Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2007-10-10-Speech-3-798"
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"en.20071010.17.3-798"2
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"Mr President
I represent a small Member State on the Union’s periphery. This, for me, means to understand how important it is sometimes to defend national interests vehemently and to highlight our differing circumstances. In general Members from the big Member States have understood this, at least those in my group. They are careful not to simply reject our opinions, to prevent the big countries from steamrollering the small ones in the Union.
When Mr Lamassoure’s report was being drafted, a small country’s voice was heard inasmuch as I, along the other Finnish MEPs, kept hold of Finland’s 14 seats in Parliament.
It is completely justified to speak up for the benefit gained. Now, however, the amendments to the report proposed by the Finnish MEPs to keep one seat have not got through at the committee stage, and they would not have had a chance of getting though in plenary. The main reason for that is probably that the benefit gained has already been renounced in some degree: in the Nice talks Finland agreed to have 13 Members.
With Mr Lamassoure’s report, a lot more comes under threat. The amendments proposed by the German, Spanish and Polish delegates in my group seriously endanger the chances of the small Member States having any influence in the European Parliament. The amendment, according to which each Member State would have six seats as from 2014 and that the rest of the seats in Parliament should be allocated in accordance with the d'Hondt system, will completely destroy the current system of degressive proportionality, which is the best way of guaranteeing objective decision-making in the Union. The amendment would in practice mean that the number of Finnish seats, for example, would fall to 10, if enlargement continues. This we cannot accept.
I therefore appeal to you all to remember to appreciate how important it is that the small countries can have an influence in our Union."@en1
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