Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2006-02-02-Speech-4-008"
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"en.20060202.3.4-008"2
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".
Commissioner Wallström, I thank you for your very interesting and well-communicated White Paper this morning. On behalf of the PPE-DE Group, I very much welcome your White Paper on a European communication policy. It comes at a time when the gap between Europe and its citizens is widening. A sense of alienation from Brussels pervades our electorate: alienation from its institutions and from politics in general. The poor electoral turnout in 2004 was sadly a clear reminder of the need for the EU to learn to communicate more with its citizens.
However, it is not only a question of having
communication in Europe: we need
communication. And in order to communicate better, Europe also needs to listen more. European leaders have lost contact with their public and I agree with you, Commissioner, when you say in your communication that citizens expect Europe to offer them guarantees of prosperity, solidarity and security in the face of globalisation. Our citizens are not worried about the nitty gritty details of institutional reform, they are worried about their jobs, they are worried about Europe’s 20 million unemployed, so I certainly very much support your new approach which moves away from one-way communication to reinforced dialogue, from a Brussels-based to a more decentralised approach, from – as you say in your communication – institution-centred to citizen-centred communication.
I have certainly tried to do this in Scotland, in my own constituency. I started an essay competition amongst schools to try to inspire interest amongst school pupils in European affairs. Indeed tomorrow I am going to Aberdeen to address council leaders on the financial perspective, and that is European communication in action. However, you must ensure that this White Paper does not merely remain a consultation exercise, inconsequential and detached from the very same people whom it is trying to reach. We in Europe tend to be very good at debating, and less good at delivering.
Our ideas must be followed by action. I wondered, when you mentioned the importance of the Erasmus and Citizens for Europe programmes as a way of bridging the gap between the EU and its citizens, whether this is not slightly contradictory, given the fact that these programmes have actually suffered significant cuts in the 2006 budget. We may need better understanding and more details on how exactly you intend to finance this massive public relations strategy.
Communication, transparency, open access to documents and involvement in policy-making are not even fully developed amongst ourselves, the MEPs, the EU’s representatives. This House represents the very people we are trying to communicate with, but sadly this Parliament is not consulted enough, or often when it is too late. It is often not listened to, it is often contradicted by the unaccountable and impenetrable workings of the Council. That is why, Commissioner, while welcoming very much your objectives and your efforts I urge you to consider adding another ‘D’ to your Dialogue, Debate and Democracy plan. That would be ‘D’ for Decision: a decision to act."@en1
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