kfajdsl/voxpopuli huggingface dataset:
the future prosperity and well being of our citizens depend on a dynamic economy able to generate jobs and wealth by unleashing the creative energies of entrepreneurs and by stimulating the growth of successful businesses.
on the adoption of the stockholm programme we support the principle that the member states of the union must cooperate more to combat problems related to immigration cross border crime and terrorism.
the impact of reduced emissions may only be felt in several decades' time but we are already taking concrete steps giving our targets the force of law.
and let us not forget because it was a very important moment for this parliament following the unanimous designation by the european council we have seen the election by this parliament of the president of the next commission with a qualified majority.
the european council had a particular significance for climate change. in the past few years the european union has developed a consistent and ambitious approach on climate change.
what i did find generally encouraging was recognition that the european union has to stand together. let us hope that this determination holds firm under the pressures of the next two or three
and an agreement on how this is to be applied and verified if this agreement includes the different elements of the bali road map and can be seen to be in the right ball park to respect the two c limit then i think we will say rightly that it will be a major achievement.
on the economy we are keeping the right balance between maintaining the stimulus and preparing our exit strategies.
days? prime minister rasmussen of denmark will probably put forward a text today but with a lot of the key numbers still left blank.
i hope the european council will focus on the discussion of this very important agenda for the future of europe namely through discussions in the next meetings in the formal european council in february and in the spring european council.
there was a strong shared sense that everyone has an interest in the european union pulling its weight.
there were many other issues that were the object of the european council.
deal. this is why i am going to copenhagen immediately after this debate.
the developed world must act but it must also help the developing world to decouple growth and emissions.
we know that the atmosphere at the moment is not easy at copenhagen. we also know that this is part of the usual rhythm of a top negotiation.
it is particularly important that the swedish presidency has been so effective in ensuring the completion of the ratification process of the lisbon treaty managing the transition to this new treaty while achieving all the other objectives.
some of our partners are announcing their intentions by press statements;
i know that many in this parliament share our determination to use this springboard to seize the opportunities of the lisbon treaty for a step change in european action on freedom security and justice.
that was one of the major reasons why i decided to reorganise the portfolios of the next college in this area.
we are not there yet but i believe it is possible to reach that agreement.
on the stockholm programme the commission's proposals have now been translated into an agreed approach for the next five years.
i would therefore like to pay a very sincere tribute to prime minister fredrik reinfeldt and all the team of the swedish presidency for a highly successful presidency.
it is going to be one of the most important areas of the european union's work in the next five years.
the next few days will show whether the ambitions we have discussed in this parliament so often are going to be realised but i sense already that there is a compelling need for change and that we need to make this success in copenhagen.
i also welcome the ideas of having more political frank discussions and short and punchy conclusions.
the leaders' task will be to move this forward to a
i think that it is right that the european council last week centred on how we can put this global leadership at the service of an ambitious deal at copenhagen by promising help to developing countries not in some distant future but already next year; by making clear that the deal must be comprehensive and must have the verification mechanisms to make it stick;
i would like to highlight just some not forgetting one very important one the definition of the baltic strategy which can be a model for other regional cooperation inside the european union and with some of our partners.
by maintaining our readiness to up our targets but only if others put ambitious commitments on the table as well.
days. what can we expect over the next few
however the arrival of so many heads of state or government will be a powerful driver to reach a
let us be frank about this.
i am very proud that the commission has been the initiator of this very ambitious agenda.
stake. there is of course a balance to be found but there is also a sense that today's generation knows that there is a challenge which cannot be avoided.
we should now be getting the benefits from the investment we have made as the pioneers in this agenda.
a clear commitment on financing to make this happen;
we have seen the first evidence that decisive action taken to stabilise the european economy in the face of crisis is bearing some results.
it is a global problem and we need a global solution.
so we need americans on board we need chinese on board we need indians on board.
this is the last time we will have a president of the european council only for six months so it was the end of many years of european union work.
that is why we are telling others that we can negotiate with each other.
that cannot be done only by europe because europe is responsible for about fourteen of global emissions and the trend is to go down in relevant terms.
show me one relevant player or a group of countries that have committed as far as we have been committing ourselves.
so let us be honest with each other.
and i can say that in all those meetings we were the ones asking them to come with more important offers.
