Mr. President of the Senate,
Mr. Speaker of the Chamber of Deputies,
Ministers,
Senators and Deputies,
I am honored to present today before the Parliament the developments which our country has underwent for EU accession and the benchmarks of the roadmap for the successful achievement of the integration objective on the 1st of January 2007.
This presentation takes place one day further to the publication of the Monitoring Report of the European Commission. Before all these, let us remember that we meet on a special day. One year ago, on May 17th 2005 , the Parliament of Romania unanimously ratified Romania and Bulgaria 's EU Accession Treaty.
I propose to have this debate under the sign of this anniversary. Not out of festivity spirit! Because, as I told at that moment, in the plenum of the two Chambers, by ratification, we all made “a pledge of honor”: namely to be Europeans!”. And this pledge conditions our initiatives and steps today.
The principle which I follow as Prime Minister is that a promise has to be honored. The European Commission's Report confirms that both I and the Government that I am leading observe this principle.
We have proven that Romania keeps its European promises and commitments.
It is time to have a debate in European terms, about the path taken so far and what follows as of now. I propose you the debate to go beyond the disputes of pride, the political disputes and to honestly tackle Romania 's future. Jean Monnet, one of the founding fathers of the European Union is supposed to have said: “To make Europe , means to make peace” (Faire l'Europe, c'est faire la paix!). We, the politicians of Romania turned the European integration into a national consensus theme.
The way I have repeated from this rostrum, the European integration does not fall only to the Government and the administration. The European integration is a process to which we have all contributed after 1990: the power and the opposition. And I would like to take advantage of this opportunity to point out the merits of all those who led Romania as of 1990, either we are in office now or you are in opposition. But, undoubtedly, the contribution was far larger, not only the parties, but the civil society, the mass media and finally, all Romanian citizens had an essential contribution. It depends on each of us if this process accelerates or slows down.
Senators and Deputies,
The Monitoring Report presented yesterday by the European Commission is a true indicator of Romania ' s modernization. It is objective and professionist. And especially, it is demanding. Romania has been submitted to a much stricter monitoring than the 10 candidate states that joined in 2004. The increased exigency confers a higher value to the appreciations formulated by the Commission.
With all rigor, this is the best Report ever presented by the European Commission about Romania !
As Prime Minister of this country, I have reasons alike every Romanian citizen to be proud that our country is appreciated.
Briefly, the Report acknowledges the huge progress achieved by Romania over the latest seven months and it explicitly mentions the date of the 1st of January 2007 for the EU Accession.
How could this be achieved? We have honored our promises, we have worked hard and in team, we have always maintained the right direction towards Romania ' strategic objective. We have ignored the superficial issues which did not coincide with the national interest. I will provide you some examples of progress.
As of the October 2005 Monitoring Report, we removed the last two safeguard clauses which might have led to the delay of accession with one year: the one on the fight against corruption and the one on border security.
For the first time, the corruption is not among the Commission' serious concerns fields. The Report certificates the fact that we have created solid structures to fight this phenomenon, the magistrates are independent and the investigations started including in the case of some persons with public offices.
Corruption cannot be efficiently fought without an independent and professional judiciary. The European Commission confirms that the "judiciary reform has continued, the impartiality of the judiciary system being consolidated".
For the Government that I am leading, the judiciary reform and the fight against corruption are irreversible. I trust you, representatives of the Parliament that you will support further on this reform. The fact that we do not have anymore red flag on corruption and judiciary does not mean that we slow down the engines; it would be an enormous mistake.
As Prime Minister, I request you from this rostrum to vote the laws necessary to the continuation of the judiciary reform and the fight against corruption. You know some of the points which are already mentioned in the report and which today, in the discussion with the chairmanship of the two Chambers of the Parliament, have been already mentioned. I will refer here to the law on the financing of the political parties and surely, on a future stage, the one referring to the institution meant to control and check the statements of assets.
Also, I request the institutions with prerogatives in these fields to fulfill their legal duties. They have no excuse for not having fulfilled their duty.
