Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2008-06-19-Speech-4-034"
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"en.20080619.2.4-034"2
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".
Thank you very much, Mr President. Commissioner, ladies and gentlemen, citizens of Europe, thank you very much for your comments and opinions. I believe this is indeed a new era in the history of European transport, as my fellow Member Etelka Barsi-Pataky put it. It is very important that everyone present in this House has voiced support for the report; it is a plain fact that one has to be as green as possible in order to please the Group of the Greens/European Free Alliance, and we are delighted that in the end they too have given their support to this report. I must stress how very important this is. I agree with you, Commissioner, that if we manage to save even one single life on the roads, then we have achieved something; you see, I believe that the most important thing we can do as European decision-makers is to protect human lives. Several of you have cited the shocking statistic: 41 600 people die on the roads.
I also thank you for your support because in order to bring this matter to a conclusion we need to have everyone on board. I am very proud of Viviane Reding and her team, André and Juhani, who are sitting here. They have seen this whole process through. Not just over the past month, but over the past few years, because the technologies had to be tested to see if they really worked. Do you remember there was a time when there were no safety belts, and now we take them for granted? Or, as Robert Evans put it, there is a radio in every car nowadays. The new technologies will one day become as natural as safety belts and radios are today. We need the citizens of Europe, who will buy these intelligent systems once they have clearly seen the benefits they can bring. It is important also to have the vehicle manufacturers on our side, because 17 million cars are produced annually in Europe and 2 million people are employed in this sector. It is important that the Member States should be with us on this issue, although I must concur with Malcolm Harbour: the Council is notably absent.
There is little point in the Commission and the European Parliament doing everything in their power if the Council does not take this matter sufficiently seriously. The Council must be aware, however, that it too needs to represent the citizens of Europe. Let us therefore work together. I am asking you this because actions speak louder than words. It is in our common interest to recognise that everyone stands to gain if we achieve results in this area, as we will be able to travel in safety, traffic will be optimal, environmental pollution can be reduced, and Europe’s industrial sector can become a leader in the field of information and communication technologies. This is an opportunity to make a real difference. Let us not miss our chance.
Thank you for your attention. I am very optimistic that Commissioner Tajani will do everything in his power to make this dream a reality."@en1
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