kfajdsl/voxpopuli huggingface dataset:
there was a comment made that the location of the secretariat is important but much more important is the composition of the supervisory committee and there was a call that there has to be renewal or replacement in the supervisory committee.
first on the secretariat whether it will continue to be located in the olaf building i want to confirm that yes the secretariat will be located within the buildings that are hosting olaf and there would be full access to information provided.
it is a very good home for the administrative purpose of providing an assignment for the secretariat where the budget line can be apostate and where people can be accommodated without any interference in the work of the secretariat.
it is of course something which must have the greatest possible credibility.
for once in this place i have to say that the committee amendments seem to have the most positive intention to try to make sure that it is absolutely clear that it must be so and to say that the commission shall not interfere with the monitoring functions of the supervisory committee. so i think
in order to fulfil this responsibility the supervisory committee needs a well functioning secretariat. and as the committee also its secretariat must be independent from olaf;
therefore appropriate financing should be guaranteed directly by the commission separately from olaf's budget.
all this is rather clear to me and it is good that the commission thinks alike on this matter.
but as regards the issue of whether the secretariat should be physically in or out of the same building where the supervisory committee and olaf itself are located let me be as clear as possible what we are dealing with here is a very serious matter inside the union. to move the secretariat out of the building using artificial argumentation is another worrying signal of the state of affairs at olaf.
olaf is supposed to be and only to be concentrating on activities investigating fraud inside the european union or in the use of the union resources.
it should not be concentrating on issues like this.
the effective functioning of the committee requires constant contacts with the offices of olaf.
therefore it is essential that the secretariat is placed in olaf premises.
recent accidents in bangladesh for example and also in china require a strong and coherent response from the more developed regions in particular the european union and we have been championing a reply by the international community to these recent tragic accidents.
however mr barroso also pointed to lack of determination as a major downside risk threatening the european union today.
the fantastic cross party support for the cause of occupational safety and health at least from the political groups that have been represented in today's discussion in parliament.
pointed to a very important aspect which is the link between health and safety at work and demographic change.
one of them is the external dimension.
i agree that the crisis should not be an excuse.
as has been said it protects the social model. but it is also good for business.
it is time the eu lived up to its responsibilities and agreed a new strategy.
this has permitted the identification of major challenges during the period of the former strategy which will require a particular focus in the future.
two thousand and eleven the commission opted for such an approach because any strategic framework for health and safety at work needs to be supported by a robust evidence base in order to clearly identify the eu added value the challenges and priorities and the impact on workers and companies.
the consultation ended on twenty six august two thousand and thirteen.
more than five hundred replies were received in this period and the commission is currently analysing them.
in my opinion commissioner we need a european strategy on health and safety at work for many reasons and we need it now.
implementation can so easily slip and crucially the fostering of a preventive culture is not seen as a priority.
that culture of prevention of assessing risks with the engagement of all relevant stakeholders is to me a central part of any health and safety strategy and if that slips in member states it is so difficult to bring it back.
also when there is no eu strategy we have no uniformity we have no implementation at european level and we have no added value.
the european dimension then becomes less important and as with the culture of prevention if it slips down the agenda it is difficult to get it back. there is a real temptation in times of fiscal cutbacks to cut corners and it is often forgotten that good health and safety policy is an investment and not a cost.
the chartered institute of personnel and development has said there is an urgent need for a change of culture in the financial services industry regarding working hours and conditions.
my question is where is the prevention culture?
in ireland at the moment junior doctors are going to strike before the end of this month over the non implementation of the working time directive this is bad for patients and bad for doctors.
and that greatly exacerbates psycho social problems.
an eu health strategy if we had one would help to manage this and i honestly think it is badly needed in this regard.
yes we are critical and sometimes that hurts if you are in government or in parliament. i understand that but that is simply our role.
value. what counts is
hold on to that it is a great great
the issue at hand is very straightforward.
i find it difficult to understand but of course this is not interference in internal affairs.
if we in the commission believe those consequences might not be positive i think it is our duty even if it is uncomfortable to some to signal
i find it very difficult to understand what emergency would warrant an emergency ordinance on this subject.
leading to a situation where we can all say the development is now irreversible.
