Liadh for President
Liadh for President

We need a ‘New Deal’ for EU citizens not the failed Junker plan

Sinn Féin MEP for Ireland South, Liadh Ní Riada, has said that the Juncker Plan remains fundamentally flawed and that a ‘New Deal’ is needed for the people of the EU.

Ní Riada, who is the GUE/NGL shadow rapporteur on the budget elements of the plan, made the comments following key European Parliament committee votes on Juncker’s plan for a European Fund for Strategic Investment (EFSI).

She said;

“The Juncker Plan remains fundamentally flawed despite the modest improvements secured by Parliament.

“There is a level of liquidity in the financial markets which could easily be redirected toward funding a genuine public investment programme with would produce a far better return for society.

“This could be led by the EIB with backing from the ECB as well as by member state governments, if they were to scrap the straightjacket that is the fiscal compact.

“Instead the EFSI creates a profit-guarantee scheme for private institutional investors, at the cost of taxpayers.

“We are looking for a New Deal for the people of the European Union.

“This means providing an additional 500 billion euros public for investment annually over ten years to kick-start the economy and bring an end to the economic and social crisis.”

“We need smart investment to revive the economy, to enable a social sustainable green economy. Investment in research, infrastructure, education, SMEs, social enterprises, and cooperatives is needed to propel us out of this crisis.

“What we need is a ‘true public investment plan’ for Europe. One which invests in the people and not one that is essentially creating another financial bubble. The ordinary taxpayer should not be paying for private profiteers.”

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