kfajdsl/voxpopuli huggingface dataset:
madam president the recent attacks in paris serve as a brutal reminder of the dangers from terrorism right in the heart of europe. in my own constituency the paris attacks have cast the minds of our people back to the days when ira terrorists bombed our capital city.
having endured this threat for many years the message from the people of northern ireland to paris and france is we stand with you in solidarity and vow to work with you to combat the evil of terrorism.
i also hope that the sinn fin members of this house will have the decency to apologise for the intervention made by their party colleague when he stated that he did not consider isis to be terrorists.
what a repugnant view to hold! this fight can only be won by tackling the infrastructure of terror and the radicalisation of youth with a strong coalition of those dedicated to the cause of democracy and freedom and a clear strategy to win.
i and my party await such a strategy to be outlined by our own prime minister and will not be found wanting if such a strategy will deliver clear actions against the terrorists.
parliament's main message to the council is this we need far more coherence between fiscal and budgetary policies on the one hand and social and employment policies on the other hand.
i am getting quite worried that if we go on like this we will not attain any of these goals.
i really hope that at the spring council one government leader will stand up and say dear colleagues just hold on a minute.
this coordination adds necessary powers at the european level but unfortunately without adding necessary democracy at the european level too.
' well any government leader who is courageous enough to point out the pain is very welcome to borrow that speech and i am very sure that tomorrow's vote will show that any such courageous leader would have the full backing of the european parliament.
i know that i am probably complicating things quite a bit by pointing this out but as i was reading the european parliament's contribution to our discussion i thought by golly they are absolutely right.
we as a parliament do not accept such a limited role.
perhaps we should look further to the future and prepare ourselves for an ageing society by investing in education innovation and youth employment.
correct me if i am wrong but if we all cut social benefits to get under the deficit ceiling will that not actually push rather a lot of people into poverty instead of lifting millions out?
if there is one lesson that we could learn from the past few years it is that our economies are totally intertwined.
it is a tremendous mistake to ignore the social consequences of badly aimed austerity policies or to forget that a currency is there to serve the people not the other way round.
i am glad that the european parliament supports this message from the commission.
our recent initiatives on youth unemployment and sme financing are fully in line with these priorities.
the initiative lays special emphasis on making greater use of the structural funds an approach endorsed by the informal european council meeting on thirty january.
it includes a solid solution for greece strengthening the financial sector effective financial backstops and stronger economic governance.
in the area of economic governance the role this house has played has been particularly significant. strengthening growth prospects has become ever more crucial for breaking the vicious circle that threatens macro financial stability and the recovery at the same time. this is one of the key messages of the two thousand and twelve annual growth survey.
secondly i am pleased in particular to note your call for the european council to tackle youth employment as a priority and for the member states to develop comprehensive strategies for young people who are not in employment education or training.
that is why parliament needs to make its voice heard in the process.
for. two thousand and twelve i agree with your analysis and the key message that it contains.
these and other pending initiatives would certainly go a long way in boosting growth.
plans. in particular they will look at how to step up the use of the structural funds and especially the european social fund but also how to make best use of other eu tools such as
for. two thousand and twelve the present employment guidelines meet their purpose in today's very difficult economic environment.
the ags has set out in concrete terms how the single market the eu budget and specific eu initiatives including project bonds can contribute to bolstering our growth potential. wherever accelerated treatment of legislative proposals is involved we certainly count on the support of the european parliament.
lastly i support your call for greater democratic legitimacy accountability and ownership.
way. thirdly i fully support your call to tackle poverty and social exclusion by laying the emphasis on groups with no or limited links to the labour market.
crisis. the commission believes that the emphasis must now be on implementing the employment guidelines and pushing ahead with the growth enhancing reforms they advocate.
path. but if we show discipline and resolve and strong reform implementation we will be able to turn around the potential negative spiral and work to propel ourselves forward and pull ourselves
at the heart of this crisis of confidence lies the potential negative feedback loop between financial sector vulnerabilities shaky confidence in sovereign debt sustainability and weak growth prospects.
there is no doubt that this is a difficult
eures. in my view this working method can also be seen as an embryo of an excessive unemployment procedure that would deploy and coordinate the national and eu level instruments in a more effective
they are broad and comprehensive enough to cover the priorities identified in this year's annual growth survey and in particular the need for growth enhancing reforms and job rich recovery. they also provide the policy framework needed to address some of the social consequences of the economic
and the thinking in this house. such a broad convergence of views is an important signal particularly in times of crisis.
