Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2005-05-26-Speech-4-010"
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".
Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, since the Lisbon Council in 2000, the European Union’s economy has been negatively affected by various events which have led to much less growth than we had expected and, at the moment, we are still very far from achieving the objectives set in Lisbon. Last February, the Commission approved a document entitled ‘Working together for growth and jobs – a new start for the Lisbon Strategy’, which clearly pointed out that if Europe wanted to carry on aspiring to become the most dynamic and most competitive economic area in the world by 2010, the Lisbon Strategy had to be reoriented and had to focus on two clear objectives: firstly, economic growth and, secondly, employment.
Sixthly, our commitment to social cohesion and inclusion and to combating employment discrimination, supporting integrated action and the adoption of all measures necessary to guarantee that labour markets are open to job seekers, in particular women, young people, the elderly and people suffering any type of disability.
The text, and also the contributions of the Committee on Women’s Rights and Gender Equality, include a whole range of measures to guarantee real equality between men and women, not just with regard to access to jobs, but also with regard to other issues, such as salaries, professional promotion and harassment.
Seventhly, employment for the elderly and gradual and flexible retirement. We are promoting participation in the labour market by the elderly and the voluntary extension of working life by means of measures to incentivise work and make early retirement less attractive.
And finally, the report introduces other issues, such as the environment, sustainable development and the social economy, and promotes the work of cooperatives and the voluntary sector, the role of regional and local authorities and the quest for new sources of employment, which is very important.
In conclusion, ladies and gentlemen, I believe that the report we are debating today is going to enrich and improve the text originally proposed by the Commission. I would therefore like once again to thank very warmly all the Members who have presented amendments, not just for their interest, but also for their willingness to reach agreement, since, thanks to their work, the guidelines that we will at last approve today will allow the European Employment Strategy to contribute more effectively to achieving the objectives set at Lisbon, which, in the field of employment, are quite simply to achieve full and better-quality employment by 2010.
One consequence of that is the presentation of the economic and employment policy guidelines, for the first time integrated and for a period of 3 years, which will have to be incorporated into national reform programmes, which will also be innovative. These guidelines are based on the notion that economic growth can make a decisive contribution to job creation and that that is the best guarantee for social provision.
I would like to thank you for the more than 90 amendments presented, which have become fourteen compromises approved almost unanimously by the Committee on Employment and Social Affairs and which I intend to retain today for the sake of coherence and also out of respect for the Members that have signed them. I will therefore reject the seven amendments by the Group of the Greens, which, in fact, have already been debated and taken up, in part, in the compromises and accepted by the different parliamentary groups. It would appear logical that, since we have all given ground, following arduous work, in order to reach a consensus on a good report that could be supported by a large majority, we should support that report today. I would like in particular to thank the Committee on Women’s Rights and Gender Equality, which presented a perfect text from a gender perspective that has been taken up, practically in its entirety, in the compromises and guidelines introduced as amendments. Thank you very much for the work you have done.
I believe, ladies and gentlemen, that, during the parliamentary negotiations, we have managed to improve the Commission's text by extending it and introducing new issues.
Firstly, the reconciliation of family and work life: such important aspects as the equal distribution of family responsibilities between couples, support for flexible work patterns, in particular part-time work, paternity leave or facilities for the care of children or other dependent persons, in particular the elderly, in accordance with the objectives set at the Barcelona Summit in 2002.
Secondly, the fight against workplace accidents. The report advocates prevention and we recommend the establishment of a broad agreement at European level to combat workplace accidents, which cause so many deaths throughout Europe.
Thirdly, and very importantly, the phenomenon of immigration. We advocate the integration of legal immigrants and the eradication of all types of racist behaviour.
Fourthly, training and education: improving all types of education and supporting professional training, which must cease to be the poor relation of university education, lifelong learning, new technologies and the promotion of entrepreneurial spirit, languages and exchange programmes between teachers and students.
Fifthly, the fight against the scourge of domestic violence: employment plans for women who are victims of gender violence."@en1
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