kfajdsl/voxpopuli huggingface dataset:
i think yemen is the first country that is expected to run out of water by about two thousand and fifteen something which we have to see as a real and significant challenge.
in order to address this we have to look at an integrated approach;
i was reflecting on the fact that over the period two thousand and seven two thousand and ten eur one hundred million have been spent by the commission in support and a similar amount will be spent in the future but nonetheless an area where we have reflected again on the importance of sustainable and coordinated effort as many
let me try and outline a few of the key elements of that first of all the issues of security and counter terrorism.
i think that mrs salafranca's comments at the beginning have been picked up and reflected again in a number of contributions about how we can make sure that our coordination is effective in terms of security in terms of the political and economic coming together to address the concerns that this nation
it is not true to say that their approach is confined to counterterrorism they also support and are fully on board with what we describe as our root causes' approach again the mixture of things which we need to do to ensure that we support this country.
the london meeting is that opportunity of course to pull together our thinking and to do so with the united states and with others.
helping yemen to have the type of dialogue it needs to have internally in order to support the people and to try and resolve some of the conflicts which occur in that country is going to be just as significant in my view as anything else we do.
in addition the eu considers that there is no military solution for the crisis in the area.
at the same time washington has signed the agreement with the yemeni authorities on closer military cooperation. so i would appreciate your opinion and the position of the european union on the decision by the americans to engage more actively in yemen to fight terrorists
to pour money into training more people but i think that this is not sufficient as an approach at least it is not a crisis response unless we accept the concept of permanent crisis. i think we should push for greater involvement by the gulf cooperation council in yemen not just saudi arabia. we need this organisation to bring together the various yemeni parties the government the opposition southern secessionists houthis and regional actors in some kind of peace like process and i think that should be supported and financed by the stability instrument for example;
if we have another csdp mission and another round of stability instrument training without a political process leading somewhere i do not think it will help us.
population growth is one of the main concerns in those countries and as we all know we will not solve that issue until we have family planning and that means women's rights.
the weapons and the instructors were destined for the houthi rebels.
to make three or more is an indication of stupidity insanity or deliberate mischief making.
yemen is now being called the new afghanistan.
it should bring the troops home to work on homeland security to protect our populations and infrastructures.
special attention has also been given to new media mainly internet websites defining clear safeguards developing mechanisms for the monitoring of contents and ensuring specific provision for proper enforcement.
there is no objective reason to exclude such materials from the provision covering other contents especially when we know that doctors are the most trusted sources of information to patients.
i will therefore personally vote against amendment eighty eight and i hope coherence will guide our voting position in order to maintain the major improvement that this report would bring to the commission proposal.
the alde group welcomes this report which finally sets a clear framework for the provision of information to patients on medicinal products.
i would also like to make a personal point with regard to the materials provided to healthcare professionals for distribution to patients.
we need to create awareness among citizens about the use of the information currently available.
i support colleagues here who say that we should not advertise products and would say to the companies involved that communicating quality information to consumers is the best form of advertising because if a product works for the citizen then that is a clear message that it will be used where it is required.
this often does not happen in the best possible way.
this is very dangerous and we need to have much more rigorous assessment of how patients are cared for on a regular basis.
madam president how often do we wonder about the side effects of medicines we are taking?
how often do we wish for more information on products and illnesses?
this report deals with these questions and the need the public has for information.
this was achieved by a ban on direct consumer advertising for prescription only medicines. in addition an important issue was the recognition of the national competent authority and healthcare professionals as the main source of information.
again this was achieved.
the information to patients directive sends a strong message on the rights of patients.
i congratulate the rapporteur on tackling a difficult dossier and producing a comprehensive directive which i hope we will all support unitedly.
but today the availability of information on medicines in europe is very diverse you could even say very unfair.
whether patients obtain the relevant information depends on languages it skills and often even social class and networks.
we have to ensure that we do not drift into direct to consumer advertising which patients clearly do not want.
this will allow the commission to accept many of your key amendments when we present our modified proposals.
this is a very important change.
secondly as regards what information is published i generally agree that information should not cover comparisons between medicinal products as this could be seen as promotional.
