Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2010-05-19-Speech-3-463"
| Predicate | Value (sorted: default) |
|---|---|
| rdf:type | |
| dcterms:Date | |
| dcterms:Is Part Of | |
| dcterms:Language | |
| lpv:document identification number |
"en.20100519.24.3-463"2
|
| lpv:hasSubsequent | |
| lpv:speaker | |
| lpv:spokenAs | |
| lpv:translated text |
"Mr President, Commissioner, ladies and gentlemen, allow me to begin by thanking the Commission and Commissioner Oettinger personally for the extremely skilful job they have done in producing the document which he is submitting. I also wish to thank the rapporteur, Mrs Harms, for the efforts she has invested in discussing this document to ensure that it contains topics which are very important to Europe’s citizens.
The fundamental purpose of the document is to support Bulgaria’s efforts in decommissioning four of the six units at its nuclear power plant. I will not comment on how justified this decision was, but once it is incorporated in the Accession Treaty, this obligation must be fulfilled by the Bulgarian authorities. They are, in fact, taking all the necessary action in this respect. At the same time, the early closure of such a huge facility, provided for in the economic calculations, entails a huge direct and indirect cost. Part of this cost is being compensated by the European Union.
This decision being tabled today will enable the European Union to put its approach to Bulgaria on the same footing as the approach adopted for two other countries, new European Union Member States, which have assumed and are fulfilling the same commitments. It is very important to adhere to the same approach because it is our duty to maintain the coherence of the European Union’s policy.
Sixty per cent of the resources allocated will be used directly for decommissioning the facilities at the Kozloduy Nuclear Power Plant, while the remaining 40% will be used for improving energy efficiency and cutting carbon dioxide emissions in Bulgaria.
I would like to draw particular attention to some very appropriate points which were raised during the discussion in the committees by the rapporteur, Mrs Harms, and which were discussed very widely. The first matter concerns the fate of the waste from the spent nuclear fuel and irradiated elements. This issue was also mentioned today by Commissioner Oettinger. This is an extremely vital matter on which we are expecting the European Commission to table an individual directive in the autumn. The European Parliament will then have the opportunity to discuss this matter in depth, which, I am sure, is important to many European citizens.
As a result of this, I do not think that Parliament’s decision on the issue which we are discussing about compensation for Kozloduy needs to prejudge our debate in the autumn. In addition, I fully agree with the Commission’s argument that if a precedent is created once for funding such a programme, it will then pose a threat to the whole European Union budget. Naturally, this does not waive or reduce in any way the responsibility of the governments in the countries which have such facilities to find a definitive solution to the issue of spent nuclear fuel.
The second matter concerns the use of the resources. There is no doubt that the resources received from the European Union must not be used to finance projects which increase carbon dioxide emissions. Incidentally, based on the experience so far in both Bulgaria and the other two countries receiving such resources, there is no indication of any such abuses. However, what I think we need to see in this text is a coherent European policy and the adoption of the same approach to all.
It is of paramount importance to European citizens that these resources are used for their intended purpose transparently and effectively. The resources allocated by the European Union to Bulgaria go into a special fund which also includes sums from other donors. Based on programmes approved beforehand and under the control of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, the resources from this fund, along with appropriate national funding, are allocated to the relevant projects.
The European Court of Auditors will carry out an audit very soon of these funds, including those in Bulgaria. I believe that the European Parliament will also monitor closely in future how these resources are used."@en1
|
| lpv:videoURI |
Named graphs describing this resource:
The resource appears as object in 2 triples