let me just mention the proposed unitary eu patent agreement on the revision of the roaming regulation the pending revisions of the directives on annual accounts and increasing co financing rates for programme countries.
bers. i welcome your decision to approve the commission proposal to carry over the guidelines for the member states' employment policies being a core element of the european employment strategy and leave them unchanged
it has therefore set out the five priorities that you know and which your draft report endorses.
you stress that budgetary growth and employment measures need to be taken together as they are all interdependent;
the annual growth survey also sends strong policy messages to the european council to make social protection systems more effective and implement active inclusion strategies that entail labour market activation measures.
as stated clearly in the ags the commission considers that mobilising employment for growth employment of young people and protecting the vulnerable are key priorities.
in december as you know the commission adopted a youth opportunities initiative to prompt action in fighting youth unemployment.
i therefore appreciate the effort the house has made to adopt these reports in time to contribute to the discussion ahead of the spring european council.
to achieve all this the commission and the european union are pursuing a number of avenues that together form a comprehensive strategy.
on all these elements we have made considerable progress in recent months.
that. the focus needs to be simultaneously on measures having short term effect and on the ones advancing towards the right growth model in the medium term which is smart sustainable and inclusive growth. the guidance on member states' employment and economic policies should reflect this balanced approach.
ownership of europe two thousand and twenty in the context of the new governance is crucial for consensus and consensus is critical to the strategy's success.
firstly i strongly support your call to the european council to integrate in its policy guidance messages on the need to increase ambition to achieve the eu two thousand and twenty objectives and to support sustainable job creation with investment and tax reform.
while structural reforms achieve their ultimate objective only over the medium to long term a firm and committed implementation certainly sends out a strong signal to the market and contributes to building confidence already today.
however without stronger growth prospects it will be much more difficult to put public debt on a sustainable path. growth friendly consolidation and employment friendly growth are therefore essential elements of our crisis response which will be important for the guidance of member states' economic and employment policies to be issued on one
a more efficient eu single market as per the service directive is a growth driver with great potential. but we also need to combine consolidation and growth measures with green measures for instance a tax reform that shifts taxes away from labour towards energy consumption and pollution
we hope that in this presidency we can both take decisive steps out of the crisis by supporting responsible national economic policy and prevent new crises. the european semester was kicked off by the annual growth survey at the end of last year leading to the economic policy guidance to members to be adopted by the european spring council meeting.
second restoring normal lending to the economy.
fourth tackling unemployment and the social consequences of the crisis; and fifth modernising public administration. in particular growth friendly consolidation and reforms that increase labour supply productivity and competitiveness are of the utmost importance to restore confidence.
two thousand and twelve i think it is important to focus on the five priorities set out by the commission in the annual growth survey.
thus having the potential to stimulate economic activity while greening the economy.
first pursuing differentiated growth friendly fiscal consolidation.
unemployment is one of the most devastating consequences of any economic crisis because it has such a direct effect on citizens and youth in particular.
i will of course refer to the work of parliament when introducing the subject at the coming ecofin meeting on twenty one february when we will adopt council conclusions on the annual growth survey as an input to the spring european council.
at national level we need as mr gauzs's report stresses to pursue differentiated growth friendly fiscal consolidation.
a key word is implementation.
third promoting growth and competitiveness for today as well as for tomorrow.
but of course a number of these reforms will have medium term and long term effect and we have to focus on the short term as well.
in the last debate the danish presidency said that growth and employment were top priority;
i support the ftt but it should be on a europe wide basis and ideally it should be global.
as my colleague sylvie goulard said we are trying to impose stability by force.
part of the problem here is that we tend to be very black and white and we tend to define deficit as bad and surplus as good.
paragraph forty eight proposes a solution that the ilo should be involved in the financial assistance programmes.
this very good report by ms cornelissen provides us with a roadmap from the perspective of employment and social affairs.
right now solidarity means mutual self interest because a failure by any one country will have a massive and incalculable impact on all of us.
they also said that austerity is top priority. again and again that is the message we are getting but this report helps to redress the balance. finally this morning we heard many criticisms of the troika.
so as we try to grapple with the unthinkable sometimes it is easy to forget the day to day and to overlook the steps that we must take today and tomorrow to ensure that we achieve the targets set in the eu two thousand and twenty strategy.
