EPP-ED Report
Issue 7 / July 2008

French Presidency wants progress in Europe

By Ioannis Zografos

Six months may seem a short period of time to both agree upon and implement EU policies. However, French President Nicolas Sarkozy came to Strasbourg determined to resolve the institutional impasse and to make progress in Europe in critical areas such as immigration, European security and the protection of citizens from organised crime and terrorism.

Sarkozy, who flew directly from the G8 meeting in Japan to Strasbourg, expressed his commitment to achieving these objectives. The top priority is to take Europe out of the institutional imbroglio following the Irish 'No' to the Lisbon Treaty. He said that Europe has to find a solution before next year's European elections and underlined that it would be difficult to envisage a new enlargement without the new institutions foreseen in the Lisbon Treaty.

"For my first trip as President of the Council, I will go to Ireland to listen, discuss and try to find a solution. The French Presidency will propose a method and, I hope, a solution, in agreement with the Irish Government either in October or in December.

We owe it to our citizens to tell them on which basis the European elections will be organised. The basis will be either the Treaty of Lisbon or the Treaty of Nice. There will not be another Intergovernmental Conference.

It must be clear: if we want enlargement - and we do want enlargement - we need new institutions".

The Chairman of the EPP-ED Group Joseph Daul (F) congratulated the French President for his political determination to make Europe progress and offered his Group's support.

"Along with the French Presidency, the EPP Members of our Group wish that all Member States who have not already done so, ratify this Treaty. We expect that after a period of reflection, Ireland, as was the case for France and the Netherlands, will offer its 26 partners a way out of the current impasse. We are asking each Member State to avoid any negative escalation and instead to show a spirit of responsibility. Our Group wants us to finally come out of this institutional debate, and it has confidence in the French Presidency in working towards this objective."

The French President defended the idea of European solidarity and rejected the idea of a two-speed Europe.

"Unfortunately, maybe one day we will be forced to accept a two-speed Europe. But this has to be the absolute ultimate solution. Europe has paid a high price for its division with a shameful wall. Europe has paid a high price for a dictatorship imposed on 80 million Europeans. Let's reflect more before we leave some countries behind."

Aviation Emission Trading Agreed

By Thomas Bickl

The European Union is the first actor on the world stage to introduce emission trading for air travel. This week, the European Parliament endorsed a new EU Directive. "We are taking action in the fight against climate change. The EU has developed a sophisticated system which will hopefully lead to an international agreement", said EP Rapporteur Peter Liese MEP (D).

As from 2012, airlines will be forced to either reduce their greenhouse gas emissions or buy emission allowances on the market. The emission permits will be allocated through a harmonised set of criteria to secure a level playing field. 85 percent of the allowances will be allocated for free with the remaining 15 percent available for purchase through auctioning.

The aviation Emission Trading Scheme will include both domestic EU flights and international flights with take-off or landing in the EU. "It is a revolution that we include flights from and to third countries. It is necessary for environmental reasons as two thirds of the emissions covered by the EU trading scheme stem from intercontinental flights. And we must take on board third countries for reasons of competitiveness. We are convinced that our trading scheme is in line with international law, such as the Chicago Convention", said Liese.

The new trading system will stop the increase of emissions from air travel which have doubled since 1990. The new scheme introduces a reduction mechanism of five percent a year up to 2020. This week's plenary vote on the agreement with Council just requires its formal consent before the Directive comes into force.

A new enlargement strategy takes shape

By Knut Goelz

Parliament has approved by a large majority a report by German MEP Elmar Brok on the future enlargement strategy of the European Union. "The previous enlargements have been a large political and economic success", said Brok. However, a consolidation phase should take place now in the EU after almost doubling the number of its Member States. Its enlargement strategy has therefore to be reconsidered and provided with new instruments. Enlargement must not become an automatism. The Commission is asked to prepare a solution between enlargement and European neighbourhood policy such as the European Economic Area Plus.

Furthermore, the report stresses that ongoing accession negotiations have to be continued, without challenging a candidate status already established. The European Union should thus not become a free trade area but a politically-acting unit. This means that its internal reform ability is in the same way a precondition for future enlargements as the accession capability of new members. The European Union is an area of peace, democracy, freedom and prosperity. It must find a way apart from full membership which allows neighbouring countries to participate. Very close relationships with these countries can be developed without full EU membership. Thereby the stability of the entire EU and its neighbours would be strengthened.

The provisions of the Lisbon Treaty had already been the precondition for the last enlargement round. As a consequence, those who are against the Lisbon Treaty are also against enlargement, since size by itself does not necessarily mean power.

Cheaper and greener energy

By Gunnar Larsson

The third Energy Package will complete the process of the liberalisation of Europe's energy markets. It deals with still-existing structural problems and discrimination against new energy suppliers. There have been some tough discussions in Parliament on the issue of so-called ownership unbundling, which means separation of transmission networks and energy supply. Strasbourg saw yet another debate on the issue. EPP-ED Group Spokesman Herbert Reul (D), Member of the Committee on Industry, Research and Energy, was pleased that Parliament had taken steps forward, but still had some doubts.

"I have once again experienced the danger in politics to rely on a one-cure-for-all, which is pushed through with force and promises people it will be the solution to all their problems. I really hope we will solve the current problems. The question is how do we get more investment and lower prices, and how do we accomplish supply security within the European energy sector? We read in the newspapers about these concerns and we hear about them on TV. Do we resolve the problems in these debates? I have my doubts", he said.

