Zita Pleštinská (PPE-DE). – (SK) Ladies and gentlemen, the founding of a European institute for gender mainstreaming, a substantial long-term task highlighted by the Treaty of Amsterdam and positively influenced by the process that followed the Fourth World Conference on Women held in Beijing, has become a theme of political discussion between supporters and opponents of the Institute.

I am one of those who support the shared view of the rapporteurs, Mrs Gröner and Mrs Sartori, who have managed to find a common solution on behalf of the two largest political groups in the European Parliament. I admire and appreciate their work on this report, and in particular their patient awareness-raising campaign advocating the setting up of the Institute as a coordinator whose task will be to provide technical support for EU gender policy implementation, stimulating and acting in partnership with existing institutions, disseminating information and enhancing the visibility of issues relating to gender equality.

I do not support the amendment suggesting that the Institute be integrated into the EU’s Human Rights Agency based in Vienna, as the entire problem area would then become part of an existing agenda, and this would certainly not fulfil the EU’s ambition to strengthen its equal opportunities policy. As the most recent reports also suggest, inequalities between men and women still persist. The existence of inequality is a matter for society as a whole and not just for women. Establishing the Institute will be a major building block for the recently adopted roadmap on implementing equal opportunity policy. In financial terms, the Institute will not be a significant burden, as funding will come from sources that are already in place. The added value of the Institute will also include activities targeted outside the European Union, especially with regard to enlargement, where equal opportunities are, and will remain, a topical agenda.

In conclusion, I am convinced that locating the Institute in one of the new Member States will further the cause of even-handed institutional decentralisation in the European Union.