so let us ask others to do something similar to our effort.
finally we can move forward to a europe for the citizen by the citizen.
i also would like to welcome the asylum support office which is an important and concrete step towards meeting the concerns of countries that want to fight illegal immigration while at the same time providing for a more humane migration policy.
i would like to point to the fact that we have opened up the process of enlargement by the agreement between slovenia and croatia which is important for croatia but also in the perspective of the western balkans and their ongoing future process of enlargement.
this is one of the strengths of the european union but it is also an opportunity for all of us.
i think it is also important to point to the fact that during this presidency and while we are standing here the european union is for the first time a leading global actor in one of the most important international issues mankind is facing. this is new and it gives great responsibilities for the future
however successful we are the job will not be finished but it underlines the great responsibilities of the european union.
please respect us as well.
madam president yes i think we need to stand by the burundian people just because the situation is so complicated and so disastrous there.
that means specifically that of course we have to consider the consultations under article ninety six of the cotonou agreement and a range of appropriate measures which could be taken including individual measures and of course looking at all financial assistance.
that is why we have to support the regional and african union efforts to improve the political climate and get consensus on how to make elections work.
i fully understand your concerns and i am open to your proposals.
last month commissioner mimica reminded us that the eu is a major donor to burundi a country which comes one hundred and eightieth out of one hundred and eighty seven on the human development index.
he has been working with my other colleagues.
that is what we are here to talk about.
commissioner i apologise to you as well on behalf this house because you have come here to give us a very good statement a very clear statement which covers all the essential aspects of the situation in burundi. since we last spoke about it things are clearly not better.
as chair of the committee on development i have received first hand information from people on the ground about what is happening about the human rights abuses about the youth militias linked to the government which are causing violence about the intimidation and all the issues that our colleagues have spoken about and about the real hardship and the suffering that is being caused by the instability
there are a few weeks now to put things right.
this is a time for burundi. i would like to honour the bravery and resilience of the journalists of the independent newspapers especially the ones from the weekly magazine iwacu that declared in their editorial that they must resist never mind their destroyed newsrooms or their fleeing or murdered colleagues.
the economic crisis has exposed the euro as a misconceived and politically motivated currency agreement one that has brought together countries of unequal economic strength and then straitjacketed them until the livelihoods of their people are crushed.
citizens in seeing economic growth rightly ask why their taxes are being used as a lifeline for foreign collapsing economies.
our situation in the uk is similar to germany's only worse. the uk has high unemployment very high and growing youth unemployment and rising energy costs.
so called green energy policies which are pushed by the european commission are killing and restricting potential growth areas such as shale gas which can provide jobs and cheap energy and in which the uk should be a world leader.
the outlook is bleak with no industrial recovery.
thirty years ago it was more than twice that.
the real reason for the euro zone is to enforce ever closer union but it seems to have the reverse effect.
madam president in the final three months of two thousand and twelve the united kingdom's economy shrank by.
across the euro area no one is expecting to see any kind of growth this year.
i would like to propose that we extend that protection to manufactured goods that exploit a geographic area as a brand. a good example of this is waterford crystal which is a household name for its exceptional craftsmanship art and quality both in ireland and abroad.
surely we can balance the interests of workers communities with those of companies that wish to invest in and profit from that heritage through a system of geographical denomination for certain manufactured goods.
today however i would like to ask the commissioner for his view on a simple and concrete step we could take to forestall the erosion of our industrial base and even to recover some sustainable jobs.
the european union already grants legal protection to agricultural products and traditional foodstuffs originating from specific geographical areas.
after the traumatic closure of the waterford crystal factory in two thousand and nine and the loss of six hundred jobs the equity firm that acquired the company relocated the bulk of production abroad but still banks on the worldwide renown and prestige owed to generations of skilled waterford crystal workers over the centuries.
therefore liberals welcome the signs that an industrial policy is emerging the renewed focus on ftas to secure market access the plan for a connecting europe facility to create networks for transport and energy and information technology to underpin competitiveness the investment in research and innovation such as last week's announcements on graphene and on human brain mapping or the investment in the national composites centre in my constituency.
commissioner as you gather in grenoble convince your ministers not to allow their heads of state and government to cut deeply into the budgets for these things in their search for budgetary savings.
