Our aims and achievements

Voters at any election have a right to know what they are voting for. The group formed by the European People's Party (EPP) and the European Democrats (ED) in the European Parliament share a programme of political, economic, social and cultural aims covering practically all areas of human activity. They also propose the means by which such aims can be achieved for the benefit and well-being of all European citizens. Those of us who are going to be elected on the PN ticket will sit with this group.

Economic reform and the creation of jobs are at the top of our agenda. It is businesses that generate employment and growth, not the state. To create an entrepreneur-friendly environment, cumbersome red tape has to be reduced and legal obstacles removed.

Our group recognises the importance of the role played by small and medium enterprises in the European economy. Over 99 per cent of companies in the EU are SMEs. We must therefore assist these small business concerns in all possible ways, including providing them with better access to financing and information to promote innovation. At the same time we must offer increased training possibilities to workers and those looking for a job.

Promoting research, knowledge and education is also paramount for us. Our future and that of our children depends on our ability to create new networks for the dissemination of knowledge.

The EPP-ED group gives priority to high-quality education and life-long learning. All citizens must be able to participate fully in the 'knowledge society'. Easy access to learning and training will improve the quality and employability of our workforce.

A lot has already been achieved in this field. The EPP-ED group have succeeded to push through a number of measures aimed at ensuring better education and lifelong training. These include the improvement and better funding of the Socrates programme for young Europeans, the use of information technologies, and the promotion of e-learning, which became an important component of the EU's Lisbon agenda.

As PN candidates in the forthcoming European Parliament elections, we share the EPP-ED's awareness of the importance of language skills in today's world. We want to encourage the young to learn two or more languages, apart from their native tongue, and to study abroad for at least half a year. The need for such a policy and its beneficial effects in the field of tourism - the mainstay of our economy - can hardly be overestimated.

The EPP-ED Group has also made a clear choice in favour of environment protection. It worked hard and successfully to promote effective, credible action by the EU on climate change and air pollution, sustainable development, and providing proper safeguards with respect to food safety. It called for a rapid ratification of the Kyoto Protocol and also played a central role in the process of banning animal testing for cosmetics.

The EPP-ED group is a staunch champion of the citizen's democratic and civil rights. As a driving force in the process leading to the adoption of the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights and the Convention that proposed the future European Constitution, the EEP-ED group has contributed strongly to the formation of a more democratic Europe in which the citizen is at the centre of policy.

The protection of citizens' rights is at the heart of a democratic system based on the rule of law. The Charter of Fundamental Rights provides citizens with additional protection, for instance against their own government. The suggestions made by the EPP-ED Group directly influenced many sections of the Charter, notably on the EU's spiritual and moral heritage, the respect of the diversity and identity of the member states at all levels, and the freedom of parents to choose their children's education.

The PN shares all these aims and principles with the EPP-ED group. As PN candidates for the forthcoming European elections, we look forward to working within that group, in the plenary sessions and especially in the committees, not just as passive spectators but as active participants in the democratic process of decision-making and original contributors to the debate.

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