Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2007-04-25-Speech-3-424"

Predicate	Value (sorted: default)
rdf:type	lpv_eu:Speech⁶
dcterms:Date	"2007-04-25"^^xsd:date⁶
dcterms:Is Part Of	lp_eu:Finanţele publice în UEM în 2006 (dezbatere)⁶
dcterms:Language	"en"^^xsd:language⁶
lpv:document identification number	"en.20070425.40.3-424"⁶
lpv:hasSubsequent	lp_eu:2007-04-25-Speech-3-425⁶
lpv:speaker	lp:Joe Borg⁶
lpv:spoken text	". Mr President, the Commission warmly welcomes Mr Lauk’s report and is grateful for the high-quality work of Parliament’s Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs. With a strong economic recovery currently under way in Europe and in the euro area, Member States have an outstanding opportunity to improve their public finances and to prepare for future challenges, such as the ageing population. In this context, Mr Lauk’s report is a very timely one. The Commission clearly agrees with the report’s statement that the revised Stability and Growth Pact is so far working as it should. In particular, many Member States have made considerable efforts to meet their obligations under the Pact. Since the reform of the Pact, both the corrective and preventative arms have been fully applied in accordance with the reform’s provisions. In addition, it is clear that there has been no leniency in the enforcement of the reformed Pact. Last year, a significant improvement in the general government deficit in the euro area, and in the individual Member States, was accomplished. For the euro area, the improvement was 0.9%, in nominal terms, and hence also appears likely to be higher in structural terms than the 0.3% expected by the Commission last autumn. The overall economic prospects for 2007 are equally encouraging. The ongoing presence of cyclically favourable conditions in the euro area calls for further fiscal consolidation efforts in 2007 and beyond. Adjustment towards the medium-term budgetary objectives should be stepped up and pro-cyclical budgetary policies ought to be avoided. Euro-area Finance Ministers confirmed last week their commitment to make full use of current economic growth and better-than-expected tax revenues to pursue sound fiscal policies, as well as to use unexpected extra revenues for deficit and debt reduction. The Commission also shares Parliament’s concerns regarding the long-term sustainability of public finances and is putting increased emphasis on its assessment. In this respect, a new report on the long-term sustainability of public finances in the European Union was issued by the Commission in October 2006. That report is based on EU common ageing-related expenditure projections. It confirms the importance of addressing the sustainability challenge with a combination of fiscal consolidation and structural reforms. The Commission has continued its work on incorporating sustainability considerations in setting the medium-term budgetary objectives. Indeed, the improvement of fiscal balances in the medium term contributes to meeting the long-term sustainability implications. Another key development is the emphasis on improving the quality of public spending, in line with the Lisbon Strategy. That policy guideline is indeed part of the integrated guidelines adopted by the European Council in March this year. The Commission is also grateful for the report’s recognition of the efforts made to improve statistical governance. The Commission recently reported to Parliament and to the Council on the quality of the data submitted by Member States. Finally, while the corrective arm of the Stability and Growth Pact has delivered the expected results, the picture is more mixed regarding the preventative arm. National fiscal rules and institutions can play an important role in this respect. Progress was made last year in this field, and the Commission is currently working on further improving the effectiveness of the Pact’s preventative arm. In this context, I fully appreciate Parliament’s support for this approach."@en⁴
lpv:translated text	"Mr President, the Commission warmly welcomes Mr Lauk’s report and is grateful for the high-quality work of Parliament’s Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs. With a strong economic recovery currently under way in Europe and in the euro area, Member States have an outstanding opportunity to improve their public finances and to prepare for future challenges, such as the ageing population. In this context, Mr Lauk’s report is a very timely one. The Commission clearly agrees with the report’s statement that the revised Stability and Growth Pact is so far working as it should. In particular, many Member States have made considerable efforts to meet their obligations under the Pact. Since the reform of the Pact, both the corrective and preventative arms have been fully applied in accordance with the reform’s provisions. In addition, it is clear that there has been no leniency in the enforcement of the reformed Pact. Last year, a significant improvement in the general government deficit in the euro area, and in the individual Member States, was accomplished. For the euro area, the improvement was 0.9%, in nominal terms, and hence also appears likely to be higher in structural terms than the 0.3% expected by the Commission last autumn. The overall economic prospects for 2007 are equally encouraging. The ongoing presence of cyclically favourable conditions in the euro area calls for further fiscal consolidation efforts in 2007 and beyond. Adjustment towards the medium-term budgetary objectives should be stepped up and pro-cyclical budgetary policies ought to be avoided. Euro-area Finance Ministers confirmed last week their commitment to make full use of current economic growth and better-than-expected tax revenues to pursue sound fiscal policies, as well as to use unexpected extra revenues for deficit and debt reduction. The Commission also shares Parliament’s concerns regarding the long-term sustainability of public finances and is putting increased emphasis on its assessment. In this respect, a new report on the long-term sustainability of public finances in the European Union was issued by the Commission in October 2006. That report is based on EU common ageing-related expenditure projections. It confirms the importance of addressing the sustainability challenge with a combination of fiscal consolidation and structural reforms. The Commission has continued its work on incorporating sustainability considerations in setting the medium-term budgetary objectives. Indeed, the improvement of fiscal balances in the medium term contributes to meeting the long-term sustainability implications. Another key development is the emphasis on improving the quality of public spending, in line with the Lisbon Strategy. That policy guideline is indeed part of the integrated guidelines adopted by the European Council in March this year. The Commission is also grateful for the report’s recognition of the efforts made to improve statistical governance. The Commission recently reported to Parliament and to the Council on the quality of the data submitted by Member States. Finally, while the corrective arm of the Stability and Growth Pact has delivered the expected results, the picture is more mixed regarding the preventative arm. National fiscal rules and institutions can play an important role in this respect. Progress was made last year in this field, and the Commission is currently working on further improving the effectiveness of the Pact’s preventative arm. In this context, I fully appreciate Parliament’s support for this approach."@cs¹ "Hr. formand! Kommissionen glæder sig meget over hr. Lauks betænkning, og den er taknemmelig for den kvalitetsfyldte indsats fra Parlamentets Udvalg om Økonomi og Valutaspørgsmål. Med det igangværende stærke økonomiske opsving i Europa og i euroområdet har medlemsstaterne en enestående mulighed for at forbedre deres offentlige finanser og forberede sig på fremtidige udfordringer som f.eks. den aldrende befolkning. I denne forbindelse er hr. Lauks betænkning meget aktuel. Kommissionen er helt enig i betænkningens vurdering af, at den reviderede stabilitets- og vækstpagt indtil videre fungerer godt. I særdeleshed har mange af medlemsstaterne gjort en stor indsats for at opfylde deres forpligtelser i henhold til pagten. Siden reformen af pagten har både den korrigerende og den forebyggende del været udnyttet fuldt ud i overensstemmelse med reformens bestemmelser. Endvidere er det klart, at der ikke har været nogen lemfældighed i håndhævelsen af den reformerede pagt. I fjor blev der rettet ganske betydeligt op på det offentlige underskud i euroområdet og i de enkelte medlemsstater. For euroområdet var der tale om en nominel forbedring på 0,9 %, hvilket betyder, at den strukturelle forbedring sandsynligvis også er højere end de 0,3 %, som Kommissionen forventede sidste efterår. De overordnede økonomiske udsigter for 2007 er ligeledes opmuntrende. De igangværende cyklisk gunstige forhold i euroområdet opfordrer til en yderligere finanspolitisk konsolideringsindsats i 2007 og derefter. Man bør intensivere tilpasningen til de mellemfristede budgetmål og undgå procykliske budgetpolitikker. Euroområdets finansministre bekræftede i sidste uge deres tilsagn om fuldt ud at udnytte den aktuelle økonomiske vækst og de bedre end forventede skatteindtægter til at føre gode finanspolitikker og til at udnytte de uventede ekstraindtægter til underskuds- og gældsnedbringelse. Kommissionen deler også Parlamentets bekymring vedrørende den langsigtede holdbarhed af de offentlige finanser, og den lægger øget vægt på sin vurdering. I denne henseende udsendte Kommissionen i oktober 2006 en ny rapport om de offentlige finansers langsigtede holdbarhed i EU. Denne rapport bygger på EU's fælles aldersrelaterede udgiftsprojektioner. Den bekræfter vigtigheden af at håndtere holdbarhedsudfordringen med en kombination af finanspolitisk konsolidering og strukturreformer. Kommissionen har fortsat sit arbejde med at optage overvejelser vedrørende holdbarhed i opstillingen af de mellemfristede budgetmål. Forbedringen af de finanspolitiske balancer på mellemlang sigt bidrager til opfyldelsen af de langsigtede bæredygtighedsmæssige virkninger. En anden vigtig udvikling er vægten på at forbedre kvaliteten af de offentlige udgifter i overensstemmelse med Lissabon-strategien. Denne politiske retningslinje er bestemt en del af de integrerede retningslinjer, som Det Europæiske Råd vedtog i marts måned i år. Kommissionen er også taknemmelig for betænkningens anerkendelse af indsatsen for at forbedre den statistiske styring. Kommissionen rapporterede for nylig til Parlamentet og Rådet om kvaliteten af de data, som medlemsstaterne har indsendt. Til slut vil jeg sige, at mens den korrigerende del af stabilitets- og vækstpagten har leveret de forventede resultater, så er billedet mere blandet med hensyn til den forebyggende del. Nationale skatteregler og institutioner kan spille en vigtig rolle i denne henseende. Der blev gjort fremskridt på dette område i fjor, og Kommissionen arbejder i øjeblikket på yderligere at forbedre pagtens forebyggende del. I denne forbindelse anerkender jeg fuldt ud Parlamentets støtte til denne tilgang."