Parliamentary Assembly

Mr Faymann, Chancellor of the Federal Republic of Austria (interpretation)

The financial transaction tax could be very valuable in supporting measures that help us achieve better education and create more employment for young people, because educational institutions cost money. Therefore, this financial transaction tax seems a very good example of where we in Europe can take action and ensure that the financial sector plays its part. As you know, a number of countries both inside and outside the European Union do not share this conviction because in their opinion it could lead to competitive disadvantages.

In questions of democracy, the rule of law and freedom, when it comes to our environmental policy – when it comes to our values – we in Europe cannot simply take our cue from competition and what might hinder competition. It is more than just a question of that. It is important that we stand up for our values. A financial transaction tax could indeed make the right contribution and it should be introduced in as many European countries as possible in order to support this funding. Many legal concerns have been expressed, most of which the European Commission has dispelled. If we want this approach – if it is important to us because we think it makes a contribution to overcoming the crisis – it should be introduced at least in the 11 countries that are interested, to serve as a model in this common Europe.

Mr Faymann, Chancellor of the Federal Republic of Austria (interpretation)

Austria is not the only country that is seeing an increase in the numbers concerned, but Austria is one of the countries that receive a lot of applications, which it has to administer. If people are entitled to asylum, their asylum rights will be safeguarded. As a general answer to your question, we need to look towards the European Union because the European Union has a responsibility as well. We need to ensure that there is a distribution of quotas when it comes to asylum seekers. It is important that we remember the plight of individual countries – I am not referring to Germany or Austria per se but countries such as Malta or other countries in the southern parts of Europe – and ensure that we have a common responsibility in Europe. It is true that some have done less in the past and we need to ask those stakeholders to show solidarity and move forward on that basis.

You know as well as I do that the right to asylum is intricately linked to the issue of human rights and, therefore, to the whole issue of humanity and the kind of contribution that we can make. The best policy would be to ensure that people are not forced to flee, to become refugees – I think we agree on that. Having said that, unfortunately we cannot promise a world such as that for tomorrow – a perfect, fair world where everything would be absolutely all right, so that people did not have to flee their home countries. We cannot promise that so therefore we must look at our asylum procedures and the way in which we handle this issue, and come up with common European solutions.

Turning to the specific question of asylum procedures for Syrian refugees, at the end of August 2013 Austria said that we would be prepared to accept 500 Syrian refugees, in addition to previous numbers, because of the crisis in the country. We would also be helping out the neighbouring countries of Syria and giving them permanent protection. We are talking about 250 people. With family reunion, 170 have already arrived in Austria, and we intend to complete that procedure within the next few weeks: 250 for humanitarian assistance programmes, together with the UNHCR. All this is being implemented. Since the beginning of this month especially, we have been pulling out all the stops to ensure that the process can be completed over the next few months. I am convinced that this is a common task for us, which we should all take seriously.

Mr Faymann, Chancellor of the Federal Republic of Austria (interpretation)

Austria and the European Union call on both sides in Ukraine to stop the violence; we are convinced that solutions can come only through dialogue. At the same time, we – the international community in Europe – should clearly signal that we support those who uphold human rights and want the rule of law and democracy in Ukraine. I do not think that the situation is mutually exclusive. The European Union could intervene in a positive rather than a negative way and show Ukrainians that the values in our countries support those in other countries who want to implement them. I welcome all the efforts of the Council of Europe and the Secretary General, who, in playing a go-between role, has made an important contribution. Support for dialogue, even for those who want a rapprochement with the European Union, is the right way forward and fully justified. Many in Ukraine are looking closely at the situation and trusting that Europe, with its humanitarian values, will support them.

Mr Faymann, Chancellor of the Federal Republic of Austria (interpretation)

Our common fight for human rights, common approach to freedom of expression and common efforts to combat discrimination are the strongest arguments against all forms of incitement to hatred. Certain economic preconditions exist and I should emphasise that people who incite such hatred can best be dissuaded by being attracted away with decent employment and living conditions. We need certain social standards and employment, which helps remove what would otherwise give rise to such attitudes. It is important that hatred should not determine political discourse or the outcome of an election; the opposite should be the case. We should ensure a basic consensus about our values in an election, and that can come only if we link social and other standards. That linkage is so important because in many European countries young people are disappointed by society. They become easy prey to the false images of “others”, as they see no place for themselves in society.

