Zweedse premier bepleit "sterk Europa" en geen halt aan uitbreiding (en)

Opening the latest and the last in the series of debates at the European Parliament on the future of Europe, Swedish Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt told the House "today's Europe needs a clear vision", involving "strong European cooperation to prevent fanatical nationalism as well as religious fanaticism". Indeed, said the Prime Minister, "it is not a strong Europe we should fear but a weak one".

Mr Reinfeldt said the Lisbon Treaty - due to be ratified by Sweden in the autumn - would make European cooperation more effective just as his country took on the EU presidency in the second half of 2009. Among key issues to be tackled under the Swedish presidency would be climate change and energy, the Hague programme (on freedom, security and justice), economic growth and job creation, the Baltic dimension and the EU's role in the world. 

Employment, pensions, migration

Employment was a particular concern. Given that a third of those able to work were not in jobs, the Prime Minister saw reform of national labour markets as crucial. This was even more important given demographic trends and the pressures on pensions funding. "More people will have to work for a larger proportion of their lives", he stressed. However, he saw migration as another part of the solution and referred to the "positive energy" of migrants, who he argued were necessary to support Europe's welfare systems.

Mr Reinfeldt also believed the EU budget was unbalanced, with 40% of funding being used to support agriculture, although this sector accounted for only 2% of jobs. "This is not reasonable!", he said and called for more to be channelled into research and development, the fight against organised crime, the environment and external relations.

In a review of external relations, the prime minister highlighted the Middle East and relations with Russia as important but he particularly dwelt on the western Balkans, saying the EU would be involved in "the state-building process in Kosovo for a long time".

Another area of interest to Sweden is the Baltic and Mr Reinfeldt looked forward to the Baltic Strategy which the Commission is due to have devised by the time Sweden takes over the EU presidency.

Enlargement as a "strategic instrument"

Concluding, Mr Reinfeldt stressed the importance of enlargement, saying it was a policy that was "close to the hearts of the Swedish people". It should be seen as both "a challenge and an opportunity" and he deplored the "critical voices" that were being raised against more enlargement. 

"It would be stupid to forget what we are supposed to be doing", he said. "Without enlargement, Europe would not be what it is today. Without continuing enlargement, we would run the risk of instability on our own continent. Enlargement is the most important strategic instrument for disseminating the values that European cooperation is founded on". Indeed, "we demolished one wall in Europe. We should not start building a new wall against Turkey or other European countries". Lastly, he said, "Let us never take European cooperation for granted. We need a strong Europe".   

Political group speakers

The EPP-ED group leader, Joseph DAUL (FR) appealed for ratification of the Lisbon Treaty to proceed at a steady pace. "We need to say `Yes' to the new tools the Treaty offers for turning our citizens' hopes into reality," he said, stressing that resolving the institutional questions would enable Europe to concentrate more on the content of its common policies.

Mr Daul called for a Europe of shared values with prosperity, solidarity and hope. Europe, he said, should be able to create jobs, growth and social development, in a sustainable manner while also tackling climate change.  "We favour a free market because it will increase the purchasing power of the poorest citizens and reduce inequalities within and across borders." This did not mean untrammelled free trade: there was a need to protect the weakest in society and support the European social model. That Europe's growth in 2007 was higher than that of the US showed this was working, he said, arguing for the Lisbon Strategy goals to be pursued firmly.

A Europe following a policy of budgetary rigour should not, he said, mean affecting the principle of solidarity between Member States.  

Turning to freedom and security issues, Mr Daul stressed: "Nothing is up for negotiation when it comes to the security of our citizens. The defence of freedom means determination and coordinated powerful measures, which respect individual freedoms." Europe, he added, needed to build ever closer links with partners who share our vision, which means developing the neighbourhood and enlargement policies.

Mr Daul called for consistent European support for the Middle East peace process. He described Kosovo's declaration of independence as opening "a tricky period" and called for all reactions to be measured and the avoidance of all provocations. "The time has come to show our ability to stabilize the Balkans," he said, saying Kosovo should have a stable European future, as should Serbia.

Socialist group leader Martin SCHULZ (DE) said Mr Reinfeldt had made a clever speech. He agreed that Europe's future primarily meant dealing with global challenges, whether climate change, world trade - or world peace. "Europe," he said, "must be a power for peace in the world as well as internally," with its idea of moving to supranational integration "beyond the trenches of a bloody past" of nationalism.

Still, he continued, he had missed any reference in the speech to a social Europe. "If people feel the internal market threatens their social standards, then the internal market will be rejected. We need to develop our social model in parallel. If not, if it is just a matter of free trade, we will destroy the social stability we have created at national level."

Mr Schulz welcomed the Swedish leader's positive comments on Turkey's prospects for EU membership and called on him to persuade France's President Sarkozy to take the same line. "If I was the Turkish Foreign Minister," he said, "I would be astonished to hear you saying this and then the next President of the Council saying the opposite."

Finally, he welcomed the comment that the Swedish Prime Minister would be back next summer - even if a permanent President of the Council had been appointed, said Mr Schulz, the programme of the Swedish government would have to be taken into account.

Graham WATSON (ALDE, UK) said that few would have thought when these debates started in the European Parliament, that the EU would have a new Treaty by the beginning of 2009. "Europe was sinking" he said, but with the new Lisbon Treaty Europe is back on track with a "democratic revolution". More openness, transparency and accountability putting the citizens first. 