@da² ". Herr Präsident! Die Kommission begrüßt den Bericht von Herrn Lauk wärmstens und ist für die hohe Qualität der Arbeit des Parlamentsausschusses für Wirtschaft und Währung dankbar. Angesichts der derzeitigen kräftigen wirtschaftlichen Erholung in Europa und im Euro-Raum bietet sich den Mitgliedstaaten eine hervorragende Gelegenheit, ihre öffentlichen Finanzen zu verbessern und sich auf künftige Herausforderungen, wie das Altern der Bevölkerung, einzustellen. In diesem Kontext ist Herrn Lauks Bericht hochaktuell. Die Kommission stimmt der im Bericht getroffenen Feststellung eindeutig zu, dass der überarbeitete Stabilitäts- und Wachstumspakt funktionsfähig ist. Namentlich haben viele Mitgliedstaaten erhebliche Anstrengungen unternommen, um ihren mit dem Pakt eingegangenen Verpflichtungen nachzukommen. Seit der Reform des Paktes kamen sowohl der korrektive als auch der präventive Arm im Einklang mit den Bestimmungen des Paktes voll zur Anwendung. Außerdem steht fest, dass es bei der Durchsetzung des überarbeiteten Paktes keine Nachsicht gab. Im vergangenen Jahr wurde beim allgemeinen staatlichen Defizit in der Euro-Zone eine bedeutende Verbesserung erreicht. Für die Euro-Zone betrug die Verbesserung nominell 0,9 % und liegt damit in struktureller Hinsicht wahrscheinlich höher als von der Kommission im vergangenen Herbst mit 0,3 % vorhergesagt. Auch die wirtschaftlichen Aussichten für 2007 sind insgesamt ermutigend. Die anhaltend zyklisch günstigen Bedingungen im Euroraum verlangen nach weiteren Bemühungen zur steuerlichen Konsolidierung im Jahr 2007 und darüber hinaus. Es sollten eine beschleunigte Anpassung an die mittelfristigen Haushaltsziele vorgenommen und prozyklische Haushaltsmaßnahmen vermieden werden. Die Finanzminister des Euroraums bekräftigten in der vergangenen Woche ihren Willen, das gegenwärtige Wirtschaftswachstum und die in dieser Höhe nicht erwarteten Steuereinnahmen für eine gesunde Steuerpolitik zu nutzen und diese unerwarteten zusätzlichen Einnahmen zur Verringerung des Defizits und zum Schuldenabbau einzusetzen. Die Kommission teilt auch die Besorgnis des Parlaments in der Frage der langfristigen Nachhaltigkeit der öffentlichen Finanzen und legt gesteigerten Nachdruck auf ihre Bewertung. In diesem Kontext gab die Kommission im Oktober 2006 einen neuen Bericht über die langfristige Nachhaltigkeit der öffentlichen Finanzen in der Europäischen Union heraus. Dieser Bericht beruhte auf den prognostizierten Gemeinschaftsausgaben der EU im Zusammenhang mit dem Altern. Er bekräftigt, dass es wichtig ist, an die Aufgabe der Nachhaltigkeit mit einer Kombination von steuerlicher Konsolidierung und Strukturreformen heranzugehen. Die Kommission hat ihre Arbeit an der Einbindung von Nachhaltigkeitserwägungen in die Aufstellung der mittelfristigen Haushaltsziele fortgeführt. In der Tat trägt die Verbesserung der steuerlichen Bilanzen mittelfristig zur Bewältigung der Folgen für die langfristige Nachhaltigkeit bei. Eine weitere entscheidende Entwicklung ist, dass im Einklang mit der Strategie von Lissabon Nachdruck auf eine bessere Qualität der öffentlichen Ausgaben gelegt wird. Diese politische Orientierung ist Bestandteil der vom Europäischen Rat im März dieses Jahres angenommenen integrierten Leitlinien. Dankbar ist die Kommission auch dafür, dass der Bericht die Bemühungen zur Verbesserung der statistischen Governance würdigt. Die Kommission hat kürzlich dem Parlament und dem Rat über die Qualität der von den Mitgliedstaaten vorgelegten Daten Bericht erstattet. Abschließend sei gesagt, dass der korrektive Arm des Stabilitäts- und Wachstumspaktes zwar die erwarteten Ergebnisse gebracht hat, das Bild beim präventiven Arm jedoch eher gemischt aussieht. In dieser Hinsicht können die nationalen Steuervorschriften und Finanzbehörden eine wichtige Rolle spielen. Im vergangenen Jahr wurden hier Fortschritte erzielt, und die Kommission arbeitet zurzeit daran, die Effektivität des präventiven Arms des Paktes weiter zu verbessern. In diesem Zusammenhang danke ich ausdrücklich für die Unterstützung des Parlaments bei diesen Bemühungen."@de⁹ "Κύριε Πρόεδρε, η Επιτροπή χαιρετίζει θερμά την έκθεση του κ. Lauk και είναι ευγνώμων για το υψηλό επίπεδο εργασίας της Επιτροπής Οικονομικών και Νομισματικών Θεμάτων του Κοινοβουλίου. Καθόσον διανύουμε περίοδο έντονης οικονομικής ανάκαμψης επί του παρόντος στην Ευρώπη και στη ζώνη του ευρώ, τα κράτη μέλη έχουν μια εξαιρετική ευκαιρία να βελτιώσουν τα δημόσια οικονομικά και να προετοιμαστούν για τις μελλοντικές προκλήσεις, όπως η γήρανση του πληθυσμού. Σε αυτό το πλαίσιο, η έκθεση του κ. Lauk είναι πολύ επίκαιρη. Η Επιτροπή συμφωνεί ασφαλώς με την επισήμανση της έκθεσης ότι το αναθεωρημένο Σύμφωνο Σταθερότητας και Ανάπτυξης λειτουργεί μέχρι στιγμής όπως θα έπρεπε. Συγκεκριμένα, πολλά κράτη μέλη κατέβαλαν σημαντικές προσπάθειες για να εκπληρώσουν τις υποχρεώσεις τους στο πλαίσιο του Συμφώνου. Μετά την αναθεώρηση του Συμφώνου, τόσο το διορθωτικό όσο και το προληπτικό σκέλος εφαρμόστηκαν πλήρως σύμφωνα με τις διατάξεις της αναθεώρησης. Επιπλέον, είναι σαφές ότι δεν υπήρξε καμία επιείκεια στην επιβολή του αναθεωρημένου Συμφώνου. Πέρυσι, επετεύχθη σημαντική βελτίωση στο έλλειμμα του δημοσίου τομέα στη ζώνη του ευρώ και στα μεμονωμένα κράτη μέλη. Για τη ζώνη του ευρώ, η βελτίωση ήταν 0,9%, σε ονομαστικούς όρους, και γι’ αυτό ενδέχεται να είναι υψηλότερη σε διαρθρωτικούς όρους απ’ ό,τι το 0,3% που αναμενόταν από την Επιτροπή το περασμένο φθινόπωρο. Οι γενικές οικονομικές προοπτικές για το 2007 είναι εξίσου ενθαρρυντικές. Η συνεχής παρουσία κυκλικά ευνοϊκών συνθηκών στη ζώνη του ευρώ απαιτεί περαιτέρω προσπάθειες δημοσιονομικής εξυγίανσης το 2007 και έπειτα. Η προσαρμογή προς τους μεσοπρόθεσμους δημοσιονομικούς στόχους πρέπει να επιταχυνθεί και οι φιλοκυκλικές δημοσιονομικές πολιτικές πρέπει να αποφευχθούν. Οι Υπουργοί Οικονομικών της ζώνης του ευρώ επιβεβαίωσαν την περασμένη εβδομάδα τη δέσμευσή τους να αξιοποιήσουν πλήρως την τρέχουσα οικονομική ανάπτυξη και τα καλύτερα από το αναμενόμενο φορολογικά έσοδα για να επιδιώξουν υγιείς δημοσιονομικές πολιτικές, καθώς και να χρησιμοποιήσουν τα απρόβλεπτα επιπλέον έσοδα για τη μείωση του ελλείμματος και του χρέους. Η Επιτροπή συμμερίζεται επίσης τις ανησυχίες του Κοινοβουλίου σχετικά με τη μακροπρόθεσμη βιωσιμότητα των δημοσίων οικονομικών και δίνει αυξημένη έμφαση στην αξιολόγησή της. Σε αυτό το πλαίσιο, δημοσιεύθηκε τον Οκτώβριο του 2006 μια νέα έκθεση σχετικά με τη μακροπρόθεσμη βιωσιμότητα των δημοσίων οικονομικών στην Ευρωπαϊκή Ένωση. Αυτή η έκθεση βασίζεται σε κοινές προβλέψεις συναφών με την γήρανση δαπανών της ΕΕ. Επιβεβαιώνει τη σημασία της αντιμετώπισης της πρόκλησης της βιωσιμότητας μέσω του συνδυασμού της δημοσιονομικής εξυγίανσης και των διαρθρωτικών μεταρρυθμίσεων. Η Επιτροπή συνέχισε το έργο της σχετικά με την ενσωμάτωση των θεμάτων της βιωσιμότητας στον καθορισμό των μεσοπρόθεσμων δημοσιονομικών στόχων. Πράγματι, η βελτίωση των δημοσιονομικών ισοζυγίων σε μεσοπρόθεσμο επίπεδο συμβάλλει στην επίτευξη των μακροπρόθεσμων στόχων βιωσιμότητας. Άλλη μια σημαντική εξέλιξη είναι η έμφαση στη βελτίωση της ποιότητας των δημοσίων δαπανών, σύμφωνα με τη στρατηγική της Λισαβόνας. Αυτή η κατευθυντήρια γραμμή πολιτικής αποτελεί μέρος των ολοκληρωμένων κατευθυντηρίων γραμμών που εγκρίθηκαν από το Ευρωπαϊκό Συμβούλιο τον Μάρτιο του τρέχοντος έτους. Η Επιτροπή είναι επίσης ευγνώμων διότι στην έκθεση αναγνωρίζονται οι προσπάθειες που καταβλήθηκαν για τη βελτίωση της στατιστικής διακυβέρνησης. Η Επιτροπή παρουσίασε προσφάτως έκθεση στο Κοινοβούλιο και το Συμβούλιο σχετικά με την ποιότητα των στατιστικών στοιχείων που υποβάλλουν τα κράτη μέλη. Τέλος, ενώ το διορθωτικό σκέλος του Συμφώνου Σταθερότητας και Ανάπτυξης έφερε τα αναμενόμενα αποτελέσματα, η εικόνα είναι πιο συγκεχυμένη όσον αφορά το προληπτικό σκέλος. Οι εθνικοί δημοσιονομικοί κανόνες και τα όργανα μπορούν να διαδραματίσουν σημαντικό ρόλο σε αυτό το πλαίσιο. Το περασμένο έτος σημειώθηκε πρόοδος σε αυτόν τον τομέα και η Επιτροπή εργάζεται επί του παρόντος για την περαιτέρω βελτίωση της αποτελεσματικότητας του προληπτικού σκέλους του Συμφώνου. Σε αυτό το πλαίσιο, εκτιμώ απολύτως την υποστήριξη του Κοινοβουλίου γι’ αυτή την προσέγγιση."