Continued liberalisation of energy markets will benefit European customers, but what about the environment? New technologies will be crucial to fight climate change and to reach Europe's targets on greenhouse gas emissions. A Strategic Energy Technology Plan adopted by Parliament aims at making better use of the potential of the European Research and Innovation Area and fully exploiting possibilities created by the Internal Market.

EPP-ED Group Spokesman Jerzy Buzek (PL), also a Member of the Committee on Industry, Research and Energy, took part in the plenary debate: "The proposal presented by the European Commission on a strategic programme for energy technologies is, in my opinion, the best answer to the challenges of the European economy. It is about reducing energy costs. The EU offers assistance for non-emission and low-emission technologies. For the first time, different ways of protecting both the climate and energy security have been presented. Nuclear energy is also included."

Green light for new fisheries agreement with Mauritania

By Pedro López de Pablo

The European Parliament has adopted a new fisheries agreement with Mauritania, but the motion drafted by EPP-ED Spokeswoman in the Fisheries Committee, Carmen Fraga MEP (ES), brought some criticism to the final result of negotiations as the protocol reduces fishing opportunities for the EU fleet and contains some very restricted technical measures.

The new protocol will start on 1 August and end in 2012. The EU fleet will reduce catches in Mauritanian waters from 440.000 tonnes to 250.000 tonnes and the financial compensation to Mauritania will fall from €86m to €76m a year.

Despite these cuts in fishing opportunities, Carmen Fraga recommended the approval of the agreement as it is important for the EU fleet and reinforces the economic integration of the Mauritanian fisheries sector. Nevertheless, the report warns the European Commission to inform the European Parliament on the result of the technical details of the negotiations, such as biological rest periods, as they were agreed at the very last minute without proper scientific advice and without listening to the opinion of the sector.

Fisheries Emergency Measures Adopted

By Pedro López de Pablo

The plenary approved by a large majority the emergency package of measures to tackle the fuel crisis in the fisheries sector. The EPP-ED Group supported the measures proposed but called on the European Commission to launch a "second phase" of the plan to assure the future profitability of the sector, and on EU Governments to implement the package immediately.

Carmen Fraga (ES) welcomed the measures as the European Parliament has been fighting for them since 2005 and also welcomed the fact that the European Commission had taken her suggestion into account to include the first six months of 2008 in the reference period in requests for aid from the European Fisheries Fund, as this period registered the highest increases of fuel prices.

But Fraga questioned the Commission on the calendar for the supplementary measures as changes to the so-called 'de minimis' aids to fisheries companies, and rules to decrease social security contributions and to opt for additional public funds for small fleets, are only mentioned in the Commission's proposal without a delay to be implemented.

In addition, the EPP-ED Group will now push the European Commission to launch a second phase of this plan, based on commercial measures to stop price decreases of fisheries products due to massive imports, to increase the controls on these imports and information campaigns for consumers. "The sooner these measures are approved, the better. Otherwise we will only have a generous operation to reduce the EU fleet but not a safeguard of the profitability of the sector to take it out of the crisis", Daniel Varela (ES) said during the debate.

Better Coordination of Social Security

By Eduard Slootweg

On Wednesday, the European Parliament voted on new legislation concerning the coordination of social security systems of the EU Member States. The aim of this legislation is not only to guarantee the social security of citizens who, for example, work in one country and live in another, or are travelling in another EU country. It also covers all other persons covered by national social security systems such as pensioners living abroad in another EU Member State. It concerns matters such as cross-border social security payments, recovery and settlement of disagreements, prior authorisation of treatments etc. The new Regulation will also allow people to aggregate the periods they have lived or worked in another Member State in order to calculate their state pension or other rights.

The EPP-ED Spokeswoman, Gabriele Stauner (D), said: "Social security systems are very much organised on a national level. The competence of the EU is limited in this area. In this respect, the EPP-ED Group is against the plan to set up a central European database in order to facilitate a swift and smooth payment system. EU citizens should not seek advice by looking in a far away Brussels-based database, but should go to a government office in their own town to seek help. This is a more simple and citizen-friendly approach."

Use of Sovereign Wealth Funds Questioned

By Knut Goelz

On behalf of the Economic Affairs Committee, the European Parliament has discussed an oral question on the future role of Sovereign Wealth Funds (SWF). Such government-owned investment vehicles that invest surplus state funds are growing rapidly. However, this also means more political controversy and higher risks. The so-called 'sub-prime crisis' revealed these risks and their consequences, such as the rescue of major banks.

Parliament therefore discussed the question if the various current national initiatives would not create a need for EU coordination to safeguard a true level playing field. The EPP-ED Group is of the opinion that possible regulation of these funds might be useful but must not lead to disadvantages for the European financial industry. "It is therefore deemed necessary to find global solutions to the open questions around these financial instruments", underlined Alexander Radwan (D), EPP-ED Spokesman on Economic Affairs. In this context, the question was also important as to which extent Art. 58 of the EU Treaty is in need of clarification to guarantee compatibility with EU interests and the full functioning of the internal market. Another key aspect is promoting best practices and the reciprocity of market openness, if a global approach to SWF is found.