kfajdsl/voxpopuli huggingface dataset:
this report deals with the reality of life for many citizens and indeed this is the response from parliament and it provides a coordinated roadmap for member states.
in purely economic terms this may indeed be a possible solution and it might help to balance the books but the reality for the eighty million people in the eu who are at risk of poverty is that balancing the books on its own is a totally inadequate response.
i fully support the initiatives on strengthening the social economy and the idea of a sensible minimum income and also the implementation of the anti discrimination directive.
one of the core aspects of this report is that we have equal rights and equal social protection for all workers.
but i also agree with the sentiments of the rapporteur this morning when he says that dealing with debt and implementing austerity measures should not hit those who are already at risk of poverty.
it is no longer sufficient to say we will repair the workings of the current system plug the holes and carry on as before.
no one welcomes the twenty rise in fuel bills but today we should speak for those who are praying that we avoid a cold winter because the alternative is one of misery penury and tragically for some death.
as politicians chase middle class votes we should remind ourselves that middle income voters do not want to live in a society where other people suffer from hunger homelessness and destitution.
or a britain which yesterday saw confirmation of the closure of one hundred and twenty four sure start centres which had been specifically targeted to help poorer families and which we were promised would stay open.
i do not want a britain where the institute of fiscal studies says that child poverty which labour was committed to eliminating will rise again to three million children;
i congratulate the commissioner on his approach but i tell him that i do not want a europe which introduces tough sanctions for breaching eurozone rules but none for breaching anti poverty targets.
the report is very timely in the current context of a severe economic and financial downturn across the european union and the consequent impact this has on vulnerable groups in societies.
mr daerden in your report you underlined the multidimensional aspects of poverty ranging from extreme poverty and homelessness to in work poverty but also the gender and age dimensions and the specific questions of people with disabilities and ethnic minorities. the european platform against poverty and social exclusion alone will not be able to solve all the issues raised in the report but it provides in my view a good framework for actions
i represented the commission there and i think the first meeting of this convention was successful useful and forward looking.
this convention brought together over four hundred participants from thirty eight european countries including ministers and state secretaries other policymakers civil society representatives journalists people experiencing poverty and independent experts.
beyond conventional employment policy the social economy offers opportunities.
we have already started to develop such a system with the involvement of eurostat and the indicators subgroup of the social protection committee.
thousand and fourteen to two thousand and twenty if adopted this would imply a very significant increase both in absolute and relative terms in the support aimed at the most vulnerable groups in society.
however the current economic situation is not conducive to employment growth and many groups especially young people have difficulties in entering or staying in the labour market.
in two thousand and twelve therefore i intend to propose common principles on child poverty covering support for families access to essential services and participation.
the commission will present in two thousand and twelve an assessment of the implementation of active inclusion strategies. finally regarding the budget issues which mr daerden raised in the report the commission's proposal envisages allocating at least twenty of the future european social fund to promoting social inclusion and combating poverty.
while the economic crisis is placing a huge pressure on national social protection systems it cannot be an alibi for non action.
against this background the commission will soon launch the youth opportunities initiative.
the commission adopted communications on a social business initiative and on corporate social responsibility on twenty five october two thousand and eleven and i am sure we can do more in this area.
the convention took stock of the implementation of the poverty platform and it discussed how the different policy areas employment education health just to mention a few could contribute to tackling poverty and social exclusion.
social cohesion.
this connects with the call which i heard from many participants in the debate about further legislative proposals in this area.
the commission was from the very outset determined to address the legal problem and begin discussions in council in order to secure the provision of similar quantities of foodstuffs for the next two years.
on three october i presented an amended proposal for the pending regulation extending the legal basis to the relevant chapter of the treaty i.
i agree with what was emphasised in the discussion that the centrality of employment policies the availability and the quality of jobs is highly important and therefore employment policies have to play a stronger role.
that is why it is also very important that in addition to the esf and other well known financial instruments there will be a new eu level facility for supporting social innovation.
how do those countries most in need manage that?
if people keep more of their earnings they spend more helping other businesses to keep going and helping employment.
the documents also say that this is mainly the responsibility of the member state.
the root cause of poverty is unemployment.
