MOTION FOR A RESOLUTION
7 June 2001
pursuant to Rule 37(2) of the Rules of Procedure
by Hans-Gert Poettering, W.G. van Velzen, Iñigo Méndez de Vigo, Elmar Brok, Giorgos Dimitrakopoulos, James E.M. Elles and Georg Jarzembowski
on behalf of the PPE-DE Group
on preparing the Göteborg European Council meeting
See also joint motion for a resolution RC-B5-0405/2001
B5‑0405/2001
European Parliament resolution on preparing the Göteborg European Council meeting
The European Parliament,
- having regard to its previous resolutions on European Council meetings, in particular the meetings in Lisbon and Stockholm,
- having regard to its resolution of 17 May 2001 on the state of the transatlantic dialogue,
- having regard to its resolution of 31 May 2001 on environment policy and sustainable development: preparing for the Gothenburg European Council,
- having regard to its resolution of 31 May 2001 on the Nice Treaty and the future of the European Union,
- having regard to the meeting of the European Council in Göteborg on 15-16 June 2001 and the planned EU-US summit meeting in Göteborg,
A. whereas, according to the proposals of the Council Presidency, the main topics for debate will be:
° EU enlargement,
° the future of Europe,
° sustainable development,
° European Security and Defence Policy,
° EU external relations,
B. whereas, in accordance with past practice, the European Council is expected to adopt a number of written declarations, prepared by the General Affairs Council, on a variety of topics,
C. whereas peace and prosperity in the western part of Europe is inextricably linked with peace and prosperity in the eastern part of the continent,
D. whereas enlargement requires a deepening of the EU, as recognised in Declaration 23, annexed to the Nice Treaty,
E. whereas the further development of the European Security and Defence Policy requires both political commitment and adequate budgetary outlays at the level of the Member States, but also by the EU itself,
F. whereas the EU sustainable development strategy constitutes an important basis for the deliberations at the European Council meeting in Göteborg on 15-16 June 2001 and is an important contribution to addressing future development in Europe,
G. whereas sustainable development means integrating environmental, economic and social issues in all areas of policy making,
H. whereas a different form of growth is needed, based on responsible and efficient use of natural resources, on respect for the environment, on modes of production that comply with the imperatives of public health and consumer safety and protection, and with the 'polluter pays' and precautionary principles as fundamental guidelines,
I. whereas, in linking sustainable development to the Lisbon strategy, the objective must be to identify and tackle unsustainable trends which will jeopardise that strategy,
J. whereas there remains a need to deepen transatlantic political dialogue and to develop new and more sophisticated mechanisms to identify and manage areas of disagreement,
On European Council meetings in general
1. Welcomes the European Council's willingness to deal with many issues at each of its regular meetings, including putting its own name to a series of written declarations submitted to it by the General Affairs Council;
2. Suggests, however, that the European Council might wish to envisage limiting the number of topics it plans to deal with at each of its future meetings, emphasising the main topics for debate and setting priorities more clearly;
On the future of the Union
3. Believes that reform of the Treaties should be preceded by a large-scale and detailed public debate and that this debate should take place at European and national level; calls for the establishment of national committees or other types of bodies chosen by the national authorities, to be responsible for organising this debate;
4. Believes that the final outcome of the forthcoming IGC will depend essentially on how it is prepared, and therefore calls for a Convention to be established with an organisational set-up and mandate similar to those of the Convention which drafted the Charter of Fundamental Rights and:
- -made up of members of the national parliaments, of the European Parliament, of the Commission and of the governments,
- -responsible for drawing up constitutional proposals to serve as a basis for the discussions of the IGC,
- -and to start work at the beginning of 2002;
5. Believes that the IGC should be convened for the second half of 2003 so that it can finalise its work by the end of that year;
On enlargement
6. Is alarmed by the lack of momentum of the enlargement process due to the fact that in the Member States the emphasis now lies on the consequences of enlargement for existing EU policies and acknowledging that the current cohesion policy needs to be continued; and invites the EU governments to launch a comprehensive information campaign aimed at informing EU citizens about the benefits and advantages of enlargement;
7. Warns of the impact on public opinion in the applicant countries of any delay in accession, and notes with great concern the falling support for accession in Central and Eastern Europe, requiring more efforts by the governments concerned to convince their citizens of the advantages and benefits of joining the EU;
8. Welcomes the recent agreements reached on a common EU position for negotiations with applicant countries over their adoption of EU rules on free movement of workers and capital as well as the growing willingness among applicant countries to drop objections over when foreigners can buy land; invites both sides to continue the negotiations in the same spirit by showing more flexibility and keeping transition periods as short as possible;
9. Reminds the citizens and governments of the EU that enlargement is a question of altruism and of self‑interest and that peace and prosperity in western Europe is inextricably linked with peace and prosperity in the eastern part of the continent;
On the European Security and Defence Policy
10. Welcomes the efforts made by the Member States over the past two years to set up a 60 000‑strong European Rapid Reaction Force ready to be deployed within 60 days by 2003, and expresses its hopes for an initial operating capability by the end of 2001;
