Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2008-11-18-Speech-2-272"
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"en.20081118.29.2-272"2
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"Mr President, Mr President of the Commission and Mr President-in-Office of the Council, I firmly believe that the European Commission has adopted a strong position by acting directly and decisively to deal with the crisis in the international financial markets. The bottom line is that the European Union, the United States, India and China must work together to ensure that there are common rules and standards in place to control international financial services from now on.
It is inevitable that, in every crisis or every point of danger, people say that it will never be the same again. Yet, if we study history – not just economics – it does all go in cycles. It does all come around. Even the simplest of fishermen would be able to tell you that the tide comes in and the tide goes out.
That is in no way to excuse the problems that we now find ourselves in or to excuse those who have precipitated this crisis by reckless lending, dubious practices and, most particularly of all, when everything goes wrong, by running to the father and mother countries and saying ‘bail us out’.
The biggest danger there is today – in business, economics, employment and in social life across Europe – is not just the financial crisis, but the fact that banks will not lend money for working capital to small and medium-sized enterprises to allow them to grow and to take opportunities. There is no point in making solar panels if you do not have the people to put them on the roof. If you do not have people to put them on the roof – who can pay for them and buy them – you will not have people who will make them.
The reality that we are looking at here today is that the crisis we now face in the current economic turmoil presents us with an opportunity to correct the wrongs of the past and to ensure that we now invest in research and innovation and use that money to find new ways of dealing with problems and finding solutions to the problems that people face in their lives, as well as ensuring that we give hope to people. Sometimes people forget that what people really need is encouragement, an idea to go forward and a slap on the back saying that they do a good job, because there is a desire for hope.
The G20 and the actions of the Commission and in the presidency in bringing forward this G20 meeting – albeit with a lame duck presidency in the United States –is forcing India and China to come to the table and to say that they now have responsibilities as emerging economies. China and India have a role to play with regard to what must be done.
My last point is that I would hate people to think that this crisis means that we must put the hindrance of the block on the innovation and creativity of the peoples of Europe. If we want to feed our people, give them equal rights and certainty and lift them out of the trap of poverty, our first responsibility is to ensure that they have money through jobs, that the countries have money to invest in social services and health services and, most importantly of all, that we give them the tools and the skills of education and training to be able to benefit from those new challenges that come before us."@en1
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