GwendalTsang/DEFT09-parquet huggingface dataset:
Mr President, with regard to the common position, I will just say that, like a number of the previous speakers, I endorse all that the rapporteur, Mr Ferber, said. I do not feel that this is a negative compromise, which, as such, would not content anybody, but a positive compromise, particularly in terms of the guarantees that it succeeds in providing: guarantees that liberalisation will be carried out gradually and in a responsible manner, without sacrificing the need for universal services in any way; clear guidelines for the processes of reorganising production and services too, aimed particularly at guaranteeing consumers high quality services at increasingly lower yet still competitive costs. I do feel, however, that the difficulty will now be preventing the Commission distorting the meaning of the text when it interprets and applies it, thus upsetting the balance reached and, worst of all, violating Parliament’s decision-making rights. This will be a particular problem when it comes to Community competition rules and the Commission departments which ensure that these rules are adhered to. The infringement procedures instigated against the Italian State and the Belgian postal service appear to disregard not just the precedence taken by special legislation over general legislation but also the base regulation, that this directive makes more explicit, banning the indiscriminate liberalisation of what are known as special or value added services, to which the specific price and weight limits introduced in the directive apply without variation. This also concerns the Commission’s attitude to terminal dues, as referred to in the Reims II agreement. It would also appear that the Commission is rather behind schedule in proposing to regulate access, pursuant to Article 11 of the old directive, and this delay must be made good without upsetting the balances achieved between operators on the basis of mutual commitments so that private individuals can enjoy the benefits without having to bear the burdens.

Political group: PPE-DE
Mr President, the fact that I was in Porto Alegre and not in Davos is not the only reason why I feel that, of the two fora held at the end of January, the Porto Alegre Forum was certainly the most important. It outlined a range of constructive proposals for world policies on the environment, peace and freedom of expression and combating hunger and disease. It is particularly important that the European Parliament should take into consideration what was said at the Forum regarding the forthcoming World Trade Organisation meeting in Cancún. We know that an agreement on services is planned, but we do not yet know which services will be covered by the agreement and made subject to the rules of free international trade. The Forum and, I believe, Parliament’s concern is the possibility that the services to be liberalised might include certain essential social services such as education or health and certain essential public commodities such as water. Any subjection of such services to market rules would be a breach of the fundamental rights enshrined in the Nice Charter and other formal international treaties. The Commission must give Parliament prior notice of the list which it intends to propose and uphold in Cancún, so that it can assess it and express the views of the European citizens on these extremely sensitive issues. The Forum also recognised and welcomed enthusiastically the possibility that the European Union should become a model for other structures of supranational and regional democratic governance, first and foremost as a means of limiting conflict and establishing peace. From this particular perspective, it is no coincidence that the Porto Alegre Forum was held in Brazil and that President Lula da Silva has now intervened. Indeed, not only can the European Union become the model for a similar political initiative in Latin America, but its very existence and independent international structure will benefit from a decisive boost in a world in which, thanks, not least, to President Lula da Silva and Latin America, multipolarity is developing, although that multipolarity is currently under great threat from the intention of the United States and some of its most faithful allies to declare war on Iraq unilaterally.

Political group: PSE
Whether you live in Africa or central Europe or any other place, if somebody comes after innocent civilians and tries to kill them en masse because of their race, their ethnic background or their religion and it is within our power to stop it, we will stop it”. (SV) The words were President Clinton’s and he was talking about Kosovo. But they must also apply to East Timor which has now become a moral test for the whole world community. We are talking about humanity and human rights, politics and international law, but also about economics and credibility. If we do not contribute to solving the tragedy in East Timor, the message to East Timor’s people and to others is this: democracy is synonymous with death. Democratic efforts supported by other countries in the world and by the United Nations are synonymous with massive, unchecked massacres. Countries’ credibility is therefore at stake. From an economic point of view, we in the Socialist Group demanded early on that the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund should stop supporting the regime in Djakarta. I am not talking about humanitarian support and support to democrats. Normally, political considerations are not taken into account in financial dealings. Even in the Emperor Vespasian’s time, when he introduced tax on toilets, it was said that money had no smell. But billions of dollars in support of the regime in Djakarta stinks and must be stopped. This has actually happened now. The lessons of the tragedy in East Timor are that politics and economics are interconnected and that compassion and credibility demand that countries intervene on humanitarian grounds.

