Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2001-02-28-Speech-3-170"
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"en.20010228.9.3-170"2
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"Mr President, Commissioner, ladies and gentlemen, Mr van den Berg is optimistic. So are we, although we are aware that things are not going too well with development cooperation in the world, including European cooperation. For that reason we actually consider it a good idea that a new policy is being constructed. In statistical terms aid from European countries is considerable, but the number of poor people in the world has increased in the last ten years. So there has definitely not been a success in combating poverty. That is why it is a good thing that that priority should be established, with the proviso that we are prepared to acknowledge why we have failed hitherto, that we intend to do things differently in future, that a plan of action is agreed and that we are prepared to incorporate benchmarking in that plan.
The fact is that we are absolutely unconvinced that liberalisation of world trade leads to the abolition of poverty, though world trade can of course increase prosperity. But if corruption continues unchecked, if governments are not prepared to redistribute even the new wealth, then not much will be achieved. However, we must be prepared to cooperate fully with those partners that want to. Our lack of coherence has already been pointed out and I add my voice to those calling for coherence. I wonder if we can talk of coordination and complementarity if countries go on thinking that they must continue to pursue a strictly personal cultural, economic, and geopolitical approach. We are prepared, though, to give credit to the reform of European development policy, since reform is a must after so many years of inefficiency.
However, I should like to ask a few questions. Why is aid not concentrated to a greater extent on the poorest countries? How much will the poor in those countries really benefit? And a question to which Mr van den Berg devoted a great deal of attention: are people prepared for true partnership? Actually we have the impression that out texts still emanate to a large extent a feeling of one-way traffic, a feeling that we know so much better. Will we have any say in the expenditure of the European Development Fund? Is the Council prepared to stop intervening in concrete implementation plans? I could go on asking questions. I shall not do so, Mr President, but they are questions that preoccupy all of us here."@en1
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