Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2010-11-25-Speech-4-011"

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"Mr President, my report on the implementation of Community law is of the utmost importance here in the European Parliament. Here in the European Parliament, we have a process of legislation which, although highly complex, is one of the most transparent when compared to national parliaments. I would point out that I have been a member of a national assembly, so I know what I am talking about. This lengthy process involving the governments of the Member States, as well as the European Parliament, produces results that are often only evident once implemented in national legislation. However, if implementation in the various national parliaments does not take place or is inefficient, then we, the Members of this House, Parliament itself, and the European Union as a whole, are faced with a major credibility problem. I consider this a very serious issue. As Members of the European Parliament, we are constantly being confronted by citizens who tell us about the shortcomings of the system. The Commission regularly receives complaints from citizens about how national law is implemented. I would just like to mention a couple of examples: Let us consider the refuse crisis in Naples. This is a recurring problem, which we are witnessing not for the first or second time, but for the third time. Yet we find that the European directives on waste disposal, for example, have not been implemented. The Commission has intervened here, but this intervention has not succeeded in having the principles of waste disposal we in Europe believe to be critically important implemented at national level. Let us consider my own country, Austria. Here, the Environmental Impact Assessment Directive has been poorly implemented. One case, involving the closure of a ski resort, clearly shows that there are enormous problems here. Another example can be found in the area of transport, where it is stipulated that Member States must respect rest time for drivers in traffic management and where controls are required to ensure compliance. The shocking lack of controls in this sector is resulting in an increasing number of accidents due to driver fatigue. In this context, it should be stated that we must avoid frustrating our citizens in their concern to see Community law implemented. They must be given timely information about legislation and they should be able to rely on the fact that the process will take place in a transparent manner. We, as Members of the European Parliament, urgently need a procedure to enable us to receive this feedback from our citizens, while still respecting confidentiality requirements. I would like to ask you, Commissioner, whether you are prepared to endorse the procedure we propose in our report. This would constitute a significant step forward in the direction of transparency, openness and clarity in the European process. Finally, I would like again to emphasise: if we lose our credibility because we fail to pay sufficient attention to the implementation of Community law in European Member States, this will lead to a credibility problem for the European Union as a whole."@en1
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