kfajdsl/voxpopuli huggingface dataset:
going back to the first group in this report the commission is concerned that the number of professionals working in mainstream healthcare is not sufficient to meet the needs of the growing demand.
commissioner it is not a question of attracting young people.
there is also a second group of professionals the herbal physicians chiropractors osteopaths homeopaths and nutritionists who focus on a more natural approach to health.
the only way we are going to keep these essential carers is if we support them in their work.
the commission is right to say that there are new and re emerging threats to health such as communicable diseases.
having not allowed these students to train and thereby creating an artificial shortage we then of necessity bring in medical personnel from third countries even the poorest countries leaving their own people without medical help and creating a brain drain.
i know that similar disconnects between training and demand exist in other european countries.
to leave them out fails to acknowledge the valuable contribution they make in keeping europeans healthy and is out of touch with the wishes of many europeans who seek their help.
it is a question of allowing them to train.
the commission's apparent attempts to suppress it with directives like the vitamin and mineral supplements directive further compound this growing gulf between eu policy and people's everyday health choices.
we need them more every year not less.
i would advise the commission to look at every one of these diseases that is on the rise and try to understand what is triggering these epidemics because allowing them to increase unchecked and to affect more and more people is both cruel and unsustainable.
these are the people who care for dependant older people and those with disabilities.
yet the commission should also take careful note that every chronic disorder related to the immune system dysfunction is on the increase for example asthma allergy multiple sclerosis autism diabetes epilepsy fibromyalgia and many more.
this sector is very important.
our secondary students in ireland are working towards a career in medicine but it is unfortunately made unattainable by a rationing system that is out of touch with demand which leaves us with severe shortages of qualified professionals.
the second group of health professionals i mentioned like herbal physicians were unfortunately completely left out of this report.
i would suggest that in working to attract young people to this profession you will only frustrate them until we provide them with the opportunity to gain these skills.
as europe ages and the number of people with disabilities increases we cannot take them for granted.
finally our health force is more important than ever.
madam president more people work in health than any other area. the groups of health workers we instantly think of are doctors nurses pharmacists and dentists who are supported by radiologists lab technicians researchers therapists biochemists and an army of administrators and staff who keep health services functioning.
than our universities are willing to train.
the commission further stresses the need to attract young people to choose these professions.
lastly there are the family carers the largest single group of health workers who labour day and night without pay in the health sphere.
the analysis of the answers we receive will guide us in developing strategies at eu level to support the member states in tackling these challenges.
indeed that proposal focuses on the rules and arrangements needed to provide access in equitable conditions to safe and high quality healthcare for patients moving across europe.
to professional liability which must be in place in all member states patients would have a means of making complaints and of receiving remedies and compensation when they suffer harm arising from the healthcare they receive. with this set of principles and rules
i expect a large number of responses to the green paper from the many stakeholder organisations in the field of health that have expressed concerns about this important issue.
i know that your expectations are high and i count on your help in building solutions to support the invaluable contribution that health professionals make to the lives of each and every one of us.
those flows of data are facilitated by the use of the internal market information system which already allows for the electronic exchange of information on the five main health professions.
and there are insufficient new recruits coming through to replace those who leave.
the solution cannot simply be to attract health workers from developing countries where the shortage is even greater.
it does not seek to regulate cross border provision of health services freedom of establishment or the mobility of health professionals.
let me also briefly mention other provisions such as those in article five of the proposal member states would commit to defining national quality and safety standards to implementing them effectively and to making them public. healthcare providers would provide all the relevant information to enable patients to make an informed choice including details of their insurance cover or other means of personal or collective protection with regard
we need to reflect on the reasons why young people are not motivated to become health workers. this coupled with the mobility of health professionals within and between member states is creating common health workforce problems for most european health systems.
this requires a comprehensive policy approach as no member state can realistically find its own solution in isolation.
without a well trained and motivated health workforce throughout the eu the financial sustainability of european health systems will be threatened and health inequalities will increase. as the european population gets older so does its health workforce
to that effect the green paper will allow for discussion and further definition of the issues at stake leading to the design of common actions where appropriate.
