Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2010-03-24-Speech-3-026"
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"en.20100324.12.3-026"2
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"Mr President, it is indeed a very good and timely opportunity for us to meet today – one day before the important Spring European Council. We have challenging tasks ahead of us. For those tasks, the fresh and forceful backing of the European Parliament is of great importance. Having said this, I want to thank and congratulate Parliament for its resolution on Europe 2020, which it adopted in Strasbourg two weeks ago with broad party support.
Of course, the targets must be achievable. They should also require an extra effort compared to the status quo, a recognition by our Member States that change is needed, and I will try to convey to the European Council this sense of urgency for the economic situation of Europe now and for the need of reforms for a more sustainable, more inclusive economy and society in Europe.
What is really important is the measures which each Member State will take to boost its growth rate and address the shortcomings we all know are there. We need national measures to address national problems defined according to national circumstances and in full respect of subsidiarity, but set within a common European framework.
If there is a lesson from the financial crisis, it is that we are all interdependent in the world. So we cannot accept the principles of interdependence globally and reject them when discussed at European level.
A common framework, too, which is supported and should be stimulated by particular European Union measures, what we call in our document ‘flagship initiatives’.
These flagship proposals will show the European Union level acting in critically important areas such as the digital agenda, innovation, resource efficiency and industrial policy – and, of course, in some cases, will also help targets to be achieved at a national level.
What we are proposing here is a new departure. Thanks to the Lisbon Treaty, we can go for a new approach to economic coordination, a reinforced economic governance of Europe – one which gives the freedom necessary to target at the national level, but which brings a strong European dimension, and using all the instruments at European level to kick-start the economy. Accepting this approach will be the real test for the European Council.
I am encouraged by the results of the informal European Council. I hope that the European leaders will be present and say ‘yes’ when it comes to responding to these challenges in a collective spirit.
Regarding climate change, I know that this Parliament shares my conviction that climate change is not a subject that can be put on the back burner. We need to keep this top of our agenda.
The European Union has been in the lead, and we still are – we alone have the reduction commitments clearly backed up with the mechanisms to deliver; we are the number one donors of aid to developing countries on climate issues. So let us move on from soul-searching about Copenhagen and take the initiative once again.
We need a clear, unified and ambitious position. That is why the Commission has put forward a communication setting out the steps needed to reinvigorate international negotiations. At the same time, Commissioner Hedegaard has started a set of consultations with our key partners.
I also want to take the opportunity to thank the Spanish Presidency of the Council for its support for the Europe 2020 strategy. That support was clearly expressed at different formations of the Council of Ministers.
So we should make a serious effort to advance at Cancún – building on the very real substance of the Copenhagen Accord. We should keep Kyoto on the agenda, but make clear that it can only be assessed in the light of a global agreement and not before. We should step up outreach activities and build trust, most obviously with developing countries – which is why respecting our pledges on fast-start finance is so important.
And of course, at the same time, we will continue to implement our 20-20-20 package, showing, in particular, how it is compatible with the work of economic modernisation and reform set out in the 2020 strategy.
These two areas show vividly how Europeans are looking to the European Union’s political leadership for action. I am convinced that, if we have the will to be bold, we can show Europe as the decisive influence in building the right future for our citizens.
It is in the same spirit that I will present to the European Council some of the major challenges for the G20 that will take place in June in Canada. In fact, we should never forget that some of those issues are European but they should also be addressed at global level.
Financial stability and the economic and financial situation in Greece are not on the formal agenda of this European Council. However, frankly speaking, I cannot see how it is possible for Heads of State or Government, notably those in the euro area, not to discuss this issue. Let me therefore state our position on this.
Greece is currently in the process of correcting its excessive government deficit. Bringing the deficit down vigorously is crucial and Greece has been taking measures to that effect. In particular, Greece is taking measures leading to a reduction of its deficit this year by 4% of GDP. Such fiscal effort is in line with the course of action recommended by the Commission and the Council, as acknowledged by the Council on 16 March. Naturally, Greece’s fiscal effort must be continued; it is the only way to secure a lasting reduction in the cost of debt financing.
In response to the economic and financial situation in Greece, the informal meeting of the Heads of State or Government on 11 February stated that, and I quote, ‘euro area Member States will take determined and coordinated action, if needed, to safeguard financial stability in the euro area as a whole’.
The Commission believes it is now appropriate to create, within the euro area, an instrument for coordinated action which could be used to provide assistance to Greece in case of need. It should be clear that the creation of such a mechanism will not imply its automatic activation. Creating such a mechanism is also a question of responsibility and solidarity.
Solidarity is a two-way street. Greece is making an economic effort at this point and by supporting this effort, we not only help Greece, but the stability of the eurozone as a whole. The framework for coordinated action should be understood as a safety net to be used only when all other means to avoid a crisis have been exhausted, including, first and foremost, exhausting the scope for policy action at domestic level.
Beyond technical aspects, any possible solution must reinforce and strengthen the unity and the coherence of the eurozone and its governance. The world economy needs stability. The eurozone is a pole of stability, and it is important that its capacity to provide stability is further enhanced. We may need to resort to intergovernmental instruments for some issues, but they need to be embedded into a joint European framework.
But now to the European Council: I believe every European Council must do two things. It must show that it is responding to the needs of the moment, and it must work on Europe’s long-term strategic framework and long-term strategic objectives.
It is my firm conviction that the response to the specific challenges will also be a test to European leaders and to their commitment to the European – and monetary – Union. What is at stake is the essential principle of financial stability that is central to the euro; and the euro is one of the most important creations of the European project and the European construction process so far.
I hope this issue will be solved in a spirit of responsibility and solidarity. That is the European way to do it.
The crisis entails several pressing concerns for communities, workers and businesses across Europe. And, as we know, public finances at national level are under unprecedented strain. The European Union must of course tackle these issues, including financial stability. I will come back to this again later.
Europe must not make the mistake of neglecting the imperative of working now to bring about long-term change. That is why the European Council will deal with two of our most obvious long-term challenges: our economic future, and climate change.
We have already debated the Europe 2020 strategy together in this Parliament. Your contribution and your commitment will be indispensable in carrying through our ambitions for smart, sustainable, inclusive growth. So, too, will be the contribution of the European Council.
Our level of ambition must be set by the scale of the tasks ahead. We need to show that we have the vision and the coherence to act. And we must be able to communicate this, to show people that our actions will make a difference where it matters. This is why I believe it is so important that the European Council agrees clear targets this week.
The targets which the Commission has put on the table were carefully chosen. They address the need to increase the level of employment, to invest more in research and innovation, to meet our 2020 climate and energy targets, to improve our educational performance and to combat poverty.
These five headline targets pinpoint objectives which people can relate to, and show that the European Union is leveraging reform in areas that everybody knows are important. This is also about the political will to tackle tough problems."@en1
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