kfajdsl/voxpopuli huggingface dataset:
during the ongoing session of the human rights council the eu will play a leadership role on the matter of country specific and thematic initiatives.
as we work to find practical solutions to protect people and their rights we must also focus on all the progress we have achieved together and try to keep the hope alive.
we remain deeply concerned about the continuing grave and systematic violations of human rights by north korea.
a more effective un system is a stronger un system and for this reason we support the united nations secretarygeneral's ambitious reform agenda.
in times when human rights defenders are under attack and human rights are too often violated it is easy to fall into cynicism and despair.
the space for civil society continues to shrink in several countries and human rights defenders are too often a target of violence and intimidation.
so we will keep on working to allow access for the commission of inquiry ensure unhindered humanitarian access call for the release of detainees and demand the full application of humanitarian law by all sides.
this is why the european union continues actively to engage in the un human rights forums.
support and awareness of human rights is increasing throughout the global population and this is thanks to social media to the use of major sports events to the power of youth movements to more responsible businesses and corporations and to celebrities and influencers who use their voices to advocate.
we will also continue to bring human rights in syria to the attention of the human rights council.
two thousand and eighteen when human rights come under threat we must mobilise all of our tools to protect the people in need and improve the situation.
will also present a resolution on the human rights situation in myanmar.
its central focus will be on promoting good human rights stories by identifying sharing and showcasing the implementation of human rights based policies in all fields through positive examples. we believe this can be a powerful source of inspiration for people all over the world.
that includes multilateral action within the united nations system particularly in dedicated forums such as the human rights council and the general assembly's third committee.
since the adoption of the universal declaration of human rights seventy years ago the international human rights system has continued to show great resilience and it remains the single most effective framework through which we can address concerns and aspire to build a better world in the future for all of us which should be our duty and our calling.
moreover as a leading global player we have a clear cut responsibility to never compromise on the protection of basic rights and freedoms worldwide. voicing resolute declarations this is what we are good at.
however let us admit that we often get confused when our economic interests are at stake.
take turkey or russia saudi arabia or cambodia or many other places around the globe this space of freedom is shrinking.
future generations will judge us according to the extent to which we are standing for each and every human rights defender at this very moment here and now.
furthermore we should do our utmost in order to strengthen our engagement in stopping the ongoing atrocities in such countries as syria yemen myanmar congo and others.
finally there are undoubtedly very visible cases of a positive change in our close neighbourhood in particular.
i will continue to support a stronger system for the protection of human rights on the european continent.
i believe that parliament should be more closely involved in the appointments of the ecb executive board members including the next president of the ecb by following the precedent that has recently been set by the procedure taken for the appointment of the new vice president of the institution.
similarly while the ecb's massive cash injections have kept many institutions from collapse the reality is that many banks have not passed on the liquidity to customers particularly to the detriment of the small and medium sized businesses on whom economic recovery rests.
instead many banks have used the liquidity to buttress their own position.
two thousand and ten it will take years for these figures brought about by the financial and economic crisis to return to the pre crisis levels.
the financial and economic crisis has seen the worst global economic decline since the one thousand. nine hundred and thirty s after a relatively benign period of economic growth enjoyed across most of europe most member states have had their economies stress tested not through a simulated model but in real time and with painfully real consequences.
we must strengthen that accountability. above all the crisis has demonstrated that markets left unregulated do not always self correct and are prone to systemic risk.
the ecb's additional role during the crisis has been to expand liquidity provisions through the use of non standard measures. without such financial life support many financial institutions holding the savings and pensions of many european citizens would undoubtedly have collapsed.
the report focuses on the ecb's continued response to the crisis its exit strategy proposals the increasing imbalances within the eurozone the reform of the eu's financial architecture and finally issues related to the governance and accountability of this institution.
the primary function of the ecb is to maintain price stability.
mr president the last two years have certainly been the most challenging for the ecb in its role as guardian of financial and price stability since its inception.
the ecb has also steadily cut interest rates from a peak of.
and ten and two thousand and eleven most member states are experiencing rising budgetary deficits and debts. the commission's economic forecast in autumn two thousand and nine predicted average budget deficits across the eurozone of.
like previous rapporteurs i believe that the dialogue between this parliament and the ecb is constructive and is developing positively.
