Mr President, Mr President-in-Office of the Council, Mr President of the Commission, I would like to say something about the Laeken Declaration and, in particular, about the Convention. Especially since the failure of the Nice Summit, this Parliament has agitated for a new method for Intergovernmental Conferences. Across party boundaries, it has worked jointly with our colleagues in the national parliaments and together with various representatives of civic society, to consign to the past, once and for all, the politics of secret diplomacy behind closed doors, of opaque decision-making and of horse-trading in marathon sittings through the long nights. I believe this new approach, with the calling of a Convention, to be crucial to the European Union's future viability, for the primary issue here is the reinforcement of democracy in Europe. It is, above all, about our citizens, about a comprehensive and broad debate on what shape should be taken by our common European home, which we hope we will, from 2004, share with ten more European countries. Mr President-in-Office, today you have put before us the salient points of the Laeken Declaration, which is to be ambitious in its scope. Let me return to a number of issues. My group sees the composition of the Convention as being of extraordinary importance, and we take the view that two things, in particular, need to be taken into consideration here. One is the principle of political pluralism. There is an absolute need to guarantee that the various political forces are represented in the Convention and that the delegations of this Parliament or of the national parliaments should include not only representatives of the major political parties but also, because we need them, representatives of smaller political parties in the various European Union Member States. Above all, we need a productive bilateral political debate, without which discussions will be lacking in interest. Both sexes also need to be appropriately represented. I see that amendments to the report by Mr Méndez de Vigo and Mr Leinen have been tabled on this subject. I hope that many Members will support these amendments so that, above all, the national parliaments and the Council will also then consider how they may comply with this criterion. I believe there is an urgent need for purposeful and structured dialogue with civic society, something which you, Mr President-in-Office of the Council, have mentioned. We could, I think, also consider whether the Economic and Social Affairs Committee, which is an important mouthpiece for civic society, might play an intermediary role in this area. I am very pleased with the announcement that the Convention is to draw up its own agenda, as not only questions about the institutions will have to be dealt with, but also a broad spectrum of the most diverse political issues, as well as the issue of how a wide variety of European policies are to be formulated in the future. A report by the Commission tells us that 60 million people in the European Union are affected by poverty, at present, and I find myself thinking that this appalling figure alone tells us what a great need there is for political action, and that this Convention must be about a change of direction and a new kind of politics in Europe.

Political group: GUE-NGL