What Catharina spoke about.

Mr President, what are we doing in Europe? Supporting plans that make Europe safer, freer and more prosperous. They can make life easier. Like this directive, the right to repair. As a result, products can be repaired cheaper and easier. And if it is good, it will also be better for our earth and the world around us. It is especially important that people in the Netherlands and Europe can trust th

Mr President, what has just happened in this House, the European Parliament, is a disgrace. MEP Marcel de Graaff has expressed propaganda of an unprecedented order about us here. I sincerely wonder: Who pays Marcel de Graaff for this Russian propaganda? Now I'll continue my speech in English. Because an innocent looks on. Hope drowns her pleading eyes. The endless pain of wars. ‘Please end this wa

Mr President, the world is becoming increasingly turbulent, uncertain and unsafe. Wars and instability are the conversation of the day at the kitchen tables. There are new challenges on the world stage, of which China is the largest. A China that wants to control international trade with corporate espionage and massive state aid. If we want to protect our own jobs and markets, the West must join f

Mr President, is there a crack in your smartphone screen, does water leak from your washing machine or does your vacuum cleaner look broken? We've all been through this before and it's very annoying. When products break down, we quickly replace them with new ones to buy. But there are also cheaper and more environmentally friendly alternatives. Namely repair. And with this new law, it will be easi

How is money made in the Netherlands? This is done through trade. Thanks to trade, we have jobs and prosperity in the Netherlands, in Europe and around the world. And if we need raw materials, for example for electric cars, we need trade with other countries. Without trade, there is neither prosperity nor a green transition. We need trade for our position as the Netherlands in the world. Trade agr

Mr President, the Netherlands, my country, earns a third of its wealth from exports. As many as 2 million jobs are due to this. That is why we must now move forward with new trade agreements. A new agreement on critical minerals with America is a positive step. But we need a lot more. The EU and America must work together to reduce dependence on China as much as possible. Therefore, we should not

Mr President, the situation for the people of Uganda is shocking. Coming out for your orientation – the most normal thing in the world – can easily result in imprisonment or even the death penalty. This is for Ugandans who just want to be themselves, hell on earth. The Ugandan government is abusing completely innocent citizens to distract the rest of the population from the real problems in the co

Mr President, more than 16 000 lives will never be the same again. This is the number of Ukrainian children forcibly brought to Russia. This forced deportation violates international humanitarian law and is an absolute war crime that should not go unpunished. Last month, in a letter to Mr Borrell, I called for tougher action against these perpetrators and increased sanctions. The Netherlands has a

When we talk about protecting our jobs, we need to tackle unfair competition from China and become less dependent on China together with the US. It is a step in the right direction that we will work together – as you said – on critical raw materials such as batteries. Moeten wij uiteindelijk niet gaan toewerken naar een meer ambitieuze en bredere samenwerking op het gebied van handel tussen de EU

Last week, President von der Leyen was with President Biden in Washington DC to discuss the Inflation Reduction Act. This is a subsidy package of hundreds of billions of euros that will boost US production, often at the expense of European production. I had hoped that von der Leyen would come back with an agreement for European companies, so that they would be eligible for certain subsidies. Unfor

Last week, President von der Leyen was with President Biden in Washington DC to discuss the Inflation Reduction Act. This is a subsidy package of hundreds of billions of euros that will boost US production, often at the expense of European production. I had hoped that Von der Leyen would come back with an appointment... (The President interrupted the speaker)

Mr President, Commissioner, in recent years the gaming industry has grown considerably thanks to many small and medium-sized enterprises. This has created a lot of technological development and jobs in the EU. It is certain: The gaming industry has a lot of potential. But let's also consider who uses these games. At least three-quarters of gamers are between six and fourteen years old. Children sh

Mr President, the 30-year anniversary of the European single market. I think we should be proud of the achievements and the opportunities which our European single market has brought us. Our SMEs especially should be acknowledged as the driving force behind this success, and they are the backbone of our European economy. But, we should not take all these benefits for granted. Some do – don’t. Our

Dear Commissioner, for our security we need to prevent Chinese companies from investing in our critical infrastructure for strategic purposes. Look at the recent investment in the port of Hamburg, Huawei, 5G or Nuctech and the scanners at our airports. It’s all about security. Do we really understand that? As Europe, we need to close our back door for such Chinese strategic investments. My questio

Mr President, you have never seen your grandparents because they live in another country. No passport. A false start. This is the current reality for the almost three-year-old girl Sara, who does not receive a birth certificate from the Bulgarian authorities and is in fact stateless. Just because she has two mothers. Something that other children simply get at birth is taken away from Sara. As far

Mr President, Commissioner, dear colleagues, let me start by saying that the brave Ukrainian men, women and children are the victims of this brutal war waged by President Putin. The number of people killed, the millions of women and children fleeing and the level of destruction in the country are devastating. As the cold winter season has now started, many are left in the cold, including many chil

Madam President, dear Commissioner, dear colleagues, this is my first debate in plenary, so very honoured to be here. We in the European Union thrive from an open market and as the world’s largest trading bloc, we shall continue to prosper from open and free trade with our partners. At the same time, the world around us has changed. For many years, we are seeing that not everyone is playing by the