i also share the view that the proposals should concern the information made available by industry and not by third parties such as journalists and scientists.
however we know that there is a grey zone which leaves room for abuse.
i therefore believe that such parties should be obliged to declare whether they have received financial or other benefits from industry.
we must avoid corroborating inequalities by excluding those who do not use digital communication tools from access to medical information.
fourthly on the control of information i agree that information which has not already been approved during the marketing authorisation process must be pre approved by competent authorities as a matter of principle.
however i believe that europe should play close attention to the constitutional concerns that some member states raise as regards the compatibility of pre vetting with freedom of expression.
several of parliament's amendments concern information from sources other than industry sources.
in this context let me stress that i fully agree with the political ambition to place the proposals on industry generated information on medicines which we are discussing today in a broader and more comprehensive agenda on patient information.
the commission is already obliged to draft a report on the readability of the package leaflet. therefore any changes regarding this issue would be premature.
nor is it feasible to introduce for each clinical study mentioned in the summary of the european public assessment report a link to the eurydice database on clinical trials.
a general link between databases would suffice. the public summary of the assessment report should not be annexed to the european marketing authorisation as it is already publicly available through the ema website.
what we lack is interlinkage between them.
in this context i fully recognise the need for broader information about diseases and their prevention.
patients are interested in all different treatment options not just learning about medicines.
however this cannot be addressed through the present proposals which focus on medicines.
i see our role as connecting other reliable information providers such as member states or patient organisations.
honourable members you will not be surprised that there are some amendments that the commission after careful reflection cannot support.
the right of citizens to lodge complaints for example is a fundamental eu principle.
it is neither appropriate nor necessary to restate this.
a list of the commission's positions on all the proposed amendments has been made available to parliament.
at the same time a broader debate is currently taking place on the future governance of the emu of which the fiscal policy coordination is a part.
at present a review of the implementation of the fiscal compact by member states is ongoing.
according to this report all contracting member states have significantly adapted their national fiscal frameworks as a result of the fiscal compact requirements but the council has not yet been in a position to address the issue of integrating the treaty on stability coordination and governance into eu law.
in romania the debt to gdp ratio has increased by four percentage points from thirty seven to forty one of gdp in less than two years and structural deficit has increased from.
only by maintaining a balanced budget can a country increase its resilience in order to face an economic downturn or a financial crisis.
in the case of any country that does not comply with the provisions the commission or any other country can take the case to the court of justice.
the last step is the imposition of sanctions. these current developments in any member state highlight the importance of respecting eu fiscal rules and the importance of imposing them on governments that sometimes work only for short term objectives. otherwise who will carry the burden of the increasing deficit and debt in any member state?
two thousand and eighteen the committee on constitutional affairs is concerned with the institutional aspects of the incorporation of the substance of the treaty in the eu framework and we have been investigating this issue for quite some time.
there is also substance that is already or can be incorporated through secondary legislation but there is also substance that most likely would require treaty change and this is about the key provisions of the treaty.
there is in the treaty the substance that is not necessary or suitable to be incorporated because the provisions relate to the intergovernmental nature of the treaty and have no substantial content or duplicate existing legislation but also concern elements that could be established within another framework.
so we are awaiting the december proposal with a sort of curiosity especially in the context of the declaration of the president of the commission that no treaty change is on the union's agenda.
now we have it in the commission work programme;
it was the european parliament that insisted on this specific clause contained in article sixteen which requires the substance of the treaty to be incorporated into the legal framework of the union before january.
their incorporation into union law would bring greater democratic accountability and legitimacy across the union.
first specific measures undertaken to comply with the fiscal compact vary from country to country with different degrees of commitment and effectiveness.
moreover many member states do not generate progress towards their medium term objectives at a sufficient speed.
its objective was to strengthen budgetary discipline across the eu with the introduction of more effective and stricter fiscal rules including independent monitoring the automatic corrective mechanism transposition of a balanced budget rule into national legislation and swifter sanctions for non compliance.
first we need to make sure that its transposition into member states' legislation leads to stronger national ownership and better compliance with the rules.
and third the revised and improved fiscal compact should be incorporated into the primary law of the eu to give it more legal clout and make it binding for all member states.
