Karamanou (PSE). – (EL) Mr President, I too should like to express my deepest satisfaction that observers from the new Member States of the European Parliament will be participating in plenary as of today.
Allow me, however, as chairman of the Committee on Women's Rights and Equal Opportunities, to express my deepest disappointment as to the composition of these representations from the gender point of view. Women are underrepresented and, as can be seen from the list you have distributed to us, there are two countries – Estonia and Slovenia – which have not included a single woman in their representations. I consider that this is an insult to women, who are not represented in the representations of the Member States, and shows disdain for the policy of gender equality which the European Union has been promoting for 50 years. I only hope that this will not happen at the next European elections and that the representations will be balanced from the gender point of view. As I know, Mr President, that you support this policy, I should like you to take an initiative and bring this to the attention of your counterparts in the parliaments of these countries.