07/05/2008 President
Strasbourg, 07.05.2008 – States ready to boost the finances of the Council of Europe should work together within the Committee of Ministers in order to help it escape the current “zero growth” budgetary impasse, according to the President of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE).
In an address to more than 30 foreign affairs and Europe ministers in Strasbourg today, Lluís Maria de Puig said states had reaffirmed their commitment to the Council and its values at the Warsaw Summit, but that this should be reflected in its budget.
He also called for “harmonious relations” between the Committee of Ministers and the Assembly, declaring that ministers could count on the Assembly’s support in bringing the Council’s values closer to Europe’s citizens, and carrying them to near neighbours in the Mediterranean and Central Asia.
Finally, he called on the Ministers to speed up implementation of the recommendations made by former Luxembourg Prime Minister Jean-Claude Juncker in his report two years ago on relations between the Council of Europe and the EU.
One of his priorities, the President said, was to help make Europe “a more human continent” while staying true to its shared basic principles.
Full text of speech (french only)