What Josianne spoke about.

It is important to debate the rule of law within the European Union but it is not appropriate to introduce a discussion on a Member State to shift the focus away from another Member State. This was evident as at yesterday's sitting, representatives of the European People's Party first said that we should not hold debates on particular countries, but as the debate on Greece was confirmed, that they

Europe has ambitious plans for its energy and transport markets. We want to set the pace, achieving our cohesion, digital and environmental objectives. The new Connecting Europe Facility for 2021-2027 will be an enabler, a driver of this revolution. The CEF is one of the strongest tools we have to help us bring Europe together, allowing us to achieve unity by ending transport and energy isolation.

Madam President, today we are voting on a targeted amendment to the Cybersecurity Act. We are introducing a cyber certification scheme for managed security services. This is a crucial step towards preventing market fragmentation and establishing the EU Cybersecurity Reserve. I’d like to first thank all the shadow rapporteurs and their respective teams for the collaboration. As the lead negotiator

– Mr President, despite representing only 7% of the world’s population, the EU accounts for 20% of global research expenditure. 32% of high impact publications and 25% of patent applications. Thus, cooperation agreements between the EU and third countries with similar values and common priorities, such as the EU and New Zealand one, which strengthen ties and advance scientific frontiers are essent

President, Commissioner and colleagues, it is important to talk about today's debate. Let us not underestimate the effects of hate language and disinformation online. They threaten the security of democracy and the mental health of our citizens. They create deep and dangerous divisions in society. Hate rhetoric, often derived from discrimination, racism, homophobia and misogyny, also affects the w

President, colleagues, proud of the results we will achieve through this Act, which will create the conditions for Member States' public services to become truly digitally interoperable. In an increasingly interconnected world, the ability of systems and organisations to work together has become very important for European citizens and businesses. One of the primary benefits of interoperability is

Mr President, a competitive, sustainable and resilient European economy is one which not only cares for its smallest sectors – its SMEs – but one which also embraces and nurtures new blood in the form of scaleups and startups. For this reason, we need a New European Innovation Agenda that focuses on investments, incentives and fostering skills successfully. That would free the European Union from

We greet the memory of Daphne Caruana Galizia. We condemn this brutal assassination as we condemn the murder of any journalist for his work. Such barbaric acts are unacceptable, therefore it is important to do justice, so the ongoing proceedings and convictions before the Maltese courts of those who have been or may have been involved in this murder are important. The protection of journalists rel

Mr President, ninety-nine percent of European businesses are small and medium-sized businesses, a figure that reminds us that SMEs are really an integral part of our economy. In my work as the negotiator of the Socialists on the report on the European SME strategy as well as on islands, I have pushed hard to help and recognise that our SMEs must struggle and fight the regulatory burden and need he

Mr President, Madam Commissioner, colleagues, rapporteurs, it was a pleasure working with you from the transport side of things. Today’s vote places Europe at the forefront of becoming a global hub for cutting—edge innovation, channelling the potential of fair, accessible, transparent and trustworthy AI for our citizens. The act strives to achieve an important balance, encouraging investment, digi

Ms President, dear Commissioner, it is time for the European Union to join the Istanbul Convention as soon as possible and to do so, the vote ahead is essential to move forward effectively. This step is important. It is important for the protection of that girl who is experiencing violence against her own mother, in a space that should be safe, about even the young man who harassed her on her way

Mr President, Mr Commissioner, colleagues, equality is not equity; equality treats all regions equally. While equity recognises that each region has different circumstances and allocates the necessary resources and opportunities to achieve an equal outcome. Additional assistance to regions suffering from severe and permanent handicaps is needed to meet renewable energy targets, a successful switch

Mrs President, agriculture is the largest, one of our most vital industries. However, to ensure that it is sustainable, we must make sure that our farmers are well assisted. Farmers in Europe are not only not paid enough, but are also struggling to make ends meet and produce the much-needed harvest. In our discussion on strategic autonomy we must not ignore our dependency on third countries with r

The past has shown that the success of environmental and digital hearts depends on the efficiency of our supply chains. While we are working for more energy and clean tech, let's not forget that critical raw materials are an essential commodity for the Union's economy and resilience. We have seen that the US, Japan, South Korea invest in reducing their dependence on the same raw material extractio

Madam President, the EU is finally taking a tangible commitment towards digitalisation through important trajectories and targets. The digital decade we’ve negotiated with the Council gives Member States enough flexibility to pursue digitalisation whilst taking into account their different starting points. Yet digitalisation is not an end in itself, but a means to broader societal outcomes. We hav

Mr President, many of the conclusions of the public inquiry into the murder of Daphne Caruana Galizia have been made or are in the process of being made. The level of perceived judicial independence in Malta remains high. The Maltese Government has reacted by implementing a number of reforms to address shortcomings in the democratic system and the rule of law. These words are not being said by Jos

President, Mr Commissioner, also the rapporteur, colleagues we have worked together. The challenges facing European islands on a daily basis have been overlooked for years. I come from the island of Gozo to experience directly the geographical disadvantage and its effects. The same is true for other citizens who struggle with the lack of adequate and affordable transport. And our businesses that a

Madam President, Commissioner, colleagues, the discussion on the European global approach to research and innovation comes during a historical period where the enhancement of cooperation in the scientific field can contribute to making the power of reason and knowledge prevail over weapons. A strong Europe that is a point of reference on research and innovation does not, however, happen overnight.

Ms President, data is one of the most valuable commodities of our time, with wide applications from environment to health, from transport to tourism. Despite this, Europe did not have a clear framework that would allow the use of such a crucial element in the digital society. Harmonising data management in the European Union, which facilitates operability across all sectors, is crucial. The data g

Mr President, Commissioner, colleagues, the unprecedented crisis we’re facing on our eastern borders exacerbates the already difficult situation with energy prices being on the rise since 2021. Such a scenario not only means higher electricity and gas bills for citizens and businesses, but also negative impacts on our value chains and higher prices even on very basic items, breads, pasta, biscuits

Madam President, cohesion policy represents one of the most successful examples of European integration, which can help us reduce inequalities among European regions, especially the most peripheral ones. While the eighth report on cohesion has shown us that there are still significant gaps that we need to bridge, a swift implementation for the programming period 2021-2027 would mean to give concre

Mr President, the new rules on coordinating travel were much needed. The tourism sector cannot sustain the halt of travel any longer. The ecosystem is suffering and, whilst we celebrate this positive step forward, we must keep in mind that coordinating travel will not necessarily translate into higher volumes on its own. In fact, we must continue working on other elements to the puzzle, for exampl

Mr President, sexual harassment exists, as colleagues have stated, everywhere. When I came to this Parliament, the MeToo movement had already named the elephant in the room. Yes, harassment is also present in this house. It’s present on the streets, at workplaces, on public transportation, day and night alike, everywhere, and everyone could be affected, including politicians and workers across the

Mr President, transport poverty is a reality in the European Union. It exists in urban areas, our villages, coastal regions and islands. The problem has an impact on low-income families across Europe, and also on people with disabilities who do not have sufficient access. For this reason we must design mobility plans and investments in a targeted and specific way, also for different regions. We mu

Mr President, the scenario that Europe is experiencing this year, with rising energy prices and still slightly high dependency on third countries, shows us that there is still some way to go to achieve the goals of the Energy Union. How can we get to that? By working, truly effective market integration, improving security of supply through appropriate infrastructure so that no country is left behi