GwendalTsang/DEFT09-parquet huggingface dataset:
Madam President, Commissioner, the problem does not lie in the ideology of the debate but in its political nature. As Mrs Randzio-Plath said, we must remember that the reason why certain Members want to revive this question is because of the recent international financial crises and their economic, social and environmental consequences which have been felt by all in some countries. The main objective of this debate is to look at the instruments available to the international community for stabilising the international financial and monetary system. In this respect, Mr Bolkestein, the motion for a resolution cannot be separated from the issue of the Tobin tax. If you look carefully, this proposed tax on capital is just one of several instruments aimed at forcing international investors to behave responsibly on the financial markets. Secondly, the motion does not say that we want a solely European initiative. This is why we explicitly refer to the autumn session of the International Monetary Fund so that the European Union, in other words the Commission and also the Council, can decide how it will defend the opportunity to stabilise the international financial and monetary system and introduce international taxation. There should be no confusion in this debate. As environmentalists, we do not want an excuse for a motion. Although a study produced by the Commission would doubtless be interesting, we do not need another to add to those already available. We do need to obtain, from the Commission and the Council, in other words from each of the governments forming the Union, a clear, positive or negative, political stance. They must indicate whether they are ready to defend, within competent public bodies such as the International Monetary Fund in the first instance, the appropriateness of such a tax within the other instruments needed to stabilise the international monetary system. As for the argument that this initiative would increase uncertainty, very short-term capital movements are specifically intended to play on uncertainty and to bet on changes between currencies or various short-term financial assets. This argument is therefore not relevant. I will not go into the basic issue any further for everyone has their arguments. However, I would highlight not only paragraph 9 of the motion, but also paragraph 10. We clearly expect a political stance to be taken with a very firm deadline of the preparations for the autumn session of the International Monetary Fund. We therefore demand, if this motion is adopted tomorrow, that the Commission and Council appear before Parliament to tell us what positions they will take on this occasion.

Political group: Verts-ALE
I support the Liese report because I believe that stem cell research may hold the key to restoring and regenerating many vital bodily functions lost in various devastating illnesses and injuries. This proposal may offer the possibility of treating Huntington's disease, Parkinson's disease, Alzheimer's disease, spinal cord injuries, strokes, burns, heart diseases, diabetes, osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis. The proposal is to fund research only in Member States where such funding is requested. Research would only involve embryos created before June 2002 for medically assisted IVF treatment but now 'supernumerary' and which would otherwise be destroyed. Embryos would have to be voluntarily donated with informed consent and without payment. Researchers would have to fully comply with comprehensive ethical and legal rules. Research would only be funded where it meets agreed objectives and where there is no adequate alternative. Furthermore the results would be made public. In these circumstances, I believe the European Parliament should adopt this proposal and all Member States should support the European Parliament's position in Council on 27th November.

Political group: PSE
Mr President, there can be no doubt that the role of the Union, together with the United Nations and the African Union, is very important in conflict prevention and peace-making on the continent of Africa, which continues to be torn apart by quarrel and armed conflict. The situation in Côte d'Ivoire is a typical example of tension based on social and ethnic differences. The murder of the French journalist Jean Hélène, the correspondent for Radio France Internationale, reveals the depth of the crisis and disdain for the Marcoussis agreement. This agreement, together with the Cotonou agreement, offers a very good framework for crisis settlement and respect for human rights and the rules of democracy. Nonetheless, generally when we talk of democracy and peaceful coexistence in an area in which violence is a daily reality, we need to take account of two serious factors. First, traditional and local approaches to conflict settlement. Viable solutions depend to a large degree on the ability of local society to build up a relationship of trust and cooperation between opposing groups. Experience has shown that solutions based on local values and mediation techniques have far more potential to bring about lasting peace. That is why we also need to incorporate local perceptions and practices into international mechanisms. Secondly, serious account needs to be taken of the role of women in conflict settlement and the reconciliation process and I am grateful to Mr Antonione for mentioning this. This issue has repeatedly preoccupied the European Parliament's Committee on Women's Rights and Equal Opportunities and we have processed relative positions on the role of women in peace processes. Analyses have also been carried out by the UN and, within the framework of the Greek Presidency, there was a related report and conclusions by the European Council in Thessaloniki. The Council and the European Commission therefore need to take account of this factor and to reinforce the initiatives of women in peace processes through the budget; EUR 250 million would be a respectable sum. Finally, Mr President, I should like to mention that on 10 December, which was International Human Rights Day, the Manο River Women’s Peace Network was awarded the UN prize for human rights for 2003. This is an organisation, consisting of women from the three countries of Liberia, Sierra Leone and Guinea, which played a crucial role in preventing hostilities between the three countries by forcing the political leaders to return to the negotiating table, thus earning the praise of the Secretary-General of the UN in April 2002. I mention this in order to stress the importance of the role of women, which is often disregarded.

