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the negative conclusion is that the great effort made has been more efficient in harmonising the european regions' gdp and productivity than in harmonising its levels of unemployment |
it is therefore necessary to link structural financing more closely to job creation |
this commissioner is the first commandment for the coming period |
thus mr president i ask my fellow members to approve this report and i ask the commission as other speakers have done to take good note of the conclusions of their sixth periodic report when they address the programming for the period 2000 2006 |
mr president commissioner i would first like to thank the rapporteur for his excellent work and for having taken due account of the proposed amendments while the committee was debating it |
the sixth periodical report gives a basis for assessing the implementation of the union' s regional policy aims |
the report shows that growth has been uneven despite all our efforts |
very rapid growth is continuing in central europe |
the strongest regional centres also continue to grow faster than the general european average whereas many southern european and northern areas are developing considerably more slowly |
we now require an in depth analysis of why regional policy is not producing the desired result in all areas |
is the reason bureaucracy or is it because insufficient notice has been taken of interregional differences long distances climates that are too cold or too hot sparse populations and austere conditions |
how can the union respond to the challenges of global development in a way that the less developed areas can remain a part of that development |
it is also important to discover what the effects of union enlargement will be on structural funds and the development of the union' s more remote areas |
the member states must also bear in mind their responsibility |
some member states have been in breach of the principle of subsidiarity and cut national regional funds when regional aid coming via the union has been increased |
this has chipped away at the results that regional policy has produced |
in the future we must also develop indicators so that measures can be targeted at the right time at the right place |
for example uncontrolled migration has not been given sufficient consideration |
in this connection too weight has to be given to the decisive importance of smes as employers and forces behind regional development |
it is absolutely essential that companies in areas developing more slowly adopt the latest technology and know how |
our group is in favour of adopting this report |
mr president commissioner the european union' s regional policy has until now not been able to interpret in any significant way the existing differences in our inhabitants' incomes |
we have a serious situation in which in the european union today there is a genuine link between unemployment and poverty as demonstrated by the very worrying fact that unemployment has reached on average 237 in the regions worst affected regions which also happen to be poor areas whilst in the 25 regions with the lowest unemployment corresponding to the richer areas unemployment stands at just 4 |
given this situation the report approved by parliament must highlight the need for measures that aim unequivocally to fight relative poverty and unemployment measures such as the appropriate use of structural funds for these purposes which are often misspent with centralised state policies and the modernisation of telecommunication and communication systems with the particular aim of integrating the least developed regions into the trans european rail networks which are due in 2007 |
there should also be measures that respect and develop the resources and capabilities of these countries' agriculture and fisheries which are often harmed by the european union' s own insensitive policies as well as the promotion of active policies to create jobs particularly for women and young people only through the decisive application of this kind of measure will we be able to overcome social and regional inequality which is not the historical product of inherent defects but of marginalisation and economic policies which have had harmful effects |
mr president commissioner mr berend' s report is precisely in line with the strategy determined by the european commission inasmuch as the question of increasing competitiveness is brought right to the fore |
the overarching objectives of the structural funds such as job creation boosting equality of opportunity increasing the sustainability of employment and development are only mentioned in passing |
this attitude appears to me to be unjustified i would also ask that a great deal more emphasis be placed on these points in the seventh periodic report |
this does not mean that i do not see the need for competitiveness particularly as i myself am an entrepreneur in an objective 1 region that is in brandenburg in the federal republic of germany and am only too aware of the problems and concerns of small and medium sized enterprises |
it is absolutely crucial that parallel temporary measures be introduced in the objective 1 regions that is to say job creation measures special programmes for supporting employment opportunities for women and initiatives to help people set up their own business |
they are supported by appropriate european union structural fund activities |
supporting only the competitiveness of companies will never be able to compensate for the envisaged cohesion between economic and social development simply because there is no basis for a self supporting upturn in these objective 1 regions |
after all the knowledge that economic development alone does not help to combat unemployment substantiates the fact than an increase of at least 3 in gross domestic product is needed to create any additional jobs at all |
concentrating to the exclusion of all else on supply and demand orientated economic policy is not the answer |
and those that do pursue such a policy must invest in expansion for the most part and to a lesser extent in rationalisation |
it is imperative for this to go hand in hand with a demand orientated economic policy if we are to have any chance at all of improving the social situation in these areas |
the situation varies to an enormous degree throughout the regions |
in other words what is needed is a number of accompanying measures if anything at all is to be accomplished there |
for example these would be measures for vocational training for further education for re integrating people who have already been excluded from the production process for the flexibilisation of working time and working time arrangements in order to bring about a definite improvement in the integration of personal and social aspects and perhaps also to promote employment opportunities for women again |
mr president my compliments to the rapporteur for his in depth report |
the key goal of the structural funds is to strengthen social and economic cohesion between the regions within the european union |
by stimulating a diversity of investments the european union is endeavouring to increase the gdp per capita and to boost employment |
from the sixth periodic report on the regions one can draw the hesitant conclusion that these incentives do not always have the desired effect |
the efforts made in order to drive up the gdp per capita in objective 1 regions do not always result in such an increase not really a satisfying result over a period during which certainly over the past couple of years there has been economic growth |