Political group: PSE
Madam President, a brief comment on what Mr Poettering has said. In principle, we take exactly the same view. I should just like to point out that, if we adhere strictly to this principle, we shall have huge problems at the January plenary because a great deal has yet to be decided in the committees. I would ask Mr Poettering to use his influence in his group to ensure that the committees are able to vote on time. However, it is a perfectly tenable principle for the future.

Political group: PSE
The Greek Presidency of the Council maintains that it is making a quantum leap forward in order to overcome major differences within the European Union over Iraq. It forgets the innocent victims in Baghdad, the inexorable siege of Basra and the rivers of blood, and talks instead about who will rule Iraq after the war, the USA or the UN. In fact this is a step backwards, to the nineteenth and the beginning of the twentieth century, when France, Britain and Spain quarrelled and haggled over who would control Morocco, Libya and Egypt. The European Union must not shy away from what is happening; it must call for this illegal war to stop, in accordance with Article 11 of the Treaties requiring its foreign policy to be in conformity with the principles of the United Nations Charter, and it must condemn the British Government. Tony Blair, of course, is preparing to come to Athens in a few days' time, for the signing of the Treaty by the 10 new Member States on 16 April. He would do better to stay away. For the Greek people he is persona non grata. If he does come, if the bloodstained invader of Iraq sets foot on the Greek soil of freedom, he may be sure that he will never forget the reception which the Greek people have in store for him, a peaceful reception of course, but with flag-waving and voices raised in song.

Political group: GUE-NGL
Mr President, Commissioner, ladies and gentlemen, first of all, I would like to thank the Commission for presenting this proposal on additives for use in animal nutrition to us, and I would also like to express my warmest thanks, and those of my colleagues, to our rapporteur for her outstanding report. In general terms, let me say that the debate about guidelines for a re-evaluation of additives should be viewed positively. In particular, additives which are authorised for an unlimited period and which the report describes as harmless would no longer be available for use in animal production if a complex and cost-intensive authorisation procedure were introduced. We have already seen this happen with a wide range of drugs after re-authorisation was required. Re-evaluation, rather than re-authorisation, may therefore prevent a thinning-out of the product range. The key issue in all aspects of food safety legislation, however, is the principle of traceability and transparency, as well as risk assessment. There must also be genuine openness for us as consumers, and also for producers. If an additive proves to constitute a risk, its use must continue to be ruled out. Let me stress that I am in favour of a central agency. In my view, the European Food Safety Authority would be the most suitable body to carry out this evaluation of additives. I also welcome a simplified authorisation procedure for additives which are already permitted in foods. Let me touch on one further point, namely imports from third countries. The same stringent rules must apply to imports of meat and animal products from third countries as those which apply in the European Community. For us farmers, this is vitally important. I urge the Commission to submit a report to us on the use of antibiotic growth promoters by the end of 2007.

Political group: PPE-DE
Mr President, quite recently, and to mark the anniversary of the end of NATO’s airstrikes on Yugoslavia, there has been growing public condemnation of the international community’s intervention in Kosovo and of the tragic situation which has developed in the region. In his annual report, the UN Secretary-General notes that, one year on from the deployment of KFOR, we face a well-developed, organised and well-orchestrated campaign against the Serbs and other ethnic groups in Kosovo, which is undermining confidence in the future and transforming Kosovo into a breeding ground for retaliation and crime. The UN High Commissioner and the OSCE have condemned the fact that, one year on from the arrival of the KFOR forces in the area, the minorities living in Kosovo, mainly Serbs and Gypsies, are still unprotected. Even Amnesty International, which throughout the whole of the criminal NATO bombings in the region, only saw Milosevic’s crimes (with or without quotation marks), has now discovered that NATO committed war crimes in Kosovo resulting in the mass murder of civilians. Only the European Parliament seems incapable, including in today’s resolution, of drawing any conclusions from the tragic situation which has arisen in this area as a result of the military incursions of NATO forces into an independent Member State of the UN, in violation of the fundamental principles of international law. It seems that the witch hunt in which all the main political forces of the European Union have joined still continues to inspire the European Parliament, making it incapable of assuming its historical responsibility towards those who elect it for safeguarding peace and the rights of the people of the Balkans to live in peace and dignity and to uphold their right to be masters of their own destiny, not the geopolitical pawns of the new imperialist world order. Will we, as the European Parliament, ever be able to assume our responsibilities and understand that, while we talk of rights and democracy in certain regions, while we subsidize intervention in local elections in Montenegro and while we support the embargo on Iraq, condemning hundreds of thousands of children to death, we have no credibility whatsoever? Will we ever be able to say, we are putting an end to the embargo? That is the question which at some point will need an answer.

