kfajdsl/voxpopuli huggingface dataset:
only once it has fulfilled these obligations can the commission decide on how to make the most efficient use of the remaining resources.
the commission is constantly striving to ensure that its public consultations are as inclusive as possible and has taken several measures to this end.
since two thousand and ten roadmaps have been published early in the planning process to allow stakeholders to be aware of proposals that the commission is planning to make and to be involved and give feedback from the very earliest stages of policy preparation.
madam president in line with treaty obligations the commission has a long tradition of consulting with those affected by a new policy or initiative and those involved in implementing it.
the commission is legally obliged to ensure first that all legislative texts are translated into all the official languages of the eu and that other legal obligations are respected.
currently the commission is carrying out a review of its consultation policy. the results of any consequent refinements to the consultation process will be announced in the planned follow up to the two thousand and ten smart regulation communication.
the commission is therefore doing all it can to make important consultation documents available in as many eu languages as possible.
regarding the language regime i would emphasise that stakeholders can provide answers to commission consultations in all official languages.
but that might upset the french and we cannot do that can we?
but every now and again we can see the benefit of some expenditure.
only thus can taxpayer representatives hold them to account for all the corruption and waste that we know takes place.
if public consultations are not to be available in all of the official languages of the eu millions of its citizens will be deprived of access to what is being done in their name and will be deprived of the ability to take part.
before we entered the then eec typically parliament would pass sixty to seventy acts.
twenty five by contrast our national parliaments now regurgitate thousands of pages of regulations forced on them by the european institutions.
this eu parliament as evidenced by the inexorable decline in turnout at european elections continues to move ever further away from the people real people real voters.
we know only too well that the eu represents one of the greatest pork barrels ever conceived.
whilst the commission would doubtless be much happier if large numbers of taxpayers were excluded from much of what is going on we say that the taxpayer must always be able to access the work of the council and the commission.
you are looking at me in great surprise but the fact is that having access to what is being done in their name is a matter of vital interest to every taxpayer in the european union.
we shall go on doing it day in and day out.
that would promote the learning of english across europe much to the benefit of young people as it is the lingua franca of so much of the world's activities.
with strong support from our group he managed to neutralise the attempts to legalise crossborder use of gigaliners.
in view of the continued ban on gigaliners across borders within the eu we are happy to support this text although the gains on safety and workers' rights could clearly have been bigger.
furthermore the gains we achieved on road safety and fuel efficiency aspects are positive.
legalising mega trucks throughout europe in densely populated areas with high traffic volumes would have we believe devastating effects for road safety and for infrastructure investment costs and would counteract all the good efforts for a more sustainable and efficient use of transport modes.
the introduction of a new and safer lorry cab design including reduced blind spots underrun protection and health and safety within cabs will save lives on roads notably those of cyclists.
for one we do not want to see drivers having to spend unreasonable hours including their weekly rest in the cabs of their lorries.
we had hoped for much more for example for direct vision improvements as well as for the possibility to implement those changes much sooner than from two thousand and twenty one onwards.
finally in terms of safer cab design we did successfully reach an agreement whereby new safer and more streamlined cab design in lorries will be introduced following the commission proposal on type approval legislation which will be coming in the near future.
this is subsidiarity and that again has been the conclusion that has been reached.
that should be determined;
so i support my swedish dutch and other colleagues too.
so this will give our manufacturers sufficient time to improve those designs and this should eventually lead to safer vehicles reducing the risk of death and injury to pedestrians and cyclists.
firstly my delegation had a number of key political objectives. one was to ensure that the uk would retain the right to determine the use of mega trucks on british roads. just for clarification this has been established.
secondly we were also successful in retaining the existing right of trucks which are higher than the permitted four metres to operate between the uk and the republic of ireland thus protecting our local hauliers.
the cost of upgrading roads to cope with these vehicles and for repairing the damage they cause would amount to billions.
while trials with longer and heavier trucks are carried out in some member states the eu talks about safety improvements and aerodynamic optimisation but no realistic solution is found. this issue should be up to member states to decide especially where their trucks are more suitable.
vehicles of a size laid down in that directive create certain undeniable and fundamental issues which have not been addressed such as the unsuitability of some highways infrastructure in certain member states.
finally intermodality.
