Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2010-09-21-Speech-2-702"

Predicate	Value (sorted: default)
rdf:type	lpv_eu:Speech2
dcterms:Date	"2010-09-21"^^xsd:date2
dcterms:Is Part Of	lp_eu:European strategy for the economic and social development of mountain regions, islands and sparsely populated areas (debate)2
dcterms:Language	"en"^^xsd:language2
lpv:document identification number	"en.20100921.23.2-702"2
lpv:hasSubsequent	lp_eu:2010-09-21-Speech-2-7032
lpv:speaker	lp:George Lyon2
lpv:spoken text	"Mr President, could I, too, welcome the report that is here before us today to discuss. As an islander living on the west coast of Scotland, I am very well aware of the challenges that face many of our outermost areas, and indeed our island areas. The fundamental challenge that faces islands, and indeed our mountain regions, is, of course, the cost of transport. It makes us uncompetitive, leads to a lack of opportunity and to a lack of jobs in these areas, and ultimately to the loss of our young people. Paragraph six of the report refers to the need to make areas more competitive, which seems to me to be the fundamental challenge that faces regional cohesion policy in the future in addressing the concerns of islanders and those living in mountainous areas. Allow me to bring up a particular issue that I wanted to take up with the Commission, and to draw the Commissioner’s attention to it. In Scotland, we had a worthwhile initiative brought forward by the Scottish Government three years ago which attempted to lower ferry fares for the islands to see if it gave a boost to those particular islands. The pilot project ran for three years and has now come to a conclusion. Some of the islands received the benefit of that subsidy, others did not. We expected, once the evaluation had been done, that the programme would be rolled out across all the islands in Scotland. Unfortunately, the Scottish Government has chosen to roll the programme out again only for the Western Isles, and the rest are not to receive any benefit. Commissioner, my constituents in Argyll believe this to be unfair and unjust; some of them believe it to be nothing more than an electoral bribe. If I write to you and the Transport Commissioner, I wonder if you would respond to their concerns and examine the unjust situation that many of my island constituents face."@en1
lpv:spokenAs	unknown; Liberal Democrats Party (2009-07-14--2014-06-30)3 substitute; PETI (2009-12-02--2012-01-18)3 substitute; IMCO (2009-07-16--2012-01-18)3 member; Delegation for relations with Australia and New Zealand (2009-09-16--2014-06-30)3 member; AGRI (2009-07-16--2012-01-18)3 member; ALDE (2009-07-14--2014-06-30)3 substitute; Delegation for relations with Canada (2009-09-16--2014-06-30)3
lpv:unclassifiedMetadata	"George Lyon (ALDE )."1
lpv:videoURI	<go to Events_and_structure europarl>2

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