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Speeches: Martin Marmy, IRU Secretary General
We are approaching the end of two extremely rich and fruitful working days. During these two conference days you have had a real opportunity to listen to the opinions of some of the leading figures and experts in our sector and confront these with your own. As a result, we are all winners. We will go home with a truckload of new ideas and motivations inspired by this highly professional and exciting debate. What is more, we will go home with a Conference Resolution discussed and agreed by a unique pan-European forum, representing virtually all stakeholders in the wider road transport area, from the locally-active operator to the Minister, including journalists and researchers. This is a further guarantee that our Resolution today reflects a wider combination of interests and preoccupations, which are indeed representative of those of society itself. This Conference Resolution constitutes a stable common platform for our future joint actions at national and international level. I assure you that the IRU will shoulder its responsibilities and commitments taken under the Resolution. We will spare no efforts in building large coalitions to achieve these goals, which also reflect broad IRU policy priorities. Our confidence and strength stem from:
These are also evident from our long-standing involvement in policy areas such as customs transit, road transport facilitation, sustainable development and the EU enlargement, ample evidence of which you have seen during this conference. By way of example, let me just mention the IRU efforts in the field of sustainable development, where the road transport industry needs wider support in order to achieve its socially-responsible objectives. These are:
Our experience forces us to admit that, as in other similar cases like fiscality in the EU, or security on a pan-European scale, the IRU and its member' commitments would be far more effective if they were supported not only by other road transport partners, but also and above all by political decision-makers at national and international level. That is why, at the end of my exposé I would like to come back to some basics, in fact to our principle position, as embodied in our slogan. Acting alone is the surest road to failure. Pooling our efforts is key, and there are no challenges too great to overcome if we - industry, authorities, civil society and other stakeholders - work together with a common resolve for a better future. I, therefore, recommend the adoption of the Conference resolution, which was open for public debate on the internet months before this conference. I would like to express my warmest thanks to the Speakers, as well as to all participants and our partners and supporters from Iveco, MOL, Michelin, Schmitz Cargobull, DKV and Hungarocamion, who contributed greatly to the success of this conference. Finally, on behalf of the IRU, and indeed for us all, allow me to thank our host association, the ATRH, who practically made this event happen. You are warmly invited to take part in the 8th IRU East-West Road Transport Conference, which will take place in two years time in the capital city of Estonia, Tallin. I give the floor now to Mr Toivo Kuldkepp, Secretary General of our member association in Estonia, the ERAA, to officially invite you on behalf of the organisers. |
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