Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2009-11-26-Speech-4-029"
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"en.20091126.3.4-029"2
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"Mr President, European finances do cause great concern to my constituents and to people in Britain. The UK is, after all, the second-largest net contributor to the European budget, so other Member States might benefit from remembering, when they are debating this money, that a large part of it comes from British taxpayers’ pockets.
If there is one single issue that drives a wedge between British people and Brussels, it is a perception that their money may be treated frivolously within the EU. The same is true in other countries as well. This is not just a debate about a set of accounts, but a fundamental breakdown in trust between the institutions represented here and the people we represent back at home.
We must take note of this auditors’ opinion. Yes, it is better than previous years, but just as a businessman thinks twice before doing trade with a company that has in any way a qualified opinion, so our residents will think twice about their relationship with the EU so long as qualifications remain.
We cannot pretend it is the auditors’ fault. Auditors do not spend money: bureaucracies and governments do, both here and in our home countries. We must clean up their acts.
However, even a clean audit opinion in itself is not enough. Ever since I was 18 years old, I have received a monthly statement from my bank. The numbers add up. The audit opinion would be clean. But I know I have not always spent my money wisely.
If we are to deserve even a shred of respect from our taxpayers back at home, then in this dire economic time, we must treat their money with respect. My message to politicians both in our home countries across the EU and in this unnecessary, expensive second chamber in Strasbourg is that we must stop wasting taxpayers’ money."@en1
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