Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2011-12-14-Speech-3-514-000"
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"en.20111214.32.3-514-000"2
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"Madam President, Commissioner, five years ago, Bulgaria and Romania became members of our Union. In their Accession Treaties, it states that all other Member States must immediately or gradually open up their labour markets to Romanian and Bulgarian workers. The final transition period is about to start, a period in which only those countries which can prove a serious disruption to their labour market can apply transitional measures.
There is now also a report – for which we are grateful to you – which suggests that those countries which did not introduce transitional measures have, in fact, benefited and that transitional measures have mainly negative effects. There is every reason, therefore, for all Member States to open up their labour markets completely to Bulgarian and Romanian workers.
Unfortunately, a number of countries have announced that they do wish to impose restrictive measures, with the Netherlands being the most enthusiastic proponent of this ‘worst practice’. If Mr Kamp, Minister for Social Affairs, has his way, not a single Bulgarian or Romanian will be able to enter the Netherlands. This has nothing to do with the facts. Not only is it completely ridiculous that it is precisely in the Netherlands, one of the richest EU countries with the lowest unemployment rate, that it is being claimed that the labour market might be disrupted, but there are also all kinds of studies – in the Netherlands as well – that indicate that these measures encourage exploitation.
Transitional measures mean sentencing thousands of EU citizens to exploitation, poor working conditions, fictitious self-employment and low pay. Transitional measures also mean that thousands of employers are unable to recruit the workers that they consider best suited to the work in their company. Transitional measures mean, as far as I am concerned, a violation of the right to freedom of movement and an infringement of the Accession Treaties if a country is unable to prove any serious disruption.
You, Commissioner, are the Guardian of the Treaties. I expect you to perform this role not merely in letter but also in spirit. Therefore, as soon as you receive the notification from the Netherlands, I expect you to put the examination and the facts to one side and say: ‘Dear Mr Kamp, enough of this ridiculous fairy tale’. If you do not do this, then the Accession Treaties will not be worth the paper they are printed on. The Netherlands is constantly reminding Romania and Bulgaria of their obligations, and now it is failing in its own obligation under the Treaties that it itself ratified.
If you let the Netherlands get away with this, then you are actually saying that domestic policy considerations come before the freedom of movement of workers. You are actually saying that the richer, old Member States can interpret the Treaties as it suits them, even if they then cause harm to their own workers and thousands of Romanians and Bulgarians."@en1
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