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Europaudvalget 2008-09
EUU Alm.del Bilag 459
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The Prime Minister’s presentation of the Presidency priorities to the

Riksdag, 23 June

Mr/Madam Speaker, Honourable Members of the Riksdag,

- In eight days, Sweden will assume the Presidency of the European Union.

- In eight days, we will be presiding over the world’s largest integrated

economy, with almost 500 million inhabitants.

- In eight days, we will continue the work in Europe to manage the

economic crisis, unemployment and climate change.

Mr/Madam Speaker,

We are ready to take on this challenge.

***

On 1 July, the Swedish Presidency of the Council of the European Union

begins. The responsibility and challenges that go along with this are great.

Our task is to act in the interests of the entire EU. And to energetically

pursue the issues on the EU agenda. Our ambition is to conduct an open,

responsive and results-oriented Presidency, focusing on issues of interest

to the citizens of Europe.

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Leading the EU is a task not only for the Government, but for the whole of

Sweden.

Sweden is expected to lead over 3000 meetings at different levels, most of

them taking place in Brussels and Luxembourg. Over one hundred

informal meetings will be held in Sweden. Around ten of these are

ministerial meetings, while the rest are meetings with third countries,

meetings of senior officials, seminars and conferences.

Preparations for the Swedish Presidency have been under way for over two

years, and most of that which can be planned is in place. But it will be no

easy task. The circumstances of our Presidency are special. There are many

challenges, and they are far from simple.

Europe and the world are in the midst of the most serious economic crisis

of modern times. We are experiencing declining growth and trade, and

increasing bankruptcy and unemployment. At the same time, perhaps the

greatest challenge of our generation is managing climate change. Right

now, as I stand here talking to you, the ice sheets in Greenland and the

Western Antarctic continue to melt and sea levels continue to rise.

Moreover, the coming six months will be characterised by both change

and renewal.

We have a newly elected European Parliament that is in the process of

appointing a new President and new group presidents. A new European

Commission is due to take office some time during our Presidency. There

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is also uncertainty as to whether the Treaty of Lisbon will be able to enter

into force during our Presidency. We await the referendum in Ireland with

interest. The conditions for cooperation will change if the Treaty of Lisbon

enters into force. It will fall to the Swedish Presidency to manage these

new conditions.

***

However, the most important thing is to ensure that we are able to gather

the EU together to respond to the challenges that people care about and

where strong European cooperation can make a difference.

This is a matter of dealing with the financial crisis together and tackling

the rising unemployment that is currently affecting the whole of Europe.

It is a matter of doing our bit together and rallying the whole world to

tackle climate change.

These two priorities will also dominate our Presidency.

Mr/Madam Speaker,

Our aim is for the EU to emerge from the financial crisis in a stronger

position.

The current crisis is a global one. For this reason, we must find both

European and global solutions. In the autumn we will continue the work

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to remedy the causes of the crisis. We will also do our bit to bring about

greater order on the financial markets. People and businesses should

never again have to encounter the hardship they are now suffering.

It takes a long time and great strength to recover from bankruptcy. It

takes great effort and a strong will to recover from long-term

unemployment.

As holder of the Presidency we must continue to push for the EU to

implement the recovery plan to stabilise the economy. It will also require

continued support and guarantees to banks and other financial companies

to get credit flows up and running again.

A football match needs a referee, just as a road junction needs traffic

lights. Similarly, the financial crisis has demonstrated that financial

markets need improved supervision and stricter regulations.

At the European Summit last week, we agreed on a structure for this work.

It is now up to the Swedish Presidency to draw up the rules for the

financial market and a new supervisory system for financial companies.

We hope to reach a political agreement in this area during the Swedish

Presidency.

The crisis has also been attended by increased unemployment affecting

millions of people in Europe. We must take action to limit and mitigate

the effects of this crisis.

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There is a great need to deal with unemployment, both together and in

each Member State. Individuals’ employability and opportunities to

establish themselves on the labour market must be strengthened. An

active labour market policy for better adjustment and mobility is needed

on the labour market across the entire EU.

More effective matching, skills development and more entrepreneurs are

needed, not only to respond to the current crisis, but also to build for the

future. We will work for improved access to capital, regulatory

simplification and better conditions for smaller companies. Our ambition

is to lay the foundations for a new growth and employment strategy: a

successor to the Lisbon Strategy.

Only through long-term high employment levels and sustainable public

finances can we safeguard our welfare systems in Europe. We will

therefore also prioritise a discussion on how the EU can maintain

budgetary discipline and formulate an ‘exit strategy’ from today’s growing

budget deficits and high debt levels.