In the past, we talked about the reconciliation of opposites, but now there are economic pressures, which are important, as are social standards in this common approach. The answer lies in trying to reconcile the two in the fight against racism and those who try to achieve political change out of hatred.

Mr Faymann, Chancellor of the Federal Republic of Austria (interpretation)

We have always taken the European Social Charter very seriously. Social standards have always been at the forefront of our international and domestic policies. We are calling and hoping for that accession. I have talked to the President about the possibility of moving closer together on these matters, involving both the European Union and the Council of Europe. That is one of our primary concerns. We have to face social issues together for the future.

Mr Faymann, Chancellor of the Federal Republic of Austria (interpretation)

As I have said, I am convinced that Ukraine, the European Union and the European Council can all make a considerable contribution to finding a solution without any violence. The country should decide for itself which direction it wishes to go in, to whom it wishes to grow closer, and what types of relations it wants to have with the European Union. These decisions should be taken exclusively by the country concerned. Everyone should be entitled to autonomy when taking these decisions. That is part of the values we advocate. It is part of the rule of law and the way a country deals with those who think differently. We must be more active on that.

As to whether we should impose sanctions, that too is a matter for common policy. It is also a matter for the rule of law. It would be strange if we were to advocate sanctions against one country at this stage. I therefore prefer the way we have progressed so far, which is through negotiations and discussions. We can only find solutions by talking together, while always advocating respect for the rule of law and the independence of countries.

The question of asylum was raised. I thank Mr Gozi for asking about it. I could mention Malta, Lampedusa or other examples of places to which people have fled because they were persecuted for political reasons or lived in apprehension of not having enough to survive on. Many of them come to places such as those on the sea, perhaps. The European Union and our continent as a community must understand that we need to protect them. We must protect not only our external borders but individuals, their human rights and our common values.

I mentioned the issue of quotas. One cannot expect the countries of immediate reception to bear this burden alone. That applies to Lampedusa, Malta and other places. We need to continue to discuss these things in the Council. I know your Prime Minister is rightly committed to this and sees it as a European task. You Italian politicians are right. I can tell you that Austria is also concerned that asylum matters must not be left to individual countries to deal with as best they can. We need to strive for common directives and common solidarity. There is an urgent need for that.

Political acceptance and participation and direct democracy have a lot to do with economic and social conditions. Those who are particularly irritated by unjust speculation on the price of food or many other areas, which is to the disadvantage of our citizens and to the benefit of a tiny minority, or those who are irritated by tax fraud or other forms of criminal behaviour, often think that the government is responsible and we who govern bear the responsibility. We have to be honest and say that we can only solve many of these problems by taking joint action and adopting joint social standards in combating fraud together. It is difficult to explain to young people today why some people in society earned splendidly before, during and after the economic crisis and why there are still not sufficiently tight rules to end speculation. We need to continue to do everything we can to show that democracy is working and that elected representatives are taking their duties seriously. That is an important contribution to ensuring the acceptance of established democracy. We can never talk too much about acceptance of democracy. Too many people have taken the crisis as an opportunity to criticise the system. We must understand that, and counter the disappointment by redoubling our efforts and ensuring we co-operate.

Mr Faymann, Chancellor of the Federal Republic of Austria (interpretation)

Let me first say something about Ukraine and clarify my points with reference to sanctions, common decisions and the rule of law.

Sanctions are not things that one politician can impose; they involve questions about due process and the rule of law. The political co-operation of all European countries – not just member States of the European Union – to support constructive and peaceful solutions in Ukraine should lead to the exploration of every avenue that is felt to be appropriate by the whole European community. You cannot just have maverick or independent solutions, or someone thinking that they have the panacea to the issue. The process must involve a pooling of efforts. When we talk about sanctions, there has to be due process, and the rule of law must apply.

Regarding Iran, particularly its human rights violations, I want to make certain things clear. I welcome any progress coming out of talks, and many States have committed themselves to achieving progress through negotiation. All those parties know that we are far from the end of our efforts. Particularly when we talk about the prevention of nuclear proliferation, it is necessary for the international community to come out with a clear voice in favour of human rights and against the death penalty. We welcome such efforts, but it is important that we do not overestimate them. I believe that we have a common line on that.

On the quality of education and language skills, migrant integration must take into account the needs of children growing up in the host country to ensure that they have the necessary language skills. There are different ways of achieving that and of ensuring good-quality language education in schools.

