First Health Care, Now Travel/Tourism Is A "Human Right"

[Obama 2012 1,714]

The European Union has declared travelling a human right, and is launching a scheme to subsidize vacations with taxpayers' dollars for those too poor to afford their own trips.

Antonio Tajani, the European Union commissioner for enterprise and industry, proposed a strategy that could cost European taxpayers hundreds of millions of euros a year, The Times of London reports.

"Travelling for tourism today is a right. The way we spend our holidays is a formidable indicator of our quality of life," Mr. Tajani told a group of ministers at The European Tourism Stakeholders Conference in Madrid on April 15. Mr. Tajani was appointed to his post by Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi.

The plan -- just who gets to enjoy the travel package has yet to be determined -- would see taxpayers footing some of the vacation bill for seniors, youths between the ages of 18 and 25, disabled people, and families facing "difficult social, financial or personal" circumstances. The disabled and elderly can also be accompanied by one other person. The EU and its taxpayers are slated to fund 30% of the cost of these tours, which could range from youth exploring abandoned factories and power plants in Manchester to retirees taking discount trips to Madrid, all in the name of cultural appreciation.

"The commission is literally considering paying people to go on holiday," Mats Persson, of pro-reform think-tank Open Europe, told Britain's News of the World. "In this economic climate, it's astonishing that the EU wants to bribe people with cheap holidays."

Mr. Tajani said the program will be piloted until 2013, and then fully launched.

Intended to instill a sense of cultural pride in Europeans, Mr. Tajani's human-rights travel will also help bridge the continent's north-south divide and pad resorts' business in their off-season, the Times reports.

Northern Europeans will be encouraged to visit southern Europe, and vice versa. Mr. Tajani wants to ensure people's "right to be tourists" remains intact.

http://www.nationalpost.com/news/story.html?id=2923469#ixzz0lfYIVoiV

[Anh map 2,098]

Wow!

[Peikko 1,575]

So EU takes its commitment to quality of life for all citizens seriously if this is to be believed and taken somewhat at face value but the question is, why do you care?

[Obama 2012 1,714]

So EU takes its commitment to quality of life for all citizens seriously if this is to be believed and taken somewhat at face value but the question is, why do you care?

Because ideas like this unfortunately have their ways of making it across the Atlantic.

[rsn 135]

As long as it doesn't happen here, I'm not concerned.

[PhiLandShiR 18]

As much as it pains me to admit it... I must agree with you on this one....

The European Union has declared travelling a human right, and is launching a scheme to subsidize vacations with taxpayers' dollars for those too poor to afford their own trips.

Antonio Tajani, the European Union commissioner for enterprise and industry, proposed a strategy that could cost European taxpayers hundreds of millions of euros a year, The Times of London reports.

"Travelling for tourism today is a right. The way we spend our holidays is a formidable indicator of our quality of life," Mr. Tajani told a group of ministers at The European Tourism Stakeholders Conference in Madrid on April 15. Mr. Tajani was appointed to his post by Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi.

The plan -- just who gets to enjoy the travel package has yet to be determined -- would see taxpayers footing some of the vacation bill for seniors, youths between the ages of 18 and 25, disabled people, and families facing "difficult social, financial or personal" circumstances. The disabled and elderly can also be accompanied by one other person. The EU and its taxpayers are slated to fund 30% of the cost of these tours, which could range from youth exploring abandoned factories and power plants in Manchester to retirees taking discount trips to Madrid, all in the name of cultural appreciation.

"The commission is literally considering paying people to go on holiday," Mats Persson, of pro-reform think-tank Open Europe, told Britain's News of the World. "In this economic climate, it's astonishing that the EU wants to bribe people with cheap holidays."

Mr. Tajani said the program will be piloted until 2013, and then fully launched.

Intended to instill a sense of cultural pride in Europeans, Mr. Tajani's human-rights travel will also help bridge the continent's north-south divide and pad resorts' business in their off-season, the Times reports.

Northern Europeans will be encouraged to visit southern Europe, and vice versa. Mr. Tajani wants to ensure people's "right to be tourists" remains intact.

http://www.nationalpost.com/news/story.html?id=2923469#ixzz0lfYIVoiV

[Peikko 1,575]

I know the antics of the News of the World, and I very much doubt the actual legislation proposed bears any resemblance to the copy produced

[Obama 2012 1,714]

As much as it pains me to admit it... I must agree with you on this one....

Oh come now, there was a thread the other day where we were agreeing with one another taking others on!

[w¡n9Nµ7 §£@¥€r 123]

I know the antics of the News of the World, and I very much doubt the actual legislation proposed bears any resemblance to the copy produced

How about the Times Online? - http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/world/europe/article7100943.ece

Brussels has declared that tourism is a human right and pensioners, youths and those too poor to afford it should have their travel subsidised by the taxpayer.

[Trumplestiltskin 5,791]

It's all owned by Murdoch.

[Peikko 1,575]

What about it? The Times isn't the Thunderer any longer.

[w¡n9Nµ7 §£@¥€r 123]

So the actual quotes are all made up?

[w¡n9Nµ7 §£@¥€r 123]

travelweekly.co.uk - Murdoch?

http://www.travelweekly.co.uk/Articles/2010/04/19/33525/eu-plans-subsidised-holidays-for-the-less-well-off.html

The EU has proposed plans to subsidise holidays for pensioners, young people and those who cannot afford to travel, after declaring that an overseas holiday is a “human right”.

[Peikko 1,575]

No, but the quotes do not really describe the proposed legislation and certainly not in any way that one could usefully determine what the actual proposal is or why it's being proposed and of course the Times and News of the World are sexing it up for their own ends. One example, it's being touted as tax payers paying for free 'holidays' but if you look a little deeper, the idea is more to do with cultural exchange experiences, and it isn't at all clear that those who would be subsidised haven't been, or will not become taxpayers themselves. It's all very silly to get het up about some political language without giving real information as to what is in fact being proposed, how it would be funded and who the 'beneficiaries' might be.

[Trumplestiltskin 5,791]

When Murdoch bought The Times, they kept the name but not the reputation.