and for the industry which will be able to produce new models with higher performance and to remain competitive on the global market for heavy goods vehicles.
this can be described as a winwin situation for society with fewer emissions and casualties on our roads;
it is good for vulnerable road users because the new cab design will give lorry drivers a better view of the road.
the commission is grateful for the amendments proposed and adopted by parliament and for the constructive work carried out during the legislative process to reach a good compromise.
second it will encourage greener transport.
with the use of lowcarbon technologies it will make trucks more aerodynamic and therefore more fuelefficient.
on board weighing systems linked to digital tachographs and weighinmotion stations on the main roads will allow for more consistent checks from country to country.
all these efforts have contributed to the possibility of having safer and greener heavy goods vehicles on the roads in the future.
for hauliers with lower fuel costs and additional incentives to renew their fleet;
this promotes intermodular transport by cutting red tape to allow forty five foot containers to be shifted more easily between ship rail and road.
it is enabling legislation which will allow european manufacturers to sell the truck of the future across the global markets.
but when we talk about evidence we should bear in mind that hgvs have a higher mortality rate per billion kilometres travelled than other vehicles and that most of those killed in hgv accidents are other road users not drivers.
so i welcome the reviews that will come as a result of this measure.
i would say that subsidiarity may have to take a back seat in the future for built up areas because unfortunately we cannot all follow what colleagues have highlighted in the netherlands and the measures are not being taken in built up areas that should be taken to protect other road users from hgvs.
obviously not all freight can be carried by rail but for me safety must be absolutely critical.
mr president this has been an excellent debate and the fact that there have been a number of blue cards shows that the issues are complicated and often politically difficult.
i think the simple fact is that we have a different evidence base and the evidence base is showing disproportionate damage. you can wave your hands as much as you like mr van dalen but you cannot hide from the truth.
the disproportionate damage is being caused to our infrastructure to our roads by heavy trucks.
it clearly shows that the proposal is important and that the compromise text strikes a good balance.
the commission is particularly satisfied that a compromise could be found on this political point.
we all recognise that a particular type of service needs to be adjusted based on the available infrastructure and local characteristics.
so member states already allowing longer trucks can continue to use them and those member states which do not wish to have longer trucks can decide against them.
i listened to your speech with great interest; it is very interesting that you say how important these trucks are in your country.
would you agree with me that perhaps this is one perfect example of when rules and regulations that come out from a superbody like this a superstate if you like across the eu cannot possibly fit and suit everyone within it and that is why national governments surely are the best people to make these decisions.
i am a little surprised that you are totally in favour of longer and larger lorries particularly when there are really big issues around urban roads and the appropriateness of such lorries on urban roads.
it is all very well in the netherlands and germany where they have adequate measures to stop longer vehicles using urban roads but would you not agree that it would be inappropriate to extend this to all member states when those measures simply are not in place and we know how dangerous these vehicles can be on urban roads?
these trucks have been in use for a long time and they should be allowed to continue along those lines. but in terms of where we are we have made a decision that they are not appropriate certainly on british roads and that is where we are.
mr lundgren thank you for that question. i was emphasising in my speech that i was talking about mainly policies on hgvs in general across the board not just mega trucks.
i do accept that there are difficult issues involved regarding the balance between environmentally friendly trucks and moving freight and all of the other issues that we have been discussing. so i take your point;
i am just saying that we have not got the balance right in builtup urban areas and that is something that needs further action and probably at this stage communitywide action.
mr president it has been really good for me as someone who respects and enjoys national sovereignties and all the diverse different countries that are represented here to see people speaking often on behalf of their own countries and highlighting the differences between the different structures and frameworks in those countries.
it brings home to someone like me with my own view about national sovereignty that really surely it is always better for the local authorities free of guidelines from here always to make the decisions about what is best for their infrastructure best for their economy and best for their people.