@el¹⁰ ". Señor Presidente, la Comisión acoge con sumo agrado el informe del señor Lauk y agradece el excelente trabajo realizado por la Comisión de Asuntos Económicos y Monetarios de este Parlamento. Gracias a la fuerte recuperación económica a que asistimos actualmente en Europa y en la zona del euro, los Estados miembros tienen una gran oportunidad de mejorar sus finanzas públicas y de prepararse para futuros desafíos, como el envejecimiento de la población. En este contexto, el informe del señor Lauk es muy oportuno. La Comisión está absolutamente de acuerdo con la aseveración del informe de que el Pacto de Estabilidad y Crecimiento funciona hasta la fecha tal como debería hacerlo. En particular, muchos Estados miembros se han esforzado notablemente por cumplir sus obligaciones recogidas en el Pacto. Desde la revisión del Pacto, tanto la vertiente correctora como la preventiva se han aplicado plenamente de acuerdo con las disposiciones de la reforma. Además, está claro que no ha habido lenidad alguna a la hora de hacer cumplir el Pacto revisado. El año pasado se consiguió una mejora notable del déficit estatal general en la zona del euro y en los Estados miembros individuales. Para la zona del euro la mejora fue del 0,9 %, en términos nominales, y, por ende, también parece posible que desde el punto de vista estructural supere el 0,3 % previsto por la Comisión el pasado otoño. Las perspectivas económicas generales para 2007 son igualmente alentadoras. La permanencia de unas condiciones cíclicamente favorables en la zona del euro exige mayores esfuerzos de consolidación fiscal en 2007 y posteriormente. Convendría realizar más ajustes que contribuyan a conseguir los objetivos presupuestarios a medio plazo y deberían evitarse políticas presupuestarias procíclicas. Los Ministros de Hacienda de la zona del euro confirmaron la semana pasada su compromiso de aprovechar plenamente el crecimiento económico actual, así como los ingresos fiscales superiores a lo previsto para intentar establecer políticas fiscales sólidas, y de utilizar los ingresos adicionales imprevistos para reducir el déficit y la deuda. La Comisión también comparte las preocupaciones del Parlamento con respecto a la sostenibilidad a largo plazo de las finanzas públicas y hace mayor hincapié en su evaluación. A este respecto, la Comisión emitió en octubre de 2006 un nuevo informe sobre la sostenibilidad a largo plazo de las finanzas públicas de la Unión Europea. Este informe se basa en las proyecciones comunes de la UE en materia de gastos relacionados con el envejecimiento. Confirma la importancia de abordar el desafío de la sostenibilidad con una combinación de consolidación fiscal y reformas estructurales. La Comisión ha continuado con su labor de incorporar criterios de sostenibilidad a la hora de fijar objetivos presupuestarios a medio plazo. De hecho, la mejora de los equilibrios fiscales a medio plazo contribuye a abordar las implicaciones de la sostenibilidad a largo plazo. Otra novedad crucial es la insistencia en la mejora de la calidad del gasto público, de acuerdo con la Estrategia de Lisboa. En efecto, esa directriz política forma parte de las directrices integradas aprobadas por el Consejo Europeo en marzo de este año. Asimismo, la Comisión agradece el reconocimiento que se hace en el informe de los esfuerzos realizados por mejorar la gobernanza estadística. La Comisión ha informado hace poco al Parlamento y al Consejo sobre la calidad de los datos presentados por los Estados miembros. Por último, si bien la vertiente correctora del Pacto de Estabilidad y Crecimiento ha arrojado los resultados previstos, el cuadro es más ambivalente en el caso de la vertiente preventiva. Las normas fiscales nacionales y las instituciones pueden desempeñar un papel importante a este respecto. El año pasado se hicieron avances en este terreno, y la Comisión trabaja actualmente por mejorar más la eficacia de la vertiente preventiva del Pacto. En este contexto, quiero expresar mi agradecimiento por el apoyo que ha prestado el Parlamento a este enfoque."@es²¹ "Mr President, the Commission warmly welcomes Mr Lauk’s report and is grateful for the high-quality work of Parliament’s Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs. With a strong economic recovery currently under way in Europe and in the euro area, Member States have an outstanding opportunity to improve their public finances and to prepare for future challenges, such as the ageing population. In this context, Mr Lauk’s report is a very timely one. The Commission clearly agrees with the report’s statement that the revised Stability and Growth Pact is so far working as it should. In particular, many Member States have made considerable efforts to meet their obligations under the Pact. Since the reform of the Pact, both the corrective and preventative arms have been fully applied in accordance with the reform’s provisions. In addition, it is clear that there has been no leniency in the enforcement of the reformed Pact. Last year, a significant improvement in the general government deficit in the euro area, and in the individual Member States, was accomplished. For the euro area, the improvement was 0.9%, in nominal terms, and hence also appears likely to be higher in structural terms than the 0.3% expected by the Commission last autumn. The overall economic prospects for 2007 are equally encouraging. The ongoing presence of cyclically favourable conditions in the euro area calls for further fiscal consolidation efforts in 2007 and beyond. Adjustment towards the medium-term budgetary objectives should be stepped up and pro-cyclical budgetary policies ought to be avoided. Euro-area Finance Ministers confirmed last week their commitment to make full use of current economic growth and better-than-expected tax revenues to pursue sound fiscal policies, as well as to use unexpected extra revenues for deficit and debt reduction. The Commission also shares Parliament’s concerns regarding the long-term sustainability of public finances and is putting increased emphasis on its assessment. In this respect, a new report on the long-term sustainability of public finances in the European Union was issued by the Commission in October 2006. That report is based on EU common ageing-related expenditure projections. It confirms the importance of addressing the sustainability challenge with a combination of fiscal consolidation and structural reforms. The Commission has continued its work on incorporating sustainability considerations in setting the medium-term budgetary objectives. Indeed, the improvement of fiscal balances in the medium term contributes to meeting the long-term sustainability implications. Another key development is the emphasis on improving the quality of public spending, in line with the Lisbon Strategy. That policy guideline is indeed part of the integrated guidelines adopted by the European Council in March this year. The Commission is also grateful for the report’s recognition of the efforts made to improve statistical governance. The Commission recently reported to Parliament and to the Council on the quality of the data submitted by Member States. Finally, while the corrective arm of the Stability and Growth Pact has delivered the expected results, the picture is more mixed regarding the preventative arm. National fiscal rules and institutions can play an important role in this respect. Progress was made last year in this field, and the Commission is currently working on further improving the effectiveness of the Pact’s preventative arm. In this context, I fully appreciate Parliament’s support for this approach."@et⁵ "Arvoisa puhemies, komissio pitää hyvin myönteisenä jäsen Laukin mietintöä ja kiittää parlamentin talous- ja raha-asioiden valiokuntaa laadukkaasta työstä. Talouskasvu on juuri nyt voimakasta EU:ssa ja euroalueella, ja jäsenvaltioilla on erinomainen tilaisuus parantaa julkisen taloutensa tilaa ja valmistautua tuleviin haasteisiin, kuten väestön ikääntymiseen. Tätä taustaa vastaan jäsen Lauk esittelee mietintönsä varsin sopivaan aikaan. Komissio on samaa mieltä mietinnössä esitetystä toteamuksesta, jonka mukaan tarkistettu kasvu- ja vakaussopimus on toiminut toistaiseksi niin kuin sen on pitänytkin. Monet jäsenvaltiot ovat tehneet kovasti työtä täyttääkseen sopimuksen mukaiset velvoitteensa. Sopimuksen uudistamisen jälkeen sekä oikaisevia että ennaltaehkäiseviä määräyksiä on sovellettu moitteettomasti uudistuksessa lisättyjen määräysten mukaisesti. Lisäksi on selvää, ettei jäsenvaltioille ole annettu armoa pantaessa uudistettu sopimus täytäntöön. Viime vuonna sekä euroalueen yleisessä julkisessa velassa että yksittäisten jäsenvaltioiden julkisessa velassa saatiin aikaan huomattava muutos parempaan. Euroalueella muutos oli 0,9 prosenttia nimellisarvona mitattuna, ja näin vaikuttaa myös todennäköiseltä, että se olisi rakenteellisesti korkeampi kuin komission viime syksynä odottamat 0,3 prosenttia. Talouden yleiset näkymät ovat yhtä rohkaisevat vuoden 2007 osalta. Koska euroalueella vallitsee tällä hetkellä noususuhdanne, vuonna 2007 ja sen jälkeen on toteutettava lisää toimia julkisen talouden vakauttamiseksi. Muutoksia, joilla pyritään kohti keskipitkän aikavälin budjettitavoitteita, pitäisi vauhdittaa, ja suhdannevaikutuksia voimistavaa budjettipolitiikkaa pitäisi välttää. Euroalueen valtiovarainministerit vahvistivat viime viikolla olevansa sitoutuneita hyödyntämään vallitsevaa talouskasvua ja ennakoitua suurempia verotuloja tehokkaasti terveen finanssipolitiikan toteuttamiseen sekä käyttämään odottamattomia lisätuloja alijäämän pienentämiseen ja velan lyhentämiseen. Komissio on parlamentin tavoin huolissaan julkisen talouden kestävyydestä pitkällä aikavälillä ja korostaa sen arvioinnin merkitystä. Komissio julkaisi tältä osin lokakuussa 2006 uuden kertomuksen EU:n julkisen talouden kestävyydestä pitkällä aikavälillä. Kertomus perustuu ennusteisiin niistä menoista, joita koko EU:n väestön ikääntyminen aiheuttaa. Siinä vahvistetaan, kuinka tärkeää on tarttua kestävyyttä koskevaan haasteeseen toteuttamalla julkisen talouden vakauttamiseen tähtääviä toimenpiteitä ja rakenneuudistuksia. Komissio on jatkanut työtään kestävyysnäkökohtien sisällyttämiseksi keskipitkän aikavälin budjettitavoitteisiin: kun julkinen talous on tasapainossa keskipitkällä aikavälillä, on helpompi kohdata kestävyyteen pitkällä aikavälillä kohdistuvat vaikutukset. Toinen keskeinen muutos on julkisten menojen laadun parantaminen Lissabonin strategian mukaisesti. Asiaa koskevat poliittiset suuntaviivat ovat itse asiassa osa kokonaisvaltaisia suuntaviivoja, jotka Eurooppa-neuvosto hyväksyi tämän vuoden maaliskuussa. Komissio on myös kiitollinen siitä, että mietinnössä pannaan merkille tilastohallinnoinnin parantamiseksi tehty työ. Komissio raportoi hiljattain parlamentille ja neuvostolle jäsenvaltioiden toimittamien tietojen laadusta. Vaikka kasvu- ja vakaussopimuksen oikaisevat määräykset ovat tuottaneet odotettuja tuloksia, ennaltaehkäisevien määräysten osalta tilanne on monimutkaisempi. Tässä asiassa kansalliset verosäännöt ja -laitokset ovat keskeisessä asemassa. Asiassa edistyttiin viime vuonna, ja komissio pyrkii tällä hetkellä tehostamaan sopimuksen ennaltaehkäiseviä määräyksiä entisestään. Tätä taustaa vasten annan suuresti arvoa sille, että parlamentti kannattaa tätä lähestymistapaa."