GwendalTsang/DEFT09-parquet huggingface dataset:
The report is dominated by the developments following 11 September and their influence upon the European foreign and security policy. I am of course pleased about the EU foreign ministers’ statement opposing military operations in Iraq and I endorse the statement that everything must be done to enable the UN inspectors to return unconditionally. I believe that international law must be upheld and any military intervention securely based upon a decision by the UN Security Council. The report contains a number of proposals I cannot support, including the proposal in paragraph 11 to merge the office of Council High Representative for Foreign and Security Policy with that of the Commissioner responsible for these issues and to set up this new office in the Commission. Nor can I support the proposal in paragraph 23 about funding the joint costs of military operations within the framework of the ESDP from the Community budget, or paragraph 19 on a joint European armaments agency. Nor can I support paragraph 20 on strengthening the Member States’s defence budgets, the proposal in paragraph 14 to allow decision-making in the Council by qualified majority, or the rule on enhanced cooperation to allow those Member States which desire, and are able, to do so to take action without a joint decision’s having been made. I support neither the proposal in paragraph 26 concerning closer institutional relations between NATO and the EU, nor paragraph 12 concerning a European diplomatic corps. - Titley Report (A5-0286/2002)

Political group: PSE
Mr President, I would like to congratulate the President-in-Office of the Council on having given significant impetus to the launch of the European security and defence policy with the scheduling of a specific Defence Council. I believe that today’s debate may be a great help to the policy which the President-in-Office of the Council intends to pursue, because there is a slight discrepancy between his views and those of many of the participants: the President-in-Office of the Council has insisted on the intergovernmental nature of the defence policy and here – on the one hand Mr Brok and, on the other, various other Members such as Mr Titley, Mr Marset, Mr Morillon, etc., and Commissioners Patten and Liikanen – have indicated that there are elements for a European policy in the field of the arms industry. Article 296 is a locked door which can be unlocked. There is a key; there is the possibility of implementing it: we already have case-law from the Court of Justice which opens up this possibility and I hope that the Council will consider the possibility of implementing Community law specifically on Community level, in addition to the actions carried out at government level.

Political group: PSE
Madam President, ladies and gentlemen, the directive presented by Commissioner Vitorino will be the foundational European draft law on immigration into Europe. In presenting it, he is taking a quite specifically systematic approach in generally opening up European labour markets to immigrants, whilst, by way of derogation, giving the Member States the option of taking their own absorption capacity into account and reducing the number of immigrants, right down to zero if need be. This is happening at a time when we have 15 million unemployed in Europe, and when, in my own country, the figure is nearing 5 million. Experts are unanimous in stating that this state of affairs will persist for years, so that we can say without further ado that Europe will not generally need more workers for many years to come. They are needed in certain sectors, in certain lines of business, in certain regions and on a temporary basis, but, in principle and in general, there is no need for them. What this means is that, in the event of this directive becoming law, there will be increased pressure on Europe's labour markets, to the detriment of those who are already unemployed, and not least to the detriment of the third-country nationals who are in the European Union legally and who, in any case, are more likely to be unemployed than are EU citizens. You are opening up this possibility if a position cannot be filled within four weeks. Last year in Germany, the average vacancy, in terms of the period of time elapsing between the job being advertised and somebody taking it, was around seventy days. This shows that the four-week period is absurdly short and will, as I have said, put our unemployed under much more pressure. The problematic thing about this system is that it involves a legal right, since, if an application is refused, the applicants are to be able to appeal to the national courts. We have already seen, to our horror, what happens when asylum-seekers make appeals of this sort, and so we do not want to repeat the experience with would-be immigrants. The report by the admirable Mrs Terrón i Cusí makes matters dramatically worse, as the majority on the committee went so far as to remove the regulatory element, the national right of control provided for by Commissioner Vitorino, so that all that is left is open access. Moreover, they have the idea that even illegal immigrants should also have the chance to apply for a work permit, which amounts to giving them a prize for getting in illegally, and one cannot sensibly support that either. The Council has been attempting to digest this draft since as long ago as July 2001. I am quite certain that the Terrón i Cusí report will end up in the Council's great big waste paper basket, and that Commissioner Vitorino, too, will have to make substantial changes to his draft if he wants it to stand a chance of getting the necessary majority. (Applause)