Sweden would take over the new EU Presidency with a new Commission and the European Parliament and citizens want to see more Europe on issues such as energy, migration, research and development and defence. With the new Treaty structures and increased powers for the European Parliament in foreign affairs, it would be important that there is increased dialogue between the Parliament and Council

The EU is now entering the last, delicate phase of ratifying the Lisbon Treaty, and a bigger role for Parliament in decision-taking means greater recognition of citizens, said Christina MUSCARDINI (IT) for the UEN group.

The Union's task to should be to punch at its proper weight on the international stage, working alongside the EU and not getting "caught unawares" by events such as Kosovo's declaration of independence.

Europe also needs to "forget pseudo-environmental concerns, sort out its energy problems, and become self-sufficient in energy", she continued.

Finally, Europe needs to tackle the issue of Internet regulation, inter alia to protect its citizens from terrorism, and its children from paedophile exploitation. If need be, Member States should harmonise their rules, and enable their police forces to pool information, to this end. "Without safe children, there is no future", she concluded.

Europe should build on the success of its past peace-making to lead the world in dealing with climate change, said Monica FRASSONI (IT) for the Greens/EFA, stressing that migration and climate change problems are interconnected.

Ms Frassoni hoped that lengthy debates on subsidiarity could be avoided, and that Sweden would play a constructive role with regard both to increasing the EU budget and to the energy package.

"We are not protectionists", she said, but "even the most ardent advocate of free trade cannot claim claim that it solves everything".

Ms Frassoni said she agreed with Mr Reinfeldt on Turkey, and concluded by suggesting that the question of where Parliament meets be reopened.

Francis WURTZ  (GUE/NGL, FR) stressed the need to focus more on social issues in the EU, and illustrated this by talking of a case ruled on by the Court of Justice. A Swedish trade union had tried to make a Latvian company apply Swedish labour law in Sweden, the Latvian company refused and was supported in its stance by the European Court of Justice with reference to the free movement of services. "My group firmly calls that a debate be held in plenary on this crucial subject", said Mr Wurtz.

Hélène GOUDIN  (IND/DEM, SE) spoke of "undemocratic tendencies in European politics." She said that "the political elite is not interested in listening to the people unless the underlings obediently and politely say yes to more EU-federalism." She asked the Swedish prime minister to give her one single example of a law that could have been adopted by the Constitution that can not be adopted under the Reform Treaty. "Are you up to challenge?" she asked him.

With reference to the ratification of the Reform Treaty in France, Jean-Marie LE PEN  (NI, FR) said "the French treason has been completed and a congress of shame met in Versailles." When people are deprived of their right to speak on their future, he said, "there will be vengeance. We will see their revenge in the European Parliament elections next year."

British and Irish speakers

Giles Chichester said (EPP-ED, UK) said: "I am delighted to welcome the Prime Minister today. His historic win in the Swedish general election was a personal triumph. I also congratulate him on uniting the Centre Right and breaking the Social Democrat dominance, and wish him and his Government well.

Today, we are discussing the future of Europe in a week in which this House will vote on a report endorsing the Lisbon Treaty. I want to make very clear that British Conservative MEPs will vote against that report because we fundamentally disagree with the Treaty, with the process by which it was agreed and with the fact that it is simply a carbon copy of the constitution rejected by two of the Union's founding Member States in national referendums.

The British Parliament is currently deliberating the Treaty. The people of the United Kingdom had, of course, hoped to have their say in a referendum. But the British Government has shamefully reneged on its manifesto pledge to hold one.

My party, both here and in the UK, will continue to campaign vigorously for the people to have their say in a referendum. "

Ian Hudghton (Greens/EFA, SE) said: "For more than nine years, I have had the great privilege of representing Scotland here in this Parliament, during which time we have had many a debate on the future shape of Europe and we have welcomed 12 new Member States to the top table. This massive expansion of the internal market and other areas of cooperation is good for Scotland and good for Europe as a whole. But, also in the past nine years, we have had to agonise over so-called crises, such as the resignation of the Santer Commission and the rejection of the Constitutional Treaty. It is a great pity and a frustration that many of the positives which EU membership entails have been tempered by such self-inflicted negatives.

In Scotland, we move on too. We have a new Government - an SNP Government, which is pro-European and which has a vision for a new future for Scotland in Europe. Prime Minister, I want to see Scottish Ministers sitting alongside your Ministers in the Council, not in the second row. Scotland has much to contribute to the European Union and its development: a constructive attitude and a wealth of energy resources to name but two. I look forward to a day when Scotland is welcomed as an independent Member State of this Union. Such a change, I think, would not just be good for Scotland but good for the future of Europe too."

Richard Corbett (PES, UK) said: "Mr Chichester briefly appeared to make a short speech and disappeared before hearing the reply. There was not otherwise a single member of the British Conservative Party in this debate to hear a Conservative Prime Minister tell us about the future of Europe.

Why is this? Did they not want to hear from a fellow Conservative how good the Lisbon Treaty is? How it does not need a referendum because it does not involve any further transfers of sovereignty? How we need this new Treaty for our Union to work better? Are they unable to participate even in a debate on that? Did they rather stay outside, presumably in the bar with their colleagues from the UK Independence Party? I do think it is a shame they have not even been here to participate in such an excellent debate."