' well the truth is and this is something the british conservatives need to understand that if we were not here in the first place we would not have to worry about that.
doesn't it say everything that is wrong with the so called poster child for recovery in europe that while ordinary people are deprived of service ordinary workers are deprived of jobs and staff are offered only statutory redundancy only after six months the previous owner jerry conlan is sitting pretty on lots of money in america? i salute those workers who have taken a stand who have occupied their workplace.
after fifty five years she is the last baby of an estimated seventy eight zero to have been born in mount carmel hospital. this hospital has now closed because of celtic tiger greed which saw debts of eur fifty six million levied on the hospital. despite being a private hospital the reality is that eighty of the patients were public patients on public waiting lists and its closure will force the waiting lists up again.
what does it say that mr bruton the minister for jobs will boast about creating low paid jobs but will do nothing to defend the three hundred and fifty jobs at risk here?
last friday.
i want to read the comment of the brother of one of those who died in recent days.
he thought he had to try and beat the competition and after he necked his pint he jumped into the river.
i am not sure of the translation of that to other languages but it is basically where someone dares someone to drink a pint of alcohol and takes a video of it.
if people have any decency and respect they will refrain from any more of this stupid neck nomination.
in that game people are going ever further and taking ever greater risks.
my young nineteen year old brother died tonight in the middle of his nomination.
in june two thousand and twelve it was agreed to break the link between banking and sovereign debt.
if it happened in north korea you would rightly condemn it but the victims in my first example are greeks and in my second italians.
so stop whining about north korea as it is totally hypocritical unless you also stand for the right of european electors to choose golden dawn or forza nuova if they so wish. you have no power at all to change north korea vile though the communist regime there undoubtedly is but you could order your backyard occupation puppet regimes to restore democracy in greece and italy this afternoon.
mr president we all agree that the communist regime in north korea is an undemocratic shame.
what are we to make of a regime that jails its opponents on trumped up charges and keeps them in prison even when the political motivation for it is tape recorded and exposed? what are we to make of a regime that claims to hold free and fair elections but then arrests its opponents to stop them collecting and delivering the three hundred thousand signatures they need to stand?
because the systematic police repression of forza nuova activists has happened there in the last twenty four hours.
ready to help improve the situation directly on the ground.
the recent report by the un commission of inquiry was a powerful reminder of the abuses that are being perpetrated there and beyond its borders by the authorities of this country including ones that may qualify as crimes against humanity.
we will work with all our partners to ensure an appropriate follow up to the findings of the commission of inquiry. at the same time the european union has continued to finance limited humanitarian projects in north korea that ease the sufferings of the most vulnerable and show the north korean authorities that the eu is not just a critical voice but an actor
we cannot condemn with enough conviction the extermination murder enslavement torture imprisonment rape and sexual assault and forced sex work for women forced abortions censorship and effectively the total isolation and systematic repression of the people in north korea.
with all this horror in mind the prison camps are of specific concern.
we support the european external action service in following up the commission of inquiry's recommendations specifically in the icc referral and in seeking punitive sanctions in the un security council.
but we should also address russia and china through human rights dialogues and see what they can do with their influence to improve the situation of the north koreans and of course we ask the government and the authorities to begin to respect the basic rights of their own citizens.
the results of the investigation led by the un commission of inquiry is however a new and important step towards the international recognition of the widespread crime against humanity that is taking place in north korea.
now the question is what can the eu do against a regime that continues to demonstrate its absolute disregard for the human rights and dignity of its own people?
press freedom of national and international media as well as uncensored access to the internet for its citizens.
i therefore welcome the report of the commission of inquiry that summarises all these gross breaches of human rights and in doing so informs and educates the broad public. the international community must persuade all relevant actors including the people's republic of china
to contribute to drastic reductions of all these violations.
the prc has a great influence on north korea and can play an important role in reforming this country.
the eu should primarily focus on a pragmatic basis on issues like trade liberalisation and visa facilititation as the way forward not the intractable issues like nk.
welcome the new european union special representative appointment for the frozen conflicts' from the high representative but at the inaugural meeting of euronest which i intended two weeks ago the impasse over eu membership prospects under article forty nine for the six countries including the three caucasus republics and also the nk dispute basically paralysed the day's proceedings which does not augur well for euronest parliamentary cooperation.
they want to work in the same way that we work with more transparency with more responsibility and this is something that we should encourage. i think that with the enp review in may this year the communication of the commission gave the policy a new impetus
here we should say that we can only achieve results if we coordinate more and if we support each other's initiatives at different levels commission council parliament and the member states. we need to pay equal attention to the east and south.
i cannot be so pessimistic about the dynamics because i can see with my own eyes that more and more people from the eastern countries from the eastern partners see their future in a family with us.
