Madam President, President of the Commission, Mr Verheugen, you said just now that your comments in the interview were made in a German context, but it is far from being an internal German issue. And even though Mr Poettering has just spoken, and now I am taking the floor, do not think that this is an all-German debate. The comments you made, Mr Verheugen, provoked amazement, irritation and also anger amongst the Group. (Applause) This is not about the worth or lack of worth of referenda in terms of democracy, or involving the people in the decisions of the European Union. Nor do I intend, as speaker for my group, to go into the internal German debate on such referenda and similar issues. Naturally, each Member State will decide on the accession of new States according to its own constitutional law, and the same applies to Germany. But precisely because the German constitution makes no provision for a referendum of this kind, your comments were interpreted as a call for a referendum to be introduced, and as such, as an attempt to postpone the eastward enlargement of the European Union. I know this was far from being your intention, Commissioner, but that is the impression people got and it must be dispelled! (Applause) The Group wants the European Union to honour the commitment it has entered into with regard to Eastern Europe. We want the negotiations to be resolved speedily and diligently. We reject any attempt to put new obstacles in the way of accession. But the same applies to comments made by certain members of your group, Mr Poettering; for example with regard to the PPE’s attitude towards accession to the Economic and Monetary Union. (Applause) My group, the group, welcomes the fact that President Prodi and Commissioner Verheugen have made the necessary clarifications here today, and we are grateful to you for this. You have clarified matters to our satisfaction. Now, of course, we could say: 'Romano' locuto, causa finita. (Laughter) But of course things are not that simple, because the fundamental problem, Commissioner Verheugen, is one we all face: i.e. the Commission, MEPs, national governments, and the parties in our Member States. The fundamental problem is how we go about informing EU citizens about the accession of East European States, how we convince them and win their support for these accessions. That is the key objective. However, we are all to be found wanting in this respect. The only way to achieve this aim is to impress on the people that the size of the task is commensurate with the size of the opportunity presented to us all in Europe. That is the message we must drive home. To this end, you, President Prodi, and you Commissioner, and all of us, must stop getting bogged down in bureaucratic detail and doubts. Let us give our work the epoch-making status it deserves! The political generation of the fifties – Adenauer, Monnet, Schuman and so on –, had the courage and vision to resolve the centuries’ old conflict between Germany and France in a European Community, and to make a start on unifying the people of Europe. Our generation of politicians, ladies and gentlemen, yours and mine, now has the opportunity, for the first time in a thousand years, to bring all the people of Europe together in one Community, based on free will, peace and democracy. We must not allow anyone to wreck this opportunity, nor must we waste it. (Applause)

Political group: PSE