two thousand and eight that invitation comes at an opportune moment as we are now approaching the end of the consultation phase which will be closed at the end of this month.
that directive also provides for specific obligations for member states as regards the exchange of information in the case of movement of health professionals.
i believe that the draft directive defines a clear relationship between the patient and the provider to ensure sound information as well as safe and quality care for european citizens who decide to travel to another member state for treatment.
she has referred to the recognition of qualifications.
the key to this will be to find ways of recruiting and retaining healthcare professionals.
there are some professions and chiropractice is one where you have recognition in some countries and not in others.
it is tragic that we are not providing enough health professionals but go and grab them from the countries that can least afford
it is an important green paper and it should start a major discussion within this parliament and beyond.
we also of course need to be sure we have patient safety in terms of doctors who are disciplined or struck off doctors nurses any health professionals and in my report i call for this to be facilitated by the commission.
i think we have to look at the career structures that we provide.
i think that certainly includes the issue of language tests which are not an obstacle but must be a protective measure for patients.
we said right from the beginning that important with that were the two measures that were not coming at the same time.
it. if you look at the figures we see on average one in four doctors and one nurse in twenty has trained in africa and is working in oecd countries.
too often i know from when i have been in government and you know as a commissioner we listen to the top people and we do not go down to the beds and listen to the nurses and the doctors who are actually dealing on the ground. if we did more of that then perhaps we would get more of our policy right.
we have to make sure that research facilities are available in europe so we do not lose people abroad.
the key to maintaining an adequate workforce in the face of this imminent retirement is to ensure that there are sufficient younger recruits available to replace those who retire.
madam president the promotion of a sustainable workforce for health across europe is crucial in continuing our improvement in healthcare services and facilities across the twenty seven member states.
at present there is a lack of up to date comparable data and information among the member states on a number of key healthcare issues including training and employment of workers age gender and international flow of health professionals.
europe faces a number of challenges in sustaining and improving our healthcare services.
increased pressures apply to the workforce because as the population ages so too do the workers.
the importance of improved healthcare research and data across europe cannot be stressed enough.
tried very hard to help and support the transitional government.
somebody asked whether there could be a summit on piracy in the future.
so it is indeed a very complex process.
we the commission would certainly not be against it but i think this is for the member states to decide and in particular maybe for the next spanish presidency.
it is this government that is still best placed to bring some stability to somalia.
then we have to help and protect the boats and all the people there.
there is a process with the transitional federal government but it is fragile to put it in the mildest possible terms and it requires sustained efforts by the international community to gradually move the country towards reconciliation and gradually build up some sort of functioning state that can restore some kind of stability to this horribly torn country.
addressing that requires a broad engagement within the country itself which as indicated is enormously difficult given the current security situation in the country.
we are of course discussing as you might be aware further steps in that particular respect.
a recent agreement with seychelles which i imagine you are aware of on the transfer of suspected pirates constitutes an important additional contribution in this respect.
the operation's success in this limited respect is also the result of close cooperation between the civilian maritime community and the eu operational headquarters at northwood in the uk. this has allowed the development of best management practices which are also increasingly respected by seafarers. there has also been very effective implementation
it could in due course lead to china and possibly other maritime powers taking some responsibilities.
that is the recommended route through the gulf and all ships benefit from naval protection irrespective of their flag.
two thousand and ten this means that we have to be able to sustain our current efforts and maintain the right level of military resources.
for this reason the council has decided to extend the counter piracy operation until december.
coordination is of course the key to success.
secondly that we will have to strengthen coordination cooperation between all of the powers and international bodies involved in this operation;
at the end of the day of course what we are doing in the maritime waters cannot be a substitute for what needs to be done in somalia or on somalia itself but that as i indicated earlier is something where immediate success cannot be taken for granted.
we currently have naval units there from the european union from nato and from the us led coalition maritime forces with very good coordination of the patrols and with the very essential intelligence cooperation that is necessary for an operation of this sort.
the proper conduct of these trials is of course essential if we are to maintain both the deterrent effect provided by atalanta and the overall credibility of our counter piracy efforts.