Political group: PPE-DE
Madam President, we have an amendment before us which allegedly sums up the substance of two observations by the Court of Auditors very concisely. If you think it is necessary, I can read out the full wording of these observations, although personally I would prefer not to. I just wish to say that I am opposed to this amendment, because I really do not think it serves any useful purpose for us to include tendentious summaries of official documents in our parliamentary documents, even if said summaries are tabled by the chairman of the Committee on Budgetary Control. - on Amendment No 1 from the Group

Political group: PSE
Mr President, I agree with the report’s analysis of the situation following the Iraq war, but not with all the conclusions. It is true that new threats and security risks must be combated, above all, by means of political strategies with a view to fighting poverty, protecting human rights and promoting democracy. That, in turn, requires efforts to discover conflicts in time and resolve them by political, diplomatic and economic means. The EU has these means available to it, and they – and not the military resources – should be increased. I do not, however, share the view that the credibility of the EU’s foreign and security policy is dependent upon the EU’s military resources. Nor do I support increased cooperation within defence policy, which I believe should be subject to decisions on a unanimous basis. Nor am I able to support the proposal that common military operations must be funded via the Community budget and that the EU should, in the long term, acquire its own defence budget. Nor can I support the idea of a common military defence of European territory. Peace-making operations, as discussed in paragraph 34, are measures in accordance with Article 7 of the UN Charter, that is to say direct military measures, and may only be taken following decisions by the UN Security Council. It is the EU’s task to prevent wars, not to make plans for conducting wars. Military defence is, and should be, a national issue. That is especially important for Sweden and other neutral countries.

Political group: PSE
Mr President, the Group of the welcomes the peace agreement signed a Accra on 18 August 2003 under the authority of ECOWAS, the Economic Community of West African States. We are concerned that while this is holding in the capital, there are still problems in the rural areas, with reports even today of tens of thousands of people fleeing into Monrovia from Totota in Central Liberia. That is hardly surprising, with the alleged massacres of hundreds, and possibly thousands, of civilians perpetuated in Nimba County since the signing of the agreement. Fourteen years of violence and misrule in Liberia resulted in immense human suffering amongst civilians, as well as gross human rights violations, a breakdown in social and economic structures, and now 85% of the population is living below the poverty line. The arrival of the peacekeeping force has enabled the peacekeeping process to start, but there is still a long way to go. We look forward and call upon all the parties to the agreement to implement it in good faith and to establish a transitional government as promised on 14 October 2003, that will hopefully lead to free and fair elections. We welcome the fact that the European Union has provided aid to that process, amounting to EUR 15 million to date. We recognise that more may be necessary. The problem is that at the moment the peace agreement is holding in Monrovia, but less well outside. Part of that problem is that there is still a shortage of troops on the ground. There are only 1 500 out of a promised 3 500. Those troops are required as soon as possible. We equally ask that all the states in the region refrain from any actions that might contribute to instability in Liberia and on the borders between Guinea, Sierra Leone and the Côte d'Ivoire. We ask that these neighbouring states act with discretion.

Political group: PSE
Mr President, I represent the region in the north-east of England which was the scene of the original outbreak and has just recently been affected by further outbreaks. I regret very much that we have been unable to agree a compromise text on this occasion. The reason is simple. Recital A accuses the UK government of failure to control the outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease. In truth, it is not an attack on the UK government but on all those who have battled very heroically against the disease since the end of February – the farmers themselves, the vets, the scientists, the civil servants, the police, the military, many different rural agencies which have all been involved. In particular, the farmers in the Allendale Valley, the scene of the recent hotspot, believed that they had taken all the necessary measures to avoid the disease. Failure to control implies that the outbreak should have already ended. But the mover of the resolution did not explain when and by what means that might have been achieved. No-one ever promised, or even surmised, that the outbreak would be over at this stage. At its peak there were 40 to 50 cases a day. Despite the recent outbreak in Allendale, the average is now two or three cases per day. If this does not indicate a degree of control then we really have a very serious problem in front of us, something that none of us ever imagined. It is important also to recall that from the very start the UK government has given full information to the other Member States and has followed the advice of the Standing Veterinary Committee. In that respect, we can point to a considerable success for the mechanisms that we have operating within the European Union. A word on vaccination. I would suggest to Mr van Dam, the original speaker on this resolution, that perhaps he ought to apply for the job of chief scientist in the United Kingdom. He certainly seems to bring to the debate on vaccination an authority and conviction which far exceeds that of the current holder of the office, Professor David King, who only this morning in a radio broadcast said we could not be certain that vaccination would have done any good. In the Netherlands the animals were also slaughtered and there is quite a problem here in the suggestion that vaccination actually saves the animal's life. That does not necessarily follow – but I do not know when the job becomes vacant!

