Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2009-11-12-Speech-4-018"
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"en.20091112.5.4-018"2
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"Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, the role of the Ombudsman, and thus the examination of his report, constitutes an important element for the European institutions. Indeed, it is one of the indicators of the perception that our fellow citizens have of our institutions.
A few months on from the European elections, where we all regretted the low turnout, indeed the rise in abstentions, the importance that Parliament attaches to this report is therefore crucial. This is all the more true with regard to the follow-up to the recommendations made in it.
355 complaints (a 6% increase on the previous year) is very little. It is very little in the context of the 500 million people living in Europe. One could be delighted with this and see it as a sign that our fellow citizens are satisfied. We know that they are nothing of the sort.
From this perspective, the fact that most of the complaints relate to the lack of transparency in our institutions is also revealing. Coming out of an election campaign, we know what this is all about. Our fellow citizens have a poor understanding of our institutions and do not know how they work. They do not see the point of Europe, and it is not surprising that most of the complaints concern the Commission since, in the eyes of our fellow citizens, the Commission is the European Union.
However – I am exaggerating here, but only slightly – the communication posts have largely been budgeted for, and we have been told, since the elections: ‘we have to improve communication, we have to enhance it so as to increase our fellow citizens’ awareness’.
Admittedly, we do have to improve communication, but I believe that too much communication kills information. I shall willingly endorse the proposal – which has just been put to us by our fellow socialist Member – to have a common site that steers citizens towards the diverse information available to them.
This report is an indicator of the proper functioning of our institutions, of good administration. That has already been said. It is an indicator of our governance. It is therefore crucial to ensure that its recommendations are followed, not only for the sake of the report, and in particular the special reports, but also as an everyday practice.
Many thanks, Mr Diamandouros, for your work with our fellow citizens. Many thanks to your team. You can count on our support to promote and facilitate your work."@en1
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