imperative humanitarian and other reasons have led us to what has within the limits of what is possible so far proved to be a relatively successful operation but let us not have any illusions.
there are currently seventy five suspects being held in kenyan jails.
others russia india and japan have also deployed naval assets and they should be invited to join this mechanism as soon as possible.
accordingly as you have noticed our current efforts have been concentrated on practical assistance that can be delivered outside somalia for the benefit of the country and the people.
and if we have received nothing else we have managed to secure the programmes of the deliveries of the world food programme to the starving and suffering people of somalia.
when we are discussing extending it out into the indian ocean we are talking about absolutely enormous areas.
we are fairly late entrants in this area when it comes to trying to deal with somalia. we are trying to do certain things.
but let us also be realistic. the international community the united nations and others have been struggling with somalia for a very long time.
that in itself is something to be proud of.
not. but the only thing that we can be absolutely certain of is that if we do not even try we are absolutely certain not to succeed. if we try at least there is the possibility of us making a positive impact.
that is what we are trying to do with different training programmes. is there a guarantee of this being successful?
that is not the reason for not doing what we can
in parallel to the operation atalanta the commission uses the instrument of stability a financial instrument to support the kenyan justice system as the president of the council has just mentioned because kenya has undertaken to prosecute transferred suspected pirates apprehended by the operation and it is necessary that there should not be impunity.
this is part of a pledge made by the commission at the conference in brussels in april this year.
the commission supports the implementation of the so called djibouti code of conduct of the international maritime organisation once again by using our instrument for stability. a programme dealing with certain critical maritime routes including the horn of africa and the gulf of aden region will assist the creation of a regional training centre for maritime affairs in djibouti.
in the medium to long term governance including institution building and security education and economic development are necessary preconditions for the eradication of the incentives which now exist for somalis to become pirates.
the current swedish presidency has initiated a significant effort to ensure the inter pillar coherence of eu maritime policy ensuring the link between community action and the work developed under the second pillar notably by the european defence agency.
the commission has always maintained that piracy can only be finally eradicated by addressing the underlying causes beginning with the instability in somalia and also addressing the country's development needs which manifest themselves in the most extreme poverty
a regional information sharing centre in sana'a yemen has also been identified for funding in.
the african union has as you know a pivotal role to play not least through amisom which is the african union force providing security for the transitional federal government in mogadishu.
let me now turn to another important issue before concluding.
this operation is a success providing deterrence to piracy but also raising the awareness of the shipping community on best self protection measures.
through the africa peace facility the european union is a major contributor to amisom providing funds to support african union forces.
on the security side a rapid approach is essential.
two thousand and nine the first phase of this programme has already started and technical feasibility studies are launched.
including massive illiteracy and vulnerability.
in a broader context regional maritime capacity development is also an important aspect of ensuring security in the area.
this will require the establishment of a functioning state capable of enforcing laws and providing at least basic services.
the commission is developing an integrated maritime policy including an external dimension and also integrated maritime surveillance across the sectors and borders to generate maritime situational awareness of activities at sea impacting among other things on maritime safety and security but also on general law enforcement.
this support to the kenyan judiciary system includes a sort of mixture of capacity building measures for prosecution police judicial and prison services.
we believe that the integration of maritime surveillance has a strong potential to assist eu operations against piracy as the harvesting of maritime surveillance data from different sources allows authorities acting at sea to take decisions and react in a more informed manner.
that is not right.
meanwhile online services and data from political infrastructure are now shifting to the cloud.
i very much welcome that.
this directive would make this happen and i thank parliament for supporting better cooperation which will raise capabilities in all member states including the less advanced ones.
please remember that many public functions are also essential services like land registries and public tenders. if those services fail they let down citizens and other parts of the network and maybe the whole economy.
we have agreed to cooperate and to share.
your amendments would offer the member states more flexibility to ensure national readiness.
the public sector should be setting the example.
the opportunities as rightly mentioned by the rapporteur offered by new digital tools are increasing all the time.
number one the member states need to be ready both technically and organisationally.
we need to fill them.
he focused our attention.
