<CHAPTER ID=1>
Resumption of the session
<SPEAKER ID=1 NAME="President">
I declare resumed the session of the European Parliament adjourned on Friday , 21 June 1996 .

<SPEAKER ID=2 LANGUAGE="DE" NAME="Friedrich">
You will be speaking about the agenda in a moment and I have major problems with the agenda . I wanted to plan my time scales for next year and found that not a single date given in the European Parliament 's diary for 1977 is correct as from 1 February .
Ash Wednesday falls on a Monday .
The date 29 February is printed even though it is not a leap year .
So I would advise and ask Members and also the Bureau not to agree any dates on the basis of the European Parliament 's diary for 1977 because not a single date after 1 February is correct .
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( Laughter , applause )
<SPEAKER ID=3 NAME="President">
Thank you for pointing that out , Mr Friedrich .
We will have to consider how to remedy these mistakes in the diaries that have been distributed .
Thank you in particular for your comment on Ash Wednesday .
That is indeed a quite crucial date and to get Ash Wednesday wrong would be a dire thing for us all !
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<SPEAKER ID=4 NAME="Green">
Mr President , if you wonder why the Chamber is not very full , may I raise with you a real problem of access for Members and visitors at the present time . I have just come across the tunnel from the Belliard building to this one .
It is impossible to come up in the lifts . There are crowds of people on minus 2 floor and it is absolutely impossible to get access to this plenary for 3 p.m. It is very inconvenient for visitors but it is desperately inconvenient for Members .
I would ask that someone looks at ways of ensuring easy access for Members to the plenary while at the same time allowing visitors access to our public gallery . The situation is very bad today .
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<SPEAKER ID=5 NAME="President">
You are quite right , Mrs Green , but we will , I hope , manage to resolve quite a number of the problems connected with this building and access from Belliard and other buildings in the course of next year when D3 comes into use and we have direct access ...
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... from the offices to the level of the plenary .
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<SPEAKER ID=6 NAME="Crowley">
Mr President , I should like to call on the House to show its support and solidarity for the freedom of the press and for freedom of speech and to show its sympathy for the horrific death of an Irish journalist , Veronica Guerin , in Dublin last week . The whole country and I am sure the whole of Europe would appreciate it if you would communicate to the Irish media and , in particular , the editor of the Irish Independent newspaper in Dublin , our deep sympathy and our continuing support for freedom of speech and guaranteeing the protection of democracy .
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<SPEAKER ID=7 NAME="President">
Mr Crowley , first let me thank you for that comment and for referring to the matter and secondly the applause greeting your comment indicated the views of this House .
I will proceed as you suggested : I will make it clear to the Irish media and in particular to the newspaper in question that we support the maintenance of freedom of speech and deeply regret the death of the Irish journalist .
<CHAPTER ID=2>
Urgent political matters

<SPEAKER ID=8 NAME="President">
The next item is the statement by the Commission on urgent political matters relating to the meeting of the G7 states in Lyons .
I call Mr Santer , President of the Commission .
<SPEAKER ID=9 NAME="Santer">
Mr President , ladies and gentlemen , from 27 to 29 June the summit of Heads of State and government of the seven industrialized countries was held in Lyons , under the French presidency , the President of the European Commission attending as a full member .
After the G7 had completed its economic tasks , the Russian Prime Minister , Mr Chernomyrdin , standing in for President Yeltsin , joined us for the discussion of global and political topics .

<SPEAKER ID=10 NAME="President">
Thank you very much , Mr President of the Commission .
Let me once again inform all those who are still not sure about them of the rules of play . There is no list of speakers , those who wish to put questions may in each case request to do so after the Commission has spoken .
Requests to speak beforehand cannot be accepted .
Secondly , the questions may not take more than one minute and the answers should not be too lengthy either .
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<SPEAKER ID=11 NAME="Banotti">
You mentioned that the first item on your agenda was combatting international terrorism .
Can you tell us whether you are more optimistic now that the Europol Convention will be ratified during the Irish presidency ?
As you know , it is one of the main focuses of the Irish presidency .
As drugs are part of the international terrorism network can you tell us what precisely you agreed at the G7 conference ?
Also , may I use this opportunity to express my regret about the incident in Osnabrck which happened during this conference and on a more local level at the outrageous murder of Ms Veronica Guerin by people involved in the drugs trade .
<SPEAKER ID=12 LANGUAGE="FR" NAME="Santer">
Mr President , I do indeed believe that the entire international community , and more especially the European Union , must do everything in its power to counter this modern scourge of terrorism .
It is our duty to fight against all the forms of organized crime to which you have referred , and I believe that now that the Europol project has finally been unfrozen and set in motion , backed up by all the other provisions existing within international law , such as the agreement on extradition and various other measures , we will gradually be able to combine all our resources in the fight against terrorism and organized crime .

<SPEAKER ID=13 LANGUAGE="IT" NAME="Imbeni">
Mr President , in Lyon you expressed appreciation - at least as reported in the newspapers - of the Italian government 's document on economic and financial policy for 1997-1999 . In the days that followed there was controversy in Italy - I imagine your assistants provided you with a fat press file on the subject - because Commissioner Monti expressed a different opinion on that document .
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So I want to ask you one question : do you agree with the strategy set out in the Italian government 's document on economic and financial policy , yes or no ? Please , Mr President , do not remind me of the Maastricht criteria , because everyone knows about that !
Just answer yes or no !
<SPEAKER ID=14 LANGUAGE="FR" NAME="Santer">
Mr President , in answer to the honourable Member , although my grasp of Italian is not sufficient to enable me to follow the Italian press from day to day , I do even so know something about the debate that has taken place in the press and Italian public opinion in the last few days .
That was why , last Friday , I myself had already made a statement in Lyons when I was asked to give my views on this matter .
I said that I was encouraging all the steps taken by the Italian government to satisfy the convergence criteria , and that I was not prepared to speculate at that time but that it was a major step in the right direction , which is what we hope for .
<SPEAKER ID=15 LANGUAGE="FR" NAME="Pasty">

Mr President , first I would like to thank the President of the Commission for the very clear statement he has just made to us on the results of the G7 summit , making it clear that such essential matters as the consequences of globalization , the multilateralization of trade and terrorism were discussed , that clear guidelines were identified and that powerful signals were sent .

<SPEAKER ID=16 LANGUAGE="FR" NAME="Santer">
Mr President , you will shortly be hearing statements on Florence by the President-in-Office of the Council , Mr Prodi , and Mr Dini .
I am therefore not going to dwell on the results of that summit .
Indeed , unless I am mistaken , I shall have the opportunity to do so in my capacity as President of the European Commission very shortly , from 4.00 p.m .
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As regards the guidelines laid down by the G7 , I would agree with Mr Pasty that they are general guidelines , and that they largely coincide with those which we are trying impose upon the European Union . I am very happy to note , as I said just now , that a number of ideas which we recommended within the European Union have been taken up by the G7 - for example , cooperation on macroeconomic affairs at the level of the international economy , which forms part of the G7 conclusions for the first time .
There are , therefore , interactions between the G7 and our activities within the European Union .
<SPEAKER ID=17 LANGUAGE="DE" NAME="Hoff">
Mr President , in the run-up to the G7 summit the Council adopted a new action programme to support the Russian Federation .
This programme was indeed discussed in the Commission but it was not notified to Parliament .
I would very much like to know what the content of this action programme is , whether it is a new parallel programme to the TACIS programme , whether this programme played any part in the summit or whether it was merely intended as electoral support for the presidential elections currently being held in Russia .
<SPEAKER ID=18 LANGUAGE="FR" NAME="Santer">
Mr President , Mrs Hoff , the Commission and the European Union have always pursued an overall strategy with regard to the Russian Federation .
I believe it is essential that we should maintain constant relations with Russia , having regard to its geopolitical situation . We are well aware that stability and security in our own countries depend on stability and security in Russia .
<SPEAKER ID=19 LANGUAGE="ES" NAME="Marset Campos">
Mr President of the Commission , I have followed your speech carefully and I must mention my surprise and concern , because at one moment it seemed as though you were speaking in behalf of the G7 , which , we must remember , is not a democratically constituted organization and which leans towards and contributes to an ' anti-democratic continental drift ' affecting even countries like Sweden which up to now have taken a stance of peace and neutrality and which little by little are moving in the other direction , which is very worrying .