if you spend more than you get then you either need to reform and spend less or reform and earn more. a third alternative is of course to borrow money and if you borrow money then your deficit will increase and your debt will increase.
the rules we have are important but reality is the really worrisome thing because if you are increasing your deficit and cannot finance your public spending then it is the deficit and the increased deficit
in recent times have nearly not been able to finance the public spending not because of the rules but because of reality.
cause problems either for yourself or for someone else.
the rules are there in order to hinder the road to austerity.
that is creating the austerity not the rules.
that is why in solidarity and in respect for others you need to have stability in your economy.
i say this because reality is much more important than the rules.
the first lesson is that this treaty is also about coordination and governance.
when they are involved in discussing the national reform programmes and the countryspecific recommendations.
but overall we need an interinstitutional agreement to set the rules for real democratic governance of the emu.
finally on fiscal discipline let me be clear of course we need common fiscal discipline in the eurozone to make it sustainable but it is also clear that in order to have this common fiscal discipline if we do not want to hinder growth and growth potential we need to complement
mr president the economic and monetary union needs improvement in the areas of stability convergence and governance. we do not only need to put in check public deficits which in most member states are now under control.
we also need to reduce the excessively high debt levels to free money to invest in the future.
we also need to keep public spending under control so as not to overburden future generations and we need to cater for future crises by not over spending in economic good times so we have sufficient buffers in case the next crisis comes from the us.
moreover the economic policies in the union need to be more closely coordinated to generate positive spill over effects and to enhance competitiveness in all member states.
we need a coordinated effort in modernising and reforming economies to create jobs and growth and face global competition.
the union has created so many new institutions structures and procedures partly under union law partly on an intergovernmental basis but not all of these new creatures have an equivalent counterpart holding them accountable.
if we want our citizens to have greater acceptance of the decisions that are taken at eu or indeed national level we need to make sure that those can be effectively scrutinised as many of these issues can be addressed if the fiscal compact were to be transposed into union law.
it is not without flaws and some of its provisions may need amendments but overall my group is strongly in favour of transposing the treaty on stability convergence and governance to the greatest extent possible into the union law in order to strengthen the principle of sound public finances
a single member state could veto this move to enshrine this failed model into the treaties but will any government in the eu have the courage to say that the german model does not work for us?
the failed austerity model has caused the rise of the far right in europe.
if we do not do so the eu's political and economic crisis will become a political and economic catastrophe.
i agree in general that as a european union we must work more on the early parts of the conflict cycle which means early warning conflict prevention and preventive diplomacy.
however we will try to reinforce the early prevention side in the future.
therefore this is very important and the promotion of human rights is also a part of this equation.
this is also recognised in our two thousand and eight report on european security strategy that we both mentioned before.
i believe this european approach is a core element of our strategy to promote peace and security in our neighbourhood but also beyond.
it works but it must be adequately resourced so we have to work on building our capacities and capabilities in both the civilian and military fields and we will try at least to play our part as much as we can.
the munich conference on security confirmed the comprehensive approach because security and development go together you cannot have one without the other.
all appropriations under the cfsp budget have been committed.
furthermore the ess report recognises that without development and poverty eradication there will be no sustainable peace.
from the commission side one initiative we are taking in this field is to strengthen links with ngos as part of a peacebuilding partnership and also improving our uses of open sources of information.
however until now there was no member in both organisations willing to give up the nato security guarantee even if the eu is putting weight behind its defence and security effort and has introduced its equivalent of article five of the washington treaty the solidarity clause in the lisbon treaty. to my mind the relationship between nato and the eu the most important component of the larger transatlantic relationship should be one that is naturally complementary and mutually advantageous to two partners who are compelled to work together in responding to today's multiplying and increasingly complex challenges.
for that the report has been amended and hopefully the end result has become acceptable to many of us.
new ones see the proposal for an eu operational headquarters should be contemplated;
and most important mutual perceptions should be definitely improved. thus on the one hand one should stop considering nato as an adversary and on the other the eu as an appendix to nato.
