Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2010-06-16-Speech-3-512"

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"en.20100616.33.3-512"2
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"Mr President, railways are a typical example of how popular public wealth has been sold off and handed to the monopolies. The slowdown in the application of privatisation to the railways and in completing the first phase of liberalisation in most countries of the European Union is the result of labour, grassroots fights and of worsening imperialist infighting as to which of the monopolies will get the biggest slice of rail transport. Developments in rail transport in the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Greece and other Member States of the European Union confirm our assessment. The Greek railways are cutting back their timetables in the name of restructuring and within the framework of the undertakings made in the memorandum between the PASOK government, the European Union, the European Central Bank and the International Monetary Fund, taking away the right of travel from inhabitants and the right to transport goods to numerous areas of Greece and downgrading the potential for growth in Greece. The over-indebtedness of the Hellenic Railways was caused by the anti-grassroots policy of the European Union and the PASOK and New Democracy governments, the degeneration in the public character of the railways and their conversion to a paradise of private contracting interests, a golden goose to increase the profits of the monopoly business groups which plundered the Hellenic Railways. Today, the PASOK government is preparing to sell off the Hellenic Railways, piece by piece, to hand over its lands in Thriasio and other infrastructures in the ports of Elefsina, Piraeus and Thessaloniki and to subsidise companies for the railway lines, by applying the EU policy of privatisation and the undertakings made in the memorandum. Big business is treating the crisis as a new opportunity to safeguard and increase its profits, by stepping up the exploitation of the workers and of natural resources, and to sell off popular public property. Selling off the Hellenic Railways includes a package of state subsidies for large business groups and will result in an increase in accidents, mass redundancies and sweeping changes to the labour, insurance and pension rights of the workers. Transport, all infrastructures and other strategic sectors of the economy must be popular property and must operate for the benefit of the working and grassroots classes."@en1
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