if you want to work it is our job to provide you with the economic conditions for growth pure and simple.
tinkering around the edges will not help. it will not help to make sweeping statements about member states' welfare systems;
it will not help to encroach on member states' subsidiarity with regard to minimum wage;
it will not help to call for an extension of social protection rights to non eu citizens; and it will not help for the european commission to take on the role of dishing out country specific action plans.
since when did micro management by brussels ever help anyone or anything?
nobody denies that poverty is a real and pressing problem but poverty is not to do with human rights it is to do with lack of opportunity and lack of incentive to work productively.
it is time that the committee on employment and social affairs and this plenary got down to their real work that is helping member states grow their economies and reduce their appalling increasing rates of unemployment particularly for our young people.
this motion not only interferes with matters that should be tackled at national level and they are being tackled in many member states but it puts forward proposals which would actually make nations poorer and less able to deal with the problem.
i urge people to think again and vote against.
i know that it is difficult at the moment for member states to set priorities but i hope that when they do they bear in mind those who are homeless and at risk of poverty and social exclusion in many different ways whether they are older people disabled people young people children or families.
i would like to congratulate the european platform against poverty and social exclusion on the work they have been doing to highlight the problem.
we must also build on the lessons of last year's european year for combating poverty and social exclusion and boost the involvement of civil society in particular ngos and people living in poverty themselves whether at european national regional or local level.
i am not calling for new legislation at eu level.
i do not think that is the right way forward.
my group in particular do not want to see eu legislation on minimum income or on social services of general interest.
i am sorry that these have been included in the report and i have asked for separate votes on these.
having said that i am a passionate supporter of minimum income schemes brought in by member states at member state level.
we also need national statistics on poverty to be improved.
another key area is to make sure that current anti discrimination legislation is properly implemented and that the horizontal directive on access to goods and services is unblocked in council.
when the eu itself recognises that it has not done a good enough job at enforcing its own rules and standards within the eurozone it hardly gives citizens much incentive to give it even more money.
in brussels within the european parliament we take the two issues and discuss them separately.
in wales we fully appreciate the eu funds received and all my constituents appreciate the need for a stable eurozone.
mr president for once the two main topics being discussed by the european council and the media back in my welsh constituency are one and the same.
they are told just how indebted their countries are every day.
they know tough decisions have to be made but they also want to decide how their hard earned money gets spent.
people know that austerity packages are necessary.
firstly how will the eu cope with the situation in ireland and secondly how to resolve the impasse of the eu budget.
being asked to give up even more money to funding eu projects through an increased eu budget at a time when they are being asked to give up a slice of their public sector pensions or even in some cases basic welfare provisions that they have come to depend on is for many constituents a step too far.
during these times of strict public spending and as we review rules on economic governance for member states we within the european parliament need to respect the pressures that member states are under and accept that all non urgent projects of eu institutions should be deferred to allow the setting of an eu budget that reflects our troubled economic times.
it is my belief that we will end up with tough rules based on adequate incentives for compliance semi automatic implementation and an effective framework to deal with broader macro economic imbalances. we need reinforced and rigorous economic governance to achieve stable and sustainable growth
we have tasked the ministers and commissioners with moving this concrete work forward notably through the transatlantic economic
our economic governance is being transformed.
union. in this respect i am concerned that some of the more recent positioning has not contributed to the focus and coherence of our joint action.
benefiting from significant inputs from the commission it has managed to achieve broad convergence on the commission's legislative proposals and also covered some other very important aspects of economic governance.
i am happy that this argument was accepted and that any revision will be a limited indeed a surgical
i would like to make clear that even if the mechanism is funded from national budgets it will remain a european' initiative and will of course be able to draw on the expertise independence and impartiality of the commission to make it function.
together with president van rompuy we agreed with president obama on the need for a transatlantic agenda for growth and jobs including regulatory convergence and early consultations on issues like competitiveness and global reform.
two thousand and eleven it is notable that the questions voiced last september about the commission putting legislative proposals on the table have now turned into a desire to fast track those proposals.
my point is this the european union will only be able to achieve its objectives if we activate all policy
ireland has very specific issues to address and these instruments are able to respond to that. this intervention should now allow the irish economy to get back on the path to sustainable growth drawing on its fundamental strengths.
