Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2005-02-22-Speech-2-042"

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"Mr President, firstly, I should like to say how sorry I am that the representative of the Group of the European People’s Party (Christian Democrats) and European Democrats, Mr Hökmark, has left the debate. I believe that the proposal arrived at by the committee is unacceptable for us Social Democrats for three reasons. Firstly, no general increase in working time is required. What we need is more people in work, not a general increase in working time. Secondly, a comprehensive reduction in tax in Europe would not solve the problems. How can it be that the Nordic countries, which have the heaviest burden of taxation, have the highest growth in the EU? This suggests that the PPE-DE Group has completely lost the plot. Thirdly, we need a balance in the Lisbon Process. Those making the proposal, as it now stands, are even worse than the Commission in the way that, in general, they emphasise only the first pillar of the Lisbon Process when what is required is reciprocity between the pillars. I share the view that structural reforms are needed, but what is most important is that, in the process, social responsibility should be accepted and both sides of industry involved. Mr Hökmark comes from Sweden, where his party is nowadays cosying up to the Social Democrats. In the national debate at home, they do not talk about tax reductions or an increase in working time. They do so in this House, however. Sweden has had an extremely successful economic policy during the post-War period, with the single exception of during the years 1991–1994. Mr Hökmark was one of Sweden’s policymakers at that time. It would be regrettable if the PPE-DE Group were to adopt this neo-liberal policy and make it its own. The result would be political antagonism. We Social Democrats want to see a balanced, rather than a neo-liberal, policy. A neo-liberal policy will not solve Europe’s problems."@en1

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