i also cannot avoid making a quick reference to the policy responses needed to the current fiscal imbalances a subject which is surrounded by a lot of confusion and which requires timely and decisive action.
this is something to build upon.
however i will leave it to my colleagues here perhaps to amplify on this.
i believe that the ecb has responded fairly well to the crisis.
my report on the ecb's two thousand and eight annual report was drafted in this context.
four twenty five in june two thousand and eight down to the current rate of one in may two thousand and nine in a bid to reinvigorate lending and to kick start the european economy.
the ecb is accountable to the citizens of europe through the european parliament.
of course it could be suggested that the ecb's interest rate cuts were not as radical as those taken by the likes of the us federal reserve or the bank of england.
to justified public revulsion it has allowed them to make bonus payments as well.
there is no coordinated fiscal policy so it is doomed to failure and it is failing as we speak. let me just remind everybody here about something else if i may.
there is no lender.
it is already failing.
it is already crumbling before our eyes. just look at some economic basics.
a complete disaster.
there are two sorts of people wealth creators those people that go out and work in the private sector and create wealth and there are the others who spend wealth which are politicians and bureaucrats and there are too many of us. far too many of
so that would be our contribution to this debate.
we need to rebalance tax income away from labour income towards other forms of income including capital income.
of course. what does that mean?
forty of young spaniards under twenty five unemployed is not a small figure and i could carry on.
we need to make sure that we have an effective corporate contribution effective not just on paper and that means ccctb country by country reporting etc.
we need more integration.
so i believe that europe is now at a critical juncture. the choice is between a higher degree of integration not just coordination and decline. the lesson that i take from copenhagen is not just that we missed the climate agreement.
we spend too much time coordinating too little time acting together.
we need to look and to take a hard look at coordinating our tax revenue because what do we need to do?
in this respect i must support my colleague in the conclusion he has come to concerning the performance of the ecb. i agree that two thousand and eight was instrumental and that those responsible have risen to this occasion.
this was no easy year for the ecb which had to face a number of challenges.
it was the year that was characterised by a great deal of uncertainty as regards the extent of the crisis which only seemed to worsen.
i also share some of the rapporteur's concerns with regard to the lack of transmission of interest rate cuts from the bank to the consumer and i feel that this should be further looked into so please take note mr trichet.
a great deal of uncertainty was also present with regard to the time it would take for the european economies to recover as well as the tools that we should use to stimulate such a recovery.
the function of credit creation in effect money creation must be removed from the hands of private companies.
a state's currency must reflect the condition and needs of its own economy and not the average needs of twenty seven different economies. however keeping our own currency is only part of the answer.
that is true outside the eurozone as well as inside it.
extra spending power when it is needed either to distribute existing or imminent growth or to finance large infrastructure projects must be created by the government and spent into circulation not created by the banks and lent into circulation.
mr president the rapporteur mr scicluna said that the ecb had tried to expand liquidity but that liquidity had not been passed on by the banks to their customers.
the central problem is that credit creation and distribution is in the hands of private companies the commercial banks and that is true outside as well as inside the eurozone.
and finally as mr scicluna said liquidity provision by the ecb has been a valuable tool through the crisis but it has not been passed on to the real economy.
so i say should we really listen to the pleas of such banks on new capital adequacy implementation dates?
on imbalances between member states the focus should be on loss of competitiveness often hand in hand with foot dragging on the single market and failure to address structural reforms including pensions.
but this has been tried of course. remember the row in two thousand and one over the ecofin warning to ireland during a time of fiscal surplus. so we know the lesson exerting discipline in times of surplus is even harder than policing deficit.
and i dare say some of these were even recirculated on repo to the ecb.
and just like in the financial markets failure to do so ends in crisis.
no doubt in some quarter such activity is even viewed as deserving of a bonus.
but there are indicators beyond the stability and growth pact that need respecting too. greater fiscal coordination linked to macro economic stability is an option.
this too does not necessarily have a deficit trigger.
we have to make sure that the programme is socially just and it is not yet socially just.
therefore i urge you mr rehn also to put pressure on the greek government to get serious on illegitimate wealth which has been accumulated in the past.
most people in greece feel that during the last ten or twenty years a lot of people became very rich under circumstances which were not just. if you praise the irish efforts you cannot compare it to the situation in greece.