Political group: GUE-NGL
My colleagues, Mrs Frassoni and Mr Onesta have already spoken, somewhat sceptically, about some aspects of the matter in hand. I wish to add a voice of concern on the topic of subsidiarity, not just between Union and Member States but between Member States and their own internally self-governing regions. This has been given inadequate attention and there are many things to be concerned about. May I particularly draw attention to one of the implications of enlargement in respect of this Parliament. A ceiling of 700 has been prescribed as the maximum that Parliament can safely become and remain a deliberative assembly. If you apply the existing principle of digressive proportionality, six seats for every state and then one more seat for every half a million inhabitants, you already have the situation where Luxembourg with 367,000 people has more Members in this Chamber than Wales, which is a partly self-governing region of the United Kingdom. Scotland, with a population of 5 million, has eight seats in this House at the moment; Denmark and Finland, with the same population, have sixteen. Now what is going to happen if we retain a ceiling of 700, bring in 26% more population over time, and then adopt the Commission’s, I think ill-considered, proposition, that there should be a European list of candidates. What will happen to a place like Scotland, which I represent here? It will become totally invisible! Members of this House should not in these circumstances be in the least surprised that in these discussions, people in Scotland and other such countries are asking whether enlargement should not also take the form of admitting new Member States from within existing ones. A growing body of opinion in Scotland holds that view.

Political group: Verts-ALE
Mr President, I share the view that we need to make more progress from the point of view of efficiency and the analysis of the cost-effectiveness of the services offered. But as an entrepreneur myself, I really cannot understand why it is always assumed this can only be done under the headings of 'privatisation' and 'liberalisation'! Or perhaps people are not concerned with creating the same conditions of access to the postal services for all, but are thinking only of the capital employment conditions for companies in large conglomerations. Members should however represent all the citizens, which means it is their duty to think not in terms of business management but in terms of the national economy. In practice that means the following for the postal services: firstly, priority must be given to employment. I have nothing against liberalisation and privatisation, but the premises must be right. Secondly, we must guarantee that the citizens are not faced with reduced postal services. Examples in Germany and Sweden show that this certainly is a risk. Mr Stenmarck, Sweden is the only country in which prices rose far higher after liberalisation than in all the other Member States of the European Union. So that is another potential effect and one that we must prevent. Thirdly, it is vital to have, first of all, a universal postal service at an affordable price for all citizens, wherever they may be; secondly, to have a uniform price for all Member States; and thirdly, to have daily mail deliveries and collections on working days. On the question of the cost-effectiveness of the various postage weights, it is worth considering further price cuts; but that is what the postal administration itself is saying. We do not have to adhere to a weight of over 300g when the analysis shows that we need to ensure a minimum weight of 150g to make it at all worthwhile. In that respect I believe it was right and important to hold this debate today, to make Mr Bolkestein aware of Parliament’s position and allow him to take certain aspects into account from the outset.

Political group: GUE-NGL
Madam President, Commissioner, ladies and gentlemen, it is one of Parliament's prime functions to scrutinise and control the EU's Budget, and, in doing this, greater attention urgently needs to be given to how the equal opportunities policy is to be financed in the European Social Fund's 2000–2006 programming period. The Spanish President of the Council, in his presentation to the committee, expressed the intention of giving equal opportunities policy a fixed place as a mainstream function in the complex of employment and social affairs. That has also become a necessity, as the figures show that only 6% of the resources in the European Social Fund are allocated to special measures relating to equal opportunities, whereas Parliament had asked for 15%. The underutilisation of resources and the great extent to which resources have been transferred is a consequence of the problems accompanying the Structural Funds' initial operations in the programming period 2000–2006. Procedures for structural measures had to be rationalised and simplified, as they are too complex at both Community and national level, and we must now work on preventing the recurrence of such difficulties when the new programmes are to be set up in the future. The evaluation report on the Daphne programme became available only yesterday. What particularly interests me in it is the reasons for the low take-up of the payment authorisations in the Budget year 2000. What is most important is that women play an important role in sustainable development, and gender issues should therefore be taken into account at every stage of planning, implementing and evaluating development cooperation. I therefore request clarification as to how it is that payments for this accounted for only 59% of resources. The Committee on Women's Rights and Equal Opportunities focuses on just a few Budget items, but they are all the more important for enabling the objectives of equal opportunities policy to continue to be pursued in the EU.

