madam president i am pleased to be here for parliament's debate on the draft recommendation put forward by ms lulling on the commission's proposal concerning application of the principle of equal treatment between men and women in self-employed activities
our proposal sends a strong signal that we cannot stand by while women fall into poverty through a lack of social protection
it also takes a big step forward in terms of promoting female entrepreneurship
i hardly need to stress the importance of both those points in the current situation
i wish to pay tribute to the efforts of the rapporteur ms lulling to reach an agreement with the spanish presidency on this technically complex and politically sensitive matter
the commission fully supports the text which the committee approved by an overwhelming majority on three may and i urge parliament to do so too
adopting the text as it stands would send a clear message to the council and pave the way for the final adoption of the proposal
more importantly this would make a real difference on the ground at a time when it is very much needed