on the other hand there are several countries which use tax policy as well as their wage setting arrangements to ensure they fall below this threshold.
if you do not act on those and i know that some in the ecofin do not agree with this approach then we will be setting fire to the economic basis of the eurozone and that is very dangerous.
on economic coordination and economic governance within the euro area.
i would like to take the opportunity to thank the ecb for its cooperation and availability in responding to my various queries.
of course they must be couched in line with european social cohesion principles. some observers have stated that the ecb cannot help greece because this is forbidden by the no bail out' clause of article one hundred and three of the eu treaty. nevertheless it is one thing to implement a bail out
finally we must restore public confidence in financial institutions through measures which include greater transparency better risk management and appropriate regulation.
as my colleagues before me pointed out and as europeans we all look up to the euro and we all want it to succeed.
some can be executed in the short term and others in the medium term.
we can make it succeed so let us all parliament commission council and the european central bank put our heads together and find a successful path forward.
secondly i would like to thank my fellow shadow rapporteurs for their joint team work in agreeing to amendments to this report and thus widening the agreement on it.
mr president a few points first.
we have to follow sensible economic principles and policies.
and another very different thing to provide temporary financial assistance.
it sits in the global market and has been affected by the global financial and economic crisis just as those outside the eurozone have.
how we manage our states' finances during the good years entirely affects how we are able to react and recover today.
joining a monetary union did not unite completely different cultures and traditions of fiscal policy.
the uk perspective has a lot to say on differences in fiscal policy.
we also bloated our public sector spent and spent in the good years borrowing more and more to create debts we could not even admit to when it looked as though the good times were gone forever and creating a culture where a supposedly respected economist from the uk even last week stood up in front of one of our committees and claimed that governments can magic money. fundamentally money to fund the public sector does not magically appear.
it comes from tax receipts from the private sector.
germany realises this.
its policies in the recent past have focused upon using government spending and incentives to help stimulate the private sector.
hence it is now in a strong position for recovery.
ultimately the public sector has done its job in the crisis.
it bailed out the banks and stepped up when the private sector failed.
now it is the turn of the private sector to replenish the coffers.
the downside of austerity measures which will put hardworking people out of public sector jobs must be turned into an upside for start up companies taking advantage of entrepreneurial spirit by reducing start up costs for businesses so that they can create the profitable private sector that is required to dig all of our countries out of the holes we now find ourselves in.
all of those countries that have practised unsustainable economic policies for the past few years including my own need to realise that change is essential and inevitable.
we are all pleased i think to see the last european council confirm the commitment of the member states to increase oda levels to at least.
we also noted with interest the remark and the suggestions by parliament regarding the assessment of the risks of working with and through the private sector and on avoiding a return to tied aid as well as on innovative financing mechanisms.
we also saw your reference to gender equality and support for the most vulnerable sectors of society in developing countries.
however that does not mean that we will only focus on so called easy countries and engage in a risk averse strategy.
it is for this reason that the commission anchors its support around the achievement of the mdgs as these provide the best available measure of poverty in the broader sense.
we also agree with parliament as expressed in your report on the vital importance of good governance for poverty reduction including the importance of fighting corruption and having tax systems working well.
furthermore we want to see continued action in the field of human development notably health and education.
looking at this we are very pleased to see that there is very little divergence in our thinking on how to increase the impact of eu development policy. it is clear that we agree on the vital role that doing more to support inclusive and sustainable growth could play in this endeavour.
having reflected on the findings of the consultation the commission is currently drafting a follow up communication and it will be adopted in mid october.
on differentiation we agree that the aid should be targeted at those countries where the need is the greatest and where we can make the biggest difference.
the commission agrees with parliament that broad measures of poverty should be applied rather than narrow income definitions.
on the contrary we consider support to fragile states to be a vital element of development policy.
however we should not confuse the idea of aid effectiveness with value for money.
development does not come overnight.
the number of schools that you build does not say anything about the quality of education taught in those schools.
we should not fall into the trap of demanding short term results which might not even support our long term goals and long term development.
i am very sorry if that does not fit into everybody's election plans but that is life and that is how development works so we should not forget to look at the long term perspective.
i would really like to emphasise that even those who were not strong supporters of parliament's mandate were still very very supportive defending that mandate during the quite difficult trilogue so many thanks again for that.
