kfajdsl/voxpopuli huggingface dataset:
for many of our member states the support they receive from the union budget is essential if they are to have a chance of beating the crisis in other words it determines whether those countries will have a real opportunity to invest for growth and
a youth employment initiative would be a powerful signal of solidarity and of value added at european
nor will we neglect civil society.
so today i appeal to all heads of state and government to bridge their differences and come to brussels in a spirit of compromise and european responsibility so that this political agreement can be found. further delays will send out a very negative message at this time of fragile economic recovery. the risk is that positions will harden and that the differences will be even more difficult to overcome.
for all these reasons we believe it is important to have an mff but not every agreement is a good agreement.
we are by far the world's largest trading power and we use our weight to shape world trade so as to reap the maximum benefits from globalisation but if we are to benefit as fully as possible we must pursue a strategic forward looking approach to our international trade relations.
and we expect to complete negotiations with canada in the near future with we hope india to follow.
as i have said before the international community has a responsibility to stop the bloodshed.
tunisia has held elections and approved a new constitution without major turmoil the president of tunisia will be with you in this house later today to discuss the progress his country has made but in egypt the process of transition continues to be polarised.
we need to address these issues in our economic and structural policies particularly in the framework of the ongoing reforms for competitiveness. we must also ensure that our commitment to open markets will continue to be underpinned by our capacity to act against anti competitive trade practices via the appropriate trade instruments.
all. of course i will also underline the need for the social dimension with appropriate funding not only for the european social fund and the youth employment initiative but also for the globalisation adjustment fund and the programme of aid for the most deprived.
if we are to achieve this we must be proactive and ambitious.
we have proposed an ambitious trade and mobility agenda and concrete sectoral support.
for. under these circumstances it is even more vital that the quality of the budget is
democracy will not come overnight and the path to achieving it will not be a straight one. the mass movements across the region were about desire for democracy and freedom.
jobs. the mff is also an expression of solidarity.
mr president honourable members my position has always been to strike the right balance between ambition and realism and that is what the original proposal by the commission stands
in the past two years we have mobilised eur six hundred million of fresh funding for programmes in the region.
negotiations with singapore have been completed;
we will be especially attentive to the observance of fundamental rights notably the rights of women.
there are some member states which do not even have the resources to take care of the most deprived.
death. moreover our external relations budget goes a long way to determining the leverage the european union will have in many parts of the
this is a historic opportunity for democracy and freedom.
yes we need stable public finances and yes we need deep structural reform for competitiveness but european investment is also needed especially in areas where a euro invested at european level adds more value than a euro invested nationally.
next mff. i continue to believe that an agreement is
i have been exploring this directly with president obama and the united states administration for some time and i am sure that a transatlantic free trade agreement will bring even greater benefits from our single most important economic relationship.
in libya there are still security concerns and of course we have the extremely dramatic situation in syria. syria remains a stain on the world's conscience.
market. most heads of state and government will naturally be focusing on their national priorities and on what they see as their national envelopes and i have to tell you that in my experience most of the governments have more to say about their national envelopes than about the european perspective.
we cannot turn the eu budget into a deficit budget.
but we are not unreasonable. if we do not accept let us see it as an invitation to serious negotiations.
we hear rumours of an extra eur fifteen billion cut on top of what was announced in november.
still my group has five modest claims.
firstly an overall level that corresponds to our responsibilities decided by the council itself the lisbon treaty the eu two thousand and twenty strategy the millennium development goals and the jobs and growth pact.
we could live with a real terms freeze.
but that is false! no member state calling for these cuts has reduced its own budget down to two thousand and five levels and has certainly not taken any decision to maintain that level up to.
without progress on these points i do not think our parliament can accept the council's proposals.
in this tough situation let us find a common way to strengthen the union not weaken it.
a binding mid term revision is a minimum requirement.
thankfully it looks as though that is not going to happen and we have seen in france the country we are in now what happens when politicians think that the best answer to their problems is more state intervention more government funded programmes and more government and state administration.
instead we will probably come away with the result that most of heads of government feel that they can sell most likely with a freeze on payment.
yet again i call on our president to raise it in his speech to eu leaders this thursday and perhaps with his new best friend president hollande.