Distinguished colleagues,
I have decided to tackle in detail the issues related to the Chapter Justice and Home Affairs because they play a key role in the consolidation of the rule of law. But we have achieved notable progress in other fields too. I will quote some of them:
• Public procurements, prevention and control of the industrial pollution, fight against the counterfeit and piracy
• Competition ( for the first time, the Commission mentions that the state aid legislation is translate into practice in a suitable way
• Agriculture ( creation of border inspection points, animals identification and registration, control of animal diseases, etc)
• Increase of the EU funds management capacity, is other field in which progress has been achieved
If in October 2005, Romania had 14 red flags, there are four now, we are in a better situation than some of the states that joined in 2004.
Besides the quantitative argument, there is a qualitative one: the four red flags do not mark system problems, such there would have been, for example, the absence of some reforms, or the lack of the political will to enforce some European standards. They strictly refer to punctual issues, with technical character which are to be solved in the implementation process of the European standards. I will further on mention them
• The payments agencies to farmers and operators within the joint agricultural policy should become fully functional. The two Payments Agencies have been set up and in this moment, they have considerable administrative capacity. For example, over 3600 persons of the 5000 who will be employed on the last stage to the agency are already hired and paid at the Intervention and Payments Agency
• The implementation of an integrate system of administration and control in the agriculture. To streamline this system, there has been finalized the photographing of the agricultural land, and 40% of data have been digitally processed. The process continues and we will rigorously follow its achievement in the best conditions until the end of this year.
• The complete alignment of the animal waste processing and treatment mechanism with the EU requests is the third element. So far, there have been adopted the strategy and the legal framework for the organization and unfolding of the animal origin waste neutralization and there have been nominated through auction the companies in charge to performing this service. The overall agriculture has entered a radical reform which allows it to become subsistence, modern agriculture.
• The fourth element that I want to refer to is the IT systems implementation which will assure the interoperability of the VAT collection systems and the excises with those on the EU internal market. In this field, the procedures have already been launched and they are ongoing, we are in the calendar. The system will enter testing as of the 1st of July this year, the way there is stipulated in the negotiations with the European Commission. It will be fully functional by the end of this year.
Also, the European Commission has recognized the remarkable progress in the judiciary reform field and it has requested us to consolidate the judiciary system efficiency and to continue the efforts to fight the corruption on the basis of this already achieved and acknowledged progress.
I assure you that the signaled problems will be eliminated in due time. Romania has demonstrated that it is able to join the EU on the 1st of January 2007 , on the basis of the efforts which we have demonstrated so far. I tell it with the same determination with which I promised last year in Parliament that Romania would make all necessary progress to remove the safeguard clauses and it will recover the delays. We kept that promise; the same way we will proceed now.
I want to clarify that conditioning introduced by the European Commission. It is not about a new safeguard clause in any way, but about the Commission's preoccupation for Romania not to slow down the pace of reform measures implementation further to the announcement of the accession date. There were precedents in the past, including among the 10 states that joined the EU in 2004, which determined the Commission to take this preventive measure. I told yesterday that the Romanian saying “if you burn with soup, you start blowing also in yogurt” was extremely valid and unfortunately, we had to bear the consequences. If in Europe , the general political context had been less pessimistic on the European enlargement, then, probably even these precautions would not have existed.
Deputies and Senators,
The European Commission Report scans accurately Romania 's European integration process in this moment. It is a Romania that undergoes a full transformation process as compared to the same country a year and a half ago. We regained our credibility in front of the European partners. We bridged a good part of the gaps between us and the other European states. We have created the premises to develop further on.
The Report points out the role of integration reforms engine which the Government has played over this period. I am indebted to tell it before you, because the Parliament invested me with the Prime Minister position and it mandated through its vote the Government to transform Romania into a EU member state as of 2007. Nevertheless, we could not have achieved anything of these things without the MPs' support and the efforts, the central and local administration and the civil society.
