GwendalTsang/DEFT09-parquet huggingface dataset:
Mr President, the rapporteur's coordinating work has enabled us to achieve a great deal of agreement in Parliament. A new regulation is being proposed to replace the old eco points system. Because the objectives of the old system, which expires at the end of 2003, were achieved in 2002, we came to the conclusion that it would not be a good thing to continue the old system. The present regulation provides a good balance between protection of the vulnerable Alpine region on the one hand and the wishes of the Austrian population and the absolutely fundamental principle of the free movement of goods on the other. It is not easy for anyone to arrive at a balanced solution for transit traffic through the Austrian Alps. The concerns about environmental pollution and public health are understandable. Geographically speaking, Austria is, after all, a transit country, which is why we suggested excluding from the area the lorries that produce the most pollution. At the same time we call upon the Council and the Commission to promote clean and quiet EURO-4 category lorries as soon as they are on the market by providing a purchase subsidy for transport companies, thus helping them to bear the considerable financial burden these lorries will represent. I think that this is one of the major advantages that Parliament’s proposal has over that of the Council and the Commission. If we promote cleaner lorries, transport companies will be encouraged to buy environmentally friendly vehicles. Cleaner lorries, the so-called EURO-3 and EURO-4, are therefore not subject to the quota system but have free passage. The proposals of both the Commission and the Council do not promote the use of clean lorries in any way whatsoever. In fact they even go so far as to penalise the use of the clean EURO-4 by reducing the number of points that will be available. It must also be crystal clear to all parties concerned that it will really be over after 2006. There can be absolutely no question of an extension or any other form of quota system. Austria’s unique position cannot continue, certainly not given the discriminatory nature of the old system. Only 10% of the ton-kilometres driven on Austrian territory relate to transit traffic through Austria, while there are absolutely no requirements for national transport to tackle hazardous NOx emissions. The entry into force of the directive on infrastructure charging and the end of the points system will therefore be linked only if the charging directive enters into force before the end of 2006. I have two urgent requests. The first is that the Commission should make it possible for the Council to put forward a supporting regulation for EURO-4 to Parliament without the risk of accusations of state support. The second urgent request is addressed to Austria: do something from your side too, by increasing the number of trains and ensuring that they are cleaner. Finally, get a move on with the Brenner Base Tunnel: 2021 is absolutely unacceptable. I am firmly convinced that my colleague Paul Rübig will agree with this support, which is also aimed at smaller and medium-sized transport companies.

Political group: PPE-DE
Chairman of the Committee on Legal Affairs and the Internal Market. – Mr President, we have a situation here where under Rule 67 and Rule 68 we can choose what to do now with this initiative. Under Rule 68, we would normally ask the Council to withdraw the proposal. However, I have conferred with the rapporteur and others. The committee does not particularly wish to see this proposal come back. We would prefer to use the precedent which we established in the case of dual-use goods of a vote now to reject the Council's proposal. Members may be interested to know that in order to reject the proposal, we have to vote in favour of the draft legislative resolution. This is because, having rejected the modified proposal, the services automatically now change the text so that the text reads 'Council rejects'. We are asking Parliament to now vote in favour of the legislative resolution which rejects the Council's text. I hope I have made myself clear! (Laughter)

Political group: ELDR
Madam President, I would like to thank, very warmly and most sincerely, all those Members of this House who have spoken, most of whom make the same speech in every debate on Turkey, in order to make it plain that they do not want Turkey or Turks in the European Union. I am grateful for five years of cooperation and for your having tolerated me, a Turk, in this House. I really am very, very grateful. Thank you: your great achievement does credit to this House! I came to this Parliament as a German, have worked very hard as a German MEP for five years, but it is as a Turk that I leave it. Many of you have made me into a Turk, for I am ashamed of the speeches that really can only be described as hypocritical, of these speeches that really have nothing honest about them. Others may take pride in bravely defending the Christian EU against the Turks, and may perhaps find some voters to support them, but I am ashamed; such is not my European Union. (Applause)

Political group: PSE
Mr President, I indicated beforehand that I wished to raise a point of order before the vote on Amendment No 24. I refer to Rule 139(6) of the Rules of Procedure, which states that amendments have to be distributed and translated. I have various language versions in front of me, none of which contains this particular amendment, Amendment No 24. In addition, a number of Members, from both the conservative and Social Democratic groups, were under the impression that this vote would not be taking place until tomorrow. I would therefore firstly move that the vote should not take place. Insofar as it is possible for me to assess the situation as one of the proposers of the original right to bring cases before the court, I do not think that a proper decision can be made if these amendments are put to the vote first and not Mr Duff's amendment. In any case, Members are free to exercise their independent judgment. I refer here to Rule 2 of the Rules of Procedure. Give us an opportunity actually to vote on the right to bring cases before the court, that is, on the original wording of Paragraph 8.