Political group: PPE-DE
I take a positive view of the text of the report, in that it responds to many of the expectations of the political groups in this Parliament in relation to the future European Constitution. Nevertheless, as a Member from Catalonia, a stateless nation which currently has a limited Statute of Autonomy within the framework of the Spanish state, I cannot accept the deficiencies in the future Constitutional text, particularly in relation to two specific aspects. On the one hand, the territories with legislative powers have no clear, recognised system for participating in the EU’s policy-making. Neither is it established that those regions have the possibility of bringing cases before the Court of Justice when its competences may be affected. Furthermore, neither does the future European Constitution provide for the incorporation into the Union’s linguistic system of those languages which have official status in part of the territory of a Member State, as in the case of Catalan. I hope that in the Intergovernmental Conference (IGC) the governments of the Member States will modify the text so that it is brought closer to the reality of today’s Europe in relation to the aspects I have mentioned. I therefore abstained from the final vote on the report.

Political group: ELDR
The package of legislative proposals concerning safety at sea is welcome and necessary. This has been demonstrated, not least, by the catastrophe involving the loss of the oil tanker Erika. I have voted in favour of the reports on: a.

Political group: Verts-ALE
Mr President, I wish to use this minute to congratulate the rapporteur on the magnificent work he has produced to date, which leaves us an extremely positive legacy, but which also commits him to the future and requires him, in the implementation of this regulation and specifically in all aspects concerning the accounting system that will be implemented, to respond as effectively as he has done in the case of the Financial Regulation. I wish to say to Commissioner Schreyer that I have listened closely to everything she said, especially her approach to one of the points that I believe to be crucial: the issue of the directive on payments, which is included in this implementing regulation. I believe this to be an extremely positive point and I wish, therefore, to congratulate the Commission, but there is no doubting that the great challenge is to see how this regulation will be implemented, both in the accounting system and in the financial management system. With regard to this challenge, we will be here to assess the Commission’s action.

Political group: PSE
Mr President, it is regrettable that, at the close of the 20th century, a century symbolised so positively by the peaceful women’s revolution, there are still countries, such as Kuwait and Afghanistan, where half the population, women that is, is still denied fundamental human rights. In Kuwait, at the end of November, the parliament rejected the proposal to recognise a woman’s right to vote or to stand for election with 32 votes against and 30 votes in favour. This is not only a violation of human rights for women and an abhorrent political act but, paradoxically enough, it is an infringement of the Constitution of Kuwait, Article 29 of which stipulates that “all citizens are equal before the law, regardless of gender, religion, race or ethnic background”. What is more, Kuwait is a signatory to the UN’s International Convention on the elimination of all forms of discrimination against women. It appears that the members of the Legislative Assembly – all men of course – are not bound by the country’s Constitution or by laws or international obligations, or by the political will of the leadership of the country which submitted the relevant decree for adoption. However, this decision, apart from its antiquated misogynistic and deeply antidemocratic nature, is a clear message of resistance against any attempts to modernise and democratise the country. That is why the European Parliament needs to send a strong message of support and solidarity to the women of Kuwait who are fighting for their fundamental rights. We also call upon the representative of the National Assembly to make all possible efforts to review the issue and to restore justice for women so that by the next elections in 2003, the women of Kuwait will have full political rights to vote and to stand for election.

Political group: PSE
Madam President, under Rule 29(4) you should be kept informed by political groups of any Members who have joined a new political group or who have left a political group. Have you received any notification of any Members leaving the Group of the or does the Austrian People's Party continue to sit in that political group?

Political group: PSE
Mr President, like some other Members of the House, I have just been alerted to developments in the situation in northern Afghanistan where, after two months of relentless offensives, the Taliban apparently took the town of Taloqan last night, with a heavy toll of military and civilian victims. It is obviously too late to table an urgent resolution on this issue. But I would ask you, Mr President, to forward to the Conference of Presidents a request that the Council and the Commission make a statement to the House at our forthcoming mini-session in Brussels on what action the European Union could envisage to help find a political solution in Afghanistan and put an end to these senseless bloodbaths.

Political group: PPE-DE