Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2010-07-06-Speech-2-009"
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"en.20100706.4.2-009"2
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"Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, I am attending this debate to report to you and to take stock of what the Spanish rotating Presidency has accomplished in these six months. When I attended at the beginning of this term, I explained to you that I had two main objectives during this political period.
Alongside this, we have consolidated a new framework for the Stability and Growth Pact during this period, the details of which have still to be worked out. A new framework for ensuring more rigorous compliance with the Stability Pact, with new criteria and new mechanisms for preventative action and guarantees by European institutions
Also during this period, we have decisively facilitated the progress of a package of new regulations in the area of finance. We know that the crisis had a financial origin, not within our borders, but in the United States. We know that it had major repercussions on our financial institutions, and today we can say that, in practical terms, the financial supervision aspects have been greatly improved thanks to the decisive intervention of Parliament. In a few months, we will have a new regulatory framework for financial supervision, which will cover all financial products and ensure solutions in crisis situations. It will contain many more prevention mechanisms in the face of what may be systemic risks.
In line with this, I also applaud the decision of the European Council to improve confidence in European financial institutions through the publication of ‘stress tests’ for our banks. There is no doubt that this transparency formula will enable some of the confidence that has been called into question during this period to be restored.
In short, Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, there have been substantial advances with regard to economic union. I would just like to state that these advances should, in my opinion, be permanent because of two fundamental factors, which, in particular as a consequence of the economic crisis, have been the subject of profound public political debate and reflection among Europeans during this period.
One relates to the strengthening of the Stability and Growth Pact, in both its preventive and its corrective aspects, in order to apply both incentives and sanctions, as the Spanish rotating Presidency advocated from the outset. The other relates to the macro-economic supervision that is developing indicators for evaluating competitiveness and imbalances within the framework of coordinated action.
With regard to the entry into force of the Treaty of Lisbon, I would like to emphasise the institutional balance, as I did at the beginning of this speech. As the first rotating Presidency since the Treaty of Lisbon, I have to say that we signed a good treaty. It is a better treaty. It is a treaty that seeks the closest possible union. However, it is a treaty that requires great political will from all 27 Member States. It requires the 27 governments to have the political will to hand over powers to the President of the European Council, to give ever more capacity for initiative to the Commission and, of course, to recognise the now decisive, pivotal role that the European Parliament has.
And if the Treaty of Lisbon is, above all, the way towards the closest possible union, even the closest union of Europeans will not be real or visible if it is not recognised from outside. The road towards the closest possible union will therefore necessarily involve a foreign policy with ever more unity, ever more common ground, and a strengthening of the single voice that many of us pro-Europeans would like Europe to have in the world.
With regard to this, allow me to make a very brief reference to the steps that we have taken towards this objective of strengthening foreign policy. Firstly, in April, the rotating Presidency fulfilled the mandate of the European Council by adopting a political decision on the European External Action Service. On 21 June of this year, Parliament, the Council and the Commission reached a political agreement on the launch of the new European External Action Service, on which Parliament needs to state its position in plenary during this very part-session. I hope the result will be positive, as, without a doubt, this is a new and important pillar of the common foreign and security policy that we would like to have.
Alongside this, our Presidency has given its active backing to the High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, who has taken part with the Commission and the Council in the preparations for a number of summits during this period – with Russia, Japan, Pakistan, Canada, Morocco, Latin America and the Caribbean. These have borne important fruit in the form of commercial agreements that strengthen the economic position of the European Union, open up prospects in many Latin American countries and, without a doubt, extend the already strong links between the European continent and Latin America in cultural, economic, political and social areas.
In the same way, we have strengthened neighbourhood relations. We have held a summit with Russia and, although we have not held one with the United States as was on our initial agenda, I must point out that we have reached a number of very significant agreements with the United States during this period. These include agreements on the fight against terrorism and legally and politically far-reaching agreements such as the SWIFT Agreement, in which this Parliament also played a decisive part – in a matter that was certainly not easy – and on which it needs to announce its position in plenary during this part-session. There was also an economically important agreement signed on 24 June relating to air services between the United States and the European Union, known as the ‘open skies agreement’, which will see the creation of a common transatlantic aviation area, accounting for 60% of global passenger traffic.
The first of these was the implementation and entry into force of the Treaty of Lisbon, a treaty seeking a more complete union for Europe. The second main objective, directly related to that ambition of ever-closer unity among Europeans, was to achieve, with a view to the recovery of the economic situation, a much deeper union with regard to economic policy, to address the imbalances in our economies and to create more appropriate conditions for the European Union to improve its competitiveness and maintain its well-being.
In the Mediterranean area, one of the areas that is very sensitive for the European Union, as you know, the Presidency, in agreement with the institutions, decided to postpone the Union summit on the Mediterranean provisionally until November, in the light of the conflict situation that existed in the area. We also believe that attempting to hold this Union summit on the Mediterranean in June might have entailed a risk of failure for the Union, and that there is likely to be a much more suitable and constructive time for the role that the Union needs to play in the Mediterranean, which is to contribute to dialogue in the Middle East.