I shall be putting forward the EU’s positions on all these issues at the G8

and G20 meetings.

Mr/Madam Speaker,

We are experiencing more extreme weather conditions than before, with

severe storms and drought. Climate change threatens to worsen these

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trends. Everyone talks about the importance of reducing emissions and yet

global greenhouse gas emissions have not even started to decline.

Together with the financial crisis, climate change is therefore the Swedish

Presidency’s most important priority. There is no time to lose if we don’t

want our children to experience drastically worse living conditions than we

do.

I sometimes hear the argument that we should not expect countries – in the

midst of a deep economic crisis – to be able to afford to take initiatives to

prevent climate change. I am against this viewpoint. Countries not only can,

but also must be both climate-smart and sparing with resources. Because

they both can, and must manage the climate and their public finances.

Let me mention Ukraine as an apt example. If Ukraine were to improve its

energy efficiency to achieve the same level as Slovenia and the Czech

Republic, it would be almost independent of gas imports from Russia.

The Swedish Presidency will lead the EU in negotiations on an

international climate agreement that is expected to be concluded in

Copenhagen in December. At the same time, Europe accounts for only 14

per cent of global emissions. Our most important task, apart from keeping

the EU together on the climate issue, is therefore to draw the rest of the

world into this work.

A number of critical problems must be solved in the international

negotiations: industrialised countries’ emissions reductions, emissions

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limits in growing economies and the funding of adaptation and

technology transfer in the developing countries. These are complex issues

that we must handle together with the rest of the world, and internally

within the EU. Here, let me mention particularly that we have received

encouraging signals from the new US Administration, which improves the

prospects of an agreement.

Mr/Madam Speaker,

Europe is facing challenges other than the financial crisis and the climate

issue.

It is Sweden’s responsibility to develop and strengthen EU

cooperation in

justice and home affairs.

Democratic values and individual rights must be protected while

facilitating free movement. We need to develop cooperation to prevent

international crime. At the same time, we must safeguard the rights of

both those who are victims of crime and those suspected of crimes. We

must create a more efficient asylum and migration policy, characterised by

legal security and openness.

Our objective is to adopt a new multi-annual cooperation programme in

this area, the Stockholm Programme. The vision of the Stockholm

Programme is a safer, more open Europe where the rights of individuals

are safeguarded.

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Another objective is to adopt an

EU Baltic Sea Strategy.

The countries around the

Baltic Sea

are facing common difficulties. One

of these is how we are to manage the urgent, serious environmental

problems in the Baltic Sea. Another is how we can transform the Baltic Sea

region into a stronger engine for growth and development. We hope that

our efforts will have an impact on people’s everyday lives. We also hope

that the strategy can serve as a source of inspiration for other EU regions.

There is already talk of an EU strategy for the Danube region.

Relations with the

EU’s neighbours

are extremely important. We will

continue to work on developing the European Neighbourhood Policy,

both the Eastern Partnership and within the framework of the Union for

the Mediterranean.

Continuing the

enlargement process

is of strategic importance for our

welfare and to ensure peace and progress in a united Europe. It is of

central importance that the EU stands by its commitments and the

established principles in the area of enlargement. The pace at which closer

ties with the EU are made will be determined by the progress of reform in

each country.

The

EU’s voice in the world is gaining strength,

but we must become

better at making use of it. The Swedish Presidency will work to strengthen

the EU’s role as a global actor with a clear agenda for peace, development,

democracy and human rights. Regional issues such as Afghanistan,

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Pakistan, the Middle East, Iran and North Korea require global

cooperation.

I am looking forward to developing relations with the new US

Administration. The prospects of successful transatlantic cooperation have

seldom been so positive. To achieve success, we must show that the EU

can deliver.

The summits that we are preparing with Brazil, India, China, Russia, South

Africa, Ukraine and the USA will be major opportunities to discuss global

challenges.

Mr/Madam Speaker,

These and many other challenges will be on the agenda during the

Swedish Presidency.

We hope and believe that together we can drive the EU agenda forward in

an open, efficient and results-oriented manner during the coming six

months.

This is a challenge that we take on with great purposefulness.

Effective European cooperation is perhaps more crucial than ever before.

Today’s challanges do not recognise national borders. They require joint,

cross-border responses.

Our vision is a strong, effective Europe that has its starting point in

people’s everday lives, and sees the opportunities offered by cooperation.

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A Europe in which joint responsibility for the challenges of today and

tomorrow is the focus.

Thank you Mr/Madam Speaker!

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