Political group: PSE
Mr President, ten days ago, the UN’s Commissioner for Human Rights, Mary Robinson, returned home from a visit to Russia where she was to investigate the situation in Chechnya in regard to human rights abuses. Mary Robinson obtained limited access. She was not allowed to meet the Russian President and was treated in a most humiliating way. In her report to the UN’s session on human rights in Geneva, Mrs Robinson reported on individual testimonies concerning very serious crimes which had been committed in Chechnya. The witnesses she had met had told of murders of civilians, summary trials, executions, rapes, torture and kidnappings. Domestic affairs can never be pleaded as an excuse for atrocities of this kind. We have a global responsibility to defend basic rights. Abuses of these cannot – must not – be seen as internal matters. The UN’s High Commissioner must continue to be supported in his work. The European Parliament has, on a number of occasions, expressed concern about the situation in Chechnya. We support the Council of Europe’s decision of last week to suspend Russia if no appropriate measures are taken. For a liberal, considerations of trade and short-term benefits cannot come before the defence of human rights. We would therefore react vigorously to these atrocities, but we also see it as very important to cooperate with democratic forces in Russia and with the new government. We therefore hope that we can organise a joint delegation from the European Parliament and the Russian Duma to travel to Chechnya and, there on the spot, engage in discussions, conduct investigations and bring about a dialogue. We presume that Russia will be of assistance and allow the delegation to travel freely. We also hope that the EU can eventually contribute to a reconstruction programme in the region.

Political group: ELDR
We welcome the result of today's vote on the Liese report on the 6th Framework Programme. The issue of funds for collaborative research projects using human embryonic stem cells and stem cell lines was discussed in depth in the Committee on Industry, External Trade, Research and Energy who reached a consensus view, reproduced today in Parliament. This will allow us to continue with this vital research which has the potential to bring relief to millions of Alzheimer's, Parkinson's and diabetes sufferers. Several colleagues tabled amendments to the report seeking to express their own, or nationally based views on the matter, which would impose restrictive conditions on deadlines for use of stem cells or stem cell lines. This would discourage or simply prevent innovative research in this area confining scientists and researchers to using ageing supernumerary embryos which are not in the best condition and could even result in an increasing number of stem cells being consumed for this purpose. There is no ethical consensus on this issue in Europe. (Abbreviated in accordance with Rule 137(1) of the Rules of Procedure)

Political group: PSE
Mr President, I know that there are to be no votes on the opinions which have been submitted by the various committees. The Committee on Women’s Rights and Equal Opportunities has tabled a special opinion. I just want to point out that what is most important in this opinion is, of course, the view that proper resources should be set aside for mainstreaming. A mistake has nonetheless crept into our opinion. I do not want there to be a mistake here, even if we are not voting on it. The last part of section 4 of our opinion, following the words “Community action programmes should cooperate”, is to be deleted. The Committee voted to remove this section, but it has nonetheless been included by mistake. I want this part to be removed and I want to give notice of the fact now, before we proceed to the vote. (Parliament adopted the resolution) *** Report (A5-0068/2000) by Mr Ferber, on behalf of the Committee on Budgets, on the budget guidelines for the 2001 budgetary procedure: Section I – European Parliament, Section II – Council, Section IV – Court of Justice, Section V – Court of Auditors, Section VI – Economic and Social Committee, Section VII – Committee of the Regions, Section VIII – Ombudsman (Parliament adopted the resolution) *** Motion for a resolution (B5-0289/2000) by Mrs Jackson and Mr Blokland, on behalf of the Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Consumer Policy, on aeroplane hushkits (Parliament adopted the resolution) *** Joint motion for a resolution(1) on Mediterranean policy Concerning Amendments Nos 4 and 5:

Political group: PSE
Mr President, I have a few specific questions about development policy for the Commission. You have said that we want faster spending because far too much remains unspent at the moment. In practice however this is still not happening. My specific question to you is: what new steps will you be taking to achieve this in your work programme for 2003? You have also said that we must spend better, we want to move towards basic social spending such as education. You have accepted a figure of 35%, you have reached an average of 28%. What specific steps will you be taking to achieve this in your programme for 2003? Thirdly, in Doha you took on the obligation to table proposals for the reduction of the agricultural subsidies and their conversion into rural subsidies before March 2003. When can we expect these concrete proposals in the area of agriculture, as a supplement to the Fischler package? Fourthly, you promised to bring forward a supplement to the regulation of the gap between structural aid and emergency aid. This gap, the famous grey zone, is sometimes giving rise to one or two years’ delay. When can we expect to see this specific regulation? Fifthly, and in conclusion, in the context of migration policy – and Mr Prodi also made reference to this – you said that there is a need to conclude new partnership agreements with developing countries. The specific question is: what initiatives will you be presenting in this area in addition to the Cotonou Treaty that will actually do something about a regulated migration policy which – and let us start with North Africa and a number of the suppliers from the different regions – actually involves the relationship with the developing countries?