that is why the commission has already started its preparatory work on the general features of a future new mechanism for the euro area.
if we use the leverage available to us in an integrated way at all levels at national european and global
the atmosphere at the summit was intimate friendly and focused.
now the normal legislative procedure must run its course over the coming months. i count on the community method to work as well as it has always done and help us strengthen economic governance in the euro area and in europe.
this mechanism which we are preparing in close consultation with the president of the european council should be seen in the context of the overall effort to reinforce economic governance in the european union and euro area.
level. one thing is clear we will have more influence on the outside if we are capable of reaching agreement among ourselves within the european
the latter can take many forms but first and foremost i want to make clear that whatever is decided on private sector involvement it will only apply after.
the mechanism will have three main components a macro economic adjustment programme a financing arrangement and private sector involvement.
crucially stricter fiscal rules and broader economic surveillance both cornerstones of the commission package have been preserved. i have stressed many times before the importance of having the new framework operational as soon as possible so i was pleased that the european council backed our idea for a fast track' approach and set itself the objective of agreement on the commission's legislative proposals by summer.
one. it also makes sense for us to have as straightforward a process as possible. that is why i would caution against the temptation to start linking this to other unconnected subjects.
we all know that this is never an easy process and we all understand the risks. that is one of the reasons why i explained during the european council and even before that we should not accept a revision of the treaty that calls into question the voting rights of member states.
forum. the global economy the g twenty and emerging economies were also very much on the agenda.
the task force chaired by president van rompuy has presented its results which are very positive.
the temporary mechanism currently in force will expire in two thousand and thirteen so it is vital that something credible robust lasting and grounded in the essential technical realities is put in place by then.
i think that the progress that we have achieved so far on economic governance is an indication that we can with sufficient political will on all sides make europe a stronger force in the world for the benefit of our citizens but for this let us be clear that we need political will and we need a sense of common purpose not only from the european institutions but from all our member states.
in fact commissioner rehn here said they had to agree their budget first before they would be allowed to have a general election. just who the hell do you people think you
the money is running out.
next. with their debt levels of three hundred and twenty five of gdp they are the next ones on the
your obsession with creating this euro state means that you are happy to destroy democracy.
more. but it is even more serious than economics because if you rob people of their identity if you rob them of their democracy then all they are left with is nationalism and violence.
you talked about the fact that it was a lie to believe that the nation state could exist in the twenty one st century globalised world. well that may be true in the case of belgium which has not had a government for six months but for the rest of us right across every member state in this union people are increasingly saying we don't want that flag we don't want the anthem we don't want this political class we want the whole thing consigned to the dustbin of history'. we had the greek tragedy earlier on this year and now we have the situation in ireland.
they should never have joined the euro.
i know that the stupidity and greed of irish politicians has a lot to do with this.
they suffered with low interest rates a false boom and a massive bust. but look at your response to them. what they are being told as their government is collapsing is that it would be inappropriate for them to have a general election.
you know they are beginning to understand that the game is up and yet in their desperation to preserve their dream they want to remove any remaining traces of democracy from the system. it is pretty clear that none of you have learned anything.
look at the anger.
i can only hope and pray that the euro project is destroyed by the markets before that really happens.
poor. untold millions must suffer so that your euro dream can continue. well it will not work because it is portugal
we urgently need a leap forward in economic governance;
first a further tightening of the stability and growth pact will not be enough.
i find it extremely puzzling therefore that they come together every three months or so and waste a tremendous amount of time and money to decide very little in the face of a crisis which is doubly underlined by what has just happened in ireland.
but instead all we are getting is confusion hesitation and mutual mistrust which leads to permanent instability instead of stability.
but i think you can now begin to move to bring the two together. i hope the path is clear and that the ftt and a balanced system of economic policy coordination are beyond mere surveillance and common debt management.
president van rompuy you are on record as having said that you are not fond of politicians with a vision.
third in one way or another there needs to be a system of common debt management for at least a share of public debt maybe up to sixty of gdp.
