Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2011-09-26-Speech-1-116-000"

Predicate	Value (sorted: default)
rdf:type	lpv_eu:Speech2
dcterms:Date	"2011-09-26"^^xsd:date2
dcterms:Is Part Of	lp_eu:Tourism in Europe (debate)2
dcterms:Language	"it"^^xsd:language2
lpv:document identification number	"en.20110926.19.1-116-000"2
lpv:hasSubsequent	lp_eu:2011-09-26-Speech-1-117-0002
lpv:speaker	lp:Antonio Tajani2
lpv:translated text	"− Mr President, honourable Members, on behalf of the Commission I would like to thank Mr Fidanza, and all the MEPs who have worked with him, for this own-initiative report, which demonstrates once again just how in tune the European Commission and the European Parliament are with one another on an issue that really is becoming extraordinarily important at the moment. I also intend to focus ever more closely on increasing the visibility of Europe and its tourist destinations. We are ready to take part in the European Tourism Forum on 6 October in Krakow, which will focus on joint, transnational promotion in third country markets and I would like to stress that the European Commission has been the promoter of an initiative, of a pilot project, to increase tourist numbers from Latin American countries during the low season. We have signed an agreement with Chile, Argentina and Brazil, an agreement to which certain EU countries have signed up, notably Spain, France, Italy, Portugal and Poland and also Romania which, only the other day when I visited Bucharest, decided to sign up to take part in this project involving the biggest European airlines and all the tour operators. In short, an opportunity to look at ever-increasing tourist numbers from Latin America during the low season. This is a signal that we want to give to all businesses operating in the tourist sector. And I am delighted once again with the European Parliament and with its proposal when it comes to funding. The success of the joint venture and the future of the European tourism sector will obviously depend in ample measure on the possibility of obtaining adequate political support and financial backing for European tourism policy within the current financial framework and also beyond 2014. I wish to reassure those who may have concerns about competences. I intend to rely upon the legal basis of the treaty, I do not intend to violate the principle of subsidiarity and the European Commission does not intend to take the place of or to usurp regional competences nor the competences of individual Member States in matters of tourism and this too I think is in line with the views of Parliament. Our intention is only to increase tourist numbers within the EU. As I was able to respond to Mr Fidanza during Question Time in the last plenary, I am working to achieve the objective of increased funding in the next financial perspectives. As you well know, in fact, as part of the Commission’s proposal we have decided to create a fund to support the competitiveness of SMEs which will have EUR 2.4 billion at their disposal. Obviously, I am counting on including tourism among the activities to support competitiveness, just as I am counting on having the support of Parliament once again, once discussions commence at the level of the two co-legislators. I thank you once again for your attention and I assure Parliament once again of my commitment to ensuring that, at this delicate time, tourism can be the instigator of growth and above all, a tool for the protection of the environment and for the creation of new jobs, above all for younger workers. Tourism is an economic sector that is vital for growth and for the competitiveness of the EU as a whole and I am delighted that the document that we are discussing highlights how closely growth is linked to tourism and to the contribution that this sector, which by now must constitute a fully paid-up sector of industry and European entrepreneurship, can make whether in relation to GDP, employment or social inclusion. The data available to us, including data coming in after the end of the summer, are reassuring. True, there was a drop in 2010 but tourist numbers have remained substantially unchanged in many countries over the summer of this year and there has even been some improvement in the situation. Our work has been aimed principally at the younger generation, given that tourism is one of the sectors in the world of business that provides most employment to young people. I am delighted that I can share the views expressed in the report when it proposes new initiatives and specific actions of great interest, which I will certainly take into consideration when implementing the 21 actions of the action plan, which aim to develop a truly coherent EU policy for high-quality, modern tourism that is both competitive and sustainable. Thanks to these actions, our aim as regards competitiveness is to favour synergies between recent innovative technologies and tourism, as Mr Fidanza has highlighted, and to make participation by businesses that are active in tourism possible, in particular SMEs and their transition to digital. We intend to improve the link between supply and demand in the market for workers in the tourist industry, devising a way of mapping qualifications and professional skills. We intend to guarantee a consistent quality of European tourism products and to intensify efforts aimed at promoting Europe as a collection of sustainable and high-quality destinations and, as the rapporteur indicated in the course of his speech, in future in the sphere of social tourism we must ensure Calypso preparatory action, through the creation of a web-based platform of supply and demand, as a mechanism for facilitating exchanges of tourists between countries. I am convinced that, as a result of increased attention from interested parties and Member State involvement, exchanges of tourists between countries and cofinanced web projects from Calypso will achieve very positive results. As regards sustainability, this is closely connected to competitiveness in this highly important sector, because the quality of tourist destinations is strongly influenced by the natural and cultural environment and by their integration in the local community. Consequently, our efforts are intended also to guarantee sustainable development for tourism. To this end, I intend to propose a European charter for responsible tourism aimed at sanctioning at a European level the commitment of public administrations, tourism businesses and all those who are interested in promoting tourist activities in Europe that meet a series of principles of sustainability and responsibility at a social, economic, and, I stress, environmental level and also at a cultural level. I was in Madrid, last week, for the conclusion of the first ethical tourism day and in the course of my speech I stressed the commitment to combating exploitation of women and children but also to protecting the environment, hence tourism is also part of our strategy in the fight against climate change."@en1
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