European Parliament
B6-0027/2006
Kartika Tamara Liotard,
on behalf of the GUE/NGL Group
(NL)
Mr President, in my view, far more attention should be paid to promoting public transport; one alternative, as someone has already suggested, would be an ecotax on the airline industry. Why do airline tickets have to be so cheap? Since flying is in any case generally not an option for people on average incomes, a hefty tax surplus would be a quite appropriate way of benefiting the climate.
In addition, I think it is a real disgrace that the nuclear energy lobby is constantly misusing the problem of climate change in order to get itself back on the map. Where climate change is concerned, attention should first and foremost be paid to really sustainable alternatives. Whilst the conference in Montreal was a minor success, it was not enough – not by a long shot in my view. That is why the EU should send a strong message that it is serious about continuing the fight against climate change.

