Mr President, Commissioner, the real reason it has been possible to draw up the European Parliament’s own-initiative report on the implementation of the directive on urban waste-water treatment is that we in the Committee on the Environment concerned ourselves with this directive and followed its development very closely. With this report we have shown that there are serious shortcomings in the implementation of this directive, despite the fact that it has been in force for a long time – it is more than ten years old – and that, furthermore, it is extremely important for all European legislation on water. We know that many Member States have failed to comply with this directive. In 1998 there were many agglomerations of more than 150 000 inhabitants that had still not resolved the issue of waste-water treatment. Many Member States had still not submitted information on the condition of sensitive areas. Currently, many other cities of more than 15 000 inhabitants are still not treating this waste water in this way. We know that throughout this time the approach of the Member States has been so carefree, having implemented neither this nor other directives on the issue of water, that I believe Member States have been censured on more than 42 occasions for failing to comply with 17 directives in the field of waste water. Member States have been censured because they have not provided the information that the Commission asked them for and because, of course, they have not complied with this legislation when they should have, and they failed to comply in full in 1993, 1998 and even in 2000. But, Commissioner, the Commission also considered that their behaviour towards the European Parliament was unsatisfactory, since the information we were provided with was insufficient and, in some cases, wrong. I should like to say that, initially, this report had an annex, which, following two debates in committee, we were forced to remove, because the data that the Commission had supplied us with was wrong. In our view, the Commission has shown neither the necessary strength nor will in this case to demand that the Member States provide data and demand that they comply with this directive. I wish to say, Commissioner, that when we in the Committee on the Environment requested that this own-initiative report be drawn up, what we really wanted was for you to consider us as your ally, in order to strengthen the binding nature of this directive and to enable the Commission to force the Member States to comply more energetically with the directive. In this report we ask you to admonish the Member States, to initiate proceedings against those that have not complied and to continue using all legal means within your power, all in order to ensure that this legislation is complied with. We also asked you, of course, to continue keeping the European Parliament informed, requesting information from the Member States and holding seminars. Lastly, we ask you to adopt all necessary measures to ensure that, with the proper will to create such legislation, and the willingness to provide as much information as possible, compliance with this legislation can be enforced. Commissioner, there is currently a serious discrepancy between the enormous quantity of legislation we have approved and which we are continuing to approve but with which, nevertheless, the Member States are still failing to comply, which is why we have before us two own-initiative reports – on nitrates and habitats – by the European Parliament. These have shown us that the Member States are also failing to comply with other environmental directives. It is my view that, as European citizens, it is our right to have the Treaties protect the environment. In the European Union we already have certain principles (such as the precautionary principle and the principle of prevention). We also have objectives, such as the strategy for sustainable development. We have tools, such as the Sixth Framework Programme and legislation. The European Union is even considered to be the world leader in protecting the environment. But, Commissioner, if all of this is really nothing but words, nothing but reports, if the Commission does not demand that the Member States comply with this legislation in its entirety, it will be quite useless. You can count on us to be your allies in ensuring that this legislation is complied with, because otherwise, we will lose credibility and I believe that we are here precisely to support the Commission and to prevent ourselves losing this credibility.

Political group: PSE