Political group: PSE
Mr President, I want to begin by commenting very briefly on the time frame. I am Parliament’s rapporteur when it comes to the guidelines we are discussing now. I want to state that I did not receive the final wording of the guidelines until a few minutes ago when I came down to the Chamber just before 5 p.m. I shall have finished my work in two days’ time. My report will be submitted for translation on Friday morning. These are unacceptable conditions, but I must not waste any more time talking about this right now. I want instead to address a political issue that I believe to be a major issue. I think that the best thing of all about the Commission’s European employment strategy is the very strong emphasis upon the quality aspect. That, I believe, is above all what basically distinguishes our own labour market from those in the United States, Japan and elsewhere. The quality dimension is crucial but, at the same time, there is a pressure to reduce labour costs that has nothing to do with quality. How is this contradiction to be resolved between this pressure to reduce costs and the demands for quality?

Political group: GUE-NGL
Mr President, I am full of praise at the sterling efforts of MEPs -–some of my Labour colleagues among them – on the ACP-EU Joint Assembly and their efforts towards securing a new Lomé Agreement, which will benefit some of the poorest countries in the world. Few of my constituents will probably be aware that the EU is the biggest foreign aid donor in the world. While others may have the biggest rockets, the EU has the deepest pockets. This is something that the EU can rightly be proud of, and I think we should shout it from the rooftops more often. The Labour Government’s record in Britain is also a proud one. Clare Short, MP, is one of the few Cabinet-level Ministers for international development in the world and, as such, can take her case to the very heart of government. Gordon Brown, MP, meanwhile, has led international efforts to relieve crippling levels of Third World debt and ensured that Labour’s campaign to reduce poverty does not end at the English Channel. Whether through the minimum wage in Manchester or debt relief in Durban, Labour’s aim of poverty reduction remains the same. There is still much to be done, however. The next great challenge is to re-launch the new round of world trade negotiations that failed to take off last December in Seattle. It must be a ‘development round’, in which developing countries, effectively excluded from previous rounds, are fully included. For the best way to reduce world poverty is to help developing countries help themselves. Developing countries want trade not aid, a help up not a hand-out. And the best way to help developing countries help themselves is to open up world markets to allow them to sell their products. In this way, the power of globalisation can be harnessed for the good, to benefit the poor not just the wealthy, the many not just the few. Thus, whether through the New Deal in Newcastle or fair trade in Freetown, Labour’s aim of opportunity for all remains the same. – Swoboda report (A5-0031/2000)

Political group: PSE
Those intent on economic growth at any price pay the price in terms of compromising nature and the environment. The clearest example of this can be seen at the moment in the American Bush Administration, which regards the expansion of oil extraction as far more important than complying with the climate treaty of Kyoto. After the expenditure of substantial community funds in the EU on unintended environmental destruction, the necessity of environmental protection is now considered more and more obvious. Hopefully that will lead to clearer-headed choices than other EU decisions on the basis of which smoking is discouraged at the same time as tobacco growing is subsidised. In candidate countries we see a similar contradiction. They want money for the building of motorways through areas of natural beauty, for dams that devastate shorelines and watercourses and for large-scale restructuring of the countryside. Anyone frightened to make a choice between the all-powerful economy and the protection of our environment becomes bogged down in conflicting decisions. That is why it is a good thing that the compromise in this third reading forces Member States to inform public opinion and hence also interested organisations and to give them the chance to express their views on projects. Financing from European funds can no longer be a justification for allowing environmentally damaging expenditure to proceed. -Roo Report (A5-0178/2001)