@fi⁷ ". Monsieur le Président, la Commission accueille chaleureusement le rapport de M. Lauk et remercie la commission des affaires économiques et monétaires du Parlement pour son travail de très grande qualité. Grâce à la reprise économique, actuellement en cours en Europe et dans la zone euro, les États membres ont une occasion exceptionnelle de redresser leurs finances publiques et de se préparer aux défis à venir, tels que le vieillissement de la population. Dans ce contexte, le rapport de M. Lauk tombe à point nommé. La Commission est totalement d’accord avec la déclaration du rapport indiquant que le pacte de stabilité et de croissance révisé fonctionne, jusqu’à maintenant, comme il se doit. De nombreux États membres ont notamment fait des efforts considérables pour respecter les obligations qui leur incombent selon le pacte. Depuis la réforme du pacte, les instruments à la fois correcteurs et préventifs ont été totalement appliqués conformément aux dispositions de la réforme. De plus, il est clair qu’il n’y a eu aucune indulgence pour l’application du pacte réformé. L’année dernière, une amélioration significative du déficit budgétaire général de la zone euro et des différents États membres a été accomplie. Pour la zone euro, l’amélioration est de 0,9 %, en termes nominaux, et il semble donc qu’elle soit supérieure, en termes structurels, aux 0,3 % attendus par la Commission, à l’automne dernier. Les perspectives économiques globales pour 2007 sont également encourageantes. La présence actuelle de conditions cycliques favorables dans la zone euro permet de renforcer les efforts fiscaux consentis en 2007 et de les prolonger au-delà. L’ajustement aux objectifs budgétaires à moyen terme doit s’intensifier et les politiques budgétaires pro-cycliques doivent être évitées. Les ministres des finances de la zone euro ont confirmé, la semaine dernière, leur engagement à utiliser pleinement la croissance économique actuelle et les revenus fiscaux plus élevés que prévus pour poursuivre des politiques fiscales saines, de même qu’à utiliser les revenus supplémentaires inattendus pour réduire les déficits et la dette. La Commission partage également les inquiétudes du Parlement concernant la viabilité à long terme des finances publiques et met davantage l’accent sur son évaluation. Dans cette optique, un nouveau rapport sur la viabilité à long terme des finances publiques dans l’Union européenne a été publié par la Commission en octobre 2006. Ce rapport est fondé sur des projections de dépenses communes au sein de l’UE liées au vieillissement. Il confirme l’importance de combiner la consolidation fiscale et les réformes structurelles afin de relever le défi de la viabilité. La Commission continue son travail d’incorporation de considérations relatives à la viabilité lorsqu’elle fixe les objectifs budgétaires à moyen terme. En effet, l’amélioration des balances fiscales à moyen terme contribue à atteindre les objectifs de viabilité à long terme. Un autre développement essentiel concerne l’accent mis sur l’amélioration de la qualité de la dépense publique, conformément à la stratégie de Lisbonne. Cette directive politique fait, en effet, partie des directives intégrées adoptées par le Conseil européen, en mars, cette année. La Commission se réjouit aussi que le rapport reconnaisse les efforts consentis pour améliorer la gouvernance statistique. La Commission a récemment présenté un rapport au Parlement et au Conseil sur la qualité des données transmises par les États membres. Pour finir, on peut dire que le volet correcteur du pacte de stabilité et de croissance a fourni les résultats escomptés, mais le tableau est plus mitigé en ce qui concerne le volet préventif. Les règles et les institutions fiscales nationales peuvent jouer un rôle important sur ce point. Des progrès ont été réalisés dans ce domaine l’année dernière et la Commission tente actuellement d’améliorer encore davantage l’efficacité du volet préventif du pacte. Dans ce contexte, je me réjouis totalement du soutien du Parlement pour cette approche."@fr⁸ "Mr President, the Commission warmly welcomes Mr Lauk’s report and is grateful for the high-quality work of Parliament’s Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs. With a strong economic recovery currently under way in Europe and in the euro area, Member States have an outstanding opportunity to improve their public finances and to prepare for future challenges, such as the ageing population. In this context, Mr Lauk’s report is a very timely one. The Commission clearly agrees with the report’s statement that the revised Stability and Growth Pact is so far working as it should. In particular, many Member States have made considerable efforts to meet their obligations under the Pact. Since the reform of the Pact, both the corrective and preventative arms have been fully applied in accordance with the reform’s provisions. In addition, it is clear that there has been no leniency in the enforcement of the reformed Pact. Last year, a significant improvement in the general government deficit in the euro area, and in the individual Member States, was accomplished. For the euro area, the improvement was 0.9%, in nominal terms, and hence also appears likely to be higher in structural terms than the 0.3% expected by the Commission last autumn. The overall economic prospects for 2007 are equally encouraging. The ongoing presence of cyclically favourable conditions in the euro area calls for further fiscal consolidation efforts in 2007 and beyond. Adjustment towards the medium-term budgetary objectives should be stepped up and pro-cyclical budgetary policies ought to be avoided. Euro-area Finance Ministers confirmed last week their commitment to make full use of current economic growth and better-than-expected tax revenues to pursue sound fiscal policies, as well as to use unexpected extra revenues for deficit and debt reduction. The Commission also shares Parliament’s concerns regarding the long-term sustainability of public finances and is putting increased emphasis on its assessment. In this respect, a new report on the long-term sustainability of public finances in the European Union was issued by the Commission in October 2006. That report is based on EU common ageing-related expenditure projections. It confirms the importance of addressing the sustainability challenge with a combination of fiscal consolidation and structural reforms. The Commission has continued its work on incorporating sustainability considerations in setting the medium-term budgetary objectives. Indeed, the improvement of fiscal balances in the medium term contributes to meeting the long-term sustainability implications. Another key development is the emphasis on improving the quality of public spending, in line with the Lisbon Strategy. That policy guideline is indeed part of the integrated guidelines adopted by the European Council in March this year. The Commission is also grateful for the report’s recognition of the efforts made to improve statistical governance. The Commission recently reported to Parliament and to the Council on the quality of the data submitted by Member States. Finally, while the corrective arm of the Stability and Growth Pact has delivered the expected results, the picture is more mixed regarding the preventative arm. National fiscal rules and institutions can play an important role in this respect. Progress was made last year in this field, and the Commission is currently working on further improving the effectiveness of the Pact’s preventative arm. In this context, I fully appreciate Parliament’s support for this approach."