Political group: PSE
Madam President, I congratulate Mr Nicholson on his excellent report. He pointed out that in order to be effective such measures require the support of fishermen and scientists who live and work in an area. This may well prove to be a vital trail-blazer for the strategy of devolved management of fisheries which all of us have been discussing in the context of the reform of the CFP. It has become increasingly evident that fishermen and scientists working in a specific fishery will more readily adhere to rules and regulations that they themselves have conceived, rather than Brussels hand-me-downs. The major fisheries organisations in the UK – the Scottish Fishermen's Federation and the National Federation of Fishermen's Organisations – which, between them represent the interests of 1900 vessels, both support the concept of zonal management. Fishermen are also deeply concerned that such rules and regulations may be interpreted and applied differently by fishing vessels from different Member States. That is why again, zonal fisheries management which involves all fishermen working in a common fishery will ensure that the rules are applied fairly and squarely across the board. This report is timely, as cod stocks are not only diminishing rapidly in the Irish Sea but are in spiral decline around all the waters of the United Kingdom. Some years ago when the House of Commons in London drew up an agreement which effectively ended the cod war between the UK and Iceland, it was famously referred to as 'the piece of cod which passeth all understanding'. Hopefully this report will mark the beginning of the recovery of cod stocks in the Irish Sea and will pave the way to the future.

Political group: PPE-DE
The EU Commission sometimes really cannot stop itself from bothering us with utterly superfluous, unwanted and counterproductive proposals. The proposal for a regulation on the common organisation of the market in ethyl alcohol of agricultural origin is a truly magnificent example of a mania for inappropriate regulation. Our Committee on Agriculture and Rural Development, therefore, did the only right thing in unanimously rejecting the proposal and calling on the Commission to withdraw it. I would not go as far as to call on the Commission to submit a new proposal, as there is absolutely no need for action in this sector apart from the need for common provisions to deal with the many openings for the substitution of synthetic alcohol for alcohol of agricultural origin. As, though, our learned jurists have confirmed that a synthetic product cannot be incorporated into a common organisation of the market in an agricultural product, this essentially sensible possibility on which our rapporteur's eye had alighted, was dropped. It makes no sense, though, to regulate only the market in agriculturally produced alcohol, as overall demand in the Community for alcohol is divided up 50/50 for the two types. However, it must be said that market forces have, in the meantime, managed to achieve a balance, so that it really is not clear why what the market has arranged for the best should be regulated from the top downwards for better or for worse. (Explanation of vote cut short pursuant to Rule 137(1) of the Rules of Procedure)

Political group: PPE-DE
Protecting intellectual property rights is an important issue and so I applaud Mrs Fourtou for her report. However, I take the view that there is no possibility of providing truly effective protection of intellectual property rights if the purchase of counterfeit products is allowed to go unpunished. The demand created by the consumer in this respect can only serve to stimulate the production of counterfeit products. It is only worth drawing up rules and regulations if they are workable and actually have an effect. With this aim in mind, I have tabled an amendment that makes the possession of counterfeit and pirated products punishable as far as the consumer is concerned, with certain provisos. This regulation will have a preventive effect because it will immediately bring about a fall in the demand for counterfeit products. Following extensive consultation, Amendment No 8 has been submitted on behalf of the Group, the PPE Group and the . It is possible, in this connection, to draw a clear comparison in criminal law, with the handling of stolen goods. Not only is stealing things against the law; consumers who acquire stolen goods are also held responsible. This is only right and proper to my mind. After all, a ruling of this kind would have the desired preventive effect and there would be no risk of having to set up an additional supervisory body to oversee the effects of this ruling.

