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Barrot Blames 'Parasite' National Debates for Low Turnout

293 views · Published 8 June 2009 · 1:54 · Indexed 20 September 2026

Channel: Euractiv · 2009 · News & Politics

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Translation:
Jacques Barrot, EC Vice-President in charge of Justice, freedom and security: I think that the new Parliament will have the time and the occasion to show its power regarding the European citizens. I think that now we have reached the lowest level of participation and now it is needed to boost it and it is needed to look onwards. 
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Cutaway 
  00:03:57
SOUNDBITE (French) by Jacques Barrot: There are different causes, the crisis, which have driven the voters towards the social hopeless; there is also the fact that certain campaigns have been too national and there has been "parasite" national debates on the European debate which should have been instead. There is also need to communicate better and more adapted to each member state and we need to reflect on that. And there is also a duty from the part of national governments to explain their citizens the progress which are made thanks to Europe. 
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Cutaway 
  00:04:52
SOUNDBITE (French) by Jacques Barrot: Let's take a lesson from the arrival of a certain number of Euro sceptics and the extreme parties; it is needed that the pro-Europeans join their forces in order to make Europe to move on.

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