@hu¹¹ "Signor Presidente, la Commissione accoglie con molto favore la relazione dell’onorevole Lauk ed esprime la sua gratitudine per l’ottimo lavoro svolto dalla commissione per i problemi economici e monetari. Grazie alla forte ripresa economica attualmente in corso in Europa e nell’area dell’euro, gli Stati membri hanno un’eccellente opportunità di migliorare i conti pubblici e di prepararsi a sfide future, quali l’invecchiamento della popolazione. In questo contesto la relazione Lauk si rivela davvero tempestiva. E’ ovvio che la Commissione concorda con la relazione laddove afferma che il Patto di stabilità e di crescita al momento funziona come dovrebbe. In particolare, molti Stati membri hanno compiuto considerevoli sforzi per adempiere i loro impegni derivanti dal Patto. A partire dalla revisione del Patto, sia il capitolo correttivo che quello preventivo sono stati pienamente applicati in conformità delle disposizioni di modifica. Inoltre è chiaro che non si è usata indulgenza nell’applicazione del Patto riveduto. L’anno scorso si è registrata una significativa riduzione del disavanzo pubblico complessivo nella zona euro e nei singoli Stati membri. Per l’area dell’euro il miglioramento è stato dello 0,9 per cento in termini nominali, e quindi probabilmente in termini strutturali risulterà più elevato dello 0,3 per cento previsto dalla Commissione lo scorso autunno. Le prospettive economiche generali per il 2007 sono altrettanto incoraggianti. Il permanere di condizioni cicliche favorevoli nella zona euro impone di compiere ulteriori sforzi per il consolidamento fiscale nel 2007 e anche oltre, introducendo aggiustamenti più ambiziosi verso gli obiettivi di bilancio a medio termine ed evitando politiche di bilancio procicliche. I ministri delle Finanze della zona euro hanno confermato la settimana scorsa l’impegno assunto di sfruttare pienamente l’attuale crescita economica e il gettito fiscale più cospicuo del previsto per perseguire politiche fiscali solide, nonché di utilizzare le entrate inattese per ridurre il disavanzo e il debito. Inoltre la Commissione condivide le preoccupazioni del Parlamento per quanto riguarda la sostenibilità a lungo termine dei conti pubblici e riserva sempre maggiore attenzione alla sua valutazione. A tale riguardo, nell’ottobre 2006 la Commissione ha pubblicato una nuova relazione sulla sostenibilità di lungo termine delle finanze pubbliche nell’Unione europea. L’analisi si basa sulle proiezioni comuni della spesa collegata all’invecchiamento nell’UE. Essa conferma l’importanza di affrontare la sfida della sostenibilità associando il consolidamento fiscale alle riforme strutturali. La Commissione ha proseguito il suo lavoro di inclusione di considerazioni sulla sostenibilità nella definizione degli obiettivi di bilancio a medio termine. Di fatto, il miglioramento dei conti a medio termine contribuisce a soddisfare i requisiti di sostenibilità nel lungo periodo. Altro elemento fondamentale è l’attenzione rivolta a migliorare la qualità della spesa pubblica, in linea con la strategia di Lisbona. Tale orientamento politico in effetti è parte delle linee guida integrate adottate dal Consiglio europeo a marzo di quest’anno. La Commissione è altresì grata per il riconoscimento nella relazione degli sforzi compiuti per migliorare la a livello statistico. Di recente la Commissione ha aggiornato il Parlamento e il Consiglio in merito alla qualità dei dati presentati dagli Stati membri. Infine, mentre il capitolo correttivo del Patto di stabilità e di crescita ha dato i risultati previsti, il quadro è più incerto per quanto riguarda il capitolo preventivo. Le norme fiscali nazionali e le istituzioni competenti in materia possono svolgere un ruolo importante al riguardo. L’anno scorso si sono compiuti progressi da questo punto di vista e attualmente la Commissione sta lavorando per ottenere un ulteriore miglioramento dell’efficacia della parte preventiva del Patto. In questo contesto, apprezzo pienamente il sostegno del Parlamento all’approccio adottato."@it¹² "Mr President, the Commission warmly welcomes Mr Lauk’s report and is grateful for the high-quality work of Parliament’s Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs. With a strong economic recovery currently under way in Europe and in the euro area, Member States have an outstanding opportunity to improve their public finances and to prepare for future challenges, such as the ageing population. In this context, Mr Lauk’s report is a very timely one. The Commission clearly agrees with the report’s statement that the revised Stability and Growth Pact is so far working as it should. In particular, many Member States have made considerable efforts to meet their obligations under the Pact. Since the reform of the Pact, both the corrective and preventative arms have been fully applied in accordance with the reform’s provisions. In addition, it is clear that there has been no leniency in the enforcement of the reformed Pact. Last year, a significant improvement in the general government deficit in the euro area, and in the individual Member States, was accomplished. For the euro area, the improvement was 0.9%, in nominal terms, and hence also appears likely to be higher in structural terms than the 0.3% expected by the Commission last autumn. The overall economic prospects for 2007 are equally encouraging. The ongoing presence of cyclically favourable conditions in the euro area calls for further fiscal consolidation efforts in 2007 and beyond. Adjustment towards the medium-term budgetary objectives should be stepped up and pro-cyclical budgetary policies ought to be avoided. Euro-area Finance Ministers confirmed last week their commitment to make full use of current economic growth and better-than-expected tax revenues to pursue sound fiscal policies, as well as to use unexpected extra revenues for deficit and debt reduction. The Commission also shares Parliament’s concerns regarding the long-term sustainability of public finances and is putting increased emphasis on its assessment. In this respect, a new report on the long-term sustainability of public finances in the European Union was issued by the Commission in October 2006. That report is based on EU common ageing-related expenditure projections. It confirms the importance of addressing the sustainability challenge with a combination of fiscal consolidation and structural reforms. The Commission has continued its work on incorporating sustainability considerations in setting the medium-term budgetary objectives. Indeed, the improvement of fiscal balances in the medium term contributes to meeting the long-term sustainability implications. Another key development is the emphasis on improving the quality of public spending, in line with the Lisbon Strategy. That policy guideline is indeed part of the integrated guidelines adopted by the European Council in March this year. The Commission is also grateful for the report’s recognition of the efforts made to improve statistical governance. The Commission recently reported to Parliament and to the Council on the quality of the data submitted by Member States. Finally, while the corrective arm of the Stability and Growth Pact has delivered the expected results, the picture is more mixed regarding the preventative arm. National fiscal rules and institutions can play an important role in this respect. Progress was made last year in this field, and the Commission is currently working on further improving the effectiveness of the Pact’s preventative arm. In this context, I fully appreciate Parliament’s support for this approach."@lt¹⁴ "Mr President, the Commission warmly welcomes Mr Lauk’s report and is grateful for the high-quality work of Parliament’s Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs. With a strong economic recovery currently under way in Europe and in the euro area, Member States have an outstanding opportunity to improve their public finances and to prepare for future challenges, such as the ageing population. In this context, Mr Lauk’s report is a very timely one. The Commission clearly agrees with the report’s statement that the revised Stability and Growth Pact is so far working as it should. In particular, many Member States have made considerable efforts to meet their obligations under the Pact. Since the reform of the Pact, both the corrective and preventative arms have been fully applied in accordance with the reform’s provisions. In addition, it is clear that there has been no leniency in the enforcement of the reformed Pact. Last year, a significant improvement in the general government deficit in the euro area, and in the individual Member States, was accomplished. For the euro area, the improvement was 0.9%, in nominal terms, and hence also appears likely to be higher in structural terms than the 0.3% expected by the Commission last autumn. The overall economic prospects for 2007 are equally encouraging. The ongoing presence of cyclically favourable conditions in the euro area calls for further fiscal consolidation efforts in 2007 and beyond. Adjustment towards the medium-term budgetary objectives should be stepped up and pro-cyclical budgetary policies ought to be avoided. Euro-area Finance Ministers confirmed last week their commitment to make full use of current economic growth and better-than-expected tax revenues to pursue sound fiscal policies, as well as to use unexpected extra revenues for deficit and debt reduction. The Commission also shares Parliament’s concerns regarding the long-term sustainability of public finances and is putting increased emphasis on its assessment. In this respect, a new report on the long-term sustainability of public finances in the European Union was issued by the Commission in October 2006. That report is based on EU common ageing-related expenditure projections. It confirms the importance of addressing the sustainability challenge with a combination of fiscal consolidation and structural reforms. The Commission has continued its work on incorporating sustainability considerations in setting the medium-term budgetary objectives. Indeed, the improvement of fiscal balances in the medium term contributes to meeting the long-term sustainability implications. Another key development is the emphasis on improving the quality of public spending, in line with the Lisbon Strategy. That policy guideline is indeed part of the integrated guidelines adopted by the European Council in March this year. The Commission is also grateful for the report’s recognition of the efforts made to improve statistical governance. The Commission recently reported to Parliament and to the Council on the quality of the data submitted by Member States. Finally, while the corrective arm of the Stability and Growth Pact has delivered the expected results, the picture is more mixed regarding the preventative arm. National fiscal rules and institutions can play an important role in this respect. Progress was made last year in this field, and the Commission is currently working on further improving the effectiveness of the Pact’s preventative arm. In this context, I fully appreciate Parliament’s support for this approach."