Hannu Takkula (ALDE). – (FI) Madam President, Commissioner, we face a very serious problem: that of youth unemployment in the European Union. It has to be said that we have dealt with it in a very slapdash, very unsatisfactory way. We have lost sight of the big picture, and I suspect that this is still the case. Here, we use fancy words, but in some sense, the realities of the situation have become unclear, and we are too far away from the everyday facts and the true level of youth unemployment – the gap is too wide.

Of course, we do have a lot of studies on the subject. We have a lot of reports on this issue, and they are constantly being produced, but it seems to me that, at the moment, there are more writers of reports than readers of them, let alone those that would implement their findings, and these are just the kind of people that we need. I might say that the most appalling experience a person can have is that of being on the outside, and today a significant number of European young people – 5.5 million – feel that they are outside this system, the European Union.

We are speaking here in this House, but I suspect that when we go outside the building, we will say that that is all very well, but Europe needs labour migration desperately, and we have to raise the age of retirement. By doing this, we seem to be seeking a solution to a contemporary problem while at the same time forgetting that young people are at risk of being excluded. That will cost us dear, and our future rests on the shoulders of the young and of children. That is why we need to reflect. It is true that it is an investment and that it takes money and effort, but we must do it – invest in the young and their education – so that there are real prospects and hope for the future in Europe.

Soon, we here in this House will be voting on the budget. That is one definite area where we can show whether we are investing more in research and development, innovation and education, or whether we are taking funding away from them, in the belief that the growth areas that would benefit our young people and employment should continue to be left alone.

In this connection, I hope that the debate that we are having here today is not just a conversation – a bit of a chat – but that a real change in direction can take place at EU level, that we will actually start paying attention to our young people. I hope that something tangible will start to appear in what we do there at grassroots level, so that no longer is any one life, any one young person, excluded, forced to remain on the outside, but that young people can experience what it is to live a full and secure life in the European Union and its Member States.