Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2003-05-13-Speech-2-134"
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"en.20030513.6.2-134"2
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"Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, it is less than two months since we were first informed of the spread of this disease and there have already been over 7 000 cases reported and over 500 deaths, with more than 20 cases of infection reported in the Member States of the Union.
Minister, the Extraordinary Council called for by the Italian Minister for Health, Professor Sirchia, yielded results which, although not minimum, were minimal and unsatisfactory. The outcome was a proposal to introduce medical protection in airports within a deadline of two months to check passengers
for these countries, in other words people returning to China, Hong Kong and the other areas where there is an epidemic situation already declared. In addition, the Extraordinary Council decided to create a European Coordination Centre to address health crises, which is only due to become operational in 2005.
Well then, I believe that, despite the requests made essentially by Italy and Spain, we have given in to purely economic reasoning. It was you, Minister, who said that a difficult climate for the economy and society would be created. We believe that the citizens’ health is a question of much more than the mere short-term economic impact, although that is, of course, a consideration to be borne in mind, but it must not take priority over the citizens’ health.
Mrs Roth-Behrendt rightly said that we know nothing about the disease, and that is true, but we have not set up a European-scale filter which could be genuinely uniform and effective. Then Mr Panella pointed out the absurdity of the fact that we are equipped with a cutting-edge system for preventing animal epidemics but we have nothing for human beings. Everything is still in the hands of the states, which are giving economic considerations priority over respect for citizens’ health.
It has been said that Spanish influenza claimed hundreds of thousands of victims. That is not true, ladies and gentlemen – it claimed over 20 million! More recently, in 1957, Asian influenza claimed a million human lives, and then, in 1968, the Hong Kong variety caused 700 000 deaths. I wonder what we are doing to monitor the risk of an epidemic situation occurring in countries such as Africa or India, whose health systems would be totally incapable of controlling it at all, considering that even Toronto has been thrown into crisis.
I therefore believe, Minister, that the Council or the Commission must change their tune, speed up their decision-making and alter the citizens’ health policies."@en1
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