Flautre (Verts/ALE). – (FR) Mr President, I think that the elements that some of my colleagues have described as puns and shams actually reflect a delicate point: the fact that the aim of this Spring Summit is to coordinate three policies, economic, social and sustainable development, whereas the Treaties do not provide the legal bases to enable us to act in these three areas at once. It is therefore clear that our proposals look like pious hopes or we appear to be reaffirming our will while we know that we do not have the tools to achieve it.

Therefore, underlying our debates and the Spring Summit that is being prepared, there is a fundamental challenge involving reforming the Treaties with a view to the new Constitution for the European Union.

I think that if we want to arrive at a structured concept by determining how these three elements can form a sound cycle of development in Europe, we would be well advised to look more closely at what is happening in the services of general interest sector. If there is a triangle, services of general interest are the barycentre of it.

Let us think about that and look at how our European policies are operating today.

President-in-Office of the Council, we will not achieve any results by trying, on the one hand, to speed up the construction of the internal market, with all that it involves in terms of opening up to competition and, ultimately, privatisation, and by seeking, on the other hand, to maintain the balance by arguing that it will be done in the interests of the public, of social cohesion, etc. We have a duty to evaluate what has been done, and that will help us to think about how economic activity, which is supposed to fulfil fundamental rights and ensure social and territorial cohesion, can or should be considered and integrated into the new Treaties. Where is the evaluation? Where is the framework directive for services of general interest? Where are our proposals to strengthen Article 16 of the Treaty, particularly regarding the resources and tasks of these services of general interest?

I think that if we are capable of moving forward in our discussion, without being dogmatic, looking at what is happening and what it would be appropriate to do, our ideas will begin to take shape. You know, brains are indeed precious, but what counts above all is collective intelligence, and that is what we especially have among users, employees and operators, just like among elected representatives who are reminded every day of the cost of the closure of public services in their countries.

Frankly, I think that this is a very important indicator that we need to use and take advantage of for the years to come.