that will grow enormously with the european budget and we cannot in all seriousness stand here in strasbourg this icon of eu profligacy and say that there is no money that can be saved in the eu budget.
and that is the crux of the eu's budget.
instead we need a better budget which prioritises our challenges at the expense of the enormous amount of fat that can be very easily trimmed from the budget.
if we focus on the problems of today and tomorrow instead we could freeze the budget and still see significantly better results for our taxpayers.
what could be worse than just maintaining the status quo in spending?
now we have heard as usual a lot of vitriol thrown at the council today not least by joseph daul who i think as president hollande reminded us yesterday seems to forget that it is many of his own prime minsters from the epp group that are pushing for reductions in the eu budget.
if we had asked those presidents where they thought the eu budget would be spent by two thousand and twenty would they honestly say that we would still be spending forty of it on agriculture?
our leaders should of course have seized the opportunity to sit down have a serious discussion about where the eu delivers value where it spends money badly and where money we all know is being blatantly wasted.
it looks like any agreement if we get one will be a fudge a muddle a botch as usual a continuation of funding schemes that belong in another century.
it seems that one thing is now clear and to this extent i agree with many of the other speakers once again the eu is going to miss the opportunity to fundamentally reform its spending.
the continuation of the principle that first we set the budget and then we find ever more imaginative ways to spend taxpayers' money and to spend that budget.
the reality is that today's budget would be remarkably familiar to people like roy jenkins gaston thorn and commissions of the past.
we are continuing to fund policies that may have made sense in the twentieth century as well as trying to spend money on the problems of the twenty first century.
it would be to leave the eu spending unreformed and then give ourselves new tax raising powers and own resources.
the matriarch of his own political family chancellor merkel is asking for budgetary restraint.
of course i know that the costs of coming here and maintaining this building are a drop in the ocean in the context of the total eu budget but it would do us an enormous amount of credit if we can show that we can really shake off this expensive relic of the past.
the debate around the eu budget is symptomatic of all the things that need to change in the eu and we need to stop thinking that only a bigger budget will solve the many problems of europe.
yet the issue of strasbourg does not even get raised in the european council!
now many people in this debate this morning have said that this is a growth budget and i suppose it is provided you are a french cow.
but i fear that whatever is agreed will fail to achieve any kind of meaningful reform.
that would not be the best outcome but it would be far better than allowing the kinds of increases that this parliament wants to see without any reform to our spending priorities.
mr barroso had to propose an emergency food regulation about two years ago.
i make a special plea not for me not for my constituents not for votes but for the people who are dying each
it is life giving as far as these children i am speaking of are concerned. in heaven's name do we have to cut our development budget further?
that is said by somebody who does not share a lot of mr cameron's views. the reality of the matter is this while we are talking about our own constituents and they do face difficulties and we do need to have solidarity with them that solidarity should not end within the european union.
indeed the rest of us could learn in terms of solidarity with the developing world from the actions of the british government.
mr cameron's name has been mentioned here several times this morning.
when our gni goes down fine our contributions go down but we should not bring down the payments even further than that.
by two thousand and fifty the population of the world will have increased by two billion people ninety of whom will born into what is now the developing world where twenty three zero children die each day. that is twenty three zero children today and twenty three zero children again tomorrow and twenty three zero children every single day while the budget negotiations are going on.
the welsh government has recently done an analysis of what a cut of eur seventy five billion in the eu budget will mean.
mr president i am sure everyone wants an agreement on the budget but it has to be a good agreement a good agreement for citizens for organisations and for jobs and growth not just for finance ministers.
these are the programmes which will help us achieve jobs and growth.
i wanted to give colleagues the commission and the council an example of what these cuts will mean.
i say this because cuts in the overall budget will mean cuts in things like cohesion policy rural development research and development and these are the programmes which we should be investing in as a european union.
mr president i think the uk has a long and proud tradition of standing behind those many member states which believe that we need fundamental reform of the common agricultural policy.
that was the reason for the british rebate being established in the first place and i think everybody accepts that if there is fundamental reform in the system then of course all member states could do with a reduction.
we need to move farming over to a more market orientated system.
that is also the best thing we could do for the third world. beyond giving them aid giving them more subsidies the best thing we could do would be to reform or scrap the common agricultural policy and allow them to sell their food products in the european market.