worse still there is a considerable danger that the new system as proposed will end up being procyclical and therefore counterproductive for growth and jobs. second economic and monetary union needs to be made far more effective through truly balanced and effective economic policy coordination not just surveillance and sanctioning.
i think you prefer practical action i understand that.
the economic benefits of such a system of eurobonds are huge and clear.
we need vision and action mutual solidarity and close coordination.
just look at the idea of a financial transaction tax.
it has now been batted on to the december council and presumably beyond that way on into the future.
what helps here is that over the last two years the commission has acquired substantial and in depth knowledge and understanding of the twenty seven economies so i would like to ask for two actions now.
in particular the treatment of imbalances can have an impact on other member states of the eurozone and the rest of the union. these potential effects should be accounted for in individual treatments so that the economic health of the union as a whole improves.
second i understand that a system of fully automatic sanctions would require a treaty change and the proposed system can take us only as far as we can go within the confines of the treaty.
last i understand that a complete and in depth impact assessment of the economic governance blueprint would require time we do not have.
the report which it endorsed and the events since then and i refer in particular to ireland have illustrated the importance of the subject in general and of the need for the rapidly deployable financial mechanism we decided on in may in particular.
we sought to get the right balance between on the one hand laying down an overall european framework regarding the need to avoid excessive fiscal deficits and economic imbalances inside the union and on the other hand allowing national governments freely to choose what they want to tax
we want to ensure that each member state fully takes into account the impact of economic and fiscal decisions on its partners and on the stability of the european union as a whole.
eu and euro area financial support will be provided under a strong policy programme which will be negotiated with the irish authorities by the commission and the imf in liaison with the european central bank.
colleagues that concludes my summary of the most recent meeting of the european council which took place nearly a month ago.
only a few weeks ago some member states were very reluctant about the reversed majority.
two thousand and eleven what is now crucial is to agree on policy conclusions and if need be corrective action on the basis of this assessment.
at the same time we want to strengthen the capacity of the union level to react when policies in a member state present a risk to the rest of the union.
we must not lose sight of the wider challenge of improving europe's structure and sustainable growth rates and a general economic performance.
in a compromise the various concerns have to be taken on board while of course respecting the treaties.
the council and it was the council under the treaty will decide on sanctions on the basis of a so called reversed majority'.
the answer to those who fear that fiscal retrenchment will cut economic growth rates is to focus better on the underlying structural factors that hinder our economic performance and to remedy them.
in this case our attention focused on the preparation of the g twenty the cancn climate change conference and a number of bilateral summits.
i also discussed these issues twice with the group leaders in the european parliament and with the chairs of the competent committees in accordance with the format you requested.
all the heads of state or government agreed on that need and on the fact that it requires a limited treaty change. before concluding on this point i would like to underline that the work on the stability pact is not simply about being punitive to member states or about rectifying past mistakes.
the european council also had a brief discussion on eu budgetary matters stimulated among other things by the speech of your president at the opening of our meeting.
twenty these included securing approval of the basel iii accords on capital requirements and on the reform of the imf.
the work needs to be done by the commission the council and parliament.
this is extremely useful for president barroso and myself and ensures that on such occasions we are speaking not just for the brussels institutions but for the twenty seven as a whole.
cancn will probably only be an intermediate step towards a global framework on tackling climate change. the european union regrets this of course.
in the meantime our conclusions simply said and i quote it is essential that the european union budget and the forthcoming multiannual financial framework reflect the consolidation efforts being made by member states to bring deficit and debt into a more sustainable path.
concerning the question of imbalances in the global economy and exchange rate policy discussions were tense in the run up to the g twenty meeting.
all the breakthroughs we achieved now need to be translated into legislative texts.
finally regarding our bilateral summits the european council discussed our priorities and strategies for the forthcoming summits namely those with the united states russia ukraine india and africa.
on cancn the european council also prepared the eu position for the negotiations starting at the end of this month. since copenhagen last year numerous talks have taken place formal or informal but they are slow and remain very difficult.
respecting' and i stress this respecting the role of the different institutions and the need to meet europe's objectives the european council will discuss at its next meeting how to ensure that spending at the european level can make an appropriate contribution to this work'.
the summit made a right analysis and agreed on a process.
it is important to look at it in a wider context.