Political group: ELDR
Mr President, I should like to concentrate mainly on certain aspects of the Belder report, which contains an excellent analysis of the current situation in the candidate countries. As far as these candidates are concerned, and this has already been said, we must avoid creating the impression that we demand higher standards of them than we meet ourselves. We should compare the actual situation in these countries with the reality in our own countries rather than with our perfect legal texts, otherwise the candidate countries will always come off worse in practice. Certainly nobody contests the fact that candidate countries which, for example, only acquired their independence recently, such as Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, have the right to redefine and articulate their own national identity first. As the Communist dictatorship under which they previously suffered obviously did not foster a culture of pluralist debate, many forms of expression of national identity appear to us to be overstretched or even to be directed, indirectly, against minorities within the country or in one or more neighbouring countries. We should not look down from our high moral horse and condemn this phenomenon as long as it is only a question of temporary manifestations on the path towards self-definition. However, we should give these countries en route to the EU the specific support that they require so that the self-awareness which they need to find is not based first and foremost on negative restrictions on minorities or neighbours. I should like to use the situation in Estonia and Latvia as an example of a positive development between two sections of the population which is by no means self-evident. It is not self-evident given their history of illegal occupation and deportation and the politically motivated transfer of people into their countries, accompanied by the suppression of every expression of national self-determination up to the end of the 1980s. The fact that the Russian tanks which withdrew in 1994 were often daubed with the words “We’ll be back!” did little to foster understanding between the Baltic states and Russia. And yet, despite this history, there has not been one single incident of violent clashes between the majority and minority sections of the population since they regained independence. We should therefore voice to the Estonians and Latvians our express recognition of the fact that they have managed to keep a cool head and that they are receptive to our arguments when it comes to adapting their legislation in this area to European standards. I therefore take the view that the express call to continue measures to integrate the Russian minority contained in point 14 of the Belder report is unnecessary. This is already happening. This express reference creates the erroneous impression that this is not the case.

Political group: PPE-DE
A number of papers have been circulated to Members before this particular debate, and I would just like to highlight one from the rapporteur where he says that the only beneficiaries of the entry into force of the text proposed by the Council will be the chocolate multinationals. Whilst I respect the commitment of the rapporteur to his cause, I suggest to the House that is nonsense. This is not just a matter for big business: it is of great concern to little consumers, millions of them throughout the EU who wish for and deserve the right to choose, without having pejorative labelling applied to the product. Mr Lannoye says that he has gone back to retable some of the original amendments. I suggest to the House that this is not a time to go back – this is a time to move on, to move forward. This is a single market issue; this House should not be standing in the way of the completion of the single market but should be actively promoting it. If I could share one brief historical fact with the House concerning my own country: the first mention of solid chocolate being sold in the UK was in 1657 when a Frenchman opened a shop in London. So if it was legal in 1657 for a Frenchman to sell his chocolate in London, can I suggest to the House that, some 350 years later, it should at long last be legal for an Englishman, or indeed any other EU national, to sell his chocolate throughout the EU including the country of the rapporteur. (Applause)

Political group: PPE-DE
Mr President, I wanted to inform you and the whole of Parliament of the plight of two women, Maria and Natacha Illiasova, who, since summer 2001, have been in prison in Tallinn, Estonia. Many of us have complained to Estonia, to the Commission delegation in Tallinn, because these women were imprisoned on the grounds that a businessman had been assassinated by two professional hit-men. These women are accused of ordering the assassination. The only witness is an Estonian policeman who has declined to testify. For over 18 months, however, these women have been in prison without trial, in that they have never had a public hearing. All their hearings have taken place in camera. The officially-appointed lawyers have not provided them with any documents concerning their case or any information at all on their situation or the proceedings that are underway. Mr President, could you resume your efforts to ensure that the law, the law as we understand it here in this House – human rights, the rights of the individual – is respected in Estonia in the case of Natacha and Maria Illiasova?

Political group: PSE
Mr Bonde asks an important question. I think I can give a clear answer and possibly help Mr Danielsson a little for, in several interviews last Christmas, I heard the Swedish Prime Minister state that any changes to the Constitution of Sweden, in this case Sweden’s Freedom of the Press Act of 1766, would create a domestic political crisis. Prime Minister Persson wants neither to have a domestic political crisis nor to change the Freedom of the Press Act. I would like Mr Danielsson to confirm that it is the Prime Minister’s absolute intention that the Constitution of Sweden will not be changed in any way.

