kfajdsl/voxpopuli huggingface dataset:
mr president our resolution here today reaffirms our commitment to and our friendship with the malaysian people and it is because of this commitment and friendship that we share our concerns here today concerns about the sedition act which malaysia had committed to repeal but instead renewed and strengthened; concerns about the new security act which was adopted without any public debate or involvement of civil society and which gives widespread powers to the national security council to declare a state of emergency;
and more generally concern about the atmosphere in which opposition politicians journalists and civil society find it increasingly difficult to function.
we share these concerns not because we enjoy criticising malaysia but because we feel that these issues are so important to mention and that they should be the starting point of a constructive dialogue both within malaysia and also in the bilateral relations between malaysia and the eu especially at a time when our bilateral relations are growing ever stronger.
mr president i had the opportunity to visit malaysia recently and was surprised to find that the perception we collectively hold about the country really is divorced from reality.
yes it is modern and dynamic but underneath the surface of its western style economy we see a state that is increasingly authoritarian where politicians and commentators cannot speak freely.
the spike in the number of people facing charges under the sedition act and the recent passing of the national security council bill that gives sweeping powers to the prime minister and security forces are prime examples of increasing repression.
ironically malaysia hosted the global anti corruption conference in september.
i would ask the prime minister why not allow your own anti corruption commission to conduct transparent investigations into corruption charges against you?
why not allow the media to report on it and allow people to peacefully express their views in the streets?
why not honour the pledges to repeal the sedition act and make sure security laws actually contribute to more security for people rather than using them as a tool for repression? why be afraid of open dialogue with the opposition and civil society including anwar ibrahim and all the academics activists and bloggers facing charges?
why not let the country's brightest minds contribute to making malaysia a beacon for development and democracy?
the malaysian authorities and prime minister razak seem to fear that taking these steps will weaken their position.
this is clearly to avoid a conflict of interests.
on the one hand we must remember that the esm is not an eu institution or agency and therefore has no legal straightforward access to the jurisdiction of the civil service tribunal.
before turning to the specific issue in front of us today i think it is important to underline as the honourable members have done in their questions that the esm is an independent international financial institution outside the treaty framework.
just any position with the esm.
lastly i reiterate that these individuals will not be barred from holding any position;
in order for the esm and its staff to gain such an access an agreement would have to be agreed and established between the esm and the european union.
the staff rules and the statute of the administrative tribunal are in fact documents already approved by the esm board of directors representatives of all shareholder member states and this is fully in line with the esm government structure and the established responsibility of its governing bodies as laid out in the implementing treaties.
they are after all supposed to be independent.
i would make one last point before turning over the floor to the honourable members.
at the esm either before during or after their tenure on the tribunal.
i believe that we would also agree that the esm is a critical tool in our crisis response a tool that has shown what kind of progress the eu is capable of and in such a short period of time.
i can simply state that my understanding is that article thirty three of the treaty establishing the esm which includes an obligation on the esm board of directors to lay down the conditions of employment of the managing director and other staff of the esm constitutes the basis for the establishment of the esmat.
the provision on incompatibilities does not exclude tribunal members from any other office except at the esm itself.
has contemplated the benefits or otherwise of the ecj's civil service tribunal taking over the tasks of the esmat.
similar tribunals can be found at other international financial institutions such as the imf the world bank and the ebrd.
i cannot add to these brief comments.
it is therefore the staff rules of the european stability mechanism which create the basis for the establishment of an independent tribunal. from my comments at the outset you will appreciate that i am not in a position to comment on the appropriateness of the establishment of this tribunal.
while the signatories of the treaty establishing the esm are seventeen and will soon be eighteen member states of the european union the esm is a separate intergovernmental institution and is not part of the union's legal framework.
in addition to this provision article eighteen of the esm by laws states that staff rules shall also define appropriate procedures for the consideration of complaints and grievances of individual staff members'.
in general however it is of course important from a governance perspective that esm staff are able to address their complaints and grievances to a body which is independent from the esm.
i understand that the esm has taken all necessary measures to minimise the cost impact of the establishment of this tribunal since members of the tribunal will be remunerated for each tribunal meeting and will not receive any full or part time salary.
as i said in my opening remarks this is not a matter for the council.