I would emphasise that, under our Presidency, cooperation policy was discussed in the European Council for the first time during a specific debate within this august institution. In events that were of great interest to citizens and had a major impact because of their destructive power, such as the earthquakes in Haiti and Chile, the Presidency had a significant presence within the cooperation and solidarity effort, in coordination with the Commission, the Member States and the High Representative.
There have been important advances in the process of negotiation with Croatia, with the closure of three chapters and the opening of five. With regard to Turkey, chapter twelve was also opened. The process of negotiation of the Association and Stabilisation Agreement with Serbia was unfrozen, as a result of which all Balkan countries are currently involved in the process of European integration, and the European prospects of the Balkans have seen an important advance.
In the same way, negotiations have been opened with Iceland, as approved by the last European Council, after overcoming the reservations of some Member States. That is very good news for that country and demonstrates that Europe is continuing to grow, and that the European Union continues to be a magnet for all neighbouring countries, and therefore a great model of stability and progress for the world.
I would like to end, Mr President, by making a very brief reference to some of the initiatives linked directly to the expansion of the European Union in the context of citizenship. We have taken steps towards launching the citizens’ initiative, as is well known; its implementation, through negotiations that need to be held with this House, will be a major commitment with regard to citizens’ participation in the process of European integration. We unanimously approved the mandate for the Union’s membership of the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights, which was a major priority of the European Presidency, and we have taken steps in the fight against gender violence and in favour of equality, through the creation of the European Observatory, and by pushing ahead with the directive on a European protection order for victims of violence against women.
We also approved the action plan for the 2010 Stockholm Programme, along with the Internal Security strategy. In other areas, we carried out an initial assessment of the European Pact on Immigration and Asylum, we adopted new regulations on organ donation and transplants, and we adopted the directive on cross-border healthcare. In short, these are important issues that directly concern the interests of Europeans in their extension of rights and their promotion of greater participation in the process of the formation of European political will.
I would also like to end with a very brief reflection, Mr President. We have endeavoured during these six months to address institutional changes which, of necessity, required a response involving political vision, generosity and commitment. We set out during these six months to address the consequences of a serious economic crisis, to create confidence and unity among Europeans. We have been committed to, and worked towards, strengthening the impact and presence of Europe in the world, convinced as we are that this project has greater strength and greater vitality than when it started, with such enthusiasm and such great scope for Europeans. We are convinced that, through the Treaty of Lisbon, we can make Europe lead the world again in political stability, in being an example of democratic functioning, in economic strength, in competitiveness and in maintenance of the social model.
Finally, I would like to thank the European Parliament for its cooperation, and Mr Van Rompuy, President of the European Council, for the sincere example he sets of responsibility and leadership. I would like to congratulate the Commission on standing firm, on maintaining the Community spirit, and on being militant in its defence, despite the fact that we governments sometimes find that difficult. That, however, is what it means to integrate Europe, to have the interests of Europe at heart, and to know that that is the true path.
These have been the two main objectives. I can assure you that, in implementing the Treaty of Lisbon, the Spanish rotating Presidency has discharged its functions dutifully to ensure the new institutional balance and to strengthen the new institutions that we Europeans have created for ourselves through the Treaty of Lisbon: namely, the Presidency of the European Council, the purpose of which is to strengthen European representation and ensure the continuity of political programmes within the framework of the European Union, and the High Representative, intended to strengthen common action in matters of foreign policy.
This new institutional balance also includes a fundamental watershed in the spirit and the letter of the Treaty of Lisbon. This watershed is the new role of this Parliament: a step forward in its powers to represent Europe’s citizens.
Throughout these six months, Mr President, we have endeavoured to be faithful to the letter and spirit of the Treaty of Lisbon with Parliament, with the new President of the Council, and in dialogue that has always been fruitful, always positive and always easy to put into practice with the European Commission. I mention the European Commission last to remind Parliament that in its founding spirit and the spirit of the Treaty of Lisbon lies the defence of the Community institutions and the Community method, as the final guarantee of the essence and advance of the European Union. This strengthening of and co-responsibility with the Community institutions has always been, and always will be, present in Spain and within the Spanish Government.
If the Spanish rotating Presidency has learnt anything from the Treaty of Lisbon, it is that we need as much Community method as possible, and we need to strengthen the role of the major Community institutions, in terms of action and co-responsibility for the main European issues.
Ladies and gentlemen, I told you that, without a doubt, the economy – the economic crisis and the desire to put in place a common economic policy and greater economic union – had been a fundamental objective of the European Presidency. I would like to emphasise that we have produced results of great significance during this period.
There has been a substantial advance in economic governance. The clearest evidence of this is that new instruments have been put in place to deal with difficult situations: new cooperation instruments hitherto unknown within the Union, such as support for the problematic situation of the sovereign debt in Greece, or the financial stability instrument approved by the Council and by Ecofin, and implemented by the 27 countries of the Union.
During this period, as you know, we have also adopted a common strategy for growth and employment to 2020. This is a strategy in which we have collaborated by giving support to the Commission. It is a more ambitious strategy for our competitiveness, for innovation, for job creation and for social inclusion, and a strategy with new governance. While Lisbon had a problem with governance, the EU 2020 strategy is designed to strengthen new operational principles for ensuring that both the objectives of the Union as a whole and the individual objectives of each country are met."@en1
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