this is strongly supported by the romanian population.
public. i am encouraged by the fact that so many people attach such great importance to the fight against corruption.
romania is not at risk of going back to what the situation was in the past.
cooperated personally with various governments of differing compositions and all these governments have cooperated with me personally with the commission in a constructive way albeit of course blaming the opposition or saying to us that we are more critical of them when they are in power than we are of the opposition.
we signalled it in the cvm report last week. this needs to be discussed because it would not speed up the process. it would slow down the process or even stop the process of where we want to go namely to the point where we the commission can also say that the development is irreversible.
that is where we want to get to. so that is why i call upon the authorities in romania carefully to look into what they are doing.
that. that is what we are doing nothing more nothing less. i say to everyone in this house that you will not help the situation by turning this into a party political confrontation by making this a theoretical battle about principles.
i find it difficult to understand why lowering the standards on fighting corruption is in the interest of the romanian nation.
the parliament of romania is sovereign in its decisions and it also has to face the consequences of those decisions.
i am looking at a situation as it is.
asset. i also see that there is overwhelming support in the romanian population for the involvement of the european union in this joint progress towards an irreversible situation.
strong anti corruption policies must be a hallmark of our european union.
people across the union look to the eu institutions for leadership and direction in the fight against corruption.
we must speak out against corruption everywhere and today we are here because we hear the people of romania and we stand with them.
and this is an issue that goes beyond romania.
romania's efforts to join the european union ten years ago were pushed by those who wanted a different way who believed in europe and its value system and who looked to europe as a way to ensure that a crooked establishment never again gripped the reins of power.
the eu institutions and this parliament in particular cannot remain silent on political corruption if we are to remain relevant to the people we represent.
this is not about the romanian nation or the romanian people this is about the corrupt few who are working to circumvent the law.
i come from malta where our government has the dubious honour of having the only sitting eu minister and now the eu energy council chair whose secret financial set ups were exposed by the panama papers.
they cannot be met with silence indifference or excuses.
by the force of the romanian people's will to become a fully fledged european democratic open nation.
upon the romanian government to reconsider what they have done both with the emergency ordinance and with the draft legislation.
let them finish their job so that we can then come to the conclusion that developments are irreversible.
and we have seen the protests in romania.
to the romanian government do not turn your back on this development.
so why would you in the final metres of a marathon turn back and go in the other direction?
romania needs to take its place amid the european nations without being seen as in any way different.
and look at what has been achieved!
but he remained a european living in paris writing his poetry in german even in the one thousand nine hundred and forty s and believing in this european dream of european brotherhood.
hold this course however painful it might sometimes be because you do it in the service of your population.
all romanians deserve a country freed of corruption.
he was thus a true european not by choice but by fate because first the nazi persecution then the communist oppression prevented him from staying in his native land.
do not go the other way.
i would like to call upon the government not to go down that road.
and he was a true son of the romanian nation.
the commission has a direct interest in all of this because the legislation if it is adopted could also affect the disbursement of european funds in romania so we have to be very careful that we assess that. we will analyse the draft legislation and look into these matters but today for me the most important thing is to make this political point
we have seen the very clear worries expressed by the romanian judiciary on this.
do not ever forget that.
sadly he has been dead for quite some time but for me he reflects the european spirit of that great nation. it is paul celan. he was a romanian who spoke german.
we could say that romania is now in the final leg of this long long marathon heading to a situation where development towards the strengthening of the rule of law is irreversible and that is the criterion the commission now applies.
mr president fate has dictated that for the last twenty eight years in some way or form i have been a close follower of developments in romania and if you see the progress made over that period of time you can only be astonished
the emergency ordinance and the draft legislation pertaining to the fight against corruption cannot be interpreted as anything other than a step back from the progress we have seen in the last decade and i would urgently call
like any european nation the romanian nation deserves politicians and governments who support the fight against corruption who want to rid their societies completely of corruption.
listening to the people in this room today and looking at all the young people protesting on the streets of romania knowing many romanian people who have spoken to me and even yes looking at the message that was just sent by the highest authorities in romania to all the email addresses of those working in this parliament yes i know what is happening in romania and i am more convinced than ever of what i have just said.