@lv¹³ "Mr President, the Commission warmly welcomes Mr Lauk’s report and is grateful for the high-quality work of Parliament’s Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs. With a strong economic recovery currently under way in Europe and in the euro area, Member States have an outstanding opportunity to improve their public finances and to prepare for future challenges, such as the ageing population. In this context, Mr Lauk’s report is a very timely one. The Commission clearly agrees with the report’s statement that the revised Stability and Growth Pact is so far working as it should. In particular, many Member States have made considerable efforts to meet their obligations under the Pact. Since the reform of the Pact, both the corrective and preventative arms have been fully applied in accordance with the reform’s provisions. In addition, it is clear that there has been no leniency in the enforcement of the reformed Pact. Last year, a significant improvement in the general government deficit in the euro area, and in the individual Member States, was accomplished. For the euro area, the improvement was 0.9%, in nominal terms, and hence also appears likely to be higher in structural terms than the 0.3% expected by the Commission last autumn. The overall economic prospects for 2007 are equally encouraging. The ongoing presence of cyclically favourable conditions in the euro area calls for further fiscal consolidation efforts in 2007 and beyond. Adjustment towards the medium-term budgetary objectives should be stepped up and pro-cyclical budgetary policies ought to be avoided. Euro-area Finance Ministers confirmed last week their commitment to make full use of current economic growth and better-than-expected tax revenues to pursue sound fiscal policies, as well as to use unexpected extra revenues for deficit and debt reduction. The Commission also shares Parliament’s concerns regarding the long-term sustainability of public finances and is putting increased emphasis on its assessment. In this respect, a new report on the long-term sustainability of public finances in the European Union was issued by the Commission in October 2006. That report is based on EU common ageing-related expenditure projections. It confirms the importance of addressing the sustainability challenge with a combination of fiscal consolidation and structural reforms. The Commission has continued its work on incorporating sustainability considerations in setting the medium-term budgetary objectives. Indeed, the improvement of fiscal balances in the medium term contributes to meeting the long-term sustainability implications. Another key development is the emphasis on improving the quality of public spending, in line with the Lisbon Strategy. That policy guideline is indeed part of the integrated guidelines adopted by the European Council in March this year. The Commission is also grateful for the report’s recognition of the efforts made to improve statistical governance. The Commission recently reported to Parliament and to the Council on the quality of the data submitted by Member States. Finally, while the corrective arm of the Stability and Growth Pact has delivered the expected results, the picture is more mixed regarding the preventative arm. National fiscal rules and institutions can play an important role in this respect. Progress was made last year in this field, and the Commission is currently working on further improving the effectiveness of the Pact’s preventative arm. In this context, I fully appreciate Parliament’s support for this approach."@mt¹⁵ "Mijnheer de Voorzitter, de Commissie is ingenomen met het verslag van de heer Lauk en is dankbaar voor de hoge kwaliteit van het werk van de Commissie economische en monetaire zaken. Met het krachtige economische herstel dat we momenteel in Europa en de eurozone zien, hebben de lidstaten een uitgelezen kans om hun overheidsfinanciën te verbeteren en klaar te stomen voor de uitdagingen van de toekomst, zoals de vergrijzing. In dit opzicht komt het verslag van de heer Lauk op een goed moment. De Commissie is het zonder meer eens met de opmerking in het verslag dat het herziene Stabiliteits- en groeipact naar behoren werkt. Veel lidstaten hebben zich zeer ingespannen om aan hun verplichten met betrekking tot het Pact te voldoen. Sinds de herziening van het Pact zijn zowel het corrigerende deel als het preventieve deel ervan volledig geïmplementeerd in overeenstemming met de bepalingen van de herziening. Bovendien is het duidelijk dat er geen enkele clementie is getoond bij de handhaving van het herziene Pact. Vorig jaar is het begrotingstekort in zowel de eurozone als de individuele lidstaten aanzienlijk afgenomen. In de eurozone bedroeg de afname nominaal 0,9 procent, waardoor de afname in structurele termen waarschijnlijk ook boven de 0,3 procent komt te liggen die de Commissie het afgelopen najaar nog verwachtte. De algemene economische vooruitzichten voor 2007 zijn al even bemoedigend. De aanhoudend gunstige cyclische omstandigheden in de eurozone vragen om maatregelen om de begroting in 2007 en de jaren daarna verder te consolideren. De inspanningen om de begrotingsdoelstellingen voor de middellange termijn te verwezenlijken moeten worden opgevoerd en procyclisch begrotingsbeleid moet worden vermeden. De ministers van Financiën van de eurozone hebben vorige week bevestigd dat zij vastbesloten zijn om de huidige economische groei en de hoger dan verwachte belastinginkomsten ten volle te gebruiken voor het voeren van een gezond begrotingsbeleid, en om meevallers te gebruiken voor het verlagen van het begrotingstekort en de staatsschuld. De Commissie deelt ook de zorgen van het Parlement met betrekking tot de houdbaarheid van de openbare financiën op de lange termijn en besteedt in toenemende mate aandacht aan de beoordeling hiervan. In verband hiermee heeft de Commissie in oktober 2006 een nieuw verslag uitgebracht over de houdbaarheid van de openbare financiën op de lange termijn in de Europese Unie. Dat verslag is gebaseerd op de prognoses van de verwachte leeftijdsgerelateerde overheidsuitgaven voor de EU, en bevestigt hoe belangrijk het is om de houdbaarheid te verbeteren door middel van een combinatie van begrotingsconsolidatie en structurele hervormingen. De Commissie heeft haar inspanningen om te bereiken dat houdbaarheidsoverwegingen in aanmerking worden genomen bij het vaststellen van de begrotingsdoelstellingen voor de middellange termijn voortgezet. De verbetering van het budgettaire evenwicht op de middellange termijn zal bijdragen aan het verwezenlijken van houdbaarheidsdoelstellingen op de lange termijn. Een andere belangrijke ontwikkeling is de toenemende aandacht voor de kwaliteit van de overheidsuitgaven, in overeenstemming met de Lissabonstrategie. Dit richtsnoer voor het beleid is onderdeel van de geïntegreerde richtsnoeren die de Europese Raad in maart van dit jaar heeft vastgesteld. De Commissie is er ook dankbaar voor dat in het verslag de inspanningen van de Commissie om de statistische governance te versterken worden erkend. De Commissie heeft recentelijk verslag uitgebracht aan het Parlement en de Raad over de kwaliteit van de statistische gegevens die door de lidstaten worden aangeleverd. Tot slot, terwijl het corrigerende deel van het Stabiliteits- en groeipact de verwachte resultaten heeft opgeleverd, is het beeld bij het preventieve deel meer gemengd. Nationale begrotingsregels en instanties kunnen in dit verband een belangrijke rol vervullen. Er is vorig jaar op dit gebied vooruitgang geboekt, en de Commissie werkt momenteel aan een verdere verbetering van de doeltreffendheid van het preventieve deel van het Pact. In deze context stel ik de steun van het Parlement voor deze aanpak zeer op prijs."@nl³ "Mr President, the Commission warmly welcomes Mr Lauk’s report and is grateful for the high-quality work of Parliament’s Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs. With a strong economic recovery currently under way in Europe and in the euro area, Member States have an outstanding opportunity to improve their public finances and to prepare for future challenges, such as the ageing population. In this context, Mr Lauk’s report is a very timely one. The Commission clearly agrees with the report’s statement that the revised Stability and Growth Pact is so far working as it should. In particular, many Member States have made considerable efforts to meet their obligations under the Pact. Since the reform of the Pact, both the corrective and preventative arms have been fully applied in accordance with the reform’s provisions. In addition, it is clear that there has been no leniency in the enforcement of the reformed Pact. Last year, a significant improvement in the general government deficit in the euro area, and in the individual Member States, was accomplished. For the euro area, the improvement was 0.9%, in nominal terms, and hence also appears likely to be higher in structural terms than the 0.3% expected by the Commission last autumn. The overall economic prospects for 2007 are equally encouraging. The ongoing presence of cyclically favourable conditions in the euro area calls for further fiscal consolidation efforts in 2007 and beyond. Adjustment towards the medium-term budgetary objectives should be stepped up and pro-cyclical budgetary policies ought to be avoided. Euro-area Finance Ministers confirmed last week their commitment to make full use of current economic growth and better-than-expected tax revenues to pursue sound fiscal policies, as well as to use unexpected extra revenues for deficit and debt reduction. The Commission also shares Parliament’s concerns regarding the long-term sustainability of public finances and is putting increased emphasis on its assessment. In this respect, a new report on the long-term sustainability of public finances in the European Union was issued by the Commission in October 2006. That report is based on EU common ageing-related expenditure projections. It confirms the importance of addressing the sustainability challenge with a combination of fiscal consolidation and structural reforms. The Commission has continued its work on incorporating sustainability considerations in setting the medium-term budgetary objectives. Indeed, the improvement of fiscal balances in the medium term contributes to meeting the long-term sustainability implications. Another key development is the emphasis on improving the quality of public spending, in line with the Lisbon Strategy. That policy guideline is indeed part of the integrated guidelines adopted by the European Council in March this year. The Commission is also grateful for the report’s recognition of the efforts made to improve statistical governance. The Commission recently reported to Parliament and to the Council on the quality of the data submitted by Member States. Finally, while the corrective arm of the Stability and Growth Pact has delivered the expected results, the picture is more mixed regarding the preventative arm. National fiscal rules and institutions can play an important role in this respect. Progress was made last year in this field, and the Commission is currently working on further improving the effectiveness of the Pact’s preventative arm. In this context, I fully appreciate Parliament’s support for this approach."