Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2007-12-12-Speech-3-045"
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"en.20071212.2.3-045"2
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"Mr President, thank you very much for this wide-ranging debate, which I think will provide valuable input to the meeting in Lisbon and to the summit in Brussels.
I would like to focus on a few areas that have been raised this morning, starting with the Treaty of Lisbon and the Charter. First of all, I think that the Portuguese Presidency, like the German Presidency before it, deserves great credit for getting us to this point. The signature in Lisbon tomorrow will underline the commitment of all signatories to achieving ratification of the Treaty.
I would also like to use this opportunity to again thank the Parliament representatives for the important role that they have played in allowing the Union to solve its institutional difficulties. Of course, the Commission has also actively engaged throughout this long procedure, not least through the Citizens’ Agenda and the ‘twin-track approach’, which President Barroso referred to earlier on. Do not forget, those of you who say that, after all, the Union works even without these changes, that there are a number of new elements in this Reform Treaty that will help us and explicitly allow us to tackle more effectively climate change and the whole energy challenge, as well as providing for more openness through public Council meetings and the increased role of national parliaments. So I think it will also help us to become more transparent, more open and more democratic.
Whatever ratification procedure is decided by the different Member States, we all have an obligation to communicate with citizens. Of course we will have to do that in partnership and also respecting the different needs and wishes expressed by Member States about this debate. I think today’s proclamation of the Charter is also symbolic of another important achievement of the negotiations, a symbol of the fact that – except for special arrangements in two of our Member States and as long as the Treaty enters into force – the Charter will be legally binding, guaranteeing the fundamental rights of Europe’s citizens.
The second point I would like to comment on is the ‘Reflection Group’, because I think we must make sure that it focuses on the policy challenges of the future and not mainly on the institutions. It needs to focus on the expectations of Europe’s people, and I also hope that this group will be representative of the diversity of the Europe of today.
My third comment concerns migration. I think that an integrated approach to migration involves a mix of European Union and national policies. It requires coherence between our policies on legal and illegal migration. It involves actions in development policies, social integration, freedom of movement, border security and visas, to name a few. It is excellent that this Council will also be discussing these questions globally, but I think that Parliament can make a substantial contribution to this discussion. The Lisbon Strategy, as the President said, is delivering, and I think this should be a cause for celebration on all sides of this House. Equally, there is a consensus on the need for actions to address all aspects of sustainable development as part of the strategy. This includes flexicurity, social inclusion and climate change. If we can agree on the policy direction, we will be able to generate real political commitment to solve the real problems that have been mentioned by some of you.
Finally, let me also say, on the issue of Kosovo, mentioned by many in this House, that the Commission fully shares the concerns expressed by a number of Members on the situation in Kosovo, and the European Union has done everything possible to reach a negotiated solution, but it is clear now that the status quo is unsustainable and that the UN Security Council will have to address this when it looks at it on 19 December. The European Council will have to take stock of the situation, and it should reaffirm the European Union’s commitment to solving Kosovo’s status and to playing a leading role in implementing a settlement, the framework being, as many of you have mentioned, the European perspective for the whole region.
Finally, this Council, together with the signature of the Treaty and the proclamation of the Charter, does not, perhaps, draw a line under the events of 2005, but it marks the beginning of a new phase of the development of the European Union. We have learnt the lessons of 2005, and I hope that we can enter the next 50 years of the Union with, hopefully, much more confidence."@en1
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