Joint Parliamentary Meeting "A New Deal for European Economic Recovery?"

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Brussels, 16 - 17 February 2009

European Parliament - Hemicycle

 

The European Parliament and the Czech Parliament (Chamber of Deputies and Senate) organised a Joint Parliamentary Meeting (JPM) between Members of the European Parliament and of the national parliaments of the EU Member States and Candidate countries. The topic of the JPM was the current economic situation and its perspectives throughout the title "A New Deal for European Economic Recovery?". The JPM was co-chaired by Mr. Hans-Gert Pöttering, EP President and by Mr. Přemysl Sobotka, President of the Senate and Mr. Miloslav Vlček, Speaker of the Chamber of Deputies.

As usual in the JPM, 3 working groups analysed the following topics: "Competitive Europe: promoting investments, entrepreneurship and SMEs", "Social Europe: creating jobs, fighting poverty, ensuring free movement" and "Sustainable Europe: economic development and climate challenge". The JPM heard statements by Mr. Jean Claude Trichet. President of the European Central Bank and Mr. Miroslav Kalousek, Minister of Finances of the Czech Republic on behalf of the Presidency of the Council of the European Union. The EP rapporteurs Mr. Klaus-Heiner Lehne and Ms Edith Herczog opened the debate. The President in office of the European Council, Mr. Mirek Topolánek, the President of the European Commision, Mr. José Manuel Barroso and Mr. Joaquín Almunia, Member of the European Commission responsible for Economic and Monetary Affairs, also spoke in this last JPM of the current EP legislature.