as indicated by the rapporteur the effects of the structural measures on the other hand are minimal as far as employment is concerned |
some reservation about the effectiveness of community aid is therefore called for |
also the observation that the disparities between regions within member states sometimes even become more pronounced raises serious questions |
mr president it therefore seems worthwhile and necessary to focus attention on both national and regional authorities especially in connection with boosting employment |
it is after all they who have most knowledge about the regions which fall under their remit |
by allowing them to develop tailor made plans for the relevant regions and if necessary tying this in with financial aid a higher return can be achieved |
surely this must be the ultimate goal |
i am therefore in favour of the commission delegating the practical details and implementation of measures to the member states and regions |
following on from this it is probably also more meaningful with regard to the financial aid to regions to give member states more say anyway |
by shifting the criteria from the regions to the member states we can avoid a great deal of problems later on |
finally i would like to draw attention to the position of the central and eastern european countries |
the report shows that in general they are a long way behind eu countries especially in terms of gdp per capita |
with the planned accession of a large number of these countries in the foreseeable future it is a matter of urgency to review the current structural policy i would like to take this opportunity to follow the example of others and call on the commission to submit proposals for reform sooner rather than later |
mr president commissioner following close scrutiny of this report one cannot escape the conclusion that it was possible to fulfil the stated objective of the structural policy only in part |
for example whilst the disparities between the regions have increased rather than decreased there has been a certain amount of convergence between the member states themselves in this respect |
equally unemployment levels in the worst affected regions barely fell at all indeed they rose in some cases |
i wonder why it is that the structural funds are not employed more efficiently |
even the accumulation of money from the cohesion funds and the structural funds has failed to have the desired effect in all regions and countries |
since it is the declared aim of all politicians throughout europe to reduce unemployment then one must pose the critical question as to whether the policy employed is the right one or whether it would not be more appropriate to boost the competitiveness of the regions by appropriate measures such as increased support for research and development improvements in infrastructure and raising the level of training |
genuine structural reforms and a competition friendly taxation policy are the cornerstones of a successful economic base |
if we do not wish to stand accused of pursuing a cost intensive structural policy that does nothing to improve the unemployment situation in the long term then the measures drawn up so far must be analysed |
we will only be able to say that the structural policy of the union has been a success when we manage to create a sufficient number of jobs and when there is a significant reduction in the unemployment rate |
mr president commissioner my thanks go to the rapporteur for handling this very important report because developments in the social and economic situation will decide to what extent the citizens of europe will judge that we have been successful in our work |
this issue which has an impact on their everyday life is a key issue as regards eu credibility |
it has to be conceded that the eu has already aided i would say quite magnificently the development of poor countries |
i remember what portugal and greece used to be like when i drove through those countries for the first time twenty five years ago |
in this connection french speakers would speak of a coup de chapeau in other words i take my hat off to the eu |
the eu really deserves such a gesture but differences between rich and poor areas within countries are still too great |
what is the result |
people react by voting with their feet and go where they can earn a crust |
consequently we have to build schools hospitals and the whole infrastructure for the same people in the same country many times over |
this is very costly and it also causes very great social problems |
most people however would like to live in the area in which they were born and raised if they were given the chance to in other words if there was work there |
we must give them this opportunity |
this is a moral obligation the eu and all of us have |
the solution as i see it lies in clearly encouraging entrepreneurship |
by entrepreneurship i do not simply mean the ownership of business but creating will |
i mean the attitude where a person wants to get on in life whether he or she is an employee the owner of a business or an official |
what is a fair society |
one in which someone from a modest background can get on in life so as to make life a little easier for his or her children |
in this way positive development of the regions is also possible because people will start business and will work if they are given the chance |
finally i would say that in this matter we should learn a lesson from america where hard work is still in fashion and success is an indication of ability and not the object of envy as it often is here in europe |
mr president commissioner as my time is limited i shall get straight to the point |
firstly let me make a statement of fact the fruits of growth are not distributed equitably within the union |
the most remote regions still hard hit by catastrophic unemployment rates offer one example of this |
in reunion for example the rate is 37 |
this is not a situation related to the economic climate however rather it is a structural problem created by our remoteness our insularity in short our own specific personality |
the principle of specific exceptional treatment was envisaged in article 299(2) of the treaty of amsterdam in order to deal with such cases |
it only remains to put this principle into practice |
the commission document expected to be ready in december 1999 was delayed until january then february and the initial thinking does not fill me with much optimism |
i therefore appeal formally to the council and the commission |
as regards taxation state aid the structural funds and defending our traditional products practical measures characterised by daring and ambition must be planned as a matter of urgency |
if these do not materialise then unfortunately convergence and cohesion will remain no more than words for us and it is to be feared that the structural policy undertaken in our regions despite the size of the amounts committed will end in failure |
mr president as all the previous speakers have done i should like in turn to thank mr berend and congratulate him on the quality of his report |
just like the previous report this extremely competent and precise analysis the recommendations it supports and your own comments ladies and gentlemen shall prove useful to the commission in general and to the commissioner responsible for regional policy in particular at this time when we are involved with the programming of appropriations for 2000 2006 |
i should also like to make a few comments firstly mr berend regarding the assessment you have made of this sixth periodic report |