i hope both the council and the commission will take that suggestion on board.
another issue which may cause concern and has been alluded to by many members here this morning is the call for member states with a current account surplus to contribute to a reduction in macroeconomic imbalances by increasing internal demand.
but the reality is they both cause imbalances and while there is a difference we cannot concentrate on one aspect only.
indeed these are words we do not hear often enough employment and social affairs because they are words that directly impact on the lives of citizens. there are some matters in this report that may cause certain problems for members of this house such as the financial transaction tax.
above all we must cut red tape if we want to create jobs and increase growth.
also we cannot support calls for a financial transaction tax or for eu funding in areas where member states have already decided to make cuts because these go against subsidiarity.
that was on black wednesday in one thousand nine hundred and ninety two but it should be remembered as freedom wednesday' for interest rates fell employment gradually recovered and we entered a period of economic growth. now that is the model you want.
remember the euro forerunner the erm?
set them and others free free to reorganise their own currency and to set their own interest rates.
my country was in that project;
finally interest rates went up to fifteen totally unsustainable but at least the government came to its senses and withdrew from the erm.
therefore the party of european socialists under its campaign your future is my future' has to put concrete solutions on the agenda.
if there is another rule which supersedes this and says a roll call can be decided by parliament would you please tell us what the number is.
have you received a request from the commission to make an urgent statement on the portuguese situation or not?
it is the prerogative of each institution to react.
needless to say i read the impact assessment and had the data been explicitly quoted i would not have needed to ask the commission for further information.
the increased safety requirements are of paramount importance given the vulnerability of bikers on our roads who account for a disproportionately high proportion of road accident fatalities but we also need to be able to explain the advantages of legislative reform to our constituents in a clear and grounded fashion.
earlier this year i asked the commission to provide me with detailed data on our benchmarks on the relative performance of anti lock braking systems on tar and chip road surfaces which are estimated by the irish department of transportation to account for eighty five of the total irish road network. in its response the commission simply referred me to its impact assessment which is based on scientific literature and post accident data.
if it is not about licence requirements and is based solely upon safety and environmental objectives why are bikes over forty eight horsepower exempt?
no impact assessment on the aftermarket part sales has been completed.
the overall process is of dubious democratic legality. there is a distinct lack of transparency surrounding legislation being pushed through having been rubber stamped without proportionate scrutiny from parliament ahead of the vote tomorrow. reasons of budgetary restrictions have been given by the commission for their manner of working.
however in light of this i would ask at the very least that the vote be postponed until the correct democratic procedure has been followed.
madam president there is significant concern regarding the justification of article eighteen which fails to provide any evidential basis for anti tampering or for powertrains on functional safety and environmental grounds.
if only fully type approved parts may be sold in future it could disproportionately affect smaller aftermarket producers who are unable to justify the cost of getting their products permitted.
what is being presented before parliament today has not been in the public domain nor in the necessary required languages for long enough to enable due consideration.
the decision reached through trialogue to exempt bikes over forty eight horsepower ties in with forthcoming driving licence directives yet the regulation does not clarify this.
the argument is somewhat circular.
the costs of these measures may far outweigh the expected benefits.
it has been estimated that for users of motorcycles in europe the proposal could inflict annual costs of up to eur.
these reports before us here tonight make vital steps to simplify legislation and to ensure that we are on the right path to making vehicles safer through internal harmonisation.
clearly road safety is the key concern in this debate yet it is important that when carrying out assessments of safety requirements we compare past country experiences in a thorough manner.
i have not seen a convincing case for the introduction of these tests for motorcycles.
so far as i am informed this decision has had no negative effective on swedish motorcycle accident statistics.
additionally sweden is the only country in scandinavia where periodic roadworthiness tests are mandatory for motorcycles. there was previously an annual test requirement for motorcycles older than ten years but this was changed in two thousand and four to biennial tests.
i want to take the opportunity in the presence of the commissioner to raise concerns about some aspects of the safety requirements that the commission is proposing through its roadworthiness package which was introduced in july. two thousand and twelve previously only four wheel vehicles had been subject to mandatory annual testing;
if we take the netherlands for example there they have one of the lowest annual rates of motorcycle accidents as i understand it yet they have no compulsory roadworthiness tests for motorcycles.
