European Parliament
Ribeiro e Castro (UEN ).
(PT)
Mr President, I had asked to take the floor before Mr McDowell spoke on the Council’s behalf, as I would like to ask him to clarify his position with regard to a prominent subject in today’s debate, namely the idea that the next parliamentary term should also be opened with a Tampere II, and, accordingly, with a reaction, a counterbalance on the part of the Council. I gather from his response that he is also in favour of this suggestion, to which the Commissioner immediately agreed. I agree with the presidency that the Irish Presidency’s priority until the end of this parliamentary term is to resolve as many outstanding issues as possible. I endorse and support this clear priority, but it would also be valuable if the presidency and the Council could give a clear signal to the next presidency, namely the Luxembourg Presidency, that Tampere II is in a position to go ahead. I should therefore be interested to know, as far as possible, what Mr McDowell’s exact thoughts are on the matter.

