Andreea Pocotila
British Ambassador to Romania Robert
Barnett yesterday said during a business breakfast organized by the
Romanian-British Chamber of Commerce that Romania's main challenge after EU
accession will be the absorption of EU funds.
The way European
funds are used after January 1, 2007 should be high on Romania's list of
concerns, as the experience of other states that joined the EU in the past
showed that this is a very dangerous topic, said Barnett.
"What is
important, in my point of view, is what happens after the accession, after the
party and the hangover. The reality is that there will be even bigger challenges
facing Romania as an EU member state," Barnett pointed out.
The ambassador
said no EU member state has managed to spend all EU funds allocated after the
accession and some have struggled to spend 50 percent.
"That is not a
reflection of any lack of competence. It reflects the very real difficulty of
actually spending huge sums of money well," he said.
Moreover, he underlined
that Romanians should understand that EU membership is not a panacea.
"It
will bring important benefits, but they will not happen overnight," Barnett
said.
Barnett assured the dozens of Romanian and foreign investors present
at the meeting of the United Kingdom's continuous efforts to help Romania become
a fully functional member of the Union and said there will be plenty of areas
for a strong practical partnership between the two countries once Romania
becomes an EU member.
Barnett said Romania is moving fast both economically
and politically, but pointed out it still needs to focus on challenges such as
infrastructure and rural development in order for EU accession to be a success.
"It is clear that Romania is moving fast in a very positive direction. ...
Economically, things are moving in the right direction. Politically, things are
clearly moving in the right direction," said the ambassador during his speech on
the impact of the EU accession on Romanian-British relations.
"Overall, I
have to say that, in my view, it is very difficult not to be something of an
optimist about the future of Romania," Barnett said, adding that the number of
talented and well-educated young people in Romania is a reassurance that this
country will find its way towards success.
Barnett also tackled the rather
delicate issue regarding the fears of mass immigration from Romania to the UK if
the latter decides to open the labor market.
"No decision has actually been
taken on free movement of workers in respect of Romania and Bulgaria. Whatever
you might read in the press, the reality is that that process will continue," he
said, explaining the UK is waiting for next week's European Commission progress
report.
The British government's decision on whether to allow free movement
of workers from the new EU entries will take into consideration a wide range of
factors, such as the state of the UK labor market, the impact of the last
accession wave on the UK labor market and decisions made by other member states,
Barnett said.
"In short, it is a decision very much based around economic
factors. The press here has picked up a wide range of articles from the UK
press. To be quite frank, some of them have been quite emotive. But I think this
should not come as a great surprise to anybody. The topic of immigration is an
emotive topic all across Europe," Barnett pointed out.
In respect to the UK
visa regime for Romania, the ambassador said a decision will be made before the
EU accession and underlined the success of the embassy's new online application
system.
"I am very pleased to say that the queues have now largely
disappeared," he said.
The ambassador said he feels the whole debate about
Anglo-Romanian relations has been stimulated by the single issue of
immigration.
"The reality is that we have incredibly close links with Romania
across the globe," he said, adding that the two states have worked together
against the war on terror.
"British and Romanian troops are working together
to help rebuild Afghanistan and Iraq as we speak. In NATO, we are extremely
close partners," he added.
He expressed his belief that this
very pragmatic partnership will be continued once Romania joins the European
Union.
"Will Britain and Romania have a lot in common inside the EU? It is
very much my firm belief that we will have a great deal in common. First and
foremost, Romania and the UK share a common interest in free markets and on a
huge range of economic dossiers Romania and the UK will be natural partners. ...
There will be plenty of areas for a strong practical partnership," he pointed
out.
UK assistance for the Romanian judicial system
A team of four senior UK judges are carrying out a
visit to Bucharest to pursue the issue of judicial reform in Romania. Sir
Anthony Coleman, a judge in the High Court of Justice in London, who is part of
the team, spoke yesterday at the business breakfast about UK assistance given to
the Romanian judicial system, especially on commercial law.
"We'll be
looking at the way in which justice can be provided more speedily and more cost
effectively," Justice Coleman said.
One of the visit's purposes is to
investigate the state of preparedness of the Romanian judges for joining the
European Union.
"To be a commercial judge in a European country now involves
the need for a very significant knowledge of certain aspects of the EU law,
particularly on the law relating to the jurisdiction of different countries in
particular disputes," Justice Coleman said.
Justice Coleman has been
involved in assisting former communist countries in Central and Eastern Europe
in making their judicial systems more compatible with the needs of modern trade
and international commerce.
The senior judge pointed out that problems will
not be solved only if matters such as procedure, rules of practice and
legislative organization are tackled.
"This is a matter of judicial
psychology. One of the most important functions which the EU judges can have is
to assist judges in the relatively new democracies in the development of the
right judicial psychology for the management of commercial and other disputes
and to enable them to distinguish between the determination to achieve, on the
one hand, judicial independence, and on the other hand the administration of
justice in a way in which it assists its people," Justice Coleman explained.
He pointed out that the information gathered by the team of judges will be
included in a report that will be given to both the UK and the Romanian
governments and will be the basis of a decision on whether Britain will continue
its judicial training in Romania.
Copyright © 2004-2006 Bucharest Daily News
An aristocratic title is not enough to ensure a noble behaviour. A person's greatness comes from acknowledging the mistakes and agreeing to correct them.
"When the power of love overcomes the love of power, the world will know peace." (Jimi Hendrix)
*** sustineti [romania_eu_list] prin 2% din impozitul pe 2005 - detalii la http://www.doilasuta.ro ***
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