Mr President, first of all I would like to clarify Mr Abitbol’s speech a little: Mr Berlusconi has never said that the euro is blocking the economy, but he has said something else, which is that the introduction of the euro has led to bursts of speculation, which definitely must be eliminated. I can, therefore, confirm that Italy is a strong supporter of European unity, without any ‘ifs’ and ‘buts’, and – in my opinion – the single currency will benefit the European economy in the future. After this introduction, I would like to congratulate Mr Bigliardo on the report that he has presented, which is an in-depth study into the European economic situation, and also an attempt to interpret the Stability and Growth Pact in a new way, by looking carefully at European Union public finances. The recovery of the economy which began in 2002 showed itself to be short-lived and it certainly did not trigger a sufficiently powerful trend towards economic growth. Amongst other things, the European Union has seen an increase in unemployment and a gradual weakening of public finances. At the same time, the strong euro has created difficulties for exports and the trend of slowly falling inflation has caused consumption to reach a standstill. On the basis of the examination of these problems, we must ask ourselves whether the rigidity of the Stability and Growth Pact might have had a negative effect on the growth in productivity and on the increase in employment. In order to improve the flexibility of the labour market, we will certainly have to remove the remaining obstacles, adopt the recognition of professional qualifications and establish business incentives linked to productivity. Similarly, programmes seeking to modernise production processes must be stepped up, and it is essential that further investment is channelled into the research and development sectors. We therefore fully agree with the objective to bring, by the end of the decade, spending on research and development to 3% of GDP, of which two-thirds should, as approved by the Barcelona Council, go to the private sector, to reward small- and medium-sized enterprises for their participation in these processes. We will then be happy if, they at least, are not in future included within the total expenditure that balances the budget deficit, which must remain below 3% of GDP. Economic growth in a given area depends largely on the investments that have been planned and made and on the priorities that have been set. Certainly, the transit corridors and goods and passenger transport networks must receive greater attention. In implementing and developing the networks we need to provide for the completion of main routes, the elimination of existing bottlenecks, in particular in cross-border areas, by developing connections and strategic inter-connections. Furthermore, it should be recalled that when putting infrastructures in place for direct connections consideration must be given not only to the central regions of Europe but also to the peripheral regions of the Community. This would effectively guarantee genuine freedom of movement of people and goods within the European territory and would pave the way for strategic interconnection with the Mediterranean and Eastern European countries. Of course, projects of such scale require extremely substantial financial investments, which cannot contravene the strict provisions of the current Stability and Growth Pact. The Pact must, therefore, be read and interpreted in a more flexible manner, but it must also be seen as a guarantee of stability in Europe. Its existence, which was saved and safeguarded by the prudent and intelligent choices made under the Italian Presidency, must be protected and confirmed, but with a more objectively realistic vision of the European economic framework. (Applause)

Political group: PPE-DE