<SPEAKER ID=20 LANGUAGE="FR" NAME="Santer">
Mr President , I am not the spokesman of the G7 , but I am a member of the G7 .
In that capacity , the President of the Commission has to help ensure that the guidelines adopted by the world 's most industrialized countries correspond to the guidelines which you , and we , lay down in this House .
And I am very glad to find that a number of the guidelines which you have adopted as Members of Parliament , together with the Council , have been adopted by the G7 also .
It is a notable success for European organization to be able to claim , in connection with the G7 , that the ideas which you have decided upon democratically - or so I trust - in this House have been reflected in the various guidelines .
<SPEAKER ID=21 LANGUAGE="DE" NAME="Gredler">
Mr President , Mr President of the Commission , I have two questions .
The first concerns the fight against terrorism .
You know that we can only combat terrorism if we have a comprehensive exchange of data . Let me ask you how the individual citizen in Europe can check where his data is stored in Europe and what data is stored and what means of influence he has to protect his privacy in this connection .
<SPEAKER ID=22 LANGUAGE="FR" NAME="Santer">
Mr President , as far as the struggle against terrorism is concerned , I should point out that a number of systems have to be set up . You know , for example , under the Schengen Accord , that computerized systems are in place , especially in Strasbourg , which make it possible to identify and trace these people .
Clearly , this system needs to be extended to other institutions .
We now have Europol , and we have Interpol . President Chirac has suggested that the senior representatives of the working group against terrorism should be assisted by Interpol .
So a number of elements have been set up to improve the structure , and to institutionalize as it were , the struggle against terrorism , through a variety of measures to be taken at all levels , in all the institutions , and by all the member countries of the international organizations .
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As far as your second question is concerned , I would remind you that this is precisely the purpose of the G7 meeting on nuclear security which was held two months ago in Moscow . At that meeting , we agreed upon a programme and strategy intended to lead to the shutting-down of the two reactors at Chernobyl , which do not comply with the safety standards in force in our own countries .
We also submitted an overall financing plan to ensure that this shutdown does take effect .
We laid down a programme , step by step , with financing , and I can tell you that we , for our part , have just recently signed the second part of our share of the financing which , if I recall correctly , amounts to ECU 200 million .
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A whole package of measures , then , has been taken to put an end to the insecurity associated with reactors which fail to comply with our safety standards . This refers not only to Chernobyl but also , more generally , to other reactors still in operation in a number of countries , particularly in the East , to enable them to meet the safety standards we expect , and be refitted to those standards .
<SPEAKER ID=23 LANGUAGE="DE" NAME="Wolf">
It is difficult to ask Mr Santer about anything other than the obviously excellent Lyons cuisine that appears to have been the main item of the summit , but nevertheless !
Is it true that you and Mr Brittan called for the worldwide deregulation of trade to be speeded up further without regard for its ecological and social consequences ? Just among ourselves , Mr Santer : does the fact that your European employment strategy is being interpreted as concurrent with their views and deserving of support precisely by the senior advocates of deregulation and cuts in social services not give you much cause for doubt and anxiety ?
Surely that should give you something to think about !
<SPEAKER ID=24 LANGUAGE="FR" NAME="Santer">
I do not know who is giving the folklore performance here , you or me , I do not know .
That 's for you to judge . At all events , I take myself seriously , and I have no desire to play a walk-on part in a folklore performance .
I tell you this frankly , and I trust that you will accept what I say on the same basis . I believe that is the only way that a conversation can be held between honest , politically mature and cultivated men .
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Perhaps Lyonnais cuisine is not to your taste , I would not know .
Are you familiar with Lyonnais cuisine ?
That is another question I would like to ask if the President will permit me .
At all events , I ate what was put in front of me , and I am quite happy about it , and you would undoubtedly have done the same yourself if you had been invited to Lyons . Perhaps the reason you are complaining today is because you were not invited .
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Now I am going to answer your questions , because I have no desire to descend to your level .
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As far as the environment is concerned , we decided within the World Trade Organization that the ministerial conference in Singapore , which is to be held in December , will have to deal both with the environment and with international social standards .
As I said just now , we want to see the multilateralism of trade taking account of both environmental and social concerns , not with a view to protectionism but simply in order to respect the obligations entered into by the various Member States of the European Union , and also by other states outside the European Union .
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As regards employment , I am no fan of deregulation - quite the reverse .
I served as Minister for Social Affairs and Minster of Labour long enough to know what employment is and how it can be created .
I also know that employment requires a certain amount of growth , and that we need to use our internal market to stimulate all the necessary forces to create a growth which is rich in jobs .
That is our purpose , and one of the elements of the Confidence Pact for employment which I presented to you .
Deregulation is not an end in itself , but deregulation - or the liberalization of some sectors - may be regarded as a way of promoting a number of new jobs for the future , thanks to modern technology .
You are being reactionary if you cut yourself off from all new forms of technology . That is no way to create jobs .
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( Applause ) Finally , I am not one of the complainers , one of those who thinks that employment is sufficient .
Quite the reverse .
If you study all the speeches I have made since my investiture , here in this Parliament , you will know I have always said that the first priority is , specifically , to combat unemployment in the European Union . If we want the Europe of citizens , we must take an interest in what concerns the citizens , in the problems that affect them most - employment , and the struggle against unemployment .
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That is my philosophy , and my commitment , and I hope you will share it . It is a commitment that has nothing to do with folklore , I assure you .
I am concerned , perhaps more concerned than you , with our citizens ' concerns and preoccupations . And I believe that you too , once and for all , should respect this commitment .
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( Applause )
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<SPEAKER ID=25 LANGUAGE="FR" NAME="Reding">
Mr President , I should like to return to the decisions adopted by the G7 regarding the campaign against terrorism and crime .
I should like to ask President Santer whether the fact that the antiterrorist campaign is one of the hobby-horses of the G7 will help to strengthen the third pillar , offering greater efficiency , and therefore greater communitization , with a view of course to the intergovernmental conference .
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<SPEAKER ID=26 LANGUAGE="FR" NAME="Santer">
Mr President , I can tell Mrs Reding that that is indeed our preoccupation .
I have just come back from Dublin , and I think I can safely say that the same preoccupation is shown by the Irish presidency .
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We must all become much more concerned with the problems relating to the third pillar .
The methods under the third pillar , as they stand at present , are not adequate to deal with matters of direct concern to our citizens : organized crime , illegal immigration , asylum , campaign against drugs - and there are others I could mention .
The need , therefore , is for greater efforts , and I hope that the intergovernmental conference will draw conclusions in this respect leading to greater communitization , or take steps to consider what means exist for responding to our citizens ' concern about the campaign against terrorism .


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For my part , speaking on behalf of the Commission , I can say once again that we are fully agreed that at least seven of the various campaigns currently taking place under the third pillar could be communitized and , if possible , transferred to the first pillar .



