Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2010-07-07-Speech-3-023"
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"en.20100707.6.3-023"2
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"Mr President, Mr Leterme, ladies and gentlemen, firstly, I would like to say that I am very pleased that you have made a clear statement here in favour of multilingualism. I see this also as a signal to the citizens of Belgium to place much greater value on multilingualism, which forms the foundation on which their country can develop in strength and in harmony. As a German, I can only say that when I was young, I envied my fellow pupils at school and other young people who grew up in multilingual countries and therefore had much better opportunities. Thank you for sending out this signal.
You need this because, as head of the Belgian Government, you are used to dealing with dwindling forces of integration. This is both a Belgian and a European problem. Apart from the serious challenge posed by the financial supervisory system, I support everything said by the previous speaker. It is important that you succeed in working with us and with the Commission to restore the confidence of the citizens of Europe in the European Union’s ability to act. We have lost a great deal of their confidence. In the past, Europe was a bulwark against crises and uncertainty which offered freedom and also a constant improvement in living conditions.
The citizens of Europe no longer have confidence in us and I believe that, apart from stricter financial supervision, we must begin to tackle the challenges which are caused by the fact that in many other areas, European countries and their citizens are seeing things drifting apart and gaps widening.
Much has been said about the different levels of competitiveness in the European Member States. We need to address this issue. It is right for Brussels to become involved in decisions on strategies relating to wage and tax policies. We do not want to take responsibility for everything, but the one-sided focus on budget policy practised by Germany, while it will bridge the gaps within the European Union to a certain extent in the short term, is certainly not enough.
I would also like to say that I believe that we must take much more action on social conditions. People in the donor countries are constantly reading in the newspapers that the Germans have to wait until the age of 67 before they can retire, while in other countries, people are taking their pensions before they even reach 60. That is not a basis for solidarity in the long term. We are facing a very wide variety of divides and challenges and I believe that we should not deceive ourselves about the seriousness of the situation.
I hope that the Belgian Presidency will resolve one issue, which is the role of the permanent Council President, a position held at the moment by a Belgian, Mr Van Rompuy, and the rotating Council Presidency. Until now, we have been given the impression that the permanent Council President, one of your fellow citizens, is at risk of becoming simply the tool of Council interests and of acting as a scene-shifter for the large governments within the European Union. This is not right and things cannot go on like this …"@en1
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