We have not reached the end of the road! The 16 May Report of the Commission represents only the finalization of a stage: we passed a very important test in the accession preparations process, in order to join the EU in 2007. But the integration project will not finish on the 1st of January 2007 . We will start now a new stage. It is a maturity stage from many points of view, which I want to detail further on.
First of all, it will be a maturity test for Romania to continue the reforms it has started and the assimilation of the European standards.
It would be a mistake to consider these commitments as some external conditionings, imposed by Brussels , which we can overlook. The illusion” things can run this way too” – the well known Romanian expression has nothing to do with the integration process.
Otherwise, we can never be like France , Germany , Great Britain or other EU member states. The reforms achieved for integration are in fact the reforms which we need for Romania 's modernization, and the way we told before, not only because they would be requested by our European partners.
It is vital for us as Romanians to observe the human fundamental rights and freedoms; to have an independent and efficient judiciary. It is in our national interest to limit the corruption for it to be only the exception and not the rule, in order to have a genuine rule of law.
If we strictly fulfill the functional market economy criteria, we will get out of poverty and we will create welfare for all Romanians.
Secondly, we do not have to deceive ourselves that on the 1st of January 2007 , all problems will be solved. Whoever fancies that Romania will transform overnight, as the Cinderella in princess, is obviously wrong!
We still have work to do until completely function according to the European procedures and the living standards to reach the average of the Western countries! I remarked as you as well that the public debate gravitates towards the date of 1st January 2007 . The way I have shown, for the Cabinet, this date is related to a road stage.
The Government sees beyond this day and it has taken the necessary measures in due time for Romania to continue its development with fluency further to accession.
We have taken action at two levels. At the same time with the integration measures, we have started ample reforms in key fields for the daily life of Romanians. We enforced the tax reform by the introduction of the 16% flat tax and the CAS reduction. This led to new jobs, increasing revenues and greater investments.
Last year, Romania benefited of over 5, 2 billions EUR foreign investments. Besides money, it is noteworthy the organizational culture which the foreign investors brings to Romania and which represents a modernization factor of the Romanian economy.
We have started the agricultural sector reform in order to transform the subsistence agriculture, characteristic unfortunately for Romania into a modern agriculture, source of welfare.
We have started a profound reform of the sanitary system, which will put the medical services at the contributor's disposal.
We have started the education reform, which will contribute to the new generation training according to the European values.
Surely, all these reforms will not be finalized until the 1st of January 2007 and they will continue further to this date too. But, until then, they will have produced their first effects, approaching the Romanian living standards to the European standards and they will provide internal development directions further to 2007.
The Romanian citizens feel very strongly the differences separating us from the European states regarding the living standards. For the Romanian Government, the rise of the living standards represented a major priority. But we have acted in a responsible way, exactly because we looked in perspective and we did not block at the date of the 1st of January 2007 . This is why; we followed a healthy growth of incomes, sustained by economy, with the preservation of all macroeconomic equilibriums. We preferred to encourage the investments and the labor market development in order to create more and better paid jobs.
In 2005, the average gross salary rose to 9.670.000 ROL from 8.180.000. It is about a 20% increment in the first governance year, in the conditions in which we committed through the Government Program, approved by the Parliament, to a 60% increment until 2008.
In 2005, we recalculated the pensions, finalizing the process one year earlier than we initially committed. In this way, over 1,6 millions pensioners benefited by an increase of their incomes.
In 2006, the pensions in the state social insurance system and the peasants' pensions rose by 15, 3% in real terms, as compared to December 2004. In the Government Program, we committed to a 30% increment of the pensions in real terms by the end of 2008.
The pensions will continue to rise this year too, and as you know the Government has taken the decision to precede with three months the growth of the value of the pension point initially scheduled for 2007.
Besides these reforms and measures undertaken through the Government Program, there is also a floor on which we have acted with priority to settle clear development directions further to the 1st of January 2007 : it is about the EU funds absorption.
On 2007 – 2013, Romania will benefit of structural and cohesion funds amounting to over 29 billions EUR. According to recent estimations, the funds will probably reach 32 – 33 billions EUR. This money represents a huge development opportunity for Romania .