@pl¹⁶ "Senhor Presidente, a Comissão congratula-se vivamente com o relatório do senhor deputado Lauk e está grata pela elevada qualidade do trabalho desenvolvido pela Comissão dos Assuntos Económicos e Monetários do Parlamento. Estando uma forte retoma económica actualmente em curso na Europa e na zona euro, os Estados-Membros dispõem de uma extraordinária oportunidade para melhorar as suas finanças públicas e preparar-se para os desafios do futuro, tais como o envelhecimento da população. Neste contexto, o relatório do senhor deputado Lauk é extremamente oportuno. A Comissão concorda plenamente com o relatório quando afirma que o Pacto de Estabilidade Revisto está, até ao momento, a funcionar como deve. Em particular, muitos dos Estados-Membros empreenderam esforços consideráveis para cumprir as suas obrigações ao abrigo do Pacto. Desde a reforma do Pacto, ambas as vertentes, correctiva e preventiva, foram plenamente aplicadas de acordo com as disposições da reforma. Para além disso, é evidente que não houve condescendência na aplicação do Pacto. No ano passado, registou-se uma melhoria no défice geral dos governos na zona euro e nos diferentes Estados-Membros. No que respeita à zona euro, a melhoria foi de 0,9% em termos nominais e, por conseguinte, parece também provável que venha a ser mais elevada em termos estruturais do que os 0,3% esperados pela Comissão no Outono passado. As perspectivas económicas gerais para 2007 são igualmente encorajadoras. A presença persistente de condições ciclicamente favoráveis na zona euro exige novos esforços de consolidação orçamental, em 2007 e depois dessa data. O ajustamento, no que toca a objectivos orçamentais de médio prazo, deverá ser acelerado, devendo ser evitadas políticas orçamentais pró-cíclicas. Os Ministros das Finanças da zona euro confirmaram, na semana passada, o seu empenho em utilizar totalmente o actual crescimento económico e as receitas fiscais, que são melhores do que se esperava, para desenvolver políticas orçamentais sólidas, bem como em utilizar as receitas extraordinárias inesperadas para a redução do défice e da dívida. A Comissão partilha também das preocupações do Parlamento no que se refere à sustentabilidade a longo prazo das finanças públicas, estando a colocar uma ênfase acrescida na sua avaliação. A este respeito, foi publicado pela Comissão, em Outubro de 2006, um novo relatório sobre a sustentabilidade a longo prazo das finanças públicas na União Europeia. Esse relatório tem por base projecções comuns das despesas relacionadas com o envelhecimento da população na UE. Confirma a importância de abordar o desafio da sustentabilidade através de uma combinação da consolidação orçamental e das reformas estruturais. A Comissão prosseguiu o seu trabalho de incorporação das considerações em matéria de sustentabilidade na fixação dos objectivos orçamentais de médio prazo. Na verdade, a melhoria dos equilíbrios orçamentais a médio prazo contribui para dar resposta às implicações da sustentabilidade a longo prazo. Outra evolução fundamental diz respeito à melhoria da qualidade das despesas públicas, em consonância com a Estratégia de Lisboa. Esta orientação política faz, na verdade, parte das orientações integradas aprovadas pelo Conselho Europeu em Março deste ano. A Comissão está igualmente grata pelo reconhecimento feito no relatório dos esforços efectuados para melhorar a governação estatística. A Comissão transmitiu recentemente ao Parlamento e ao Conselho um relatório sobre a qualidade dos dados apresentados pelos Estados-Membros. Por último, embora a vertente correctiva do Pacto de Estabilidade e Crescimento tenha produzido os resultados esperados, a situação quanto à vertente preventiva é algo mista. As regras e instituições fiscais nacionais podem desenvolver um importante papel a este respeito. Foram feitos progressos, no ano passado, neste domínio, e a Comissão está actualmente a trabalhar para melhorar ainda mais a eficácia da vertente preventiva do Pacto. Neste contexto, congratulo-me com o apoio do Parlamento a esta abordagem."@pt¹⁷ "Mr President, the Commission warmly welcomes Mr Lauk’s report and is grateful for the high-quality work of Parliament’s Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs. With a strong economic recovery currently under way in Europe and in the euro area, Member States have an outstanding opportunity to improve their public finances and to prepare for future challenges, such as the ageing population. In this context, Mr Lauk’s report is a very timely one. The Commission clearly agrees with the report’s statement that the revised Stability and Growth Pact is so far working as it should. In particular, many Member States have made considerable efforts to meet their obligations under the Pact. Since the reform of the Pact, both the corrective and preventative arms have been fully applied in accordance with the reform’s provisions. In addition, it is clear that there has been no leniency in the enforcement of the reformed Pact. Last year, a significant improvement in the general government deficit in the euro area, and in the individual Member States, was accomplished. For the euro area, the improvement was 0.9%, in nominal terms, and hence also appears likely to be higher in structural terms than the 0.3% expected by the Commission last autumn. The overall economic prospects for 2007 are equally encouraging. The ongoing presence of cyclically favourable conditions in the euro area calls for further fiscal consolidation efforts in 2007 and beyond. Adjustment towards the medium-term budgetary objectives should be stepped up and pro-cyclical budgetary policies ought to be avoided. Euro-area Finance Ministers confirmed last week their commitment to make full use of current economic growth and better-than-expected tax revenues to pursue sound fiscal policies, as well as to use unexpected extra revenues for deficit and debt reduction. The Commission also shares Parliament’s concerns regarding the long-term sustainability of public finances and is putting increased emphasis on its assessment. In this respect, a new report on the long-term sustainability of public finances in the European Union was issued by the Commission in October 2006. That report is based on EU common ageing-related expenditure projections. It confirms the importance of addressing the sustainability challenge with a combination of fiscal consolidation and structural reforms. The Commission has continued its work on incorporating sustainability considerations in setting the medium-term budgetary objectives. Indeed, the improvement of fiscal balances in the medium term contributes to meeting the long-term sustainability implications. Another key development is the emphasis on improving the quality of public spending, in line with the Lisbon Strategy. That policy guideline is indeed part of the integrated guidelines adopted by the European Council in March this year. The Commission is also grateful for the report’s recognition of the efforts made to improve statistical governance. The Commission recently reported to Parliament and to the Council on the quality of the data submitted by Member States. Finally, while the corrective arm of the Stability and Growth Pact has delivered the expected results, the picture is more mixed regarding the preventative arm. National fiscal rules and institutions can play an important role in this respect. Progress was made last year in this field, and the Commission is currently working on further improving the effectiveness of the Pact’s preventative arm. In this context, I fully appreciate Parliament’s support for this approach."