madam president europe's citizens owe a debt of gratitude to the many entrepreneurs who have shown the vision and the courage the guts and the grit to keep parts of our industry competitive in times of epochal change and to keep people in jobs.
focus on our investments for the future.
the absence of an industrial policy or at least of a coherent consensus on competitiveness has hitherto hampered rather than helped their efforts.
rather sow in their minds the vision of what europe can achieve if the genius of a free people can be nurtured and nourished.
the commission can protect jobs and save one of europe's oldest manufacturing industries but so far the commission has refused to throw cane refiners a lifeline.
it must help european consumers by including sugar cane imports in its plans to reduce the soaring cost of sugar and it must help cane refiners by ensuring a level playing field for them and beet processors.
as long as the han chinese population of tibet is increasing the tibetans have every right to feel intimidated. the intention of the chinese authorities to introduce mandarin chinese as the primary language of instruction in schools violates the rights of the indigenous people of tibet. i would like to see that violation brought up and resolved as a priority item within eu policy towards the prc.
it pains me to see the people of tibet repressed and their language identity culture and religion condemned to extinction.
in the words of aristotle it is not about outward appearance but about inward significance.
culture when used as a tool to impose values and to wash out diversity and freedom of expression is like a weapon.
it is therefore a very troubling development that mandarin chinese has been introduced as the main language of education and official documents for tibetans.
if china intends to wash out the tibetan culture this way it is acting against its own stated intentions of harmonious relations among the countless cultures ethnicities and identities the country knows.
the chinese authorities should also allow access to tibet by foreign media without the need for special permits and allow uncensored communications and access to information also on the internet throughout the entire country.
madam president we are discussing an issue which exists in almost all countries where minorities live namely the preservation of a language culture and equal access to education.
our strategic partnership is strong which permits us to tackle all issues including the most sensitive ones.
we have constructed an impressive framework of high level interactions where we regularly address the global challenges that our citizens are facing without however neglecting the issues where our views may differ.
the moves to institute chinese as the main language of instruction in tibetan areas raise complex and sensitive issues.
china needs to strike the right balance so as to allow the effective instruction and preservation of the tibetan language as a living language for maintaining education in the tibetan language and as the mother tongue in tibetan areas while at the same time teaching chinese in parallel to give tibetan students decent chances of future employment.
we sincerely hope that china will ensure that tibetan is used as the main language of instruction in schools in tibetan areas and ensure the protection of minority languages in the other parts of china in the same way. seeking the view of experts and avoiding discrimination and the influence of ideology are good recipes for the way forward.
the eu is ready to share its expertise should china so decide.
affected by any changes to language policy to freely express their opinions which would have to be taken into account.
the preservation of tibet's unique culture language religion and traditions and the need to achieve a system of meaningful autonomy for tibet within the chinese constitution remains a top priority for the eu.
i would also like to particularly thank commissioner almunia and his team for our constructive work together. i very much welcome the fact that the two thousand and twelve european commission competition report celebrates and focuses on the eu single market and its twentieth anniversary.
one six trillion of state aid and public guarantees the banking sector in europe is still not working properly.
the eu rail market is not functioning properly due to incorrect or incomplete transposition of community law by member states.
i believe it is not the consequence of market forces and my guess is that some sort of cartel is behind it.
finally on the google case i have two questions for the commissioner regarding the procedure.
we have also continued our action in technology markets especially in areas such as e books standard essential patents for mobile phones as well as in the field of online search for which a second set of commitment proposals by google is being market tested with stakeholders. just to answer the precise question raised by mr tremosa
referring to social services i can confirm that it is for member states to determine the scope and quality of services of general interest such as social housing. social housing is a public service that enjoys preferential treatment under specific state aid rules for services of general economic interest.
first of all i want to welcome your positive reaction to the new banking communication we issued last august.
as you are already working on the proposal i will not go into details.
we are preparing practical and focused guidelines in this regard.
we cleared twelve cases with commitments and approved almost two hundred cases without conditions.
all the main elements of the package should be in place during the first part of two thousand and fourteen and the new system will respond better to today's challenges and will be easier to comply with.
i have taken a great interest in this. i am not entirely sure that cap reform will fundamentally change a key issue of concern that i have and which is shared by others an unfair food supply chain with a concentration of power at one end in the retail sector and a disparate number of producers at the other end.