Political group: PSE
Mr President, the unilateral attack by the United States demonstrates once again that the United Nations has not been a valid instrument. The European Union has also demonstrated that the common foreign policy has not been common. Perhaps we should remember 30 August 1954 when a European Union of defence became impossible. I regret the letter of the eight members. I also regret that the Spanish Government has expended more energy justifying the use of arms than seeking diplomatic solutions to the conflict. I am glad that the Catalonian Parliament has adopted a resolution in which it asked the Spanish Government to support the role of the Security Council so that the work of the inspectors may continue, so that the use of force outside the context of the United Nations may be rejected, and I am glad that the demonstrations in the streets, in the city of Barcelona and in other main cities in Catalonia, have demonstrated that our country is against war and in agreement with its Parliament.

Political group: ELDR
Mr President, I will speak briefly and avoid using any euphemisms. We are talking about the life or death of people who are very close to us. I am a personal friend of Plácido Micó, General Secretary of the CPDS (social democratic party and member of the Socialist International), who has been found guilty at this trial, which was a disgraceful farce which demonstrated not just a complete lack of compliance with any guarantee, but also the existence of very serious physical torture. We would therefore like to ask the Presidency of the Council to take immediate action, since the information we have from Malabo, from the day before yesterday, is – as Carlos Carnero pointed out – extremely worrying. It is not simply a question of condemning this situation in some euphemistic way, but of exercising all the European Union’s powers to put an end to this terrible scandal for good.

Political group: PSE
Mr President, Mr President-in-Office of the Council, President Prodi, the informal summit in Ghent has shown two positive aspects, namely fundamental agreement on a Convention to prepare a constitutional treaty and the final technical adjustments to the euro. Under other circumstances, without the shadow cast by terrorism, this would be an occasion for looking optimistically towards Europe's future. We are, however, concerned with a situation in which we ask ourselves whether, with the euro, Europe's capacity for integration has already been exhausted. A common currency, a common foreign policy and a common defence policy would give the EU that credibility in the eyes of its citizens and create that identification with it, whose absence we often regret. It has been, above all, in respect of foreign and security policy, that the Ghent Summit has brought us down to earth. Bilateralism, if you want to call it that, or undeclared intensified cooperation, laid bare the weaknesses that still handicap the European Union's effectiveness vis-à-vis the rest of the world. Reviewing the international analyses following the Ghent meeting shows how the shock at the terrorist attacks on the USA has revealed the divisiveness within the European Union. It is not only a reaction to the behaviour of the USA, which prefers to deal and negotiate with governments direct, but also the consequence of the inherent military weakness of the European security and defence policy, in which there is a yawning gulf between ambition and reality. It is no secret that there are doubts as to whether the training of the European Rapid Reaction Force of 60 000 men is actually going to be completed by the 2003 deadline. The European Union needs an energy boost, not only to unite it more closely with its citizens but, above all, in order that it might fully meet its responsibilities within Europe itself and as a partner of the USA. The process of enlargement must be seen from this point of view, as must the post-Nice order, involving a Convention which should not be content to fritter away its time but, as the European Parliament has recommended, should work out a coherent basis for a decision on a constitutional treaty. (Applause)

Political group: PPE-DE
Commissioner, I am grateful for your answer but I want to say this: in the last five-year period, 4 000 Moroccan and sub-Saharan immigrants have died in the waters of the Straits of Gibraltar and off the coasts of the Canary Islands and, unfortunately hundreds of Moroccan minors crossing borders into the Spanish towns of Ceuta and Melilla are causing reception centres to overflow and have furthermore been committing serious attacks on the employees of those centres. I feel, Commissioner, that Morocco must shoulder its responsibilities and these facts prove that it is not fulfilling its duties. I therefore ask you again, Commissioner, do you not think, given the gravity of this situation, that the current financial framework of aid to Morocco should be made dependent on its fulfilling its obligations in the field of immigration and of the control of its borders with the European Union?

Political group: PPE-DE