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<SPEAKER ID=27 LANGUAGE="FR" NAME="Berthu">
Mr President , my question relates to the mad cow business , and also to our relations with the United States .
It would surely seem prudent , in order to avoid any risk to human health , to prohibit the use of animal wastes that have been declared unfit for human consumption in the manufacture of feeds not only for cattle but also for poultry , sheep , pigs and even fish .
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Better still , to prevent any recurrence of the conditions that gave rise to mad cow disease , we should prohibit the use of any meal of animal origin for the feeding of herbivores , which is after all a perversion of nature .
However , those States which are thinking about such bans are , it appears , being deterred by one objection : if this prudent action were to be taken , it would be necessary to compensate by using greater quantities of proteins of vegetable rather than animal origin , such as soya , for example . However , the Blair House agreements have set ceilings on the areas which we may plant with protein plants , so that increasing demand would mean increasing our deficit .
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So my questions is this : does the Commission not consider it appropriate , in these circumstances , to renegotiation the Blair House agreements , which are drastically reducing our room for manoeuvre ?
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<SPEAKER ID=28 LANGUAGE="FR" NAME="Santer">
Mr President , I must say very simply , honestly and frankly that I am not prepared to give an objective answer to that question , not having studied the question in detail .
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I can , however , assure the honourable Member of one thing : as I said at the last part-session in Strasbourg , as far as mad cow disease is concerned we are being guided solely by public health considerations , on the basis of scientific criteria . This applies equally to feeds and to meals .
As you known , a new controversy has broken out on this matter .
In view of this , we are inclined to consider and examine all the proposals made , and I am glad to take note of your concern .
I feel sure you will appreciate that I cannot answer this question off the cuff , since it was not on the agenda at the G7 in Lyons .
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<SPEAKER ID=29 LANGUAGE="NL" NAME="Metten">
Mr President , I have a question about the herring crisis .
Can the President of the Commission tell me how it is possible that in spite of a Community restriction on herring fishing by means of total allowable catches , crisis measures have suddenly to be adopted in the middle of the fishing season and the herring stock seems to have declined to an all-time low level of 400 000 tonnes ?
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<SPEAKER ID=30 LANGUAGE="FR" NAME="Santer">
Mr President , herrings were another subject not discussed by the G7 , but even so I shall reply to the honourable Member .
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It goes without saying that the action taken by the Commission to reduce herring fishing is intended to help preserve fish stocks .
I believe we have a certain responsibility in that respect .
Mrs Bonino has explained to you elsewhere the strategy we are working on with regard to the restructuring of fisheries and the preservation of fish stocks for environmental and ecological reasons .
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Having said that , we are of course concerned with the fate of herring fishermen , and other fishermen , and we intend to accompany these measures to restructure the fisheries industry with technical forms of assistance to fishermen and the payment of compensation , to ensure that this very large sociological group is not too severely penalized .
But our first concern is to preserve fish stocks , and especially herring stocks .
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<SPEAKER ID=31 LANGUAGE="DE" NAME="Pack">
President Santer , if the G7 summit has led to a definite result as regards Karadzic , I would like to know how it happened that - as we read in Le Monde today - Karadzic has had himself put up as a candidate for the next elections ?
How could Mr Bildt say quite clearly yesterday , sitting beside Mrs Plavsic , that he was satisfied with what Karadzic has now announced - his pretend resignation - and that Karadzic had therefore fulfilled all the requirements ? In my view that does not tally with what you said earlier !
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<SPEAKER ID=32 LANGUAGE="FR" NAME="Santer">
Mr President , I can only confirm what Mrs Pack has just said . That was indeed not the intention of the participants in the G7 meeting .
If you read the conclusions again , it is perfectly clear that all the provisions of the Dayton Peace Agreement - of the agreements signed in Paris , in other words - must be implemented in their entirety and , of course , to the extent that those provisions are not implemented , the sanctions will still remain available as means of coercion . Be that as it may , however , a symbolic withdrawal , a temporary eclipse , is not sufficient to satisfy the provisions of the Dayton Peace Agreement .
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<SPEAKER ID=33 NAME="Morris">
I welcome the discussions which took place at the G7 and the expressions of concern about poverty in the Third World and ACP countries .
Although they expressed concern for people in the Third World , they still talk about the necessity for structural adjustments .
That has come to mean cuts in health , cuts in education , cuts in housing , cuts in welfare , in fact cuts in the kinds of services that can make these countries much more competitive and certainly to bring them eventually onto a par with ourselves . Does Mr Santer not consider that the cancellation of debt - and here I am talking about the interest upon the interest upon the interest - could be the single best contribution we could make to the developing world ?
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<SPEAKER ID=34 LANGUAGE="FR" NAME="Santer">
Mr President , I share the view of the honourable Member .
As regards the least developed countries , the conclusions of the G7 envisaged that the easing and cancellation of debt would be a necessary condition for their future development . But the easing or cancellation of debt is not sufficient in itself .
There will still be a need to provide public aid to development , at least for the least developed countries .
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In addition , other steps have to be taken , steps to give those countries access to our markets . We can help them not only with aid but also by making it possible for them to trade their products in our markets .
That is the only way that a genuine partnership can be established .
These countries cannot survive by aid alone - they need a package of measures , structural adjustments , the assistance of the International Monetary Fund , the cancellation of debt but also access for these countries to our own markets , so that a genuine partnership , something which is so necessary , will be created step by step , leading these countries along the road to successful development .
<SPEAKER ID=35 LANGUAGE="SV" NAME="Lindqvist">
Mr President , I would like to continue on the subject of unemployment .
In Florence it was agreed that efforts should continue to be made to promote the EMU . All the important measures aimed at reducing unemployment were postponed , including your own confidence pact , as well as other proposals put forward by Sweden .
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Were these issues discussed in G7 ?
Did you yourself , as the president of the Commission , make any demands on the G7 countries ?
If this was discussed , what conclusions did you come to ?
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<SPEAKER ID=36 LANGUAGE="FR" NAME="Santer">
Mr President , first I am very glad to find that the European Council in Florence has confirmed , or endorsed , the Commission 's action , which has been given the name of the Confidence Pact for employment , because it is a joint approach .
Unemployment cannot be reduced by legislation ; but it can be reduced by a joint effort by all the Member States at different levels , mobilizing all the economic and social actors .
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It seems to me that one element of this overall pact is the question of economic and monetary union . Economic and monetary union cannot be seen as opposed to the creation of jobs .
Some countries have clearly demonstrated this .
Ireland , for example , has dramatically reduced its public deficit while at the same time creating new jobs .
Sweden has done the same thing . So what is needed is a package of measures , based on macroeconomic policies like the policy designed to create economic and monetary union , but also based on the full exploitation of all our potential within the framework of the major internal market , the interlinking of which will enable it to function as an integrated market .
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Next , the social partners must be given every opportunity to participate in negotiations on job flexibility and job security , on the standardization of working hours , on education , apprenticeship , etc. , while at the same time stimulating new initiatives such as small- and medium-sized enterprises , etc ..
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This , then , is a whole package of measures and activities that need to be undertaken , and the principles and broad lines of which have in any case been adopted .
Mr Prodi , President-in-Office of the Council , who chaired the European Council meeting in Florence , will be reporting to you on this shortly .
A whole package of measures needs to be implemented to ensure that , gradually , unemployment can be reduced in the European Union . We all want to see that , and so we must not relax are efforts to bring it about .
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<SPEAKER ID=37 LANGUAGE="DE" NAME="Friedrich">
You said something I simply do not understand .
You said that we must ensure that the rich countries do not become richer and the poor do not become poorer . The second part is true , the poor must not become poorer , but I take the view that we are not talking here about zero-sum games .
We cannot artificially make the prosperous countries more prosperous .
Conversely , it could be said that if the prosperous countries have a chance to achieve growth and then to take the poorer countries along with them , the whole idea becomes more acceptable . People sometimes say in very polemic language - it is wrong but I will quote it today anyway - that development policy is often pursued in such a manner as to ensure that the poor people in the rich countries pay money to make the rich people in the poor countries richer .
That is why I ask for a rectification .
Do you agree with me that we must ensure that we all jointly bring about economic growth and social improvements ?
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<SPEAKER ID=38 LANGUAGE="FR" NAME="Santer">
Mr President , that was precisely the objective of the G7 meeting , whose general theme was globalization to benefit the whole world , not just one part of the world .
All the statements I have just made should be interpreted in that light . We do not want the benefits of this globalization of our economies to be available just to the few , whether in the rich countries or the poor ones , or to be to the detriment of a few , whether in the rich countries or the poor ones .
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We also need to realize that in the rich countries , in the most prosperous countries in the European Union , there are many people who are excluded or marginalized , and that again is something we have to fight against .
The European Union numbers eighteen million unemployed and fifty million outcasts , living on the margins of our society , on the threshold of poverty .
They , too , deserve our consideration .
We need to think not just about one country as a whole but about the different social strata , the different environments .
<SPEAKER ID=39 NAME="President">
That concludes Question Time .
<CHAPTER ID=3> Welcome
<SPEAKER ID=40 NAME="President">
Before we continue with the agenda , I have the pleasure of welcoming Mr Luciano Volante , Speaker of the Italian Chamber of Deputies .
I bid you a warm welcome ! The talks you held during your visit to our House will certainly help to further strengthen the cooperation between the Italian Parliament and our House .
<CHAPTER ID=4>
Florence European Council - activities of the Italian presidency
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<SPEAKER ID=41 NAME="President">
The next item is the joint debate on :
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the report by the Council and the statement by the Commission on the results of the European Council meeting in Florence on 21 and 22 June ; -the statement by the President-in-Office of the Council on the six-months of the Italian presidency.I am glad to welcome Mr Prodi , Prime Minister of Italy and President of the European Council .
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<SPEAKER ID=42 NAME="Prodi">
Mr President , ladies and gentlemen , I come here today with the greatest respect to illustrate the principal results of the Florence European Council which represented the conclusion of our Presidential term .
I feel even greater consideration towards you because the circumstances of the last six months mean that I come amongst you only at the very end of my country 's great task as regards Europe .
But I am sure you will find , from what I have to tell you , that this task has been pursued in complete continuity and that the election and change of government has not in fact changed Italy 's priorities , which confirms the deep-rooted attachment to the ideals of European integration of the main political , economic and social forces in my country .
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The government I have the honour to lead has always identified with the programme of work presented to you last January , which has guided our actions over these six months .
From the start our aim has been to ensure the consistency and continuity of the Union 's activities while respecting institutional equilibrium , and to work with determination to relaunch the European ideals by paying greater attention to the problems most frequently raised by public opinion .
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I do not intend to dwell on the delicacy of the appointments awaiting the European Union .
The various stages of Agenda 2000 - from the revision of the treaties to the move to the single currency , from the opening of the negotiations on the future enlargements to the consequent demands to adapt certain common policies and the financial base - all present enormous opportunities for development and deepening , but they also represent a tremendous danger : that our laborious achievements since the founding of the Community could be reversed and fragmented .
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Awareness of the crucial deadlines awaiting us encourages each presidency to construct its own projects , starting from the business left over by the previous presidency , to ensure gradual but definite progress towards the objectives we have set ourselves so that the Union can make a leap of quality towards a higher and irreversible level of integration .
From this viewpoint a significant part of the presidency 's work was devoted to preparing for the Intergovernmental Conference so that it could be formally called at the Turin European Council of 29 March , as agreed in Madrid last December .
<SPEAKER ID=43 NAME="President">
Thank you , Mr President-in-Office .
I call Mr Santer , President of the Commission .
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<SPEAKER ID=44 NAME="Santer">
Mr President , Mr Prime Minister , Minister , ladies and gentlemen , I must thank you for offering me the opportunity , on the occasion of this debate , to summarize the results of the European Council in Florence .
First , though , let me say a word of appreciation to Prime Minister Prodi and his team . Thanks to the diplomacy and professionalism of the Italian presidency , we have been able to steer clear of the shoals and come safely to harbour .
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Seen as a whole , the European Council meeting in Florence was a good one . It enabled us to clarify our view of the fundamental problems of the European Union , while clearing away one major obstacle that has just been discussed - the mad cow crisis .
That was a definite success . But there were other points , too , points which I had identified as priorities in my pre-Florence address to this House , where progress has been made .
Employment was a focal point of this European Council , which endorsed our proposal for a Confidence Pact . The work of the intergovernmental conference received a fresh stimulus .
And we must not underestimate the importance of the repeated confirmation of 1 January 1999 as the date for the introduction of the single currency and the long-awaited unfreezing of Europol .
<P>
Mad cow disease , of course , was not officially on the European Council 's agenda .
Yet the resolving of that dispute was a significant result for the Florence Council .
The institutions can once again function normally : you know my views about the policy of non-cooperation , my concern about its paralysing effect on our work , and the polarization of public opinion it has brought about , to the detriment of European cohesion . So you will understand how relieved I am that this policy - or perhaps I should say ' non-policy ' - has now been discontinued .
<P>
I was particularly pleased by the fact that it was the Commission 's proposals that made it possible to reach an agreement . The essential thing is that we now have an agreed framework for the eradication of mad cow disease .
Yes , that really is the essential thing , because the Commission has constantly been stressing this point . Nothing could have been achieved without this preliminary framework .
Without a determined stand against BSE , there would have been no restoration of consumer confidence .
Without consumer confidence , the markets cannot recover . And unless the markets recover , there can be no relief for those producers who - throughout the Union - a point that cannot be made too strongly - have been hard hit by the consequences of BSE .
<P>
The framework is now in place . The next stage is to take specific action to implement the various schemes - culling , branding , surveillance , etc. which will lead us towards the resumption of normal trade in the beef and veal sector .
One step at a time , we shall get there .
<SPEAKER ID=45 NAME="Dini">
Mr President , ladies and gentlemen , the President of the European Council has dwelt on the major achievements of Florence .
For my part , I want to draw your attention to the principal results of these six months , starting with the intense activity in foreign affairs .
<P>
In former Yugoslavia our aim was to maintain a high profile for the Union in the implementation of the peace agreements , laying the foundations for their consolidation with a broad and concrete regional approach .

