Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, my friends and colleagues of the Confederal Group of the – nominated me as a candidate as this is an extension of my work as the Group's chairman. For two and a half years, I have tried, as chairman, to help to bring to life a specific type of politics for Europe. It is this approach that my candidacy illustrates. One of the main characteristics of my candidacy is its firmly left-wing stance. In my view, European leaders are not drawing lessons from the worrying disaffection of the citizens towards the European institutions. There is growing concern on the ground surrounding employment, social welfare, public services, and sustainable development, whereas the Council and Commission are focusing more attention on deregulation, commercialisation, and solely market-related issues. I think that we must take a clear stand on this contradiction. In the same way, one of the salient features of our time is the aspiration of social actors to be involved in the decisions that concern them. However, within the institutions, undertaking consultation before drawing up policies and, more importantly, assessing their effects after implementation remain largely formal, even non-existent processes. We cannot stand back and do nothing about this discrepancy which many believe manifests itself in the crisis of confidence that we are currently experiencing. Lastly, the topical subject of globalisation is mobilising the public on an unprecedented scale. We will see this once again in a few days’ time at the World Social Forum in Porto Alegre. But the Europe of today has neither the ambition nor the resources to meet the global expectations for alternatives. We must take action. A number of us here, in addition to my own Group, think that if we do not make sweeping changes, Europe will disappoint us greatly. If nothing changes, the historic opportunity that enlargement presents could turn out to be a fearsome trap. We must make ourselves heard and seize every opportunity to do so. This particularly applies to the quintessential political day of reckoning that constitutes the first round of the ballot for the presidency of Parliament. Another aspect of the political approach that I have tried to adopt since the beginning of the legislature, and which I hope my candidacy demonstrates, is the will to avoid dividing the progressive MEPs according to their political culture that is often assumed for reasons to do with history and the specific identity of each nation, each political culture being therefore equally worthy of respect. Within my group, then, staunch federalist Members sit alongside and cooperate with Members who are deeply attached to the sovereignty of their country. Both represent a part of the real Europe. We must design and build the European Union of the future by working together and with mutual respect. This is a difficult task but it is necessary and, in my experience, ultimately worthwhile. That is another characteristic of my candidacy. Last but not least, I will mention one last characteristic; namely that there is a specific set of ethics in politics. I welcome frankness, transparency and honest relationships, even between opponents and, more importantly, between partners. Therefore, I have no hesitation in saying that I value my opponent, Mr Cox, on a personal level, and even that I welcome the courteous relationship I enjoy with a number of fellow MEPs on the right, including their main representative, Mr Poettering. Thankfully, there are other things in life apart from politics. Nonetheless, I must say, equally clearly, that the candidate common to all these political families cannot, in any circumstances, count on my vote or on my support, direct or indirect, in the following rounds of the ballot. I should like to affirm this and I shall do so. On this point, I would like to express my surprise and regret at the extremely disappointing attitude of those Members who did not waver in their campaign on progressive issues in the first round, yet, in the second round, offered their vote to the only candidate of the Right, who has been dubbed the candidate from a small group, especially for the occasion. Each Member is entitled to his or her own principles and methods; these are most definitely not mine. Mr President, the cards are now on the table and it is up to us to shoulder our responsibilities.

Political group: GUE-NGL