked into this, including the French judge, Jean-Louis Bruguyère, who was asked by the EU to inspect the TFTP. Bruguyère found that the legal certainty requirements and the protection of personal data in the current agreement are adequate. In the more permanent agreement and once the Treaty of Lisbon has entered into force, there will eventually be opportunities for the European Parliament to take an active part in shaping this.
The meeting that we are to have next week is a very important one, but it is nevertheless just a meeting. I believe that we can make progress, resolve some issues and get some important processes off the ground relating to those matters that we have in common and need to resolve in a close and strategic partnership with the American administration. I am very pleased about the strong support in the European Parliament for the efforts of the Council and the Commission. I will, of course, report to you the results next time we meet in the plenary sitting in Brussels."@en1
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