Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2012-05-21-Speech-1-115-000"
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"en.20120521.17.1-115-000"2
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"Mr President, Commissioner, ladies and gentlemen, it is an emotional moment for me as I come to present my own-initiative report on the European Union’s internal security strategy. It is, in fact, 20 years ago this week – on 23 May to be precise – that Judge Giovanni Falcone, his wife and his police escort were murdered.
I would like to finish by thanking all the shadow rapporteurs who played a part in drafting this report, as well as the staff of the political groups and my personal assistant.
I would like to dedicate the adoption of this report to all the victims of mafias, organised crime and terrorism, and, in particular, to Melissa Bassi, the young victim of last Saturday’s attack on a school in Brindisi, in which six other girls were also wounded. The motive for the attack is still unknown, but it clearly comes within the context of growing tension and lack of security caused by the crisis, which organisations or individuals may be tempted to exploit for violently subversive ends. My thoughts also go out to the victims of the earthquake in Emilia Romagna, because natural disasters also come within the Union’s internal security remit.
The text that we will vote on tomorrow highlights the importance of having a consistent security strategy for the Union, and in that respect I would like to thank the Commission for the major effort it has made in drafting this strategy.
As is repeatedly shown in the report, security must always be pursued in accordance with the rule of law and people’s fundamental rights, which form an integral and inseparable part of this strategy. That is also why the role of the EU institutions in defining and implementing the strategy is of particular importance, especially in the post-Lisbon context.
The European Parliament also needs to play an appropriate role in this context, both in setting priorities for the strategy and during the evaluation stage. This role derives from the fully-fledged legislative powers that Parliament has acquired in matters of security. It is also essential for ensuring proper democratic control, which the European Parliament should exercise alongside the national parliaments. That is why we will undertake to establish regular links between the European Parliament and the national parliaments, so as to create a parliamentary political round associated with the Commission’s annual report on this subject and ending with an annual parliamentary report on the implementation status of the internal security strategy.
We believe the Union needs to have a clear idea of the extent of the threats to internal security, which it currently does not have. We therefore call on Europol, with the support of the other EU institutions and agencies, to conduct a global analysis of the threats facing the Union, on the basis of a more transparent and robust methodology and relying on information contributed by the Member States.
In relation to the five key objectives identified by the Commission, we are of the opinion that they are not exhaustive and that the order of priorities could probably have been better structured. The fight against terrorism, organised crime and mafias is, and must remain, a key priority within the internal security strategy. The Union must know not only how to react to whatever happens in Europe, but also how to prevent and interpret it. That has been shown by the events in Utøya and now again in Brindisi. We need to be able to recognise the early signs of violent radicalisation, barbarisation of the social milieu and violent extremism.
Judicial cooperation is the main element lacking in the security strategy outlined by the Commission, and this gap needs to be filled. Joint action by judicial systems across Europe is crucial if we are to clamp down on crime and terrorism; strengthening such action must be prioritised, as must fighting corruption and combating environmental, economic and corporate crime.
While we agree with the emphasis placed on fighting cybercrime, the Commission’s decision to include the protection of intellectual property rights among our security priorities hardly seems justified. As the issue of the Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement shows, this topic is not just a security matter but is highly complex and involves people’s rights, and therefore it requires a more thorough debate."@en1
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