<P>
The steadfast and energetic support to the European Administration of Mostar has also allowed us to provide proper visibility for what is still the best constructed and most complex common action of the Union on Yugoslav territory and on the success - or failure - of which the credibility of Europe in the eyes of the local people largely depends .
On both these fronts we can take stock of the results .
<P>
The Rome Conference of 17-18 February broke the deadlock of the crisis created after the protests against the European Administrator at Mostar , thus consolidating the prospects for the elections , which then took place on 30 June with a significant turnout and in a climate of calm which augurs well for the future of that city which is the key to internal equilibrium in the Muslim-Croat Federation .
<P>
The mid-term audit of the peace process , which took place in Florence on 13 and 14 June , was an opportunity remind all the parties to implement the agreements they had signed .
A highlight of the Florence meeting was the very important understanding on the control of arms reductions , which could not be achieved in Geneva only a few days earlier .
That meeting also confirmed the date of 14 September for elections throughout Bosnia .
<SPEAKER ID=46 NAME="Green">
Mr President , I want to thank Prime Minister Prodi , President Santer and the President-in-Office , Mr Dini , for their reports .
I listened with particular and careful attention to the two reports by Mr Prodi and Mr Santer on the evaluation of Florence .
I must admit my evaluation is somewhat different to theirs .
I was a little surprised at their upbeat response particularly with regard to employment .
<P>
The Madrid Summit six months ago has become known as the summit of the single currency . Florence was heralded as the Council of employment .
The reality was that BSE and the policy of non-cooperation in Europe which the British Government had instigated was hanging like a cloud over the Florence Summit . Indeed , that cloud contained over 100 pieces of European Union legislation vetoed by the British Government .
<P>
So the signs and signals in advance of Florence were not auspicious .
Therefore , I suspect that most people in the European Union were not surprised that nothing came out of the Council with regard to employment , bearing in mind the chaos in the Union and its decision-making at that moment .
Perhaps it was our expectations as politicians dealing with this issue that were naive and unrealistic .
We actually expected something on employment out of the Florence Summit .
<SPEAKER ID=47 LANGUAGE="IT" NAME="Castagnetti">
Mr President , Europe 's progress over the last forty years has not always been linear so it has often been laborious .
And yet there has always been progress .
The sense of vigil the European institutions are experiencing has hung over the six months that have just ended . We are on the eve of a new Treaty , on the eve of the enlargement , on the eve of the restructuring of the welfare system in every country of the Union .
It seems to me - and my tone is different from Mrs Green 's - that it has been the merit of the Italian presidency to have coped with this difficult period with a clear faith in the European project . It has coped with this period realistically , avoiding reversals and pursuing the way forward with determination and drive .
It has been the merit of the Italian presidency to have resolved the British crisis over BSE , with the crucial contribution of the Commission and President Santer . The task of politics , Mrs Green , is certainly to expressing opinions and judgements , but it is also and above all to solve problems and resolve crises .
This has been done and this should be noted .
<P>
It is our opinion that in these difficult conditions the merit of the Italian presidency has been to project the European horizon towards the future .
The Intergovernmental Conference has not only been called , it has started on its journey with the aid of the reflection group 's very important work , which President Prodi and President Dini have referred to here . Work has started on changing the decision-making and operational methods of the European Union ; the phase of enlargement has begun ; it has just been mentioned that Slovenia has finally started its journey towards association .
<P>
Three months on from calling the conference it cannot be claimed that there is yet any possibility of making even a rough draft of the new Treaty . That is the task of the Irish presidency .
But in this spirit of looking to the future I also rank the success of the informal council of Finance Ministers in Verona , where the aim of monetary union was confirmed and the relationship between the ' ins ' and the ' pre-ins ' was finally resolved satisfactorily .
In that same spirit of looking to the future I include the Bangkok Conference : at last and for the first time , a relationship has been established between the countries of Europe and the countries of the Pacific Rim , together with the possibility of cooperation which - as we must recognize - will be increasingly difficult in the future , because over and above cooperation , there is competition .
The need to talk and define the rules of that competition has at last been faced .
<P>
Finally I come to the ultimate issue , employment : a painful issue and also the most important issue for the Group of the European People 's Party .
It has been the merit of the Italian presidency - in fact I think this is the first time it has happened - to make this issue its clear central objective .
We are not satisfied with the conclusions of the Florence European Council either ; we too are concerned about the emergence of feelings which might be defined as ' Euro-egoism ' . We know this issue has to be dealt with primarily at the national level , and yet , Mr President-in-Office , Mr President of the Commission , we are convinced that there is great scope and much work to be done at the European level .
Investment in the trans-European networks is not only an opportunity to increase employment , it is also an opportunity to modernize the infrastructure of Europe .
Support to small and medium-sized enterprises not only assists a model of enterprise which can expand employment , it also promotes a modern model of enterprise .
<P>
We also believe there should be harmonization , at European level , of fiscal policies , social security policies and employment policies , because that will increase levels of employment and help transform the welfare system .
But it must be recognized that the Italian presidency has had the merit of raising the issue of work and employment and placing it for the first time within the remit of the European institutions , of proposing to and imposing on the fifteen European partners ...
<SPEAKER ID=48 LANGUAGE="IT" NAME="Ligabue">
Mr President , ladies and gentlemen , the Italian presidency has had a difficult task .
It has had to start negotiations in the Intergovernmental Conference at a very delicate moment for the construction of European unity , it has had to assess and take decisions on highly controversial issues which have been deadlocked in the Councils of Ministers , and at the same time it has had to manage the internal deadlines .

<P>
We believe the actions and approaches you have described in your speech , Mr President , provide an excellent picture of the contribution the Italian presidency has made to overcoming the obstacles in the way of the integration process .
Although the last six months has been a particularly delicate period in Italian politics , with partial discontinuity in the leadership of the country , the presidency has been able to pursue the work that was begun with dignity and register significant progress on certain issues . Union decisions and intervention during this period on former Yugoslavia , the Middle East peace process and Euro-Asian relationships , and above all the political agreement reached on the EUROPOL Convention , will certainly be remembered as milestones in the common commitment , and Italy has represented it well .
<P>


But Mr President , it would be irresponsible to remain silent about the lack of success , let us call it that , at the Florence European Council .



<P>
For the first time we have seen a European Council affected by the ' adjournment syndrome ' . Unfortunately , an unforeseeable event , the mad cow crisis , has stirred up deep malaise in the Union and diverted part of the attention and energy of the European institutions to an issue which is indeed important , but marginal when put in perspective .
The important MEDA regulation , the first stone in building a more effective policy of partnership in the Mediterranean basin , remains grounded and ECU 3.5 billion is blocked .
The funding for 14 strategic transport infrastructure projects is held up as well , and the Santer project to boost employment with finance for the great European shipyards has also been put off .
<P>


What has happened to the nine scientific and technological research programmes ?
What about the interventions in favour of small and medium-sized enterprises , and the liberalization of the internal market in electricity and communications ?
<SPEAKER ID=49 LANGUAGE="FR" NAME="Spaak">
Mr President , President Prodi , Mr Foreign Minister , President Santer , now that each Member State has restated its position and the political aspect of the mad cow crisis has been settled , it is time for the IGC to concentrate its efforts on the real reason for its existence - adapting the European institutions to the challenges of the present and of the very near future .


<P>
Should it not be a priority for the fifteen governments within the Union to hold fundamental discussions on the objectives to be adopted with regard to what form Europe should take in the third millennium ?
What kind of society do we want ?
And on what broad principles is that society to be based ?
And , once that has been redefined , what is the essential institutional organization that will implement these projects ?
<P>
This is a necessary undertaking for the fifteen Member States .
The crisis from which we are now emerging has shed a harsh light on the existing differences of opinion .
The proposed enlargement of the Union makes this approach essential .
Those countries which are hoping to join us must known , before negotiations begin , what kind of political structure they are going to join , what its advantages will be and what its constraints will be .
Public disenchantment with European integration is worrying .
A recent opinion poll in Belgium - one of the founding nations of Europe , like yours , Prime Minister - discloses that state of mind .
The responsibility of the national governments , which are too frequently inclined to blame the Union for their own lack of courage and lack of political determination to solve problems that are really theirs , must be denounced . The report on the financing of the Transeuropean networks , about which we have all been talking , and the creation of jobs that must flow from it is a sad example .
And it is also a failure of the Florence Council .
<P>
It is not enough to do as the Heads of Government did in Florence and take formal note of the revised formula presented by President Santer . Is there a gleam of hope when the Commission finds that the majority of Member States are prepared to accept the broad outlines of that formula ?
Be that as it may , and this is Parliament 's virtually unanimous opinion , it is a matter of urgency that we should at last move forward to the operational decisions .
It is not just courting popularity to remind the House that 17.5 million unemployed deserve something better than declarations of intent . The war in the former Yugoslavia and Europe 's inability to play any part in it have left a lasting impression on Europe 's citizens .
<P>
The European Parliament , in its joint resolution following the Florence summit , stresses the responsibility of Europeans to concern themselves with a whole series of problems , in Europe and elsewhere .
It demonstrates its determination to see the establishment of institutions and procedures such as to provide the essential instruments for instituting a genuine foreign policy . My hope is that the Irish presidency , strengthened by the experience of the Italian presidency and with the support of the Commission , should clear the way , following a period of crisis , for an overdue relaunch of activity in Europe .
<SPEAKER ID=50 LANGUAGE="IT" NAME="Pettinari">
Mr President , Mr President-in-Office of the Council , Foreign Minister , I believe it is right , at the end of the Italian presidency , to express a calm and considered judgement on these months of work . My judgement is broadly positive , because these months have been marked by a wealth of useful initiatives for the European Union , many of which were mentioned just now by Minister Dini .
I want to make it clear that my judgement - positive , I repeat - is not affected by the fact that I belong to a movement , the Unitary Communists , which is part of the government led by Mr Prodi .
I do believe , objectively , that the Italian presidency has worked well , because it has operated in complex conditions with two governments succeeding each other at a particularly delicate stage in the life of the European Union , and a rather serious crisis developing with the British government .
<P>
But for the sake of clarity , I also believe that , as Italy prepares to vacate the presidency , there must be straight talking on the difficulties encountered , perhaps straighter than we have heard so far . It must be made clear what the Florence Summit was like .
It was good , very good , in that it succeeded , at least for the moment , in resolving the crisis with the British government .
It was good on arms reductions but bad , very bad , on the issue undermining each of the Member States more than any other : unemployment . President Prodi , you know Florence was not a good summit for employment , and President Santer , you too know that your proposals on the confidence pact were rejected .
On employment , honesty demands the admission that the summit was a failure . Why ?
In my opinion , because instead of everyone concentrating their efforts - political and financial - on attacking this terrible scourge of lack of work , discussion always and exclusively revolves around how each country can get into a position , however high the social cost , to satisfy the parameters , timetable and compatibility of Maastricht .
<P>
Mr President , everyone knows that some countries will not be able to respect those parameters .
Others - and Italy is one of them - will only be able to do it by damaging their social defences even further .
I am asking you not to do that and I also think it is wrong for certain European Commissioners to approach the economic problems of our country , Italy , as if Member States were made up of computers and machines instead of families , men and women . Just cut wages and pensions , and lo and behold , 3 per cent of public debt , as required by the treaties , is achieved .
But what sort of Europe would that produce ?
A Europe which only holds together for strong states and crumbles for the weaker ones . So why not insert another parameter for the single currency , a minimum level of unemployment , without which monetary union cannot take place .
The Commission should work on that !
And Commissioner Monti , who has demonstrated that he knows how to add up , should also think about the number of unemployed : that needs to be cut too .
<P>
The rigid terms agreed at Maastricht can be revised by the Intergovernmental Conference .
So my group - the Confederal Group of the European United Left - calls for the timetable and the establishment of the single currency to be linked to employment . These terms must be revisited or Europe cannot really be united !
Politically and economically united , and including all its Member States .
<P>
If the Italian presidency can leave that message of openness and flexibility behind it , it will have done a really good job and it will have set ambitious and positive goals for the future of the Intergovernmental Conference .
<SPEAKER ID=51 LANGUAGE="DE" NAME="Roth">
Mr President , ladies and gentlemen , so Florence was meant to be the employment summit .
It was to be the summit that would give impetus to pan-European development and democratization .
What remains is a stale aftertaste of zero options on the central questions of employment , health protection and democratic progress in the Union . Unfortunately I am convinced that the spectacle we have been shown of blackmail , horse-trading and genuflections all around the British Government 's veto against a blockade cannot create a basis for wider popular acceptance and greater trust in European integration .
On the contrary , there will be a growing scepticism and mistrust after this summit , and for good reason , because as before transparency and openness seem to remain foreign words and the so-called BSE compromise in no way guarantees the safety and health of the people ! That should have been the only criterion for action .
<P>
Such action would include a comprehensive EU programme to combat and control this epidemic .
Since the easing of the ban was decided without any preconditions , it is now up to the Commission to take steps .
But above all , there should have been a total rejection of an unsuccessful , recklessly industrialized agricultural policy . The proper response would have been to abandon immediately the coordinated irresponsibility of an industrial and political system that drives animals mad !
For mad cow disease is the result and expression of a trend and a human hybris that patents living beings and denies the inviolability of the individual . The fact that British beef exports to third-world countries have not been banned on principle shows the two-faced nature of a cynical policy that places greater value on profit than on human health .
<P>
In the form it was taken , the only decision that was actually taken - with regard to Europol - is a defeat for civil rights and legal certainty in the European Union .
No guarantee of democratic control , no binding responsibility on the part of the European Court of Justice for all Member States and as ever no guaranteed data protection !



