Watched on Euronews (down):
I agree with Prodi's wish. Europe needs to modernize and these big plans could give a job to thousands of unemployed people.
It would also help the euro-zone to be more attractive, because foreign investors could finance these works in euros.
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A plan to boost economic growth through major transport and research spending have been unveiled by the European Commission: it foresees 29 projects worth 220 billion euros lifting EU growth by .23 percent per year in the long term.
But was not a proposed high speed rail link from Brussels to Strasbourg, via Luxembourg, like a regional express for European civil servants? Journalists wanted to know.
The commissioner in charge of transport, Loyola de Palacio, said no:
"Obviously there are regional interests, but also European. There is also a very important political component. It's not just for euro-deputies. These are the European capitals. The high speed train is the symbol of European transport. What's more, the network will go further. After Strasbourg it will go till Vienna, and through the Channel, link up with Britain."
The public and private investment plan is weighted towards promoting major cross-border transport projects, such as a modernised rail-link through the Pyrenees and a controversial bridge from mainland Italy to Sicily.
A similar scheme in 1994 went nowhere because of red tape and lack of funding. Some economists today are skeptical whether this plan addresses the EU's real economic weaknesses. The EU leaders will discuss it at a summit next month.