Mr President, Mr President-in-Office of the Council, Commissioner Barnier and the other representatives of the Commission, ladies and gentlemen, Europe has experienced one of the most catastrophic floods in its history, and we express our sympathy to the families of those who have died in it. Many people are still missing. Not only in two Member States of the European Union – Austria and Germany – have we seen great destruction and devastation, but also in two candidate countries, Slovakia and the Czech Republic. Mr Haarder and Commissioner Barnier – representing the Commission – and also our Parliament's representative, have already had occasion to give expression to the present need for European solidarity. Clearing up the flood damage is primarily, of course, a task for the regions and nations, but the events with which we have had to deal here have has such a dramatic impact that people have looked to Europe to give an expression of solidarity, and so, even though Mr Romano Prodi, the President of the Commission, is unable to be here today, I would like to express loud and clear my heartfelt gratitude to him for having been to the disaster zones with other representatives of the Commission, and for having represented the European Union there in a way that was right and fitting. (Applause) I attached great importance to this. I have not been to the disaster zones and have only been in telephone contact, but many have told me that Mr Prodi's presence – and the humanity he personally embodied – enabled them for once to perceive the Commission and Europe in a quite new way, and not as the distant bureaucracy they had always thought it to be. His quite personal human presence on the spot meant a very great deal to all of us. I kept in touch with President Prodi during this time and, on behalf of our group, told him – he was, I believe, in the Czech Republic at the time – that I supported him in so far as I could, and assured him that any commitments he might make would have our group's support. I want my expression of thanks to include the whole Commission, including Commissioner Barnier, who has just spoken, Commissioner Fischler, Mrs Schreyer, Mr Verheugen and all who have played their part, but also especially to the Danish Presidency of the Council under Mr Haarder, whose government, in its capacity as the Presidency of the Council, has shown such an open-minded attitude to this matter. We are all of course aware that there is a constant tension between solidarity and subsidiarity, but, in this instance, it is solidarity that has had a challenge thrown down to it. If the follow-up measures are now completed as promptly as they should be – and what the Commissioner has said gladdens my heart – then we have done our duty as the European Union. Before turning to a number of somewhat practical matters, I would like to express my heartfelt thanks to those who gave assistance on the ground. Mention of, for example, the fire brigade, often raises a smile in our society, as people think that the things fire-fighters handle are toys. In a situation like this one, though, experience teaches us just how important it is to have a fire brigade, how vital are the soldiers who are deployed in a domestic emergency situation, how important the police are, how important civil defence is. At any rate, I have seen, in Germany, the country from which I come, innumerable young people getting stuck in and giving help, and, at a time when anonymity and egoism often seem to be predominant, it is a good sign that it is young people who manifest this solidarity. Turning now to certain aspects of the emergency aid, on which Mr Ferber will also have something to say, we take the view – admittedly in contrast to the Commission – that EUR 1 billion should be allocated to emergency aid. I would like to express my gratitude to the six groups who agreed on this document – Mr Karas and Mr Ferber did so on our group's behalf – for being willing to come to an understanding about a joint text. Aid for agriculture had already been under discussion, then came the Structural Funds' efficiency reserve, followed of course by the disaster fund that now has to be set up for the future, and there will of course have to be a flexible approach to the rules on competition. Commissioner Monti and the Commission as a whole have committed themselves to this. What people now expect of us – and here I am particularly addressing Mr Wynn, the chairman of the Budgets Committee – is that we now implement all this without delay. If we now hesitate and spend weeks disputing among ourselves, we will be throwing away the goodwill that the European Union, especially in the person of Mr Romano Prodi, President of the Commission, has garnered. I therefore ask that we act with decisiveness and commitment in setting the follow-up measures in motion. Let me make an observation with only indirect relevance to this issue. Deliberations are in progress on the subject of the Stability Pact. Even in a catastrophic situation such as this one, the Stability Pact must not be jeopardised, for this is an issue of confidence in the European currency, of confidence in the ability of the European Union as a whole to deliver the goods. I therefore urge us all – Commission, Council and Parliament – not to shake the foundations of the Stability Pact, but – to return to the catastrophe – to do our duty by the people who have been hard hit. This European Union of ours will then enjoy far more popular acceptance than we often take to be the case. In this spirit I commend cooperation to all the institutions concerned! (Applause)

Political group: PPE-DE