mr president i wish the council well in its search for agreement on a multiannual financial framework.
when tax revenues are hard to predict spending commitments are hard to make but i hope that all our heads of state and government will recognise that what is essential is to ring fence spending for research and innovation to restore competitiveness and to commit to the trans european networks on transport power transmission and broadband which will pave the way back to prosperity.
i think the message to the council and i know minister creighton will convey this message is that the european parliament is watching very closely not just the figures but the structure of the budget.
i see that sources are saying that there would be far reaching and serious consequences for the european union if we do not have an agreement over the coming days.
i think that is true but remember that this is only the first step.
if agreement is reached this house has got to have its say.
let me say something very positive about the common agricultural policy.
this is a policy for jobs for stable markets for growth for rural development and for increased environmental delivery and we have been asked to do this with potentially less money and to redistribute money to those member states the new member states who rightfully are looking for more.
so there are a lot of demands being made on this policy.
those who are disposed to learn from past mistakes will recall that britain's war against the appalling regime in afghanistan and our ill founded war against iraq resulted in the london bombings by third generation islamists from a large fifth column in britain.
the political leaders of france britain and the rest will not be thanked by the families of service personnel killed in this conflict or by the families of victims of retaliatory atrocities in europe which will be the direct result of this perceived incursion into muslim territory.
of course the atrocities in europe are facilitated by a large muslim and significant islamist population in the cities of western europe.
therefore this neglect is harmful not only because it leaves people in the most fragile socio economic situation unprotected but also because it underestimates the crucial importance of social inclusion and labour market integration in particular to retaining and developing the economy.
for that reason members should reflect their respective strategies to improve the socio economic situation of marginalised communities in their national budgetary policies and consider social inclusion as a very essential part of the strategy for smart and inclusive growth and fiscal consolidation.
this is very important to understand.
we really want to close the gap between payments and commitments. we are accumulating a huge amount of unpaid invoices.
at the domestic level the development of the political and human rights situation in djibouti is a matter of concern.
two thousand and sixteen throughout the pre electoral period members and supporters of the opposition have been arrested and detained without charges.
on twenty one december two thousand and fifteen the police broke up a traditional religious ceremony that took place close to the capital of djibouti.
the eu notes with regret that the dialogue on the implementation of the framework agreement on political and institutional reforms concluded between the government of djibouti and the coalition of opposition parties at the end of two thousand and fourteen came to a standstill last year.
therefore the eu will continue encouraging all political forces in djibouti to restart the political dialogue in view of engaging in political reforms improving good governance and putting an end to the tensions the country has experienced in the last years.
the eu considers that an investigation should establish the facts and the perpetrators be brought to justice.
with regard to the recent presidential elections the release of full and detailed results broken down by polling station would have increased the transparency and credibility of the process.
the eu stands ready to work together with all relevant stakeholders to improve the human rights situation in the country.
this is a missed opportunity for engaging in a democratisation process in djibouti. democratisation and governance efforts as well as greater respect for human rights are needed to ensure djibouti's internal stability in a region marked by conflict and poverty.
djibouti has actively supported regional initiatives and continues to provide troops to amisom the african union mission to somalia which is key in the fight against al shabaab and to securing somalia's political process.
the intervention of the police and security forces resulted in several deaths.
the eu condemns the violent action and considers that an international inquiry into these matters is of utmost importance and therefore welcomes the mission of the office of the high commissioner for human rights which will be in djibouti this week and hopes it will allow
human rights activists and opponents are subject to harassment and the political space of the opposition is narrowing especially since the runup to the presidential elections of eight april.
such incidents only attest to the brutal culture of repression against human rights activists journalists and the political opposition of djibouti.
we in the european union must put more pressure on the government of djibouti to implement the framework on political reform signed in two thousand and fifteen as a starting point for the future and improvement in human rights in that small country.
the massacre at buldhuquo in which government forces killed thirty seven people on the same day is another great tragedy and blight on the record of the government of djibouti.
we are so used to our surrounding historic environment that we may forget that such a fragile beauty needs a lot of care to survive.
the commission is also promoting peer learning among cities and regions to support the exchange and transfer of the wealth of experience and good cultural practices including heritage.
the commission has already taken action on many of the spheres of action mentioned in the report. the commission has started to work with the member states on participatory governance.