The Government has built institutions to manage and monitor the use of these funds. I have started hiring and professionalizing the related field personnel.
Alike you, I am preoccupied the EU funds to be efficiently used and I take action in this respect. It would be a trap to believe that the access of the European funds is exclusively related to Government.
It is necessary for the initiative for the projects' elaboration and the funds management to manifest first of all at local level, not only at central level. The local administration knows better the citizens' needs and it can unfold projects to answer those needs.
The projects for the urban and rural modernization and development should concentrate the energies on essential directions, namely: the development of public utilities, the improvement of business environment in local communities for investments' attraction, rise of the living standards and conditions.
I want to announce you on this occasion that I have decided to organize a consultative meeting, with the participation of all parliamentary parties, local administration, civil society, social partners, trade unions, employers, academic milieu in order to reach a consensus on the strategic directions related to the use of the structural and cohesion funds.
We prepared a set of proposals for the assurance of a high level of absorption further to accession, which I will submit to public debate. I invite all political parties to accept this proposal and meet to find the best and efficient solutions for the benefit of our citizens. We very well know the role which the local administrations play and taking into account that at the level of local administration, the majorities are set up either on the basis of the governmental coalition, or the parties that are today in opposition, it seems essential to me for the local administration to participate in this effort, taking into account that an important percentage of these funds will be awarded for its benefit.
Obviously, these funds will help us assure a sustained pace in the modernization and European integration process. Besides the internal reforms, we will have to prove that we integrate; we are able to implement the joint European policies as any other member state. I am convinced that Romania will leave the periphery of Europe , but it has the duty to demonstrate that it can function inside the system.
The advantage is that inside the European Union, the modernization process will accelerate and the gaps can be rapidly bridged.
For the modernization process to continue at the same pace as so far, we need more than political will and professional capacity. I appeal to political responsibility, both at the power and opposition level for us to concentrate on the fulfillment of the measures necessary to Romania 's EU successful integration.
We are in a historic moment for Romania , there is neither the time, nor the momentum for backstage games. It is essential for the accession and integration preparation to continue in an internal political and social stability climate, in which the Government actions to be supported by the Parliament, the all political forces, the civil society.
Distinguished colleagues,
Secondly, I tell you that we enter a maturity stage, because I take into account the role Romania plays in the European future construction.
My conviction is that we, the Romanians will have an important word to say in the EU shaping. We recently escaped the totalitarian prison and we cannot forget what an impoverished life, deprived of freedom means.
We value freedom and prosperity at their real value, and this makes us capitalize differently the European project, to trust the chances which the European Union provides to its citizens. We have a huge motivation to bring our contribution for the European Union to get out of this prolonged reflection period further to the failures of the referenda on the European Treaty of France and Netherlands and to re-launch successfully the European project. I want Romania to bring an important contribution in this respect.
In his statement of May 9th 1950 , Robert Schuman said” Europe will not be made all of a sudden, or according to a single plan. It will be built through concrete achievements which will first generate a de facto solidarity”. And perhaps, we are now in such a situation.
In a Europe full of question marks, Robert Schuman's words are as valid as never. From Romania's perspective, the EU accession and the huge support which the member countries and the Union has provided us represents what Schuman called “a concrete achievement' which creates a “de facto solidarity”. Romania will act with energy, loyalty and solidarity inside the European Union!
We have people capable to uphold and fight for the European values. In Brussels , I met Romanian students and graduates who can involve in the construction of the European future. We have leaders able to promote the European policies! They are modern thinking people, ready for work. It is the young generation who has already contributed to the renewal of the state structures and who affirmed in the civil society.
A concrete proof in this respect is the contribution which Romania already makes to the development of the South – East European region, according to the EU policy. On April 6th, Bucharest has hosted the regional summit which validated CEFTA enlargement and its transformation into a free trade agreement in the South – East Europe .