ladies and gentlemen if i may ask you kindly to take your seats we will proceed with the votes. before i do so and i would appreciate a second of silence today is ellen heinemann's last day. she has been working for
i must say that she is one of those persons who are not necessarily visible but without whom we would hardly be able to conduct our work.
so warm thanks on my behalf and of course as i am sure you can hear the applause also from other colleagues.
it is very important that these rights of seasonal workers are protected right across the eu.
the committee on international trade unanimously agreed on a package of eleven compromise amendments on issues such as the creation of an effective help desk for smes and shortening of the duration of the investigation period now limited to twelve months.
the commission's proposal is good it aims at modernising both the anti dumping and the anti subsidy regulations to prevent the negative consequences of illegal dumping and is an important revision of the current regulation in particular as regards the duration of the investigation and the exclusion of lesser duty rules.
it allows for enhanced communication by informing business about provisional anti dumping or anti subsidy measures two weeks before the duties are imposed.
as the previous speaker has said switzerland is the european's union's third largest economic partner and the second largest fdi recipient.
therefore it is important that we have sufficient cooperation for the benefit of the eu's economy and also for the economy of switzerland.
madam president this report poses more questions than it answers. when researching the issue of undocumented migrants i found this definition an undocumented migrant is a person without a residence permit authorising them to regularly or legitimately stay in the country of their destination.
' on the basis of this definition i have a number of concerns about the nicolai report.
if the eu gives incentives and provides rewards to illegal immigrants such as healthcare education training housing and employment we are indirectly and irresponsibly supporting a system of illegal immigration which is unsafe and which leaves women vulnerable to being exploited.
what message are we sending to those third country nationals who play by the rules and enter our member states legitimately?
we are telling them that it does not matter whether one enters europe via legal or illegal channels as one will have the same rights and entitlements.
we have to address the concerns of our citizens over numbers and any potential abuse of our social security systems.
the dutch complaints bureau for discrimination on the internet has received well over six zero complaints from citizens and in addition many political parties in the netherlands including those from the majority have dissociated themselves from this website.
they have condemned the xenophobic nature of the website and warned about its damaging effects on intra eu trade for the dutch economy.
i would like to quote the council of europe's secretary general who wrote that he is concerned because the website is hosted by a political party which is linked to the governing coalition and so on and so forth. let me add to this that it is unacceptable
the european union is founded on the values of democracy non discrimination and the rule of law.
madam president the commission has serious concerns about the website launched by the dutch pvv party and as you know i have personally condemned this website because it is an open call for intolerance and intolerance has no place in europe.
they must explain to their citizens the important benefits the free movement of citizens has for the economy and for our societies.
the citizens of the twenty seven member states have the right to move work and study wherever they like and they should feel at home no matter where they decide to move.
i called on all citizens of the netherlands not to follow the intolerance of the pvv website and i commend the very strong reaction that they have shown.
alde has said that the website goes against all european values of dignity and liberty.
all governments have the duty to ensure that eu citizens from other member states feel welcome.
i would like to recall that ten ambassadors have written an open letter in which they express their concerns about the discriminatory and stigmatising nature of the website saying it was a deplorable initiative.
that is the right way to proceed to say altogether no there is a limit to what one can do'.
i also applaud the fact that the european parties have raised their voice.
that eu citizens should become the target of xenophobic and intolerant attitudes because they have exercised their fundamental freedom to move from one member state to another.
so you are profiting from this migrant work not the other way round.
if you intend to export your goods and banks you have to accept the workforce and the freedom of movement.
when it comes to the possible misuse of internet sites and of the specific reasons which have led this debate to be placed on your agenda this week.
it is clearly stated in the charter and the council of europe's convention on human rights that everyone has the right to freedom of expression including the right to hold opinions and receive and impart information and ideas.
frankly it is hard to imagine a world without the internet and the internet constitutes a vital tool when it comes to exchange of information.
this debate also relates to the principle of free movement of workers which is a pillar of the european union.
freedom of expression should be exercised within a certain framework in order to protect other fundamental rights.
politically speaking however i want to make it quite clear that i and the danish presidency condemn any form of discrimination.
i hope you will understand that my comments this afternoon are necessarily brief and limited in scope.