11. Expresses its alarm at the fact that contrary to NATO Secretary‑General Lord George Robertson's claim that most European defence budgets are no longer being cut, European defence spending is falling in constant euro terms, and reminds the EU Members States of their commitment to maintain their defence budgets at the level needed to reach the ambitious objectives of the ESDP;
On transatlantic relations
12. Regards as a positive signal the presence of US President Bush at the occasion of the Göteborg Summit;
13. Insists that close cooperation between the United States and the European Union is essential not only to both US and European interests, but also to global interests in tackling issues such as the fight against poverty, safeguarding the environment, global trade, cultural and information diversity, the digital divide and organised crime;
14. Calls on the President-in-Office of the Council and the Commission President to work out a common agenda with the US President at Göteborg to demonstrate clear progress in the updating of the New Transatlantic Agenda in order to ensure a more effective management of EU-US relations by the end of 2004;
15. Recommends that the number of EU-US summits per year should be maintained or possibly increased in view of the accumulation of issues on the Transatlantic Agenda, but that when issues are prioritised during any particular year, the number of such priorities should be strictly limited;
16. Calls on the EU and the US to strengthen their efforts to reach an agreement on an ambitious but realistic agenda for the launch of a new round of WTO negotiations which will focus on the sustainable and equitable development of the global economy; and to ensure effective mechanisms to prevent and manage conflicts, seeking solutions based on means other than retaliation;
17. Acknowledges the importance of the Transatlantic Legislators' Dialogue between Congress and the European Parliament, but believes that further initiatives should be taken to enhance the links between these institutions and review the resources necessary for these activities; in this context, draws attention to the conclusions of the Houston Declaration of 26-28 June 1998 on US Congress - European Parliament cooperation, and recommends specifically that:
- -Members of the European Parliament and the US Congress should be associated with all future EU-US summit meetings,
- -this association should consist of a formal session with the Senior Level Group prior to each summit, and of attendance at a portion of each summit as observers,
- -consideration should be given to how the existing interparliamentary exchange might be transformed into a de facto 'transatlantic assembly';
On sustainable development
18. Stresses that the environmental dimension must be the point of departure for any sustainable development strategy and that the Sixth Environmental Action Programme forms the strategic basis for the next ten years, especially through the thematic strategies set out;
19. Considers that global responsibility must be a key feature of the strategy, which must make an important contribution to the Rio+10 Summit to be held in Johannesburg in 2002;
20. Believes that in order to keep its fundamental leader-role on the international scene the EU must first and foremost define and adopt concrete and realistic internal objectives to address pressing unsustainable trends;
21 Takes the view that the Göteborg Summit should establish an agenda for sustainable development and at least maintain the level of ambition in the EC document "A Sustainable Europe for a Better World" and the EP resolution adopted on 31 May 2001;
22. Stresses that the EU will show its will and concern to ensure a sustainable future for subsequent generations only through concrete reforms of the main common policies;
23. Emphasises that the EU must take a leading role in global cooperation by stressing the global aspects of sustainable development, in particular by making clear long-term commitments to addressing climate change as well as by increasing the use of clean energy, addressing threats to public health, managing natural resources responsibly and reducing transport congestion;
24. Calls on the Commission to add the topic 'Sustainable Food Supply' to the six fundamental topics of the European strategy for sustainable development and to present concrete proposals concerning urban and territorial development;
25. Recognises the importance of making adequate budgetary means available for actions implementing the future sustainable development strategy and the Cardiff environmental integration process;
On other issues
26. Asks the European Council to end, once and for all, the blocking of numerous proposals on civil aviation, such as the proposal for a Single European Sky and the draft regulation on compensation payments in case of overbooking, through a solution to the dispute over Gibraltar;
27. Recalls that Article 299(2) of the EC Treaty provides the legal base for the adoption of measures in favour of the outermost regions, and that its implementation should be on the basis of a well-defined strategy and specific measures;
28. Is firmly convinced of the benefits of implementing the "tax package" (taxation of savings, code of conduct for business taxation and the taxation of interest and royalties); calls upon the European Council to keep up the momentum for achieving final agreement on the tax package as a whole before 31 December 2002, as agreed at the European Council in Feira; also insists that the current negotiations with third countries on the taxation of savings are conducted by the Commission, on the basis of a mandate from the Council;
29. Calls upon the European Council, when endorsing the Broad Economic Policy Guidelines, to stress the importance, for the European economy and for the Eurozone, of vigorous internal structural reform by Member States in the labour, product, services and capital markets; recalls that, under the Treaty, the Commission must be fully associated in matters of external representation;
30. Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the European Council, the General Affairs Council and the Commission, the governments and parliaments of the Member States and the President and Congress of the United States of America.