it was pointed out in a study co funded by the european commission that only about one of accidents involving motorcycles are caused or linked to technical defects.
now all two and three wheelers including motorcycles mopeds and scooters will come under the umbrella for periodic roadworthiness tests through the commission's proposal.
will mandatory testing for all motorcycles make a real impact on accidents statistics in europe?
we need to take a balanced approach on this especially in these difficult times where extra costs can be overwhelming for families and citizens. it is important that we lay down harmonised rules on the administrative and technical requirements for certain vehicles.
i want to particularly thank both the rapporteurs for their persistence in dealing with very substantial technical issues.
i note that mr manders wants to make them politically more exciting but these are actually really important dossiers for both industries which are going to set the pattern for a simplified and effective type approval system from now on.
in the case of motorcycles i think it is particularly important that we have brought the environmental and safety performance of motorcycles forward significantly.
also let us remember that other light three and four wheel vehicles were included in this category.
these vehicles are going to become more popular in urban environments and contribute to lower carbon transport and it was absolutely right to give them this framework. i want to thank wim van de camp in particular because he also ensured that the phasing in of those changes is handled in a sensible way and that we have
effective and cost efficient test methods.
but we now have a genuine european type approval system which will enable manufacturers and there are many smaller manufacturers in this area to present products for approval and they can be sold anywhere in the european union. i particularly welcome the fact that we are anticipating the development of higher speed tractors
now that we have more agricultural contracting so those are included.
i think my committee has handled this in an exemplary way and i will just conclude by saying to the commissioner that of course we are not finished yet.
the scrutiny of aspects of the delegated acts this is the first major package is something that we will give great attention to because we want to make absolutely sure that what is in these proposals is carried out satisfactorily and according to the needs of all the stakeholders.
is extra territorial jurisdiction for nationals; the removal of procedural hurdles and the prohibition of organising travel or advertising opportunities to abuse children. there is extensive assistance to protect the victims with an individual assessment of each child. there will be risk assessment for convicted offenders and intervention programmes as well as education awareness
training etc. to detect child sexual abuse. on images of sexual abuse of children on the internet we have agreement on the removal of web pages hosted in member states intended action to have them removed abroad and the possibility of blocking subject to transparent procedures. again i would like to thank the parliament for your true commitment to this. it has been a difficult journey but i think we have skilfully navigated in this complicated file. with this we show that our collective aim is to protect children and we do not tolerate children being used as objects to satisfy the sexual needs or greed of adults. thank you very much for your hard work in this.
of professionals as preventive measures. this directive equips us much better than the current one from. two thousand and four on the prosecution of offenders there are twenty criminal offences including new trends like grooming online webcam abuse web viewing child pornography; different levels of penalties from one year to ten years' imprisonment; the elimination of hurdles that may be set by statutes of limitation or confidentiality rules and special police units specially equipped to identify child victims which will be a very important investigative tool. on child tourism there
it has been said of this policy that it is unproven and that it potentially undermines freedom of information and communication on the internet. colleagues in law and in reality there is no such thing as an absolute right or freedom but instead each freedom is qualified and must be balanced against opposing freedoms.
secondly i support this proposal's aim to legislate for victims' rights.
the right to freely communicate does not preclude the need to protect the fundamental rights of children and minors.
madam president my constituency is suffering a hidden epidemic of sexual grooming so i appreciate the efforts of all those involved in producing this report.
it is not a matter of images it is a matter of real life degradation gang rape and even murder.
because of this deliberate downplaying of the problem on street grooming is not even a specific offence in many countries.
in my own constituency the family of charlene downs still waits for justice following the botched prosecution of those arrested over the grooming rape and murder of their little girl in.
the vast majority are as sickened by these things as we are but the playing down of the problem in reports like this aids the criminal minority and leaves new victims at risk.
two thousand and three despite their belief that sixty other girls had been groomed by the same gang and that charlene's body was disposed of in kebabs the police regarded their report as too sensitive to publish.
of course not all police officers are politically correct cowards any more than all muslims are groomers.
this undermines attempts to secure justice for the victims effective responses from the authorities and proper penalties for the perpetrators.
as a result the crime remains statistically virtually invisible.
the grassroots campaigners for the protection of children tell me that the report misses the most important target.
it is not offline it is on our streets.
i would like to conclude my remarks by referring to the comments made by the british prime minister recently at an event in london last week which i attended.