Austria is investing a great deal in that. Our foreign ministry used to cover that area, and it was active in ensuring that people could participate in a society. Language skills are particularly important. They require policies not just in schools but in further education. We must not underestimate the need for language skills and must do everything we can to enhance them.

Mr Faymann, Chancellor of the Federal Republic of Austria (interpretation)

As I am sure you are aware, we have just one standard, which is to be applied in the same way each and every time. I am sure that many issues were clarified in the talks that took place between Lithuania and Austria. We had a common ministerial statement on 23 September 2011, which was an opportunity to clear up any differences that may have existed regarding the matter.

Syria has been mentioned many times. I do not need to say to you how hard it has been for the European Union to try to defend its stance. We are talking about terrible social and human conditions, about human beings, and about children in Syria being affected. Many organisations have drawn our attention to the plight in Syria. In the circumstances, how can we make more of a contribution? A lot of help has already been provided; I will not draw up a list of what has been done – for how many refugees, by whom, how much money the European Union has spent; and how much it has yet to spend. I do not want to talk about statistics and overwhelm you with them. I would simply say that I share your concerns.

The talks, whose purpose is to find a peaceful solution in Syria, are unfortunately stalling; they are going forward, but very slowly. As far as I am concerned, the only answer I can provide is this: the Council of Europe and the European Union need to get on board the process and do their part. Such efforts are necessary because we need to reduce human suffering.

We can also act as mediators. Mr Beneyto talked about Austria’s role and asked whether we could play a more active role. I thank him for mentioning that, because Bruno Kreisky played an important role in the Near East when he was in power. However, it was done with the international community of States.

Developing closer relations within Europe is important, particularly involving institutions such as the Council of Europe and the European Union. That rapprochement, which we have witnessed not only the past few years but over the past few decades, is a solid basis from which we could help out in Syria, the Near East or other conflict areas, and we can act together.

A common external policy would be quite a challenge. It must be acknowledged that even in the European Union, we do not have a strong common foreign policy to date. However, I believe that that is the direction, and there have been positive steps in that direction. As Federal Chancellor of Austria, I fully support that. Thank you, Madam President, for your positive comments, which I fully support, vis-á-vis our ambassador in Strasbourg.

Mr Faymann, Chancellor of the Federal Republic of Austria (interpretation)

Thank you for that question. It was important for me to emphasise in my statement that Eurosceptics and their criticisms appear all the stronger when we are unable to come up with common solutions. It is easier simply to turn something down and reject it. When the community of nations or the European Union fail to solve a problem, they generate problems for themselves, which is not very constructive. If it is worthwhile to build Europe and if we wish to continue that positive process, we must ensure, regardless of which ideological direction we come from, that the banking union, which is so important, the rulings on the financial market and the rescue plans we have created are not the end of the story. We must go much further and solve many other problems of a social nature.

It was so important to emphasise that, because in an address of 15 or 20 minutes not all the issues can be touched on, but it was important for me to focus on those few aspects, because I am convinced that it is important to the people of Europe that we show the link between our current economic and social solutions. We must concentrate on those and not simply stop at our supervisory mechanisms on banks and the financial sector. We need to develop the social aspect of Europe. As was shown in the 1930s, it is not enough simply to protect certain things, for example, by ensuring that a bank which might be relevant to a whole sector does not collapse. We need to go beyond such action. We must show that we need to tackle seriously this massive youth unemployment, the average length of which increases every year.

As for Liechtenstein and shale gas, in our discussions in Austria we are sceptical about the extraction of shale gas. We say that we have to assess the suitability of the location, and that the technological prerequisites and other aspects have yet to be fulfilled. We need to think about the potential effects on the water table, and the technology is not yet right. As is so often the case when dealing with technology, two potential approaches are available. Some say that the preconditions will never exist, whereas others say that it is a question of how much we invest in research and development to ensure that the economic prerequisites are met. Europe is in an awkward situation on energy policy, because we need to maintain Europe as an attractive place in which to manufacture and energy plays a key role in that. That raises the important question of whether we will be able to exploit shale gas – whether we can use it – in an environmentally friendly way. At the moment, at least in the locations we have looked into, our immediate answer is that we cannot; this technology is not yet ready and the time is not yet ripe. There is a pressing need to find alternative, affordable sources of energy, but we also need to think about the technology we will be using and the technology for shale gas is not yet ready.

I should like to thank all those who put questions to me and the Bureau. I also thank you, Madam President, for this very constructive discussion and for having the opportunity to address you.