Text tabled : A7-0259/2010

  João Ferreira (GUE/NGL), in writing. – (PT) Three more applications have been made to mobilise the Solidarity Fund, each corresponding to a factory closure in Europe, including that of a Galician textile factory, in Spain. Altogether, several hundred more workers have been made redundant. It is worth remembering once again that this sector is also enduring a serious crisis in Portugal, where it is suffering the effects of the liberalisation of world trade particularly intensely, while none of the actions needed to safeguard it have been taken. These effects may now become even worse following the decision to intensify the liberalisation measures for Asian textiles. This step was taken on the pretext of providing humanitarian aid to Pakistan, whereas in reality, it fulfils the desires of the major importers in the European Union. Every new application to mobilise this fund increases the urgency of the measures that we have been advocating, which are aimed at combating unemployment effectively, boosting economic activity, eradicating jobs with no security, and reducing working hours without cutting pay. These measures also involve fighting company relocations and, overall, require a complete break with the neoliberal policies that are visibly causing an economic and social disaster in the countries of the EU.