civil society and business forums have been set up within the partnership and both will meet in the margins of the warsaw summit.
our partnership extends way beyond governments to links between peoples.
we have the tools to make this happen through the new neighbourhood civil society facility and we are working on the establishment of a new european endowment for democracy to support change in the neighbourhood.
mr president we have the will and capacity to take action in support of conflict stabilisation and settlement.
tefan fle and i are particularly concerned about the cases against yulia tymoshenko and other members of her government and plans to revert to earlier electoral systems against international advice.
we have been unequivocal in the face of clear repression of democratic and human rights in belarus in last december's presidential elections and since that time.
mr president our partners are at different stages and our role is to give practical support to that process of political association and economic integration within the eu.
in poland we will leave our partners in no doubt that the eu's acknowledgment of their european aspirations and their european choice goes hand in hand with our expectations for their commitment to progressing towards deep and sustainable democracy.
in addition over the last four years more than two zero students and academics from eastern partnership countries have been funded to study in the eu.
that means more financial support closer political cooperation deeper economic integration for those partners who embark on deep reforms.
we want to launch negotiations on a similar basis with armenia azerbaijan and belarus in the future.
our eastern neighbours have changed dramatically in the last twenty years but it remains vital for us to help them sustain the process of transition towards democracy and a market economy.
i welcome your personal commitment your presence at the summit and i pay tribute to my colleague tefan fle for the immense work that he has put into the eastern partnership in every possible way to support its development.
it was in may two thousand and nine that we launched the eastern partnership as a framework in which to build up political association and economic integration with six countries armenia azerbaijan belarus georgia moldova and ukraine.
this year we want to finalise negotiations for an association agreement with ukraine including a deep and comprehensive free trade area.
we also aim to launch negotiations on deep and comprehensive free trade areas with moldova and georgia once they meet the requirements.
we have made some progress in the last two years and strengthened those bilateral relationships with those partners.
mr president this house has been a consistent supporter of the eastern partnership and you mr president will speak at this event on behalf of the parliament.
this process of course is not only in their interest but we would argue in our interests as it enhances our own security and prosperity.
the strengthening of our relationship with our neighbours is a key priority and i said at the beginning of my time in office that i considered this to be the first priority for the european union and the one on which we should be judged.
we expect our european partners to do the most they can to make progress towards peaceful settlement just as we are making specific dedicated efforts to deal with the many challenges these conflicts pose.
in addition we have made progress on mobility implementing visa action plans with ukraine and moldova and visa facilitation and readmission agreements came into force with georgia a few months ago.
i thank honourable members who participated in giving us advice on both of these.
we believe that this partnership is built on mutual accountability and responsibility and a shared commitment to the principles of democracy human rights freedoms and the rule of law.
following the review of the neighbourhood policy that tefan and i undertook a key element is that the eu applies more conditionality in its actions linking them more closely to the efforts made by our partners towards reform.
as i have already indicated tefan has been working closely with ukraine over these past months to deliver these messages and to develop the relationship in order that they are able to move forward.
we have imposed sanctions against the regime and called for the immediate release and rehabilitation of all political prisoners.
i strongly support this parliament's efforts to enhance its links with eastern counterparts to the creation of the euronest parliamentary assembly.
his mandate includes contributing to the peaceful settlement of conflicts in accordance with the principles of international law working closely with all involved.
another important ingredient of this new neighbourhood policy is that some support will now be redirected towards non governmental organisations as we build partnerships with civil society.
we established the eu monitoring mission after the war in georgia and we are co chairing the geneva international talks.
this brings me to the case that has been raised most often in our discussions which is that of yulia tymoshenko.
mobility is a big issue for many countries and the importance of looking at what we can deliver on mobility over the coming months will also be a big part of this.
i think it is very important they be taken very seriously.
how do we support the growth of the political process?
the most important question that i think has been raised in our discussion has been do we have the political will to put the amount of energy and effort into our partnership in the east in the way that we have spent a lot of our energy looking to our southern neighbourhood?
i want to end by focusing again on what i think the deliverables will be at this summit.
having once been a justice minister i know how important this is as part of that journey in the development of the european union and how important it is that we stand absolutely by those principles.
its purpose is to focus on the empowerment of civil society and increase public accountability which is a really important issue.