Local view for "http://purl.org/linkedpolitics/eu/plenary/2007-05-23-Speech-3-249"
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"en.20070523.20.3-249"2
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"Mr President, yesterday, in this Chamber, one of Europe’s great champions sketched his vision of a Union fit for the 21st century – a Union that is democratic, transparent and, above all, effective. However, crossing that Rubicon requires firm leadership, Mr Balkenende.
Too often our heads of government have taken the advice of the English Conservative Prime Minister Arthur Bonar Law when he exclaimed: ‘I must follow them; I am their leader’. But populism cannot move Europe forward, nor cement our quality of life, international influence or economic strength – only solidarity can do that.
When concerns over the so-called symbols of a superstate – like flags or anthems –supersede debate on real issues, then it is time for a change of strategy.
Your public demands energy security; it demands a European environment policy; it demands common action on migration. From the new Treaty, they will get it, for the tools are already in the text. So sell that to your people, instead of sidestepping the issues. Stop letting the tail wag the dog, and lead the Netherlands back to the heart of European decision-making, as befits the founder status of your country in our Union.
In conclusion, Prime Minister, I would say, do as your countryman Justus Lipsius advised: be stoical in adversity, embrace necessity and be constant in your faith in Europe. For your people’s peace, prosperity and security depend upon it.
The German Presidency has shown its strength by uniting Member States under the banner of the Berlin Declaration. It must pull them together again in the weeks before the European Council and the Intergovernmental Conference which follows if we are to win the war of public opinion and unite around a revised Treaty.
The stakes are high. Your Foreign Minister, Mr Verhagen, said: ‘In today’s globalised world people are afraid of losing their jobs, their social security, their quality of life’. Yet that is not an argument for less Europe, indeed, it may well be an argument for more Europe.
Europe cannot secure its energy supply, combat climate change or tackle terrorism with a retreat into unilateralism. You, of all people, should know that, Mr Balkenende. For history teaches us that the Netherlands’ golden years – as the wealthiest nation in the 17th-century world – came from uniting the seven provinces, not dividing them. You must convince your citizens that unity and prosperity are inseparable; that inability to make progress on political integration means Europe will lose its place as a global standard-setter and end up at the mercy of powers like Russia with its belligerent energy policy.
To take key decisions on jobs, security and quality of life, the Union needs an end to unscrupulous use of national vetoes. To address the democratic deficit, it needs greater democratic accountability. To maintain its international prestige and internal effectiveness, its institutions must change with the times.
None of this is possible without the substance of what was agreed in the European Convention, and that substance must be maintained, whatever cosmetic surgery you try to effect on the surface.
We are not just talking about ideology here: we are talking about people’s jobs, their quality of life and their long-term prospects. It is time that you, and others like you, retook the initiative and brought Europe back to their people.
Nobody here is seeking a European superstate – diversity of customs, history and language will ensure that. However, we are seeking a European ‘superpeople’, a united people."@en1
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