Published on May 14, 2009

We need more Europe

Less than 6 months before the European elections, EuroparlTV interviews Joseph Daul (EPP-ED). The president of the main political party in Parliament goes over the main points of their campaign.

Length: 8 minutes

Joseph Daul, hello and welcome to Europarl TV. You are a French MEP, but you are also the Chairmain of the European People’s Party, the largest group in the European Parliament. We are about six months away from the European elections. The countdown has started. What are the EPP’s main priorities in these elections?

The main priorities are the main European dossiers, current dossiers, I imagine we’ll come back to the monetary crisis, and also dossiers for the future, climate and energy, which must be implemented. Secondly, we have a problem with European defence. I think that the arrival of Obama in the United States will raise the question. In his Berlin speech he said that the US would work harder for world peace but Europe must be more active. That means that we need to have a greater physical presence. And, as I say, the purpose of the European Force is not to make war but to keep peace in the world in the current climate.

Another priority close to your heart concerns European security, border security and security within Europe. What practical proposals will you put forward for Europeans?

During the French Presidency we’ve already worked on immigration, so... I think that on all the dossiers... Today we have the energy crisis. On all the dossiers we must have much greater cooperation. We can’t carry on working with bilateral agreements. We need to find European solutions. For example, we should have a European gas contract with Russia and not a bilateral contract. We’ve seen what happens. The second point is that we need to build the social market economy. Those are the real values of Europe.

So, on social issues, since you mention it, what will you propose? The socialists will come along with a very full manifesto. Have you fixed yours in the EPP? Do you know your direction, what you don’t want and what you do want to do?

We’re in the process of drawing up the EPP manifesto with our party. We will unveil the first part of it on 17 March, so we’re meeting with the working groups, and the full manifesto will come in April at the EPP congress in Warsaw where we will present our manifesto. I think that to achieve this European social policy that we must move towards, we should first make the comparisons and explain, in the electoral campaign, the real social policies in each country and how we can start to harmonise them even more than they are today.

Explain to people what you can do and what you can’t do.

For example, the 35-hour week in France causes us problems. We have discussed the 65-hour working week in Europe. It’s an improvement for Europe to some countries and it’s incomprehensible to other countries that have 35- to 39-hour weeks. I think we should talk about these harmonisations and do them. Another example, the retirement age. In some countries you can retire before 60, nearly, in France, 60, 65, 67 years old. We must look at this issue and discuss it. Another dossier that we must not forget is the financing of Europe which will come in 2010-2011. There’s also the reform of agricultural policy, which is a real European policy. All these dossiers will come in the next parliamentary term.

Will those be key issues: the future of the CAP, the European budget? Do you think that the French, and Europeans in general, are aware of all these matters?

Last year, food security in the world. I think people in general are aware of it because it affected their wallet. Energy security. Security full stop, when we see what is going on in the world, terrorism and everything like that, we need security and no country is capable of providing this security on its own. On these big issues we need more from Europe, and on other issues perhaps a little less European legislation.

One big topic that won’t be settled before the European elections is of course the effects of the international financial crisis and the overhaul of global capitalism desired by Europeans. Will you have firm proposals? Has the EPP played the game in this parliamentary term to anticipate this crisis?

We have played the game. As chairman, I have always advocated that we are in favour of a social market economy with a certain freedom. I don’t like the word liberalism. I go back to what my economics teacher taught me. ‘Liberalism’, he explained, ‘is like a football pitch.’ ‘There are rules, a referee, and under the rules may the best side win.’ And I think our society is a bit like that. A bit of freedom, but it needs a framework of rules. We’ve seen what has happened to the global financial system without rules.

You talk about a Europe that protects. That was the message of the French President when he assumed the French Presidency. There was a need to reassure and protect European people more. In 2004, some 200 million European electors did not take part in the vote because they presumably felt distanced from the reality of Europe because they were maybe worried. Five years on, do you think anything has changed?

It has changed a bit, but not fundamentally, if we’re honest. It’s our job that we have to do in the coming months. But even so, food security, energy security, climate and energy, all the debates that have taken place, people have realised that we can do nothing on our own. Against the economic crisis we can do nothing on our own. So we need a Europe that protects us and also protects our values. That was the idea of the fathers of Europe who were in the EPP, Schuman, De Gasperi, Pierre Pflimlin here in Strasbourg.

The reform of global capitalism will include the question of banking secrecy and tax havens. Particularly in Europe, several countries are targeted. President Sarkozy in the French Presidency singled out some countries. What does the EPP have to say on the subject?

We’re in favour of transparency. And I think we should provide transparency. With the means and the operating system we have in Europe, transparency must be the rule for Europe to succeed.

So you’re against banking secrecy?

We need rules on banking secrecy, as I said. So we must see that the rules are applied.

One of the first political acts of the new European Parliament in July after the elections will be to appoint the President of the European Commission. The EPP could put forward one of its champions. Who will it be? We know that Mr José Manuel Barroso, the outgoing President, could be tempted by a second term. Do you support Mr Barroso and, if not, who would be your candidate?

I can tell you that I personally support José Manuel. There’s no doubt about that for me. Secondly, I’m a farmer. First you have to plough the field before you sow and harvest. Let’s wait for the European elections to see if we are still the largest political group.

Joseph Daul, thank you.