some member states even argued that given the fact that because of those developments the ambition might increase in the coming one or two years they wanted to stay on the lower side by concluding this act of law which is quite scandalous.
on the contrary it was extremely difficult extremely difficult to get the council moving and even the arguments that we used from parliament's side that with the energy efficiency a proposal from the commission of thirty instead of the twenty seven and with the upcoming facilitative dialogue
and very important there is a strong reference to the long term climate strategy that the eu and the individual member states must develop and the european council recently confirmed that by asking the commission to come forward with proposals.
we all so strongly supported the paris agreement and to refresh your memories the paris agreement also tries to stay within the.
i would also like despite the absence of the council here to thank the estonian presidency for the work they have done but their absence might say enough at this moment.
we also came to a strict review clause and that one is extremely important also in light of what the commission can do in the coming year with the talanoa dialogue and the long term strategy. i am convinced that this is only the start and that with increased
this morning before i came to strasbourg i again checked the so called carbon clock and the carbon clock indicates how much time we still have left with current co two emissions in order to stay within the paris agreement.
nevertheless parliament did achieve quite some improvements in this climate action regulation because now we finally got rid of that awful name of effort sharing regulation' from now on we can call it clearly the climate action regulation.
so it is obviously clear that we need an extreme sense of urgency to stay within that scenario and it's clear that during the negotiations with the council the member states have not shown that sense of urgency.
so if you ask me if i am satisfied with the final result we agreed i'm afraid my answer is no but it was the maximum that we could get out of the council and i think it would have been irresponsible if we had not tried to find an agreement there.
one five degrees scenario the time we have left in the medium estimate so that is not the most extreme with current co two emissions is four months and twenty two days.
in the un process it was absolutely necessary to increase ambition their answer was very stubborn and that was a clear no'.
wetlands including peatlands can absorb staggeringly high amounts of carbon.
the sd recognises that the legislation falls short on forest land but this new lulucf legislation means that how we use land is being recognised as of key importance in how we tackle climate change.
so how we manage and use our forests is of crucial importance.
the lulucf proposals also recognise the role of long life harvested wood products and deadwood both of which have the potential for storing carbon for long enough to be relevant for our climate action. increasing the range of products to which harvested wood goes including long life engineered construction timbers such as cross laminated timber and laminated veneer lumber can help countries improve their climate action.
for instance there is more co two stored in the peatlands of northern england than in all of the forests of the united kingdom france and germany together.
but if we know already that the targets are insufficient let's at least have the reporting rules straight and that is what we did in these two regulations as well. on lulucf i am happy that now we can also make sure that at the european level there will not be a decrease of the sink and that is why the greens will support the lulucf regulation.
it has been weakened too often and we know also that the base year has been put to a very bad level which means that the cumulative emissions will be much bigger than could have been possible.
that is why the greens will vote against that part of the climate legislation.
they were tough negotiations but there is now a package on the table and with this package we conclude the climate legislation until two thousand and thirty at least for the moment because we all know that what is on the table will lead us to minus forty in two thousand and thirty which is insufficient for the paris implementation. we are happy that countries like the netherlands sweden and france are already acknowledging that and so we look forward to the commission also coming forward with its longterm proposals to show that more needs to happen at the european front also.
that is for now and now it is onto the commission to come up with new proposals to make sure that we really are implementing paris.
farmers produce nitrous oxide by cultivating leguminous crops.
however the commission and the green lobby are so concerned about the importation of thirty million tonnes of gm soybeans that they want farmers to grow more protein crops.
that is always a difficult thing to do so thank you for that gerbenjan.
i just want to take this opportunity to look ahead rather than trawl through the details and what is obvious as we reach the end of this climate package or at least this iteration of the climate package is that we cannot continue to work in this way.
it takes far too long we get far too involved in small details and we lose sight of our aim.
so what we need to do it seems to me is to put this to one side accept that we have the mechanisms in place and start looking in the spirit of talanoa which is about checking progress but then seeking ways to increase commitments and we need to seek ways now to increase commitments in europe that do not involve going back through this long process and are actually there because people want to do it.
the physical and chemical changes of human activities are being felt in natural ecosystems very strongly.
both developed and developing countries have increased commitments for addressing climate change which is gratifying given the fact that climate change is a problem which cannot be solved by national or local action alone.