the esm itself would be much better placed to answer your questions.
having appropriate labour protection is very important.
at national level labour laws are enforced by national courts. for international institutions whether financial or otherwise alternative arrangements are needed.
the esm has chosen to establish the esmat.
however that again is a decision for the esm governing bodies.
it would be the height of folly to put that in jeopardy through the adoption of a hostile posture on brexit.
i implore the eu to be sensible in accepting the british offer of continued friendship and cooperation and not to allow the brexit process to turn into a means of trying to punish the british people for their democratic decision.
imperial college was also in the global top ten but the only other european institution there was based in zurich outside the eu.
twenty this is an indication that one of the great challenges for the future of erasmus will be to continue to secure access to uk universities.
there is willingness in britain to continue to facilitate the flow of outstanding eu students to our great universities.
in fact the very kind of marginalised young people that i was working with before i came into politics.
i therefore support the erasmusx ten campaign to increase the programme budget ten times in the next financial period.
including young british people.
british youth voted overwhelmingly to remain in the eu and it is their future that is hugely at risk with the current negotiations.
mr president erasmus is one of the union's greatest success stories not just in terms of employability and academic development but also because it has helped to create a generation of proud open minded and resilient europeans
i also want to reiterate that the uk must maintain its access to the programme and i call for this to be a priority in the brexit negotiations.
we must build on this success to widen access and ensure that more young people can benefit from this opportunity in particular those in vocational training vulnerable young people people outside of formal education migrants and people with disabilities.
for this to be successful we need political will and money.
when we are preparing our positions for the next mff negotiations we have to bear in mind that it is not only spending money for a special purpose but it is an investment in the future.
we are trying to identify the synergies of these three projects and develop more comprehensive projects which make erasmus students' lives easier bringing together the results of those
however we are not without success at the moment.
that is why the first phase of the existence of the european solidarity corps can be funded by erasmus by volunteering sources because it is the same activity.
it is based on volunteering.
of course it is mostly a question of funding.
in the future the european solidarity corps is going to have its own separate budget with fresh money. up to twenty five of the new budget will be fresh money and it will be a separate budget funding those activities which have volunteers
this year we are proudly celebrating the programme's thirtieth anniversary involving european citizens and especially young europeans through social media conferences debates and exhibitions across europe.
the feedback we have received from national authorities and various stakeholders in the context of the midterm evaluation indicates that there is a strong call for stability in the structure of the programme to meet the unmet demand and for further simplification to reduce the administrative burden for all.
it also enjoys support outside the political world across countries and institutions with more and more calls for considerable budgetary increases for the next programme in order to reach even more europeans.
it is in this vein that in june we launched a new erasmus mobile application designed for students vocational learners and participants in youth exchanges to facilitate the mobility experience for generations to come.
on the other hand we encourage stronger links between schools including vocational education and training schools and higher education institutions as well as between education and the world of work.
thus we need to significantly increase the number of opportunities offered to school pupils vocational education and training students and apprentices.
in particular preliminary results of the erasmus midterm evaluation show the high level of appreciation by national authorities stakeholders and project participants notably of the integrated nature of the programme covering learning in all its contexts
the commission will continue to put forward two sorts of action to support innovation and development.
the adaptability of the programme able to re adjust priorities to eu level emerging challenges and needs for example the much reinforced emphasis on social inclusion and prevention of violent radicalisation following the paris declaration of march two thousand and fifteen and
i strongly believe that erasmus should be available to all young europeans and i share your ambition in this respect.
moreover we should be more inclusive and better suited to young people's needs and for this we need to provide a european experience even to those who are not mobile.
mobility should therefore be common practice in school education and vocational education and training similar to what has become the norm in higher education over the last decades.
it is of paramount importance to the development of most needed transfers of skills.
the programme needs to help young people access high quality education irrespective of their social background.
the mobility experiences with high levels of satisfaction expressed both by learners and staff and across all fields and types of mobility.
we also need to focus on where the programme adds value. for example the programme should support young people going into forwardlooking study fields where europe needs expertise and must have the ambition to be a world leader such as climate change clean energy robotics digitalisation etc.