i would also say that in the energy sector where we want a market in energy there are concerns in member states about proposals for export of energy in my country specifically wind energy.
this is causing concern among citizens which may detract from our overall objective of a single market.
turning now to what concrete activities we have undertaken the high representative has made three statements deeply regretting the use of the death penalty in indonesia and the european union has worked closely together with the member states which have nationals on death row.
indonesia as a successful example of transition to democracy has a particularly important role in south east asia.
the european union regards the abolition of the death penalty as essential for the protection of human dignity as well as for the progressive development of human rights.
any miscarriage of justice which is inevitable in any legal system is irreversible. these latest executions are particularly outrageous since according to the united nations drug offences do not meet the definition of serious crimes.
this is a top eu foreign policy objective and priority in our external human rights policy.
ninety seven as of december two thousand and twelve one hundred and forty countries more than two thirds of the countries of the world were abolitionist in law or practice.
we have also offered political support and practical assistance in combating the trade in narcotics and other criminal activities which pose challenges to indonesian society and beyond.
we also intend to launch shortly a regional awareness campaign entitled moving away from the death penalty in south east asia' which will be led by local civil society organisations and individuals. i also know that honourable members of this house have been active in trying to persuade the indonesian government of the need to abolish the death penalty and in efforts to prevent further executions.
the high representative vice president has called on the indonesian authorities to stop all pending executions and move towards a definitive moratorium.
the irony is that these executions have been carried out in the full democratic glare of a country that is arguably one of the freest and most democratic countries in south east asia with a powerful and active parliament and a vibrant and dynamic civil society. it has been agonising for the prisoners and their families as the events unfolded in slow motion.
five asian countries have abolished the death penalty bhutan cambodia nepal mongolia and the philippines.
not only has the european union along with australia strongly appealed to the authorities not to go ahead with the executions the eu also offered assistance to the indonesian authorities in tackling drug trafficking.
punishing convicted criminals can be done in more humane ways and must always be preceded by a fair trial.
we call for a halt to all pending executions in indonesia.
colleagues it is quite ironic and actually shameful that on the day that we heard the appalling news of indonesia's executions viktor orbn whose party still remains a member of the ppe group suggested that the death penalty would be reinstated in hungary.
such proposals are entirely inappropriate. as mr orbn knows very well the death penalty is banned in europe.
i think we should be proud of that as well as of our international efforts to end the death penalty to limit its application and to seek countries putting a moratorium on this cruel and inhumane punishment.
we have set the bar as europe and intend to keep it rising as liberal democracies.
it would strengthen the voice of democracies in making appeals to countries such as indonesia if the united states would stand side by side with europe and would also outlaw the death penalty.
we will and we must continue our efforts globally by working with governments and civil society organisations to ensure that the death penalty will soon belong to the past.
let me assure you that the european union remains fully committed to engage in indonesia with the government local campaigners and other stakeholders to work for the abolition of the death penalty in indonesia. to this end we will make full use of the various instruments at our disposal statements demarches and dialogue to make our voices heard but also to listen and understand some of the obstacles to change so as to address them more effectively.
national parliaments play an essential role in bringing the union closer to the people by both scrutinising the activity of their own government at european level and engaging with the european institutions.
the commission is open to discussing these issues with national parliaments on how to improve our working arrangements on the subsidiarity control mechanism.
but it is important for people to know who did what and why.
given the dynamism of the political dialogue i do not see any need for creating a formal process that could be difficult to reconcile with the current treaties' provisions.
the european union is often blamed for imposing rules and burdens which do not derive from eu legislation but from national legislation and when transposing directives national parliaments should take responsibility and explain to the people when elements are added which go beyond the requirements of eu union law.
i would like to stress that the commission is always happy to discuss ideas from new eu initiatives from national parliaments as part of the political dialogue.
these were on food waste and on corporate social responsibility.
we recognise that sometimes gold plating can be positive for example to improve coherence with or the performance of national law.
i also agree with the report's assessment that national parliaments of an important role to play to curb gold plating of eu legislation by member states.
the task force on subsidiarity proportionality and doing less more efficiently is currently reflecting on how to improve the practical functioning of this mechanism.