Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2002-11-06-Speech-3-188"
| Predicate | Value (sorted: default) |
|---|---|
| rdf:type | |
| dcterms:Date | |
| dcterms:Is Part Of | |
| dcterms:Language | |
| lpv:document identification number |
"en.20021106.14.3-188"2
|
| lpv:hasSubsequent | |
| lpv:speaker | |
| lpv:spokenAs | |
| lpv:translated text |
"Mr President, Madam Vice-President, Article 159 of the Treaty states that the European Union will take account of the objective of economic and social cohesion when drawing up its policies. The second report on cohesion has shown that aid currently provided by the common agricultural policy favours producers in the more developed agricultural areas rather than those in the less developed ones. It would therefore be a mistake not to alter a system of aid which values production above other economic, social, environmental and land-related issues.
Ladies and gentlemen, the latest proposals presented by the Commission contained in the mid-term review and the reform of the common agricultural policy could exacerbate still further the differences between the more and less developed rural areas. All the necessary impact studies must therefore be carried out before these reforms are implemented.
At present, rural areas account for 80% of the European Union, and this percentage will increase following enlargement. The negative effects of the common agricultural policy, which has not fulfilled initial expectations, will therefore be even greater. We cannot do away with the functional model which has to underpin our agricultural policy. Nonetheless, we need to define new aid for small farmers, and policies to redistribute resources more equitably. Environmental conditions have to be mainstreamed. We should link agricultural and environmental polices and coordinate them. We must ensure our policies do provide for cohesion. Otherwise they could have a devastating effect in rural areas and cause a huge exodus from the countryside.
There should be specific support for young farmers to establish themselves, and support also for small farmers who guarantee rural sustainability. Parliament’s Committee on Agriculture has concluded that enlargement will increase regional disparities and that targeted measures and an increase in structural funds will be needed to counter this.
Enlargement and its negative effect on statistics will exclude a large number of regions which currently meet the criteria for Objective 1. For this reason we need to set a transitional period for these regions. We also need to devise a new classification system that takes account of the specific disadvantages of each region. I have in mind depopulation or the relief of the land.
Enlargement does not just pose a challenge for Objective 1 rural areas. We must also remember that a kind of hidden enlargement is taking place as a result of Association Agreements with third countries to the south. Above all, there is one principle that we should re-define, namely Community preference in the general context of cohesion."@en1
|
Named graphs describing this resource:
The resource appears as object in 2 triples