whether formal or non formal and at all levels of the lifelong learning continuum from early childhood education and schools vocational education and training through to higher education and adult learning;
on the one hand we focus on skills for life from an early age and with regard to all forms of learning.
in this context making better use of digital approaches virtual tools and online platforms plays a prominent role. webenhanced learning programmes such as blended learning that combines digital media with traditional classroom methods can complement physical mobility to widen access to the programme.
this will help young people develop a broad set of competences to do well in life and at work in increasingly multicultural societies.
we must also respond to the calls for a more inclusive and outreaching programme.
i would like to thank you for your oral questions and today's debate which underlines the two most crucial issues regarding the future programme the programme's structure and the money we will invest in it.
since then in less than three years two million citizens from thirty three european countries have experienced the positive impact of erasmus.
i welcome the fact that volunteering is emphasised in our resolution because this value has to be enhanced.
what should be done to make the programme more accessible to more eu citizens?
only then will the erasmus programme be more inclusive and become a real investment in our future. my last point is on the european student card which is in the resolution.
less than five of young europeans benefit from the programme due to socioeconomic factors and limited funding.
secondly what financial and budgetary reforms are needed to enable this flagship eu programme to reach its ambitious goals?
it is an interesting question has this really made any difference to switzerland the swiss people or even to swiss universities?
which is that eu universities outside the uk simply do not rate very highly in world terms.
uk universities oddly enough do.
but i am not making a patriotic point.
mr president the erasmus programme allows students teachers and young people to study work volunteer teach and train throughout europe.
their experiences and the skills they learn help them develop personally and will ultimately bring added value to the local economy.
these include developing and delivering mentoring training programmes supporting older people developing innovative ict training developing training to raise awareness of domestic abuse among older victims and the dream programme which aims to reinforce integration of migrants into local communities.
in brussels in london and in belfast we should be working to forge a new and positive relationship with the european union.
these negotiations should not preclude programmes such as this where it is costeffective to do so.
instead brexit should be reviewed as an opportunity to revive and renew ties;
to allow those in the education youth or sports sectors to benefit from crossborder exchange projects as part of a new and special relationship.
whether this be in the form of participation in joint programmes or through new initiatives will ultimately be a matter for talks between the uk government and brussels.
many studies of the participants themselves have confirmed that an international environment is the best way to learn about different cultures improve a multi cultural understanding and knowledge of language establish international contacts develop new skills and grow as a person and as a professional.
the proposal also contains clearer rules on promotional campaigns and national incentives to promote higher classes of efficiency and aims to improve enforcement mechanisms and transparency for customers by creating a platform with a database of products covered by energy labelling requirements.
this will make energy labels more understandable for consumers and help them make better informed purchasing choices.
so now we think that industry needs fifteen years to adjust to a label that works for consumers?
before they can re adjust their label.
but unfortunately as happens in europe sometimes you need a compromise you need to see that something is not working well and then finally ten years later we can improve the system and that is good.
it is in the interest of the industry mainly the german industry in this case.
it is not in the interest of the consumers.
that is really the lobby of the right.
finally i will recall that the energy union is one of the ten priorities of the juncker commission and that energy efficiency first' is one of its leading principles.
mr president can i say to mr eickhout that if we listen to industry perhaps we will have jobs and prosperity. the european union has hardly covered itself in glory with respect to energy efficiency regulation. certainly the things we did with kettles and vacuum cleaners attracted ridicule in the uk and i suspect across the rest of europe
the problem we face is that we are constantly tinkering with regulations and the effect of that is to confuse consumers and to create problems for industry.
but in my party we reflect on the fact that we shall very soon be out of the european union and shall be free to make our own rules and frankly if the rest of the european union the other twenty seven wish to tie themselves up in absurd red tape go for it' is what i say.
and tended to bring the european project into considerable disrepute.
this new legislation will benefit consumers.
they will see an end to the confusing system that includes an a an a an a and an a and revert back to the original system where a is in fact the most efficient product and g is the least.
these new labels will prove provide clarity to consumers and will enable them to make more energy efficient and cost efficient choices.
on wrongly labelled products we prefer to see this addressed as part of a wider review of consumer protection legislation.
we have seen that abuses in the motor industry have impacted on consumer confidence and therefore the introduction of a product database will add much needed vigour to massmarket surveillance.