Political group: GUE-NGL
Mr President, on behalf of the Group I would like to signal our strong support for the efforts of both the European Commission and the Council to persuade our international partners of the virtues of a broad-based new round of WTO talks, covering a wide range of issues. In order that the right compromises can be made between the different and complex issues facing the international trade system today it does indeed seem essential that the talks should cover a comprehensive agenda from traditional tariff reductions to crucial issues such as the environment and labour standards, and new topics such as competition and investment. You can count on large parts of this Parliament to give you robust support when arguing against those who may wish to confine the round to no more than a narrow series of sector-specific commercial trade-offs. I also welcome the openness with which Mr Lamy has commenced his working relationship with this new Parliament, and I also welcome his support for changes to the Treaty in the forthcoming intergovernmental conference to strengthen the role of the European Parliament in the common commercial policy. It would be a benefit to the Union as a whole if the Commission and Parliament could increasingly stand together in international trade negotiations. However, if the European Parliament is to play a new and more responsible role it must be given greater access to the information governing trade issues than is presently the case. New responsibilities should be accompanied by new rights. For that reason I would like to ask the Council two specific questions. First, the Commission has already stated that it has no objections to the inclusion in the conclusions which will be adopted at Seattle of wording on the role of the European Parliament in the conduct and completion of the new WTO round. Could Mr Sasi confirm the presidency will draft such new language? Second, could Mr Sasi confirm that the presidency will come forward with new proposals to facilitate the fullest possible provision to the European Parliament of documents discussed in the 133 Committee in the Council, accompanied, if necessary, by special procedures to protect confidentiality? Since Mr Sasi has kindly agreed to come to the meeting of the European Parliament’s Committee on Industry, External Trade, Research and Energy on 12 October, I suggest he presents his formal response to both these points at that meeting. If we could move forward on those two points, I feel both the accountability and legitimacy of the European Union’s negotiating position in the Millennium Round will have been significantly strengthened.

Political group: ELDR
Mr President, Commissioner, I would like to compliment the rapporteur, Mr Chichester, on his report. The agrees with the main thrust of the recommendations in the resolution, except for considerations C and L and sections 4 and 5. Mr President, the benefits of nuclear energy are not as undisputed as these sections make them out to be. Where nuclear energy helps us achieve our CO2 objectives, it also adds to the environmental problems of nuclear waste, which is completely opposed to the objectives of the communication of the Committee before us, namely a more powerful integration of the environment into the energy policy. My second point concerns Amendment No 7 submitted by the with regard to section 1. My group is delighted that the rapporteur has accepted this as a supplement. Energy policy falls within the principle of subsidiarity but its transnational environmental impact is very much a European concern. Since sustainable development has become a Treaty objective, it is only logical to include an energy section in the Treaty which enables an integrated approach to energy and environment. Liberalisation leads to lower energy prices in time. This will, however, not lead to higher energy consumption. After all, energy is a high cost item for companies and private people alike and this is set to remain so. A further incentive to integrate policies on energy and environment is the introduction of an eco-tax, as is already in place in the Netherlands and Sweden. The introduction of an eco-tax may lead to more energy efficiency and, as such, lower energy consumption. My group calls on the committee and Member States to introduce such a tax in a coordinated manner, thus avoiding unfair competition within the Union. Needless to say, this tax should not add any extra cost to the European citizen.

Political group: ELDR
Mr President, I abstained from the vote for one specific reason: in my opinion, this report has not made the environmental progress that I hoped and called for. I did vote for all the amendments intended to increase alternative energy sources, but I had hoped that we would be able to take a further step forward. I know that it is difficult, I know that this report has, in any case, adopted the right line, but further endeavours are necessary and, to this end, I call for this alternative energy policy to be pursued more vigorously.