It was the Romanian Government's initiative which was translated into practice with the support of the Stability Pact and which allows the fulfillment of some EU concrete objectives of foreign policy. Thus, we connect the whole region, including the Republic of Moldova to the EU's rhythms and rules.
Distinguished MPs,
On this new stage, we have to re-think ourselves in order to establish what type of society we will be inside the EU space.
The European standards shape our future from the outside. The values system according to which we choose to live our daily life will shape our future from inside.
The great challenge for Romania is to build a system of genuine European values. The communism destructed our elites and it undermined our values. The Romanian society has been in search of some benchmarks for 16 years.
The European project provides us a support in this respect. But if we do not undertake the fundamental values which lay at the basis of the united Europe , we have no chance to evolve within the system.
Each of us, regardless of age and social situation wants to have a chance to fulfill his life. It is time for the Romanian society to provide this chance to Romanians.
I propose you to replace the holding up to ridicule with the recognition of the value of each human being. The respect for individual should not limit only to the fundamental human rights and freedoms. Each Romanian has his value and qualities.
We need to learn to recognize and cultivate them for each Romanian to be able to fulfill in Romania and thus, to contribute to the society's development. We are not all alike and we should not be! There are worthy people here, who succeed in distinguishing themselves abroad. Why not do it here? This depends on us.
A maturity fact is the learning of solidarity and civic spirit. A helpful hand to a man in need and the confidence in one's fellows represent the antidote for the so dangerous division. We have a duty towards our fellows the way they have towards us.
I often heard people who traveled in Europe , speaking with consideration about the way law is observed and the positive effects of this behavior. Why do you like it and would not be better to make it possible in our country too?
I have been many times asked about the possible negative consequences of EU accession. It is high time now to very clearly state: there will be no negative consequences further to accession; there will be no characteristic, systemic elements. I have discussed with my counterparts of the countries that joined the EU and none of them said something characteristic negative which happened in their country.
If a citizen asks me about my expectations further to accession, I will very clearly say: I expect a very serious thing. Romanians will have to understand that law should be observed, not avoided. It is one of the fundamental things which, in a sense, represent a certain constraint for us all: ordinary citizens or political leaders. Law will have to be observed and enforced.
Unfortunately, we too often think the respect for law and rules in terms of coercion, and the defense mechanism which automatically starts is the one to disobey law. We need to transform the respect for law into a fundamental value which regulates the relations among citizens. Then, there will be order here as in any other European country, and the energy which we waste might be invested in a much profitable way.
The examples can continue, but we entered in a much too generous debate. Nevertheless, I could not conclude without referring to free initiative. I do not do it only because I am a liberal, and for us, the liberals, this is a fundamental value and I believe it should become a fundamental value for all the Romanians. I do it, because the initiative spirit is the solution through which each of us can build the life he wants.
A European Romania provides multiple opportunities to people: study, career, development with EU funds opportunities. We have to have the initiative to set out and especially to carry out the things.
One thing the European Romania does not offer: a card to connect the citizens' destinies to a paternalistic state. And this is a very good thing. We have to convince our citizens about the benefits and possibilities they have in the European Union.
Senators and deputies,
I would like to thank the Ministers for their sustained work before you too, the way I did it on the Cabinet meeting.
I have never considered that a Minister is responsible only for a particular field. I perceived the Government as a united team.
I remember the understanding the Ministers have shown when the funds necessary to accession were awarded, at a given moment; each one gave up at something in favor of other priority fields;
Romania could not recover the delays if the Government acted in an isolated manner. You, the MPs have contributed to this progress through the support you provided to the EU legislation and I particularly thank you all. A special contribution which I appreciate is brought by the Euro – observers of the European Parliament.
We are aware of these aspects and we recognize including what the former Governments achieved for the integration success and I do not believe that it is useful to promote a competition among parties for what some might call “the European trophy”.
To an equal extent, I thank all state institutions who involved in this effort, as well the civil society who helped us keep the right path to Europe , through the permanent monitoring and the proposals made.