as far as any specific comments this parliament has in relation to reactions from any particular member state it is not for me representing the council as a whole to take a view on this issue.
the council also cherishes the principle of non discrimination and all activities of the councils are carried out in respect of this fundamental principle.
that is because the council has neither discussed nor adopted a position on the issue of government reactions to internet sites which raise questions concerning discrimination.
however finding the right balance between freedom of expression and non discrimination is a very important task and i very much look forward to hearing your views on this issue.
however freedom of expression is not equivalent to the right to express anything about everyone.
i need not remind you that according to article six of the treaty on european union the union shall accede to the convention on human rights.
today's debate is very important touching upon two of the most fundamental principles of the european union freedom of expression and non discrimination in an open and secure europe. as the presidency we are very much aware of the concerns of this parliament
i believe that while discussing this issue we must distinguish between law and politics and legally speaking it goes without saying that there is freedom of expression in europe. it is a cornerstone in our democracy and must be cherished.
this debate was about the unacceptable behaviour of a political party the reputation of a national government the rights of individuals to exercise their rights and obligations linked to the free movement directive the rules commonly agreed by all governments to protect all europeans
the netherlands authorities have to look into the matter from different angles. first the framework decision against racism and xenophobia.
i am very glad to have heard the political leaders from a wide political spectrum in this house combine words and forces in order to condemn unacceptable behaviour.
i want to make it clear that the commission cannot replace the assessment of the relevant criminal judge at national level.
second their national laws on hate speech on the internet.
the national courts have the responsibility to determine according to the concrete circumstances and context whether a concrete situation represents an incitement to violence or hatred on the basis of race colour religion descent national or ethnic origin.
and the values everything we believe in and everything on which we are constructing our common future.
here it is the dutch data protection authority which is responsible for taking action in order to analyse the initiative to investigate whether an unlawful processing of personal data is taking place and to take the necessary steps to correct this.
madam president in the name of the commission let me call on the netherlands authorities to take all appropriate measures to fully assess the lawfulness of this website and to draw the necessary consequences.
i think we can be proud of the european parliament today.
it is because otherwise there would be tension and maybe even war among nations?
do you recognise that instead of more peace more friendship there is increasing tension among the nations of europe?
he concluded when they came for me there was nobody left to speak out.
i suspect they are actually a euphemism for third world immigrants.
but of course free speech is not just for people with whom we agree.
she was the epp group's first woman to become president of the european parliament and she was such a strong woman.
the epp family lost one of its greatest members and we lost also a true friend who was by our side in this house for almost twenty three years.
she told us to turn europe once again into a project that the people can dream of. let us take up this call of nicole fontaine in memory of a great christian democrat in memory of a strong woman and in memory of a convinced european.
she knew that our societies need values and she knew the key to values is education.
this is a fundamental idea of christian democracy.
throughout her career nicole fontaine was very active in education policies.
this is why the hague convention on international child abduction is an important part of the international architecture for the protection of children as it allows for abducted children to be speedily returned to their proper country of residence.
the fact that the council is blocking the accession of third countries is a scandal;
economic policies being pursued by governments and being promoted by the european union give rise to countless cases of child neglect which was clear from discussions at the child poverty conference in belfast last friday.
however the ease of international travel and the increase in international relations have led to a rapid rise in the number of international child abductions.
while the people of ireland voted on ten november to change the constitution so as to protect the rights of the child the dublin government needs to adequately resource the essential support services for children and for families.
it must be reversed.
however there are concerns about the pace of resolution some cases taking years to resolve while some are never resolved at all.
children need to feature much more centrally in our legislative and policy considerations at all levels; they are let down by public authorities and in so many ways their voices are not heard.
since two thousand and seven the european union has been a full member of the hague conference on private international law and in that context the union supports the one thousand nine hundred and eighty hague convention on the civil aspects of international child abduction and encourages third states to accede to it.
the convention establishes a system of cooperation between the contracting parties to restore the status quo ante of the wrongfully removed or retained child but for these systems to operate an explicit declaration of acceptance is necessary and this is why the commission
i am afraid that we may need to ask the court of justice to deliver a verdict on this institutional dispute on competences which has very undesirable consequences.