<P>
The same old lip-service is paid to the fight against mass unemployment !
A genuine pact for employment and the environment should have come out of the proposed confidence-building package .
Instead the 15 heads of state and government repeated their neo-liberal credo that fighting inflation and adhering strictly to the Maastricht criteria would help resolve the employment problems in times of recession .
Credo quia absurdum !
I am becoming more and more convinced that the heads of government are playing with fire in their European policy and that it is they who are slowly but surely becoming the real threat to Europe !
<P>
I regard this debate here as an example of a totally topsy-turvy world .
The successes celebrated by Mr Prodi , Mr Santer and Mr Dini are , I am sorry to say , no more than pretty speeches , if not a classic example of windowdressing !
<P>

<SPEAKER ID=52 LANGUAGE="IT" NAME="Dell'Alba">
Mr President , Mr President of the European Council , Mr President of the Commission , ladies and gentlemen , first of all I would sincerely like to give credit to President Prodi for giving his own government a strong European stamp and trying to conclude a difficult term for the Italian presidency in the best possible way .
<P>


The Italian presidency has had the undoubted merit of making continuous dialogue with the European Parliament a high priority and fully respecting , with perhaps just one recent exception , the independence and the specific roles of the individual institutions of the Union and their members .
<SPEAKER ID=53 LANGUAGE="NL" NAME="Van der Waal">
Mr President , an article about the Florence Summit in one Dutch newspaper was headlined : ' No crisis and no euphoria ' . I think that is a good summing up of the meeting of the European Council .
The threatening crisis over mad cow disease has been averted .
But the high expectations with regard to Mr President Santer 's so-called ' confidence pact ' have not been fulfilled .
<SPEAKER ID=54 LANGUAGE="IT" NAME="Muscardini">
Mr President , you have talked about relaunching the European ideals in the public mind .
Does this perhaps mean that your government , as part of the troika , will ensure that Europe is finally discussed in Italy and in the Italian press ?
We hope so ! But before setting out on a new course there needs to be clarity about the past .
<P>
On 5 December 1995 , before the Houses of Parliament and then before a forum of European Heads of Government at the European institutions , the Dini government presented the Italian presidency 's programme .
Specific commitments were made in that programme , setting out the firm intention to advance the cause of Europe in every area , starting with the priorities of employment and internal and external security . But the Florence Summit concluded with no consensus on what to do now and in the future , apart from adjourning to Dublin what had already been adjourned to Florence .
<P>
The next summons , to Dublin in October , threatens to find the European partners still very distant from each other on political union , on the enlargement , and on economic union .
The silence is especially deafening on how to achieve political union without setting a serious timetable for common foreign and defence policy .
<P>
Mr President , how can anyone imagine implementing the option of enlargement without first achieving a binding political union ?
How can economic union be managed in the interests of the people , not just of the richest countries or the great multinationals , if that economic union does not flow from political union ?
<P>
The question we are all waiting for an answer to is unemployment .
How is the dreadful tragedy of 20 million unemployed to be resolved ?
And here I did not understand whether there was an answer , and if there was an answer , what it meant . Instead of providing the necessary funds the Commission was calling for , the Florence Summit advised President Santer to continue working on the proposals , with a ' see you in Dublin ' .
And the willingness to provide common funding for those proposals simply is not there .
So unemployment remains a national problem and not a European problem , factually demonstrating that for many governments and many forces political union is no longer the aim .
It is Mr Santer 's aim , it is this Parliament 's aim , but it is not the aim of certain forces .
<P>
How can anyone believe that it is possible to stem the rising unemployment and poverty in the fifteen countries , destroying the welfare state - which was never achieved anyway because it is still a matter of handouts and not social security - and at the same time expect to enlarge Europe within a few years to countries with economic difficulties and worse unemployment than exists in the Fifteen ?
It is impossible to establish minimum and essential welfare provision by adding poverty to poverty , unemployment to unemployment .
<SPEAKER ID=55 NAME="President">

I have received seven motions for resolutions pursuant to Rule 37 ( 2 ) of the Rules of Procedure .
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<P>


<P>

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<SPEAKER ID=56 NAME="Prodi">

Heartfelt thanks to all those who have spoken in this short but intense debate .
I shall briefly comment on some fundamental points and then President Dini will be able to add to my remarks at the end of the debate .
<P>
I would like to say first of all that we have sensed great tension in this debate about the problems of Europe , and very great commitment , but that has been going on for a long time , far beyond the limits of a Presidential term . I would have liked the debate to have concentrated more on strategy and the possibilities a six month period can offer .
At this point I want to say that the Italian presidency succeeded in resolving one of the most serious crises that has ever blocked the progress of Europe . It is easy to underestimate the BSE crisis now that it has been resolved .
It is easy to say , like Mrs Green , that a political and institutional solution has been found . Certainly , Mrs Green , a political and institutional solution has indeed been found , and it deeply respects consumer safety and the right of the European countries not to submit to vetoes on issues quite different from the specific problem they are intended to resolve .
A crisis which could have had devastating consequences for Europe has been ended .
In my opinion , that is an important achievement and I am convinced that there will be far fewer repetitions of such crises in Europe , because the solution the Italian presidency found gave no satisfaction to those using the veto for unrelated objectives . It has also highlighted the fact - nothing to do with the Italian term - that without major institutional reform , without a great leap forward for the European institutions , it will be very difficult to achieve continuity of policy in Europe .
So within these institutional limits , the limits of the framework we operate in , we have made a huge contribution to overcoming one of the most difficult problems .
<P>
I also want to stress that the results achieved during our term cannot be disregarded : EUROPOL , the decisions on extradition and racism , the decisions on enlargement , Slovenia - a whole series of irreversible results . Of course , as people have emphasized , there are two issues which have not been resolved and which need to be dealt with in the future , The first is the Mediterranean .
The dispute between Greece and Turkey , which has blocked the MEDA project , is a very serious matter because there cannot be a secure Europe without a secure Mediterranean .
But it must also be said that the representatives of the Turkish Prime Minister and the representatives of all the European countries , including the Greek representatives , were brought together on the fringe of the Florence Council , and we have started serious work to resolve the dispute .
More work will shortly be done , involving relations between the two parties because that is one of the essentials .
We should not suppose that this situation is only blocking the finance as regards Turkey .
A whole policy towards the southern Mediterranean is currently blocked , and that includes the Palestine problem and the problem of relations with the poorest countries of the Mediterranean .
We must pursue this work , but I would say that the commitment of the Italian presidency in this respect has gone well beyond the institutional limits restricting us .
<P>
The second great problem is employment . I entirely share the sense of dissatisfaction about the solution of this problem .
But I also agree that part of that solution is the need to build institutional bases to make a European economic policy possible . We cannot isolate unemployment from the other great decisions .
I fully recognize that it is a very dramatic problem . Personally , I think President Santer 's proposals initiating a way forward ought to have been accepted , even within the current limits .
Everyone knew they were minor proposals - ECU 1 billion for public works at continental level is certainly not a solution , but it goes in the right direction . The President knows we have tried to back his position , not only out of respect for him personally but out of real conviction that this is a new path we must take .
<SPEAKER ID=57 NAME="Santer">