Political group: ELDR
The huge industrial changes of recent years that have resulted from the increase in globalisation, new technologies and social transformations have given rise not only to economic growth and new production sectors but also to a growing number of company mergers, closures and relocations, which have resulted in the loss of local markets, unemployment, the degradation of social and labour protection systems, greater social exclusion and enormous human suffering. It is, therefore, extremely important that a European Monitoring Centre for Industrial Change should be set up with the aim of stimulating a more active and responsible approach to industrial development, with the participation of both sides of industry, with a view to helping to avoid the most irksome consequences of industrial change. It is equally urgent, however, that the Commission should hasten the review of Directive 94/45/EC on the setting up of a European Works Council and Regulation (EEC) No 4064/89, so as to ensure greater participation by workers’ organisations prior to decisions on the concentration and transfer of undertakings and a greater guarantee of protection and defence of workers’ rights. - EU external action priorities

Political group: GUE-NGL
Mr President, I made a point of order with regard to the Haug report because the original version is in German and, unfortunately, I do not speak German, and the English version said something quite contradictory to the Portuguese version concerning Amendment No 31. Mr President, when you presented the amendment to the vote, you read out “gross national product”, in other words, what you read out agrees with the Portuguese version. I had to wait until the end of the vote to ask my German colleagues what was in fact written in the German version and they confirmed to me that “BSP” means “gross domestic product”. This shows in fact that there is a contradiction, which is why I drew your attention to it. Given this contradiction, I feel that what you read out, which is “gross national product” must be right and not what was written in the original version which is “gross domestic product”, which is quite different. In these circumstances, I think that this amendment should not be considered valid, given that it was voted on without knowing about the most essential part of this amendment which is this concept of “GDP” or “GNP”. This is not a mere technical detail but is something that has extraordinarily important financial consequences.

Political group: PSE
The EPLP delegation voted in favour of the compromise resolution on additionality because we believe that the principle of additionality is one of the core fundamental pillars of the structural funds reforms, for which I was Parliament’s rapporteur. However, I believe that parts of this resolution, rather than bringing clarity to the rules, will only serve to confuse the general public and in particular funding operators. Paragraph A continues to confuse the principle of additionality with the separate but equally important principle of co-financing. Paragraph G is inaccurate. There is no regulatory requirement to check additionality on an annual basis, but as stated in the regulation, simplification requires three checks on additionality during the programming period. It is inappropriate for Members to try with this resolution to rewrite regulations which were agreed unanimously by this Parliament and will be up for review in 2006. More disappointing is the naked party political games which British Members Mr Davies, Mr Bradbourn and Mrs Evans have attempted in this resolution. This will not serve the best interests of our poorest communities, with deliberate misinformation and hijacking this debate for narrow party political advantage. Our real goal must be to plan and give our support to the successful implementation of these funds to improve the life prospects of people in our poorest regions. My party is committed to this goal and will work with other parties in a constructive and positive way to achieve this. - Agricultural statistics for the period 1993-2003

Political group: PSE
The murder by Israel of the spiritual leader of Hamas confirms once again the murderous/terrorist nature of the policy followed by the Sharon government in order to subjugate the heroic Palestinian people. It comes in the wake of a cluster of similar murders, which some people are justifying in the name of protection from terrorism. The Sharon government would not dare to commit crimes if it did not have direct support and encouragement from the USA. For its part, the ΕU is continuing its policy of tolerance and support for Israel which puts the slaughterers and the slaughtered on an equal footing. The summit in Brussels confined itself to expressing its opposition to ‘extra-judicial killings’ (as it calls the murders), but recognised ‘Israel’s right to protect its citizens against terrorist attacks’. The Communist Party of Greece has repeatedly expressed its solidarity with the heroic Palestinian people and its support for its just fight and its absolute condemnation of Israel's policy of genocide, its regret at the loss of life and its conviction that the source of all the violence is the occupation of the Palestinian territories. It also expresses its support for the pacifist forces in Israel and for all those who refuse to serve in the army and the occupied territories. There will be no peace in the area until the people of Palestine have a homeland.

Political group: GUE-NGL
Mr President, between 2000 and 2001, this Parliament tabled and adopted more than six motions for resolutions on Zimbabwe and today, after last weekend’s elections, we are continuing to call for the rule of law and democracy to be re-established, for the process of land reform, which remains an unsettled issue, to be started and for the continuing land occupations to cease. It was clear that, out of 15 000 independent observers, only some were given accreditation, that restrictions were imposed on the representative of the European Union and on the opposition and the European Union, therefore, considers that fraud clearly took place. And as is so often the case, Mr President, it is the people that are suffering as a result of this situation, with more than 550 000 malnourished and more than 80% living below the poverty line, with the health and education systems collapsing and with more than 2 000 people dying every week of AIDS. This situation will only get worse unless we continue to put pressure on the Zimbabwean Government and sanctions are imposed and the only way we can contribute to democratic change is by helping the people, whilst at the same time exerting pressure on the government.

Political group: GUE-NGL