to that effect existing mechanisms see the berlin plus agreements could be improved;
obstacles see the negative impact of the cyprus problem should be overcome;
so in discussing nato's important role in european defence it is fair to remember that the eu has not yet put the necessary pressure on turkey to get its nato invasion army out of cyprus unconditionally and immediately. do you not agree with me mr solana?
perhaps he is not listening.
what we are adding in our approach in parliament is that it gives more legitimacy which means it gives more
do the citizens value this foreign policy?
is it enough?
is there more convergence between institutions like parliament council the commission and member states?
there our goal is to contribute to the reduction of poverty and facilitate economic development.
this requires bringing together the best mix of eu policy instruments from esdp operations to conflict prevention and crisis response measures through the instrument for stability development assistance humanitarian aid or democracy and human rights tools.
i think we will have to work in that direction.
since two thousand and seven the commission has embarked on a new programme reforming the justice sector.
for instance the need for a functioning eu internal energy market for interconnection and infrastructure projects for the development of mechanisms to handle supply crises and for the eu to have a strong external energy policy is now clear and we support this broad approach.
we have trained six hundred police experts on civilian crisis management in line with un training standards so that the robustness the flexibility and the interoperability of the eu police elements have been improved.
up to now a total of eur one hundred and twenty million out of a eur five hundred million package from two thousand and eight to two thousand and ten has been provided to the government.
let me conclude with a few words on a particular element of the commission's contribution to the eu crisis response namely the instrument for stability.
i would like to say that javier solana's services and my own worked very well together on the report on the european security strategy and i believe that this shows in the result.
commission is also the main paymaster for the running costs of the afghan police over eur two hundred million to date since.
furthermore we are supporting the training of eight hundred and fifty chadian police by the un mission minurcat through the instrument for stability with eur ten million. we are also facilitating the voluntary return of chadian idps and refugees and providing eur thirty million in humanitarian assistance.
in the ess report it is rightly said that the links between internal and external eu policies have become more pronounced which is clearly essential when we are considering issues such as energy security and climate change or the focus on the security and development nexus
the first two years of the new instrument have been successful both in terms of budget implementation operational quality and political coordination with council and parliament.
i think this is the right approach and it needs to be pursued systematically each time the eu is faced with a new crisis. this flexibility in our policy mix is emphasised in the report on the european security strategy of last december and referred to in all three reports that we have before us.
and recognition of the importance of long term poverty reduction as a means to reducing security threats.
the report reflects well the new security challenges the eu faces and gives a broad definition of security.
not only do we need to speak with one voice but we also need to act together in a coherent and coordinated way.
i would like to add and i think it is a very important point for instance on afghanistan that we also need to ensure that the terms and conditions of service for seconded staff from member states and contracted staff are sufficiently attractive to bring forward qualified candidates in sufficient numbers to staff our missions.
in afghanistan we have given a prominent place to security sector reform and governance within our overall assistance strategy.
with regard to energy security it is clear that we have lessons to draw.
and on esdp related training for civilian response teams.
in addition to ongoing assistance we will this year prepare a study which should identify means to advance kosovo's political and socio economic development and its progress towards integration with the european union.
on our values and principles and has been linked to un objectives.
affirmations that a common defence policy now taken as a given and what is called the eu's strategic autonomy require an integrated european armed force and demands for an autonomous and permanent eu operational headquarters
along with demands for equivalence with nato leave no room for doubt but that under our common foreign and security policy those pushing the european project demand not just political power but also
military power all of which must come from diminishing the powers the rights and the independence of the member states.
so the problem is that we avoided this discussion.
they have to speak estonian b one which is enough to study at university in any foreign country.
so i will use the opportunity and just say it is not true that these people vote for putin.
in the end i think we can do better.
citizens often turn to the committee as a last resort because they feel that they have exhausted all other avenues and we i mean both the commission and parliament can demonstrate that we listen to their concerns and take them seriously by offering proper responses and showing existing solutions at european or national level.
i am therefore pleased to reaffirm the commitment of the commission to keep up our good collaboration and to bring forward the eu added value in the resolution of petitioners' concerns.
as the report points out our institutions have built good working relationships in recent years when it comes to handling petitions.
however this needs to be done while respecting confidentiality obligations towards member states in infringement procedures as recognised by the european court of justice.