Mr President , I too would like to express my thanks to all those who have spoken in this debate , and especially those who have made very direct contributions to the European Commission 's campaign to promote employment , and more particularly to the Confidence Pact which I have had the opportunity to outline here .
<P>
Up to a point , I understand the disappointment , or dissatisfaction , felt in some quarters regarding the serious problems we were called upon to discuss at the European Council in Florence , and I myself could have been the first to share that disappointment at the time . But I ought explain why the European Council in Florence nevertheless provided a number of indications along the right lines , especially with regard to the Confidence Pact for employment .
In Strasbourg , during the last Parliamentary part-session , before Florence , I told you that my specific hope was that Florence would be for employment what Madrid was for the single currency .
<P>
Well , for the first time since 1993 , when the White Paper on Growth , Competitiveness and Employment was adopted , for the first time since then an in-depth debate on employment and on the entire package of measures we need to introduce took place in Florence . And that is not the least of the achievements of the European Council in Florence , because it is necessary to examine what the Council adopted in terms of guidelines for employment .
<P>
The Confidence Pact which I have outlined to you is not confined to supplementary financing for the Transeuropean networks . It is a whole package of measures designed to promote employment as a whole through a variety of schemes .
If you reread the conclusions of the European Council , you will see that , in our Confidence Pact , the nucleus , the heart , was retained and confirmed in Florence . The European Council is not there to take decisions on specific matters - it provides guidelines to the Council of Ministers , which is then required to implement them .
<SPEAKER ID=58 LANGUAGE="IT" NAME="Colajanni">
Mr President-in-Office of the Council , Mr President of the Commission , the discussion has taken a rather strange turn .
We all seem to have been saying the Italian presidency has either done quite well or quite badly .
This is not the place , that is not the point , that is not the fundamental argument .
The discussion is focusing on what has or has not progressed in the Union , but every summit registers different levels of progress . Nothing is remembered of the very recent Presidencies of two prestigious countries , because virtually nothing was done .
That is the point !
The point is that we must assess the context in which we are all operating .
It seems to me that we are operating in a context of quite serious crisis in the Union , which is preventing us making sufficiently rapid progress on matters relating to the Intergovernmental Conference and taking decisions on important issues which have been on the agenda not just for a month before Florence but for three or four years . In fact we have been discussing employment for three or four years , and many attempts have been made to get something done .
I would like to recall the important work President Delors produced work on this subject , which Parliament has discussed on many occasions . The issue has been on the table for six or seven European Councils and nothing has been done .
<P>
So let us talk about this .
Why on earth is this happening ?
I do not think it is the fault of the Italian presidency , which has at least held the Rome trialogue and with interesting results .
Of course we are particularly sensitive about the fact that the employment summit has not produced better things . Indeed , just a few months ago in Strasbourg , President Dini forecast - and we believed him , since there is no doubting what he wants - that the Florence Summit would succeed in providing an impetus .
Obviously obstacles were met with .
I must say that in this Parliament it is always better when there is no agreement between the governments on such important questions .
But the thing is to admit it , there is nothing wrong with that . And perhaps one day Parliament will find out why there is no agreement , who is not in agreement and what reasons they have , perhaps even plausible ones , for not taking one road or for taking another .
<P>
Until we have a debate like that we are not going to get very far .
And we are also making room for a certain simplistic populism which tends to flower in this Parliament at times like this .
<P>
So why is there no progress on this issue of employment ? Personally I think the governments and forces that still dominate the Council do not believe the Union is not capable of substantial intervention in the economy .
This is a basic political point .
Either we get past that point or we continue to have debates like this , whoever holds the presidency .
These are the serious issues ! The idea that the market will deal with it - when the market is not dealing with it - must be replaced , and that will take a political battle .
<P>
We need to make the networks a reality , and certainly not in twenty years time , accelerate the spread of the information society , as planned in the Delors White Paper , review the way work is organized , finance common research , support small and medium-sized enterprises , and really support the confidence pact proposed by the Commission .
But these things are not advancing either in whole or in part .
That means there is a belief that there should be no progress , because we discuss it so much . But we should beware because the new Treaty must be approved by the citizens and the agreement of governors of central banks will not be enough .
We may face a reaction of rejection if things go on this way .
<SPEAKER ID=59 LANGUAGE="ES" NAME="Mndez de Vigo">
Mr President , I agree with the President-in-Office of the Council , Mr Prodi , when he said towards the end of his speech how important it was for the Italian presidency to resolve the question of the British blockade . I think we must not underestimate the importance of that and I think Mr Prodi 's government has acted with delicacy , with what the Italians call finezza .
So my group , the Group of the European People 's Party , congratulates him and we are tabling an amendment to the joint motion for a resolution along these lines , because I think that the solution found has not lost sight of the essentials . I have a friend who says that what distinguishes the intelligent from the unintelligent is their ability to tell the difference between the essential and the peripheral .
And the Italian presidency has distinguished the essential from the peripheral .
The essential thing is the health of European consumers - which was at risk - and we shall continue to defend it . My group therefore strongly supports the Commission proposal consisting in giving extraordinary aid to the producers affected by the ' mad cow ' crisis .
I think it is a positive political response because it also shows Europe 's solidarity .
I hope that my British friends and their fellow citizens in general also understand it .
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At the same time I should like to nip something else in the bud , a venticello which is going round Brussels too , which consists in saying that this solidarity in the face of the mad cow crisis , payments to the producers who have suffered loss , will come out of the common organizations of the market and in particular those of the countries of the south .
I think that is a risk we must avoid and I am glad Mr Santer is here because I am sure he will use his authority to ensure that the proposals of the Commissioner for agriculture are impartial , which is what comprehensive solidarity and cohesion require .
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I think too that we , and above all the governments , must draw a positive conclusion from this unacceptable crisis of the British Government blockade . The positive conclusion is that we cannot go on in a Europe of Fifteen with the possibility of blockades , of permanent vetoes , of vetoes based on the ' Luxembourg compromise ' .
It is not possible because in that way we shall not manage to make any progress in the building of Europe . Thinking of that situation with 15 , we might imagine what might happen in a Europe of 20 or 25 .
The Intergovernmental Conference will therefore have to come to a decision on this subject .
And I therefore also call the presidency 's attention to the resolutions of the European Parliament , which I think give a balanced solution on this subject .
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But the Italian presidency , which I was saying earlier had shown such finezza , did not do so on another subject . I should like it to be said to Mr Prodi personally , but as he is not here I say it to you so that you may pass it on .
I think Mr Prodi made a reference in ending his speech to De Gasperi and to Spinelli .
I think De Gasperi and Spinelli , who were two great Italians and two great Europeans , would have disapproved of all this disagreement between Mr Prodi and Commissioner Monti , because I think it is a bad disagreement which fails to recognize the very essence of the Commission , made up of independent Commissioners who have to watch only over the interests of the Community .
<SPEAKER ID=60 LANGUAGE="IT" NAME="Garosci">
Mr President , from today we leave the Italian presidency behind us .
We leave Florence behind us , with its non-decisions , or rather its decisions not to decide but to put everything off until Dublin in October .
But it will not be Italy that leads Europe until then .
Italy will not hold the presidency of the European Union again for seven and a half years and will have to leave it to Ireland and Luxembourg , the next Presidencies , to solve the problems of the Mediterranean , agriculture , employment , small and medium-sized firms , tourism .
But since our vision should be European and not just national , we give the Italian presidency credit for some significant results : EUROPOL , the fight against racism and xenophobia and , above all , ending the mad cow crisis , on which - if I may say so - the work of this Parliament had undoubted and significant influence .
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So it is above all to Turin that we look today , now that the Intergovernmental Conference has begun , and to the revision of a Treaty which time and the state of the Community has partially outdated .
It is above all to Minister Dini that we look as the only representative of both the governments on either side of the Italian elections which fell halfway through the presidency and had a strong effect on it .
From Minister Dini , currently responsible for foreign affairs , we call for continuity in the pursuit of the European aims that the Italian presidency rightly set itself .
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We therefore hand over with confidence to our Irish friends the work schedule that will bring the citizens closer to the European institutions . Ireland will not have to concern itself with mad cows - also because Irish meat is at least as good as Italian - so it will have greater resources to commit to the construction of the common European home .
Italy and its current government must perhaps live with the regret of having once again missed some opportunities , but these can be recovered to a certain extent through loyal cooperation with President Santer and the next presidency .
<SPEAKER ID=61 LANGUAGE="IT" NAME="La Malfa">
Mr President , there is something repetitive about our six-monthly debate .
We have to say that Italy has effectively conducted its term well , despite the weakness caused by the elections , which also happened to Germany and France before us and with similar consequences . In fact Europe is being stifled by the day-to-day management of European issues .
We must succeed in making progress in the political handling of the issues of European integration . The single currency requires a federal supranational power in the area of economic policy , because the problems of unemployment are just as important as those of monetary stability .
Europe does not have a foreign policy ; we have seen that in Bosnia and continue to see it in Eastern Europe . The problems of the enlargement and NATO call for top flight political decisions but we remain in the wake of the United States , so to speak , unable to express a European will .
In short , we need a supranationality which we do not have in Europe . The governments do their bit but they all fail to move the process forward , and I fear the Intergovernmental Conference will one of the most disappointing , perhaps more disappointing than those which went before it .
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Maybe - and we ought to talk about this one day - there has been a mistake over the enlargement and the lack of adequate political conditions to make it feasible .
Today , when it comes down to it , our vision remains economic and commercial , too limited for Europe 's problems .
Perhaps there comes a time to say better a smaller but more European Europe , a more supranational Europe , than a large and unwieldy Europe which fails to deal with any of the great internal and international problems it must confront .
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<SPEAKER ID=62 LANGUAGE="IT" NAME="Bertinotti">
Mr President , we are very concerned because it seems that this Europe , this European integration that has been presented , is still miles away from the real problems and the gravity of the crisis assailing Europe , a social crisis and a political crisis .
President Prodi , how can one speak of this European integration as a human , political and intellectual enterprise ? If we look at this European integration , this present road to monetary union rationally , we must recognize that we have got here without democracy and that today this economic integration is increasingly linked with a crisis of the fabric of society itself in many European countries and in Europe as a whole .
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The speeches we hear on this subject underrate it .
When President Prodi seems to confirm the gravity of this crisis , saying that unemployment puts European civilization at risk , he is making an important and telling statement .
But , Mr President , what is that risk ?
Does it arise from some kind of misfortune , some natural cause ? I am well aware that the globalization of the economy raises difficult problems for employment in Europe , but there is one unavoidable question : what is the causal relationship between this European integration and the process of unemployment ?
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How is it possible , Mr President , to boast continuity with the preceding presidency and to expect future continuity from the new presidency , when there are 18 million acknowledged unemployed and 10 million hidden unemployed , and we are forced to ask ourselves if there is a relationship between Maastricht and this level of unemployment , if there is a relationship between national policies prioritizing budgetary stringency and this level of unemployment ?
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How is it possible to speak positively of Florence , in the face of virtually unanimous criticism from observers ? How is it possible to do so in answer to statements like the ones you have heard here from Mrs Green and Mr Roth , which frankly strike me as undeniable .
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So with dangers of recession looming and threatening a dramatic worsening in unemployment , there is not the slightest movement towards anti-cyclical economic policy .
How can anyone fail to see that the problem is dramatic and unresolved ?
There is no anti-cyclical policy nor is there any room for innovation in the development model .
There is not even any talk of reducing hours of work . The Rocard report hints at this timidly but the problem needs to be put in starkly urgent and dramatic terms .
Nothing is said of the environmental projects , when it is very clear that growth is no longer enough to respond to the problems of employment , and instead they are being dramatically aggravated by the recession .
<SPEAKER ID=63 LANGUAGE="IT" NAME="Ripa di Meana">
Mr President , a government like President Prodi 's , standard bearer of general innovation , ought to have been able to drop the old tradition of optimism at the end of Presidential terms .
In this Parliament we are not satisfied with the outcome of the Florence European Council and with the term that has just ended in general .
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First , the employment crisis , which is certainly not recent , was left by the Florence Council exactly where it was at the start .
For over twenty years , since the first oil shock , the European Union has been faced with the dilemma of how to resolve the problems of structural unemployment and quality of life . Six European Councils have been heralded by announcements of grand solutions to the public and it is an absolute swindle that the Florence European Council unloaded its responsibility into the hands of those who have blocked the decisions for six years : ECOFIN .
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Secondly , in Florence the Italian presidency was presented by the Intergovernmental Conference with a proposal for reduced content and timetable , contrasting with the request for acceleration from the French and the Germans .
It remains our hope that the Italian government , free from the tinsel and the nightmare of the presidency , will now take on a driving role , finally involving public opinion as well .
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Lastly , a question : can President Prodi today confirm the solemn commitment , taken in her time by Minister Susanna Agnelli , that Italy will make its own approval of the IGC 's conclusions subject to prior approval by the European Parliament .
President Prodi , I would like a clear answer on this point .
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<SPEAKER ID=64 LANGUAGE="FR" NAME="Sainjon">
Mr President , while acknowledging the initiatives undertaken by the Italian presidency , I am bound to say that I do not feel very optimistic .
Quite simply , as far as the social area is concerned , Florence has been a great disappointment . We are told , as a basic reason for rejecting the Confidence Pact for employment , that the European Union is not the best framework within which to combat unemployment effectively .
Yet , at the same time , if the matter of employment is exclusively one for the Member States , the figures show where that leads . In my opinion , it is necessary to join forces effectively .
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We are also told that the massive potential latent in the information society will enable much of the unemployment problem to be solved .
This is becoming the universal panacea .
But , ultimately , we know very well that that society will have no place for the Union 's twenty million unemployed . Those from the textile industry , iron and steel , shipyards , the motor industry , building and public works and other industries will be considered beyond redemption .
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In the battle that has been joined around the subject of globalization there will be winners and losers .
Europe , today , is losing jobs ; tomorrow , perhaps , it will start losing its soul and its culture .
Europe may swiftly slip into a dangerous form of decadence .
I know that President Santer 's room for manoeuvre is small and limited , but I call upon him to persevere in his efforts and to say to the governments of the States of the Union , too , that it is not enough for them to meet and discuss the tragedy which unemployment represents for millions of Europe 's citizens - it is necessary to act , and act quickly .
He could have said that here , now that the major projects recommended by the White Paper have been buried .
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Europe does , however , hold some strong cards , and it can restore confidence in those who have lost it . As far as employment is concerned , much remains to be done , and I believe there are at least three areas in which greater efforts must be made .
First , technological innovation and research .
Consequently , the programme must touch every sector of industry - the small- and medium-sized enterprises and industries , and very specifically those suffering from relocation . Secondly , industrial policy must under no circumstances be directed towards controlling decline - it must focus on a strategy of victory and employment .
Within this framework , the structural funds must be allocated differently .
And , finally , the single currency must be harnessed to the service of employment and not to the service of the markets .
<SPEAKER ID=65 LANGUAGE="DE" NAME="Nubaumer">
Mr President , the Council report and Commission statement on the Florence meeting and on the subject of employment and growth are simply not concrete enough .
Announcements are not translated into action and , if you look carefully , no new decisions were taken on these questions . So what remains is the Council 's requests to the Member States , and if you look at those in detail , you find that not all the proposals are likely to increase employment .
I need only think of the Council 's call on the Member States to implement the directives on the award of public contracts .
Their implementation would not create new jobs but at most lead to a regional shift in the unemployment figures .
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The real problem , namely to put a stop to the rising unemployment caused by the European economy 's declining competitiveness compared to that of the USA and the Asian economic area by creating competitionboosting framework conditions in the Member States , was not discussed in Florence , let alone were any measures taken in that direction . It was not even decided to make an adequate financial framework available for the third multi-annual programme for the SMEs .
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So it is up to the individual national states to decide on measures , as you , Mr President-in-Office , also asked them to do .
But the Council is the sum of the national states .
So the question arises of the necessary initiatives in this respect , for so long as the Member States are not willing or able to create economic framework conditions that encourage people to form companies and create the necessary conditions to enable existing undertakings to become more competitive , all the measures taken at European level are unlikely to create employment and at most will shift the employment figures within the EU .
<SPEAKER ID=66 LANGUAGE="ES" NAME="Medina Ortega">
Mr President , at this stage in the debate I am a little concerned that the Italian presidency might think we are criticizing it unfairly .
We are not .
I think Mr Colajanni 's speech was very clear .
The Italian presidency has made an enormous effort under very difficult conditions .
But I would say that it was the Italian presidency 's turn in this case to ' get the dirty end of the stick ' .
It was faced with a mad government creating a crisis , letting an epidemic develop , admitting that that epidemic might affect humans with the result that we other 14 States of the European Community got the blame . That has meant that the Italian Government has had to concentrate on that problem , which is a real problem , but which has determined the outcome of the European Council .
<SPEAKER ID=67 LANGUAGE="DE" NAME="Brok">
Mr President , I want briefly to endorse a few of the comments made by the previous speaker , namely in relation to his assessment of the Italian presidency of the Council .
We have in the past certainly made a few critical comments on it in this House .
But now that we are summing it up after six months and suddenly find that some important directives with which we had great difficulties in the past were adopted during the Italian presidency of the Council or at least that a common position was reached , we have to revise some of our criticism and admit that the Dini and Prodi government did make good preparations and proved able to carry them through in a range of areas .
We are sometimes unjust in the way we divide up the presidencies of the Council into six-month terms . A Council presidency can only be successful if it can build on past achievements during that presidency ; if it cannot build on past achievements , it is difficult for it to attain any goals .
I think that is also part of any real assessment .
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I think one particularly good result of the Florence summit is that it was decided there to politicize the intergovernmental conference . There was always the danger that the intergovernmental conference would turn into a technocratic event .
Under the chairmanship of President Prodi it was decided to hold a special summit in Dublin .
Then the heads of the state and government of the European Union will discuss this question at quarterly intervals , i.e. , in October and in December , which will produce the necessary pressure for tackling matters politically at the level of talks between the foreign ministers and the representatives , instead of merely becoming absorbed in technical details .
For that will create pressure to formulate proposals for these summits and I believe we cannot attach too much value to that . What is important is that the intergovernmental conference will be politicized as a result of this decision .
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In this connection I would also like to thank the Commission and President Santer .
What he said today about the Commission 's position on the question of the European Parliament 's co-decision corresponds in important points with the position which Mrs Guigou and I gave in writing and orally at the intergovernmental conference . There are some details , for instance in relation to Article 129 ( c ) ( 1 ) and some other areas , such as Article 103 ( 5 ) , where we still differ .
That can be discussed .
But I believe that the Commission has drawn a sensible distinction in a number of areas , for instance agricultural policy , between that which is classical legislation , where Parliament is to have powers , and that which relates to executive , administrative tasks where Parliament is not required to have co-decision powers . We too need this kind of distinction to be drawn and at this point I would like to say once again both to the presidency and to the Commission that the European Parliament would like to have co-decision in areas relating to classical legislation .
Here the Council must realise that it draws a distinction between executive tasks and legislative tasks in its own activities , so as to make this kind of cooperation with Parliament possible . I think the Commission has submitted a sensible proposal here , on the basis of which we can hold sensible talks over the coming months .
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One statement you made here , President Santer , is of crucial importance .
Co-decision must be the rule ! Then we can talk about a few exceptions , and we did not want to take the case-by-case approach , which some Member State governments have unfortunately sometimes brought into play in recent times .
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Let me say something on other subjects raised at the summit .
I think that the BSE crisis was an excellent business , in terms of the situation of the intergovernmental conference , for the BSE crisis has made it clear to everyone in Europe that we have to mange to formulate an agreement that also works if there is one destructive partner .
Agreements are not just designed to regulate periods of fine weather ; we need them in order to be able to act in times of difficulty and if someone is not being constructive .
For that reason the UK Government with its BSE crisis was extremely helpful in terms of the success of the intergovernmental conference , and we should build on that accordingly .

