Republicans Convene in Berlin
>> Text of speech by Guenter Nooke MdB: Page 4

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Berlin, the world's top architects have designed new buildings; old buildings have been painstakingly restored, and greater investments are being made than in other parts of Europe in state-of-the-art public transport infrastructure, in cultural and research institutes. 

Thirdly, let me conclude with a few remarks concerning our situation today.

Germany has severe problems in pushing forward the reforms needed to our social security systems, to taxation law and to the extremely regulated labour market. Our non-wage labour costs are too high. Labour is too expensive in Germany. We are living beyond our means. Of course, German reunification had to be paid for, of course, the pensioners from the GDR had not paid into the West's pension funds, and, of course, firms in the GDR were desperately in need of modernisation. But, after 1990, the economy in the West was boosted as a result of the work generated by reconstruction and the additional consumption in the East. This was why the restructuring and changes necessary in Germany were tackled until too late and are thus even more urgently needed today. 

In 1990, the legislative and regulatory framework in existence in West Germany, which was far too detailed, was extended to cover the new Länder in the East with barely any adjustments. It would have been better, in particular less costly, if some things, such as taxation law or labour law, had been simplified and made more flexible at that time. 

We are now experiencing a similar situation with regard to EU eastern enlargement. Here too, the new accession countries must meet all the requirements of the treaties, even though we already more or less know that this cannot be kept up or financed in the long term. The chairwoman of the Christian Democratic Union of Germany, Dr. Angela Merkel, drew attention to this problem in her speech in the Bundestag last week, on 30 April. This problem has been caused by the old EU of 15 Member States, which did not manage to reform to the extent necessary for an enlarged EU of 25. As was the case with German unity, we are making demands on the new Member States which they are unable to meet and we are requiring them to comply with regulations which ought to be scrapped. 

So we have many concrete tasks ahead of us. The new EU is the largest single market in the world. But we must also agree on the values which unite us and on the boundaries of Europe. 

But the topic of the Autumn 1989 Peaceful Revolution has not yet been laid to rest. This revolution, the toppling of the SED dictatorship, was Germany's only successful freedom revolution. What happened then, and the happy official reunification of the Germans, is something whose historical implications have still not been fully understood in Germany. The events could even be developed into Germany's founding myth. But this is something which we have so far failed to recognise. 

I hope you were able to understand me. All I really wanted to say was that you are guests in an interesting country and a very exciting city.

Thank you very much for your attention.

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