really they should ask another equally valid question why are we so unprepared and uncoordinated that they manage to succeed?
today there are gaps in some countries.
we are a union;
we are only as strong as the weakest link.
we often do that in other cases.
we need to alert each other and if necessary to support each other. we should share information about such cyber incidents just as we would for bio terrorism or even flu outbreaks.
nine eleven let us prepare ourselves.
today if one country is hit by a major cyber attack or has evidence of a major attack being prepared they would not have to share that information even if the attack could have repercussions in other eu countries.
information networks and systems are increasingly important to our lives and weak links in the chain let down the whole system and our whole economy.
likewise key internet companies are also becoming essential these days to interactions and transactions.
mr president the digital world has brought great benefits but the number of cyber attacks has increased very dramatically and our information and network security is only as strong as its weakest link which is why the member states need to take responsibility and build up their national security structures and emergency response teams.
i am glad that this report however means that those who have already created these do not need to recreate the wheel but can build on what they have.
we also need to make sure that we do not put disproportionate burdens on businesses which is why i welcome the focus on critical areas of infrastructure health transport finance and energy.
companies and organisations within these sectors from both the public and private sectors will need to share information about breaches.
i am a bit concerned about the mandatory reporting because we do not want a tick box approach.
if we are to have resilience in our security we need full scale behavioural change and that needs trust and cooperation between the organisations concerned and the authorities they are sharing information with.
i just want to echo want you said commissioner about this proposal.
we are taking the view that it is right not to be too ambitious to begin with because we want this to work effectively.
that information is really crucial.
i think this is a really important and significant move forward and i thank the commission for proposing it.
now we must all engage closely with the council and make sure they realise the importance of the issue.
today online security is a precondition for digital business models for our society and for european competitiveness.
reinforcing smart cooperation and effective coordination is crucial in making europe the most secure and open internet space.
that should be our goal and from what i learnt from the interventions of the honourable members it is something we have in common joining forces and joining expertise not only between industry and research institutes and governments not only between the member states but also between the services within the commission and i am talking about enisa
fragmentation mr president should be replaced by smart synergy in the digital age and people need to regain trust in technology with the legal safeguards that protect their interests.
businesses can build on the competitive advantage of secure systems and we have a challenge we can be the best in class and our industry needs to step up and is already stepping up in order to provide those solutions.
what kind of information has to be reported?
other areas for further progress include the establishment of a mechanism for free and informed prior consultations in line with ilo convention one hundred and sixty nine and the implementation of precautionary measures granted by the inter american commission on human rights to activists.
the promotion of human rights is a key principle which guides our action globally and therefore we follow closely the situation in the country.
the guatemalan authorities have taken a series of decisions that point in the right direction and therefore deserve praise and support such as the extension of the mandate of the international commission against impunity in guatemala up to two thousand and nineteen and the prosecution of alleged corruption cases including at high level. still more needs to be done to address the situation.
although in two thousand and fifteen and two thousand and sixteen reports of aggression incidents have fallen compared to previous years assassinations have increased and acts of intimidation and defamation are on the rise. fourteen activists were killed last year alone and the year of two thousand and seventeen has sadly already witnessed the murder of yet another human rights defender.
limited capacities and resources have hindered the provision of an adequate response by the state's institutions and together with a perception of corruption and impunity provoke mistrust of the institutions.
the eu special representative for human rights also visited guatemala last june and had the opportunity to recall the imperious necessity to improve the situation.
the eu is supporting and encouraging efforts on human rights challenges including women and children's rights prison conditions police behaviour allegations of torture corruption collusion and impunity.
and finally i would like to take this occasion to pay tribute to all the activists that selflessly and at great risk continue to fight for human rights good governance and the rule of law in guatemala.
the eu has also renewed its support to the international commission against impunity and will further engage to support anti corruption and prevention of violence against women and children.
while the overall population in guatemala is suffering from widespread violation of human rights and violence human rights defenders continue to be particularly affected especially indigenous leaders journalists trade unionists lgbti communities and members of the judiciary.
this makes eu cooperation and partnership with guatemala to consolidate institutions even more important.