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I also think that we should clearly establish the real orders of magnitude .
I would have been very pleased to see President Santer 's proposals on the TEN adopted at the summit .
But at the same time we in the European Parliament should not give the impression that this would also resolve the problem of 20 million unemployed people . The TEN are important infrastructure measures which will in the medium and long term create greater competitiveness thanks to the improved infrastructure .
They only have limited effects on the labour market .
We must also realise that 97-98 % of appropriations for the TEN have to be made available at national level .
We should now concentrate on removing the planning obstacles and making the budgetary resources available at national level .
And then let us ensure that another scandal like the BSE one does not take away the resources we need to provide the necessary European share .
But we should not pretend that the ECU 1 billion mean that the TEN cannot be created .
It is now up to the Member States to do their homework so that the European Union can make the necessary contribution to this . Nor should we let it be said that we are to blame for the fact that unemployment has risen so much so long as the powers in this area lie with the Member States .
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<SPEAKER ID=68 NAME="Collins, Gerard">
Mr President , first I should like to express my thanks and appreciation to the Presidentin-Office of the Italian presidency at a most difficult time , in fact at a time of European Union institutional crisis .
I would like to express my thanks and appreciation to the President of the Commission , Mr Santer , for his statement here today which is most welcome because of its optimism , its encouragement and which gives a clear demonstration of his determination .
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I regret that the European Council , while giving political support to President Santer 's proposed confidence pact for employment , failed to agree on the more important questions of funding the measures proposed by the Commission President , thereby ignoring the 18 million European citizens who had been led to place their hopes and trust in the outcome of the Florence Summit .
I now believe that the Irish presidency must give priority to persuading Member States to agree on a funding package for the trans-European networks to ensure that they are put in place as quickly as possible .
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It is important to state that the establishment of a European budget for the construction of these networks must not be at the expense either of the structural funds or of the common agricultural policy . The structural funds have proven to be a successful vehicle for generating economic growth in the less well-off regions of the Union .
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The need to help farmers affected by the BSE crisis has once again demonstrated the importance of maintaining the CAP budget at a level which can fund the ongoing farm programmes while at the same time responding to emergency situations such as the beef crisis and the recovery of consumer confidence in healthy beef and opening up all the internal European markets for disease-free beef from other European Union Member States .
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The Irish presidency must guard against short-term solutions to the problem of funding the trans-European networks which involve diverting money from either the CAP or the structural funds , both of which must be maintained at their present level .

<SPEAKER ID=69 LANGUAGE="IT" NAME="Moretti">
Mr President , I wonder what people will remember about the Florence European Council in six months ' time .
Probably the end of the mad cow crisis , not temporary we hope .
That crisis has laid bare the current inability of the European Union to pursue the common interest .
While the Court of Justice will take the legal decision on the validity of the ban , the crisis has once again demonstrated that inability to take political decisions we have already experienced at other times and on more serious issues , such as the crisis in former Yugoslavia .
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But the disappointment of Florence does not end there , because very little has been said on the problem of unemployment , and the paucity of results from the Intergovernmental Conference is clear just from reading the conclusions published in the press . Fortunately , on some issues like EUROPOL and the convention on crossing frontiers , there seems to be light at the end of the tunnel .
Florence confirmed 1 January 1999 as the date for economic and monetary union , as laid down in the Treaty and already confirmed in Madrid . The sentence stating that there will be no assessment of the conditions for moving to the third phase at the end of this year is puzzling , suggesting the European Council thinks it has the right to change a Treaty obligation which , in the circumstances , involves the European Parliament .
I realize that such an assessment may cause embarrassment to many Member States , but that does not strike me as any reason to prevent the European Parliament carrying out its own duties on an issue like economic and monetary union , where it has already done a bit more than make an appearance .
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It would be unfair to blame the Italian presidency alone for the dearth , when in fact it bears witness to a structural defect in this European Union .
We hope the time will come when we can free ourselves from much of the ambiguity and ill will of the many who exploit Europe and do nothing to build it .
<SPEAKER ID=70 LANGUAGE="EL" NAME="Theonas">
Mr President , despite the efforts of Mr Prodi and Mr Santer , yet another Summit Conference has led to intense disquiet and indignation on the part of working people .
Yet again , we have had a surfeit of proclamations and wishful thinking about unemployment .
A surfeit , I would say , of hypocrisy .
Essentially , every specific measure to deal with the problem was rejected .
Not a single ECU was set aside for that purpose , the policy of frugality prevailed , and the labour and social rights of working people were overturned completely .
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Amid a persistence of conflicting statements , a political compromise was reached regarding ' mad cows ' , which provocatively ignores the need to protect citizens ' health on the basis of scientific criteria .