my group did have concerns about mr tamburrano's proposals for the product database and the burdens it would place on industry particularly small manufacturers but we are satisfied that obligations have been kept to the level where manufacturers only have to submit information necessary for market surveillance. the data will also be open source and allow app developers and retailers to incorporate the information in product searches and filters. this will help consumers to make better choices.
mr president first of all i welcome the proposals here today and again compliment commissioner caete and his team for the good work they are doing in helping us to meet the paris climate targets.
firstly i am becoming more and more convinced that consumers in general want to reduce their carbon emissions and all they need is help to do so.
but there is a big difference psychologically between a and c and a and g and also the seven different colours will help consumers.
one area i have a slight difficulty in understanding is the reference this morning to erroneous labelling.
erroneous labelling would not be possible if there were proper surveillance and proper penalties because those who would engage in it would actually be put out of business.
so this is actually a great opportunity for us to do something simple straightforward that will help us to meet the climate change targets in paris.
the proposal which the parliament is discussing today takes account of recent developments and concepts which were not developed in detail in the regulations.
as this house's recent resolution on the two thousand and ten european citizens' report made clear the right to freedom of movement and residence needs to be accompanied by specific measures to give substance to this fundamental freedom.
i can assure you that the compromise reached on these technical issues is in line with the spirit of the regulation which coordinates and seeks to protect workers' rights. it clarifies the rights of citizens and it assists institutions when they apply these legal texts.
this holds true in particular for the two most sensitive issues in the proposal the introduction of the home base principle for air crew members and the provision for unemployment benefits for unemployed self employed persons who return to their state of residence
for some small gaps to be closed.
even though the proposal is technical in nature it has a direct practical impact on people who rely on the measures adopted at european level when they make use of the right to free movement.
what this means is that many social security claimants will gravitate to those states with the most generous systems.
of course there is no point in homeless londoners emigrating to other eu member states to seek homes and income on their social security systems because the benefits will not be as reciprocal.
in britain nearly five million people are on the council house waiting list with little prospect of getting a home but in some london boroughs almost fifty of social housing is given to people not born in the uk. many of these people will never have paid a penny in tax and will be living on state benefits.
no one should gain public housing or benefits in britain until they have paid tax for a considerable period of time.
mr president the harmonisation of eu social security systems does not of course mean the harmonisation of the benefit systems themselves that would be unachievable but rather the harmonisation of access to those systems by all eu citizens.
i am very pleased that we have actually managed to close that particular loophole within this revision because to find yourself registered in a country where you feel you have no connection and to seek health care treatment for example in the country where you are resident is bound to lead to confusion and
as we have been saying it is designed to uphold the rights of individuals who are covered by social security systems.
even though the company concerned may feel that it is doing a good deal for itself and its shareholders it is not playing fair by its workers.
this concerns the maintenance of rights for people who move across borders for whatever reason or who work in border areas.
so we are very pleased to have got the home base' definition in there bringing it into line with other legislation to make it very clear to individuals exactly where it is that they are registered and therefore what rights they can expect.
as has been said it is a highly technical document but it is an extremely important one for individuals within the european union.
mr president i believe the proposal discussed today builds on the existing legislation with a view to guaranteeing eu citizens an entitlement to social security benefits when they move between member states.
the impact of social housing and homelessness because this is also an important aspect of our work in the fight against poverty.
but the proposal that was discussed today makes provision for technical arrangements for effective social security coordination and does only what is necessary to make effective coordination a reality for citizens in their day to day lives.
mr president in this european parliament whatever the matter being debated all roads lead to the same place further and deeper political and economic integration. in the early days of what was the eec we were told that there was freedom of movement of labour the right to work in other countries.
if work could not be found or if one's job disappeared people would come home.
we are now moving towards freedom of movement of claimants. this coordination is portrayed as a safety net for hard working enterprising self employed people who fall on hard times.
in fact its motivation is to support not people but a political objective the maximisation of the movement of people to undermine national identities.
in the words of the rapporteur without such coordination there would be a risk that freedom of movement would be inoperable.
in this field as in all others the measures are not designed to satisfy an autonomous demand or the desire of self employed people to work abroad.