Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2005-01-12-Speech-3-016"
| Predicate | Value (sorted: default) |
|---|---|
| rdf:type | |
| dcterms:Date | |
| dcterms:Is Part Of | |
| dcterms:Language | |
| lpv:document identification number |
"en.20050112.3.3-016"2
|
| lpv:hasSubsequent | |
| lpv:speaker | |
| lpv:spokenAs | |
| lpv:translated text |
".
Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, the socialists are striving for a Europe of excellence. For us, the Lisbon policy constitutes the best route towards European competitiveness, the basis of a good life, indeed a better life, for our citizens. That is what is known as social cohesion.
The EU must stop complaining that Europe is said to be falling behind other regions of the world. If Europe were no longer competitive, then how on earth could the Union account for the lion’s share of world trade? In 2003, for example, the Union accounted for 40% of the trade in goods and 45% of the trade in services throughout the world, more than the United States, Japan and China put together. Of course some of our industries are suffering from competition from countries in which salaries are low, but we will not make better products by dismantling our social model.
I should like to address the following remarks to some conservative and liberal Members of this House: protecting the right to work will provide workers with a sense of security and even well-being. In other words, this is an important factor in workers’ productivity, and, in turn, in companies’ competitiveness. There is no conflict, but complementarity. That is a quote from Mr Biltgen, the chairman of the Luxembourg Christian Social Party, an eminent member of the Group of the European People’s Party ...
President Juncker leads a coalition government of the Christian Social Party and the Socialists, which is a benchmark by which to reinvigorate the Union on the basis of broad political consensus. The European Socialists have high hopes for this Luxembourg Presidency, primarily from the point of view of relaunching the Lisbon Strategy and of turning it into a genuine instrument of progress, particularly at the level of the 25. To this end, the macroeconomic framework must be redirected towards a policy of growth and stability. Stability is a public good that must be defended in the interests of our poorest citizens. There will never be stability, however, without strong economic growth. The Stability and Growth Pact must become an instrument that provides a means of both combating public deficit and fashioning an economic policy in tune with the economic cycles. Fiscal discipline is required in times of strong economic growth and more flexibility during periods of recession.
When it assesses each country’s public finances, the Commission must also assess the quality of spending. The practice of borrowing to finance running costs must be banned; borrowing must be confined to investment to prepare for the future. There cannot be more Europe with less money. A Union of 455 million inhabitants cannot develop with a budget in 2005 limited to 1.004% of Europe’s GNP.
Relaunching Lisbon, the ‘intelligent’ Stability and Growth Pact, financial perspectives that actually offer new perspectives for Europe: these are the Herculean tasks facing the Luxembourg Presidency. At the same time, we ask the Union not to forget the neglected people of the world. If the international community is capable of offering debt relief to Iraq of some 80%, and if it wishes to offer debt relief to those countries hit by the tsunami, it must also be capable of cancelling the debt that wipes out any development in developing world countries."@en1
|
| lpv:unclassifiedMetadata |
Named graphs describing this resource:
The resource appears as object in 2 triples