Political group: PPE-DE
Madam President, this directive will not be transposed as quickly as the Commission imagines. We are dealing here, of course, with a typical case for mainstreaming. I very much wish the traditional transport sector were as keen on proper Europe-wide regulation as it is on combating distortions of competition. It is simply that certain things have to be considered as a whole; I mention this just by way of introduction. Fundamentally speaking, Commissioner, I do of course share the Commission’s view that harmonising indirect taxes makes sense as a means of guaranteeing the proper functioning of the internal market. Arguments based on fair competition and the protection of the environment always go down well with the public. In this instance, though, the subject matter has to be seen in a more nuanced light. On the one hand, we are dealing with what I would almost call the Commission’s inability to fashion a more comprehensive policy for the public in the transport sector, and, on the other hand, the finance ministers want to raise more money by increasing duties on diesel fuel. The way in which road and rail interact demonstrates a policy of isolation rather than one of integration. In the same way that we need a comprehensive transport concept for Europe, so we also need an overall concept for all taxes on motor vehicles, tolls and the transport infrastructure costs directive. It has to be seen as a whole, as a single package. Only in this context would the alignment of diesel tax be sensible and feasible. In the proposal for a directive, the Commission has also referred to the sharp increase in the number of privately owned diesel cars and regretted the revenue lost to the Member States’ budgets. It describes this as an error in need of correction. It is regrettable that it had nothing further to say about the owners of these vehicles, which are as a rule cheaper and use less fuel, who have, up until now, been able to drive more economically with diesel. It is worth examining more closely the question of who drives these vehicles. As a rule, their drivers are workers who are obliged to travel to work by car every day because no other options are available. In some states, these vehicles make up over 50% of private cars. European tax policy meant that it was precisely this factor that had a decisive effect on the car market, and environmental concerns have eventually resulted in improved technology in this sector. It is, I believe, precisely in this context that this issue needs to be considered more fully. I do not think that the underlying thinking is wrong or bad, but simply that the proposal needs to be revised or reworked. As it stands at present, it is not exactly in line with our thinking. My group recommends that the Commission should submit a new proposal, and advocates the rejection of the one put before us.

Political group: PSE
Mr President, only a year ago, the eastwards enlargement policy was considered to be a possible line of development for Europe. Today, it is undeniably a fundamental part of European policy. I hope that the same will become true of Mediterranean policy as of today, not only because the Middle East is one of the most insecure areas on our borders or because the southern side of the Mediterranean is the greatest source of migration towards Europe, but also, I am glad to say, because, as President Prodi recently stated, having already discovered America we have now discovered Asia, and the Mediterranean has resumed its key position in world trade and exchange which must be exploited on both northern and southern sides. In my opinion, if this is true the performance of the MEDA programme cannot be taken as the benchmark, although I am convinced that careful evaluation of its results would shed a different light on things, but there are three lines to be explored: firstly, increasing mutual understanding through decentralised cooperation, which can be strongly encouraged; secondly, a training programme for the ruling classes of the Mediterranean, which Europe must involve in order to guarantee itself a better future; thirdly, defining sustainable sea transport policies in the Mediterranean, which will become a central point either of danger or of major development for both northern and southern sides of the Basin.

Political group: ELDR
Mr President, Commissioner, domestic helps, who were formerly almost exclusively employed by more wealthy households, nowadays provide much-needed and essential support for working men and women and, above all, for single mothers and the elderly. Demand has risen many times over in recent years, and yet this fact has scarcely been taken into account in general working life and as regards the rights and duties involved. Just where does this activity fit into the scheme of things? We need a legal framework that recognises domestic work, which is given many different names, as a fully fledged job in all Member States, and which provides for the implementation of appropriate labour law provisions. A pan-European description of domestic work as an occupation is needed, bringing in the social partners, and where this does not exist employment policy guidelines should be adopted. However, defining domestic work is certainly difficult. Where do you draw the dividing lines with such a variety of domestic duties? Is domestic work just cleaning or cooking, or just child care or just gardening? The fact is that there are thousands of women who have been doing all these jobs for years without insurance cover or pension rights. Of course, both employers and workers – generally both women – are often happy with this state of affairs, which saves money. We need to educate people and to expand and improve the basic framework that already exists in some countries, so as to provide incentives to phase out the present grey economy. In Austria, and especially in my own region, an EU-assisted project involving a women's advice centre acting as an agency for domestic helps has been very successfully running for three years. Many women have been able to obtain a permanent job through this work. In addition, as a result of this project, two or three families have often clubbed together to employ a domestic help. What we are talking about is registering every contractual relationship between employer and employee and ultimately enhancing the work prospects of domestic employees.

Political group: PSE
Mr President, when, in the sitting on Monday, I thanked the French State, the city of Strasbourg and the European Parliament for the fact that we could only get sound on the Finnish television channel and that the taps runs cold water but not hot, I did not mean that this is how it should be, but that these things should be put right. I hope that the French State, the city of Strasbourg and the European Parliament will be able to take steps to put such small matters right in so expensive a building.

Political group: GUE-NGL