@ro¹⁸ "Mr President, the Commission warmly welcomes Mr Lauk’s report and is grateful for the high-quality work of Parliament’s Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs. With a strong economic recovery currently under way in Europe and in the euro area, Member States have an outstanding opportunity to improve their public finances and to prepare for future challenges, such as the ageing population. In this context, Mr Lauk’s report is a very timely one. The Commission clearly agrees with the report’s statement that the revised Stability and Growth Pact is so far working as it should. In particular, many Member States have made considerable efforts to meet their obligations under the Pact. Since the reform of the Pact, both the corrective and preventative arms have been fully applied in accordance with the reform’s provisions. In addition, it is clear that there has been no leniency in the enforcement of the reformed Pact. Last year, a significant improvement in the general government deficit in the euro area, and in the individual Member States, was accomplished. For the euro area, the improvement was 0.9%, in nominal terms, and hence also appears likely to be higher in structural terms than the 0.3% expected by the Commission last autumn. The overall economic prospects for 2007 are equally encouraging. The ongoing presence of cyclically favourable conditions in the euro area calls for further fiscal consolidation efforts in 2007 and beyond. Adjustment towards the medium-term budgetary objectives should be stepped up and pro-cyclical budgetary policies ought to be avoided. Euro-area Finance Ministers confirmed last week their commitment to make full use of current economic growth and better-than-expected tax revenues to pursue sound fiscal policies, as well as to use unexpected extra revenues for deficit and debt reduction. The Commission also shares Parliament’s concerns regarding the long-term sustainability of public finances and is putting increased emphasis on its assessment. In this respect, a new report on the long-term sustainability of public finances in the European Union was issued by the Commission in October 2006. That report is based on EU common ageing-related expenditure projections. It confirms the importance of addressing the sustainability challenge with a combination of fiscal consolidation and structural reforms. The Commission has continued its work on incorporating sustainability considerations in setting the medium-term budgetary objectives. Indeed, the improvement of fiscal balances in the medium term contributes to meeting the long-term sustainability implications. Another key development is the emphasis on improving the quality of public spending, in line with the Lisbon Strategy. That policy guideline is indeed part of the integrated guidelines adopted by the European Council in March this year. The Commission is also grateful for the report’s recognition of the efforts made to improve statistical governance. The Commission recently reported to Parliament and to the Council on the quality of the data submitted by Member States. Finally, while the corrective arm of the Stability and Growth Pact has delivered the expected results, the picture is more mixed regarding the preventative arm. National fiscal rules and institutions can play an important role in this respect. Progress was made last year in this field, and the Commission is currently working on further improving the effectiveness of the Pact’s preventative arm. In this context, I fully appreciate Parliament’s support for this approach."@sk¹⁹ "Mr President, the Commission warmly welcomes Mr Lauk’s report and is grateful for the high-quality work of Parliament’s Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs. With a strong economic recovery currently under way in Europe and in the euro area, Member States have an outstanding opportunity to improve their public finances and to prepare for future challenges, such as the ageing population. In this context, Mr Lauk’s report is a very timely one. The Commission clearly agrees with the report’s statement that the revised Stability and Growth Pact is so far working as it should. In particular, many Member States have made considerable efforts to meet their obligations under the Pact. Since the reform of the Pact, both the corrective and preventative arms have been fully applied in accordance with the reform’s provisions. In addition, it is clear that there has been no leniency in the enforcement of the reformed Pact. Last year, a significant improvement in the general government deficit in the euro area, and in the individual Member States, was accomplished. For the euro area, the improvement was 0.9%, in nominal terms, and hence also appears likely to be higher in structural terms than the 0.3% expected by the Commission last autumn. The overall economic prospects for 2007 are equally encouraging. The ongoing presence of cyclically favourable conditions in the euro area calls for further fiscal consolidation efforts in 2007 and beyond. Adjustment towards the medium-term budgetary objectives should be stepped up and pro-cyclical budgetary policies ought to be avoided. Euro-area Finance Ministers confirmed last week their commitment to make full use of current economic growth and better-than-expected tax revenues to pursue sound fiscal policies, as well as to use unexpected extra revenues for deficit and debt reduction. The Commission also shares Parliament’s concerns regarding the long-term sustainability of public finances and is putting increased emphasis on its assessment. In this respect, a new report on the long-term sustainability of public finances in the European Union was issued by the Commission in October 2006. That report is based on EU common ageing-related expenditure projections. It confirms the importance of addressing the sustainability challenge with a combination of fiscal consolidation and structural reforms. The Commission has continued its work on incorporating sustainability considerations in setting the medium-term budgetary objectives. Indeed, the improvement of fiscal balances in the medium term contributes to meeting the long-term sustainability implications. Another key development is the emphasis on improving the quality of public spending, in line with the Lisbon Strategy. That policy guideline is indeed part of the integrated guidelines adopted by the European Council in March this year. The Commission is also grateful for the report’s recognition of the efforts made to improve statistical governance. The Commission recently reported to Parliament and to the Council on the quality of the data submitted by Member States. Finally, while the corrective arm of the Stability and Growth Pact has delivered the expected results, the picture is more mixed regarding the preventative arm. National fiscal rules and institutions can play an important role in this respect. Progress was made last year in this field, and the Commission is currently working on further improving the effectiveness of the Pact’s preventative arm. In this context, I fully appreciate Parliament’s support for this approach."@sl²⁰ "Herr talman! Kommissionen välkomnar varmt Kurt Joachim Lauks betänkande och är tacksam för det kvalitetsarbete som parlamentets utskott för ekonomi och valutafrågor utfört. Med en stark ekonomisk återhämtning på gång i Europa och i euroområdet har medlemsstaterna ett enastående tillfälle att förbättra sina offentliga finanser och att förbereda sig för framtida utmaningar, som exempelvis den åldrande befolkningen. Laukbetänkandet kommer mycket lägligt i denna situation. Kommissionen instämmer helt i slutsatsen i betänkandet att den reviderade stabilitets- och tillväxtpakten hittills har fungerat som den ska. Framför allt har många medlemsstater gjort stora ansträngningar för att uppfylla sina skyldigheter enligt pakten. Sedan reformen av pakten har både en korrektiv och en förebyggande del tillämpats helt i enlighet med reformbestämmelserna. Dessutom är det tydligt att det inte förekommit någon eftergivenhet i tillämpningen av den reformerade pakten. Förra året uppnåddes en betydande förbättring vad gäller underskottet i de offentliga finanserna inom euroområdet och i de enskilda medlemsstaterna. För euroområdet var förbättringen 0,9 procent i nominella termer och är därför sannolikt högre i strukturella termer än de 0,3 procent som kommissionen förväntade sig i höstas. De allmänna ekonomiska utsikterna för 2007 är lika uppmuntrande. De rådande cykliskt gynnsamma förhållandena inom euroområdet påkallar ytterligare insatser för skattekonsolidering under 2007 och därefter. Justeringarna på väg mot de medelfristiga budgetmålen bör därför intensifieras och procyklisk budgetpolitik bör undvikas. Euroområdets finansministrar bekräftade i förra veckan sitt åtagande att till fullo utnyttja den rådande ekonomiska tillväxten och de över förväntan goda skatteintäkterna för att eftersträva en sund skattepolitik, liksom att använda de oväntade extraintäkterna till att täcka underskott och minska skulderna. Kommissionen delar också parlamentets oro över de offentliga finansernas långsiktiga hållbarhet och lägger ännu större vikt vid dess utvärdering. Därför utfärdade kommissionen i oktober 2006 en ny rapport om de offentliga finansernas långsiktiga hållbarhet i EU. Rapporten bygger på EU-gemensamma åldersrelaterade utgiftsberäkningar. Den bekräftar vikten av att ta itu med hållbarhetsproblemet med en kombination av skattekonsolidering och strukturreformer. Kommissionen har fortsatt att arbeta för att hållbarhetsöverväganden ska ingå vid fastställandet av medelfristiga budgetmål. Förbättringen av de offentliga saldona på medellång sikt bidrar till att uppfylla de långsiktiga hållbarhetskraven. En annan viktig utveckling är betoningen av förbättringar av kvaliteten på de offentliga utgifterna i enlighet med Lissabonstrategin. Denna politiska riktlinje ingår i de integrerade riktlinjer som Europeiska rådet antog i mars i år. Kommissionen är också tacksam för att man i betänkandet uppskattar insatserna för att förbättra den statistiska styrningen. Kommissionen rapporterade nyligen till parlamentet och till rådet om kvaliteten på de uppgifter som medlemsstaterna lämnar. Slutligen, samtidigt som den korrigerande delen av stabilitets- och tillväxtpakten har lett till de väntade resultaten är bilden mer blandad i fråga om den förebyggande delen. Nationella skattebestämmelser och fiskala institutioner kan spela en viktig roll i detta avseende. Framsteg gjordes förra året på detta område och kommissionen arbetar för närvarande på att förbättra effektiviteten hos paktens förebyggande del. Här uppskattar jag mycket parlamentets stöd för denna uppläggning."@sv²²
lpv:unclassifiedMetadata	"Joe Borg,"^{18,5,20,15,1,19,14,16,11,13,4} "Member of the Commission"^{18,5,20,15,1,19,14,16,11,11,13,4} "governance"¹²