26 October 2005
Tony Blair has spoken to the European Parliament in Strasbourg ahead of tomorrow’s informal EU summit in London.
The UK is four months into its six-monthly Presidency of the European Union and Mr Blair wanted to give an update on the progress so far, and set the scene for the remaining period.
He told the MEPs that Europe needed to face the challenge of globalisation, and particular the competition from China and India. It is time to ‘get Europe moving in the right direction’, he said.
The PM said he was still aiming at securing a EU budget deal at the formal summit this December.
In the longer term, Europe should find a new economic direction, deal with terrorism and the problem of illegal immigration, and tackle the environmental challenge.
Mr Blair concluded by saying that Europe ‘had an immense amount to be proud of - but it’s time to show our citizens that the next 50 years can be as good as the last 50.’
Other parts of the speech dealt with energy, defence and future financing.
To coincide with the speech, a series of discussion papers commissioned ‘to help stimulate debate’ have been published.
They cover issues such as migration, a globalisation adjustment fund, and European energy policy - you’ll find the links to the documents below.
Watch the speech again, or read a transcript
- Watch the PM’s speech again in Windows Media (opens in new window)
- Watch the PM’s speech again in Realplayer (opens in new window)
- Read the transcript of the PM’s speech
Discussion papers on major issues
Six papers have been prepared for the UK Presidency, by leading figures and authors in their fields, with a view to stimulating further discussion.
The government does not envisage these papers being discussed at the informal EU summit on 27 October.
The views in these papers are those of the authors, and may not reflect the views of the UK government.
- The Caring Dimension of Europe
- A Flexible Framework for a Plural Europe
- Securing Supplies and Meeting Challenge of Climate Change (PDF file - 125kb)
- Why the Scandinavian Experience is Relevant for Representatives of ESM
- Why We Need a Globalisation Adjustment Fund
- Activating Knowledge
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