Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2004-01-13-Speech-2-013"
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"en.20040113.2.2-013"2
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"Mr President, let us simply remember that today’s debate on the future of services of general interest is taking place at a particularly significant moment in the history of Europe, at a time when Europe is in the midst of a debate on its future, on its constitution, and when we are preparing to welcome a host of new citizens of the Union from the countries of the East. I am reminding the House of this fact because I believe that a link exists between the difficulties we experienced, during the debate on the draft constitution, in reaching agreement on the recognition of a positive right to services of general interest and its enshrinement in European law and the considerable obstacles which we have encountered – and which our excellent rapporteur, Mr Herzog, certainly had to confront in the Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs – in trying to advance this principle.
Moreover, I believe it would be extremely prejudicial if this report were less ambitious than the compromise – insufficient though it was, it did constitute an improvement – which we obtained in the framework of the debate on the draft Constitution. It would be difficult in these circumstances, ladies and gentlemen, to convince people that we are representing them properly, because I am not the only one who perceives a firm belief in the public mind that European integration will mean more services, better services, more protection, more safety – food safety, maritime safety, security in the widest sense – in this high-risk society. Broad-based movements within our European societies today are also voicing clear demands for the effective exercise of citizens’ social rights – the right to education, culture, health care, environmental protection, clean water and clean air as well as rights of access to housing, transport, communication, information, energy supplies, etc.
In short, all of us – I hope – are convinced that these services are essential, but I have the impression that some Members of this Chamber are doggedly determined to reinstate scurrilous paragraphs which effectively detract from Mr Herzog’s excellent work. For example, they emphasise the inestimable benefits of liberalisation, but they will not manage to convince us, for the market cannot provide all of these services in accordance with the principles of equal accessibility and universality – hence the absolute necessity of a recognised positive right to services of general interest. This being the case, I hope that the amendments you vote to adopt tomorrow will rid us of a document which, in its present form, is extremely compromising for our European Parliament and will seriously undermine the dialogue in which we shall be engaging over the coming months with the people of every European country."@en1
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