Mr President, I would like to start by thanking all my fellow Members in Parliament and in the Committee for the support they have given me in my work on this report. Safety on our roads is something which concerns us all, whether we ourselves are road-users or whether someone in our family or a friend has been killed or injured. Transportation by road is the most common and the fastest growing means of travelling and of transporting articles and goods, but also the most dangerous. Each year, over 42,000 people are killed on our European roads. This means more than 800 people a week and over 115 people this very day. Road traffic accidents are the most common cause of death of children and young persons – indeed, of all persons under the age of 45 – in the EU today. Millions of people are also seriously injured each year, and many will end up handicapped for life. This is a matter of great human suffering and of heavy social costs. We would never tolerate such mortality figures in aviation or on the railways, where our approach to safety is totally different. So, if we are to minimise the number of fatalities on the roads, we must adopt the same philosophy with regard to roads, since this also involves a complicated man-machine system which must incorporate tolerance of human error. The objective in the long-term should be that no-one should be killed or seriously injured. To attain this objective, we must take a comprehensive view in which the ultimate responsibility lies with those who design the roads and the surrounding infrastructure. It is the responsibility of road-users to follow the rules and laws which have been laid down. The Commission’s communication contains a list of priorities for measures for the remaining period of the Programme. I agree with the Commission concerning the significance of several of these measures such as the aid to EuroNCAP, information campaigns, legislation on speed governors for light trucks, and – especially – legislation on safer car fronts. In my report, I went on to concentrate on the forthcoming period of the Programme, which would have to cover a longer period – let us say, the period 2002-2010 – to enable a more long-term strategy to be adopted. But if the Commission is really serious about its ambitions to reduce the number of fatalities, we will first of all have to give higher priority to the whole question of road safety, because this matter requires powerful measures First of all, a credible strategy for combating death on the roads must, over the next decade, include concrete numerical targets for reducing the number of fatalities. The Committee proposes those targets which were already established by Parliament three years ago. But objectives at EU level are not sufficiently concrete for the Member States where, as we all know, a large part of the work is done. Each Member State must therefore devise its own roadsafety programmes (which not all Member States have at present), including strategies for attaining the national targets. These can of course differ between the various countries, depending on tradition and culture. However, after that, the Commission should follow up how the Member States comply with their strategies and should take part in the exchange of experiences and best practice. We also need European legislation in certain important areas. Alcohol kills approximately 9 000 people on the roads each year. Furthermore, the trend indicates that more and more young people are driving with alcohol in their blood. An estimated 1 000 lives could be saved by introducing a directive with a maximum blood alcohol limit of 0.5 mg/ml. Unfortunately, the Commission has withdrawn its former proposal for a directive – one which was supported by Parliament in 1997 and which the Committee supports even now. According to the Commission, drink-driving is a question that falls under the principle of subsidiarity. But how can that be? Surely it cannot be any less dangerous to drive with alcohol in the blood in Great Britain, Italy, Ireland and Luxembourg, where an 0.8 mg/ml limit applies, than it is in the rest of Europe. We have powers in the EU when it comes to issues concerning road traffic safety. In my opinion, we should use these powers precisely in those areas where they have a real effect, and they do have a real effect where alcohol and driving are concerned. I expect the Council and the Swedish Presidency to take the initiative in this matter. I cannot understand how we can possibly gain credibility as European politicians if we, on the one hand, say that traffic safety is important but, on the other hand, are not prepared to take important decisions. I understand that the Commission has today issued a recommendation for a limit of 0.5 mg/ml, but I must say that it is remarkable that it should be issued today, just when Parliament is about to discuss the issue and before Parliament has voted. The Commission should have waited for Parliament to have held its discussion. In addition to this matter, and the matter of safer car fronts, the report contains a number of other important proposals for traffic safety measures. I raise issues such as dipped headlights in the daytime, driving education and telematic systems. To conclude, one question which I consider to be of the utmost importance but which, unfortunately, was not passed by the Committee is that of the need for better working conditions for professional drivers. The European Parliament has always been a force for the promotion of improved road safety, and we have to continue in this direction. It is a matter of the life and health of numerous people – but, above all, those of the young citizens of Europe.

Political group: PSE