<SPEAKER ID=71 LANGUAGE="IT" NAME="Cellai">
Mr President , if I had to describe the summit which took place in my beloved Florence in a few words , I would have to say Florence was two steps backwards and certainly not a good summit , President Santer . The first grounds for saying that is the incredible arrangement over the mad cow crisis , which may gratify John Major but certainly cannot be described as a serious agreement and one to dispel the image of a choice designed to export the problem out of the European Union , which instead is what it suggests .
On the contrary , it is likely to displease the farmers and breeders who have been seriously harmed by the effects of the crisis on public opinion , especially in terms of consumption .
<SPEAKER ID=72 LANGUAGE="FI" NAME="Iivari">
Mr President , one positive feature about the Florence Summit was that for the first time Slovenia was able to participate alongside other countries belonging to the & # x02BC ; Europe Agreement ' . As we know the Association Agreement between Slovenia and the EU was signed on 10 June , having been through many stages .
Slovenia can now start to catch up politically with the other Central and Eastern European countries in relation to the EU . At the same time it should be pointed out that Slovenia is the most developed of the new Central European democracies and thus deserves to be one of the first ones to be taken into account when decisions concerning new members are made .
All in all however the summit produced fairly meagre results .
It was of course welcome that the dispute between the EU and Great Britain concerning mad cow disease was resolved .
However it is worth mentioning that despite the importance of the issue the dispute grew all out of proportion .
I believe that the issue on whether to increase the number of decisions to be taken by a qualified majority vote will have gained much support as a result of the British government vetoing many important decisions .
The new TACIS regulation , which was difficult enough to produce , was one of the victims of British policy .
Fortunately it was accepted by the Agricultural Council last week , and is now at last coming into effect .
At a time when we are awaiting the results of the Russian presidential election , it is worth emphasizing the importance of developing co-operation with Russia .
It is worth keeping in mind that stability is best achieved by establishing a variety of financial , cultural and political ties .
An atmosphere of suspicion and a dangerous policy based on that suspicion can be prevented only by increasing mutual understanding and mutual interests .
The TACIS programme is an important instrument in this process .
The Florence Summit was a disappointment for European citizens expecting firm decisions on reducing unemployment .
We all know that there is no single means of improving the employment situation , but that it requires many different kinds of initiatives .
But leaders making official statements consisting of mere words leads to frustration and cynicism understandable under the present circumstances .
This growing frustration will become a real obstacle to building a common Europe and reducing unemployment .
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<SPEAKER ID=73 LANGUAGE="NL" NAME="Pronk">
Mr President , the Romans said concordia parv res crescunt , union is strength .
The corollary of that is that lack of unity leads to weakness and that is what Mr Prodi and the whole Italian Government had to contend with .
The Union had fallen into complete impotence through lack of unity .
So it would not be surprising if any success in solving that matter , in bringing about a certain unity , were to warrant congratulation rather than the scoldings I have heard here . So as far as that is concerned I should like to congratulate the Italian presidency .
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A second point which has rather surprised me is what Mrs Green has said . She said she was greatly disappointed .
Naturally we are all disappointed about the results , and I shall be coming back to that shortly , but it is surprising that with a party represented in eleven of the fifteen governments , in which seven of the fifteen present governments are socialist , that she is so disappointed in this Parliament .
That takes a bit of reconciling , I think .
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Now for employment . The question of employment has not been well solved .
I think we are all agreed about that .
I am glad that Mr Santer has found some positive points but no good solution has been found for it . What is the reason ?
I think we are to some extent fooling one another with big ideas in which we call all sorts of meetings thinking that that can solve the employment problem . Everyone must cooperate and then it will be solved !
<SPEAKER ID=74 LANGUAGE="FR" NAME="Cabrol">
Mr President , ladies and gentlemen , while the Florence summit confirmed that the intergovernmental conference will end by mid-1997 , it nevertheless revealed that the preparatory work for that conference was far from well advanced and would have to be speeded up in order to reflect the determination of the Member States to adopt a genuinely strong policy to ensure better preparation of the next summit in Dublin . Various points that arose at the Florence summit have yet to be resolved , as indeed Mr Santer said .
I would like to stress two of them .
<SPEAKER ID=75 NAME="Watson">
Mr President , I represent half a million citizens in the southwest of England .
Rarely have we followed a European Council meeting with such interest as we did the Florence Summit . I must congratulate the summiteers on the agreement on BSE .
We are not yet out of the mire but the eradication plan agreed in Florence is , nonetheless , a cause of relief for the cattle heartland of Great Britain .
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However , I deeply regret the abject failure of European leaders to agree action to create jobs .
It is important to sort out the structural problems in our economies but this will take time .
It is no less important to act now to gain the benefits identified in the Cecchini and Delors reports of creating jobs through the dynamics of European economic integration . This week has seen some 1 , 400 jobs lost in the footwear industry in England to low-cost producers overseas .
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On top of the BSE crisis , the mood in my constituency is one of near despair and this pattern is being repeated in rural areas across Europe . President Santer described the challenge of unemployment as a question of the credibility of the Council itself .
It is more than that . It is becoming a question of public confidence in democracy in Western Europe .
When the European finance ministers meet next week , we need action on jobs . They flunked it in Florence , they cannot afford to flunk it again .
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<SPEAKER ID=76 LANGUAGE="FR" NAME="Martinez">
Mr President , President Santer , survivors of the Italian government , the Florence summit is very much a symbol . In a nutshell , Florence means Machiavelli , and the rule of deceit .
The deceit of the Cecchini report , which promised us five million jobs and gave us twenty-five million unemployed . The deceit , too , of the handling of mad cow disease .
But Florence also stands for the Medicis , for poison .
The poison of the contaminated feeds . And it also stands for Lorenzo the Magnificent or rather , in the present case , Europe the malevolent .
Malevolent towards employment .
All right , so you devote four pages out of eleven in your conclusions to the problem of employment .
You drone away about employment , growth and competitiveness , but you do not do anything . All you do is tell us that you are looking for trails , as if a European summit was a jamboree of boy scouts practising stalking .
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Well , unemployment has nothing to do with trails .
What it has to do with is causes , and the causes are a tragic set of four errors . First , an error concerning immigration , but all you can think about is xenophobia and racism , so I shall say nothing about it .
An error on free trade , the free movement of animals feeds - how many jobs has that done away with in the cattle sector ? Thousands of jobs .
An error with excess taxation .
For example , medicinal products in France were taxed at 2.1 % , and you have forced us to tax them at 5.5 % . How many laboratories are you going to destroy ?
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I told you , Mr Santer , in this very House , and you smiled , I told you that you would only solve tax problems first by imposing a ceiling on obligatory levies , not more than 40 % of GDP ; and secondly by following your logic through to the end - because you are a European , which I am not , I am no Federalist - and allowing a free choice of which method of taxation bears the lowest burden .
When spouses are taxed in France but not in Ireland , when the estate duty allowance is 300 , 000 Francs in France but 1 , 300 , 000 thousand in Germany , then there is a problem .
All this needs to be equalized by allowing a free choice as to which method of taxation bears the lowest burden .
And the other error , President Santer , concerns your budgetary policy .
Article 104c of the Maastricht Treaty is a Greek tragedy .
The more Mr Aznar and Mr Jupp and Mr Dehaene struggle to fill the hole , the deeper and wider they make it .
It is a Greek tragedy .
<SPEAKER ID=77 LANGUAGE="DE" NAME="Bsch">



Mr President , I think the previous statement made it particularly clear how much this European Union is bound , if not doomed , to succeed in the question of combating unemployment , since the alternative is nationalism and a great French President told us here a few months ago that nationalism means war !



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In this context , as an Austrian social democrat I absolutely cannot endorse some of the euphemistic words we have heard here about the Florence summit .
On the one hand it was certainly a success for the presidency to have got this whole question of British BSE out of the way , and that was certainly not easy .
In the end even the British prime minister had to acknowledge that his policy of obstruction has led his country off the track and that it is not possible to build the future of Europe or of ones own country by using the political methods of the past .
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In that respect the rapid and solidary decision taken by the summit , namely to lend a hand to the farmers harmed by BSE by giving an extra ECU 200 m , was right and welcome .
On the other hand this Florence summit was a pitiful failure in terms of employment policy and combatting unemployment in the EU . This failure is all the worse because tackling this problem is increasingly becoming the acid test of European integration .
What is the point of all the important decisions on stronger methods of combatting crime if we are not able to offer millions of young people in this European Union jobs and prospects for the future ?
<SPEAKER ID=78 LANGUAGE="ES" NAME="Palacio Vallelersundi">
Mr President , at this stage of the debate there is little point in trying to be tough and original at the same time .
There are some on the other hand who simply resort to provocation and who say almost anything .
In the People 's Party we are not ' Euro-archangels ' , nor are we Euro-fanatics and of course we should never regard Europe as evil . We think of ourselves as realists in European matters and therefore , to deal with a point just made , we do not believe there is anything ominous about any State not achieving the conditions laid down by the Maastricht Treaty for starting the third stage of monetary union .
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Mr President , it is impossible to be original at this time . I shall try to contribute something to this debate and I shall therefore go back to two words which are constantly in the mouth of Mr Santer , the President of the Commission , and which have been mentioned by Mr Prodi : liberty and security .
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I shall concentrate on the achievements of Florence in this truly borderline area where the European Union is going all out , where it is being decided what the European Union is to be , because undoubtedly amongst the agreements adopted at the European Council of Florence what stands out from the point of view of the European citizen , whom this Assembly represents , is the achievements in the field of the third pillar : the observatory on racism and xenophobia , cooperation against drugs and crime and very specially against terrorism , which has culminated in the Extradition Convention recently signed , and lastly Europol .
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Without underrating the importance of the Treaty on the subjects of employment , the single currency or subsidiarity , we must not lose sight of the fact that in practical terms the citizen especially values the relevance of measures which , like those I have mentioned , directly affect liberty and security . The European Council of Florence was a shining example for us Spaniards since the stimulus given to the subject of extradition is a basic factor in eradicating ETA terrorism .