Above all, there are the Romanian citizens. For them, we make all these efforts. They gave us the mandate to bring them to the European Union. We thank them for the support they provide us and we assure them that we honor this mandate.
Distinguished colleagues,
We have the duty to submit to the public attention a vision project for Romania further to the EU accession.
It is time to think what we will do further to the 1st of January 2007 .
The Government that I am leading has prepared a development model for Romania as EU member state. The National Development Plan is built on two strategic and complementary directions. We develop the (transport, environment, energy, etc) infrastructure in an accelerated way in order to create the welfare's material conditions. The developed infrastructure attracts investments, it contributes to the business expansion, it assures an easier access to resources and services, consequently, it creates jobs and it improves the living standards.
The second strategic direction is the investment in people. According to the Lisbon Agenda, we aim at increasing the financing for education, professional training, research and development, public health.
Even if this year, we have concentrated mainly on integration, we awarded increased resources for education and research too. This policy will continue over the following years too.
This development model will allow Romania capitalize the unique opportunity provided by the European integration to become a success in the area: a dignified, respected country that will play a role in Europe , according to its potential.
Unfortunately, we got accustomed to thinking at a small scale: that we are poor, weak, underdeveloped, and somebody pays attention to us, only when he has an interest. These are only negative thinking stereotypes which we have about ourselves and others which hinder any ambitious and visionary initiative!
I propose Romania to get out of these mean clichés.
I request you to pay a moment of attention to an aspect which I remembered while pondering on what might represent Romania 's future. I have re-read a book read in my youth and which refers to the period when de Gaulle crossed the long period of dessert. In the memoirs of war, there is a very interesting fragment, of reference, called “A certain idea about France ”. Allow me to read this paragraph which is very interesting and instructive for us all.
"Toute ma vie, je me suis fait une certaine idée de la France. Le sentiment me l'inspire aussi bien que la raison. Ce qu'il y a en moi d'affectif imagine naturellement la France, telle la princesse des contes ou la madone aux fresques des murs, comme vouée à une destinée éminente et exceptionnelle. J'ai d'instinct l'impression que la Providence l'a créée pour des succès achevés ou des malheurs exemplaires. S'il advient que la médiocrité marque, pourtant, ses faits et gestes, j'en éprouve la sensation d'une absurde anomalie, imputable aux fautes des Français, non au génie de la patrie. Mais aussi, le côté positif de mon esprit me convainc que la France n'est réellement elle-même qu'au premier rang : que seules de vastes entreprises sont susceptibles de compenser les ferments de dispersion que son peuple porte en lui-même ; que notre pays tel qu'il est, parmi les autres, tels qu'ils sont, doit, sous peine de danger mortel, viser haut et se tenir droit. Bref, à mon sens, la France ne peut être la France sans grandeur."
It is a very interesting message which I believe we could take into seriousness and to ponder on Romania 's destiny. Nothing would prevent us for Romania to have a similar vision, a vision according to the capacity of the people living in this country.
I believe we all deserve this. Consequently, I propose to ponder on this theme, and to draft other strategy for future, other vision for Romania than the one which have been characteristic so far.
From these perspectives, we need two things: far reaching projects and the re-creation of some genuine elites.
It is high time for the Romanian society to recreate its elites, starting from solid criteria: respect for fellows, law, work, honesty and genuine values. With academic, cultural, technical scientific, political, rural elites on the first line of the society, the project of modern Romania will gain dynamism and it will become reality.
A few days ago, somebody asked me: are there rural elites in Romania ? Yes, there are. In Romania , the peasants who had a certain wealth represented the rural elite in the villages. The teachers, school masters, priests, notaries represented rural elites who can give a certain direction to the Romanian village and we need these elites in various areas so that Romania may have certain elements to push it forward.
I believe it is high time for us to rally our energies in order to transpose national projects which can unite us to life. Romanians separated too often in division.
Division makes us play small games! It keeps us in the backstage! I want Romania to come to light and prove what it can achieve! I am convinced that you will understand the essence of this message!
Thank you.
|