madam president as has been highlighted by our colleague mr gauzès some people hate the euro they see it as the root of all evil and they cheer at the prospect of the collapse of the eurozone
but these people are wrong and they live in the past
the current troubles are not caused by the euro on the contrary the euro protects us from even worse
we need the common currency but we also need proper governance of the eurozone loose cooperation on the basis of unanimity is not an option anymore
colleagues we are on a ship with a giant hole in its side it is sink or swim at this moment
but national governments still seem to think that it is enough to set up task forces and working groups and talk about maybe seeking closer cooperation and then again maybe not
the good news is that they seem to be acting more decisively and more quickly in the case of ireland because swift action is needed and very welcome
this is not just about rescuing single countries it is about the credibility of the eurozone
it is about the world testing us
are we willing and able to act
the confidence of the world in the eurozone is essential for the stability of our currency the money in our pockets depends on the confidence that others have in us
so i therefore urge national politicians to stop playing the populist card or indeed publicly tearing up euro notes and instead take ownership and take responsibility for our shared currency
finally a word about the austerity measures
they are much criticised and some people even say that they will damage the economy
of course we have to act with caution but these measures are necessary to sanitise public finance in the long term and are also a sign of solidarity between countries in the eurozone
i think we should talk not only about the expenditure side but also about the revenue side because there too reforms whether of the labour market pensions or social security are necessary and long overdue