the commission will also continue to enhance internal cooperation and availability of information on financing opportunities within the existing european funding programmes.
the report will help the commission to fine tune the existing instruments and to make further progress on putting into practice tools policies and mechanisms in an integrated way to address the challenges the heritage sector is facing today.
but there are also other less violent threats to heritage.
the commission shares the report's view that supporting enhancing and promoting cultural heritage through an integrated approach is of paramount importance. in addition to its intrinsic value cultural heritage contributes significantly to economic and social development and it touches the lives of all europeans nurturing their sense of belonging and strengthening their european identity.
in other words depending on each country financial stability economic growth and other factors a choice is made in which currency it is more reasonable to take loans.
at the same time in the uk cyprus ireland and luxembourg a majority of foreign currency loans are taken by financial institutions.
therefore in order to engage in trade relations national currencies have to get exchanged for something else.
as a result these actions may for example contribute to damaging investors' confidence in the internal market.
however not all foreign currency loans are covered and this is precisely where an effective regulatory system is necessary in order to create an environment where for instance potential borrowers are fully aware of lending specificities while banks cannot make unsubstantiated demands or change the lending conditions
the main point of such actions is that many people often buy foreign currency denominated cars or have personal loans thereby putting hundreds of thousands of households at risk of financial problems in case the exchange rate rapidly changes. even more so quite a few people also have mortgage loans converted into national currencies in addition to their foreign currency debt. conversions therefore may be necessary for the sake of ensuring national financial stability. one of the main
matters at hand is that the abovementioned retrospective conversions take place at nonmarket exchange rates thereby raising the question of them being in line with the general principles of eu law such as freedom of capital movement and freedom of establishment.
mr. president i am very grateful to have this opportunity to discuss the important issue of foreign currency loans.
i support that approach but clearly there must be progress soon or we will have to take appropriate action.
but when the swiss national bank stopped pegging swiss francs to the euro in january last year the cost of servicing those mortgages shot up and that left households struggling to keep up with their mortgage repayments which in turn put pressure on governments to take action to help those who were in difficulty.
goes beyond what is needed to avoid a crisis and protect those borrowers.
it is clear that the goal of protecting borrowers to avoid a debt crisis can justify restrictions to the free movement of capital or the freedom of establishment but in our view allowing borrowers to exchange their loans from swiss francs into euros at an artificially low exchange rate and placing the cost almost exclusively on lenders
that is the solution that i will continue to push for and that is what i want to see in every member state where this is currently a matter of concern.
of course there is a need to protect the interests of consumers but we also need to make sure that any measures taken are fully consistent with the single market and that they do not restrict disproportionately the free movement of capital or the freedom of european companies to do business
others are considering doing so.
since its adoption we have assessed whether croatia's amendments to its consumer credit act and the credit institutions act are compatible with the principles of the single market.
we also have to consider the potential damage that would be done to investor confidence if we were to undermine legal certainty.
it puts borrowers in the position that they would have been had they initially chosen a euro denominated loan but it places the cost of the conversion a cost that i understand is some eur one billion almost wholly on the shoulders of the banks that issued the loans without regard to the different circumstances of the borrowers.
so we need a vibrant and competitive mortgage market one where people have choice but also one where they know what they are buying and what risks they are taking on.
we are keeping all options open including of course opening an infringement procedure if that proves necessary.
but recent experience has shown that they can become a problem if they are offered to households that cannot protect themselves properly against sudden changes in exchange rates and here i think loans in swiss francs provide a good example.
one of the products that became popular in recent years was loans made in foreign currencies and for many years they offered consumers low interest rates.
we are in close contact with the croatian government who tell us that they are keen to find a way forward and they are talking to the banks concerned to find a more balanced approach that shares the burden of adjustment more fairly.
these have been popular in countries like croatia poland hungary and romania.
anywhere in the eu.
croatia has chosen to pass legislation that allows borrowers to convert swiss franc loans into euro denominated loans at an exchange rate that pre dates the franc's appreciation.
but that does not deal with the problem of the existing loans in foreign currencies and here we are working closely with governments that are considering how best to respond.
in terms of what the commission has done for the future we have acted to ensure that risks associated with foreign currency loans are better managed by strengthening consumer protection in the mortgage credit directive.