Speeches

Mr President, seldom have I read some such unadulterated piffle as the praise heaped on the Conference on the Future of Europe in these reports. National parliaments are elected for a temporary time and contingent on the safeguarding of our country’s sovereignty and liberties. National parliamentarians do not have the right to hand over sovereignty without asking for an explicit mandate from the people. The Conference on the Future of Europe was a sham and a scam. Giving the European institutions more power because some randomly selected citizens, guided by federalist MEPs, said they want it, is not how democracy works. We should trust the peoples. New powers should only be transferred to the institutions after all national parliaments have secured a majority running on an explicit mandate to transfer power, or lacking this, a positive referendum result in all countries.

Mr President, the war between Israel and Hamas is between a liberal democracy defending itself against an EU-listed terror organisation supported by authoritarian states such as Iran, China, Russia and North Korea. To establish a ceasefire, the answer is simple: Hamas must release all hostages, including the remains of those murdered, and ensure their safe and dignified return to Israel. For peace, Palestinians must end their support for terrorism. Their support for Hamas is at an all-time high. A vast majority of Palestinians support an armed struggle, meaning terrorism against Israel. The fight against terrorism and authoritarianism must be won, whether in Ukraine, Taiwan or Israel. I stand with democracy and freedom. I stand with Israel. Do you?

Madam President, geachte Premier De Croo, Europe’s streets are not safe. Last year, two Swedes were murdered in Brussels by an Islamist terrorist, an illegal alien. But ending illegal migration is only the first step to safe societies. The Islamists, the gang soldiers, are often second generation – and your country’s migration crisis, Prime Minister, isn’t solely caused by illegal migration. A big role is played by the universal right to apply for asylum. But Commissioner Schinas claims it is Europe’s destiny to be an asylum destination. One million asylum claims in Europe last year. UN asylum rules make 780 million people eligible for asylum. Prime Minister De Croo, the universal right to asylum is a threat to the future of Europe. Move the asylum procedure outside EU territory and process asylum claims in the first safe country. That’s a migration policy that would work for Europe.

Madam President, thank you very much. Let me start by apologizing for my vote. As a father of four, you can receive both one and the other from school and preschool. Indeed, most of the EU budget finances inefficient regional and agricultural subsidies. One project would generate job opportunities for immigrant women from southern Sweden in another part of Sweden, but the project managers had not booked meetings with potential employers, so Malmö residents got an EU-funded guided tour in Skellefteå instead of jobs. In order to support Ukraine, we need to slaughter this type of project. The Commission is calling for an additional contribution to meet French demands for increased funding for protectionist subsidy policies. The Swedes, who never wanted to take out joint billion loans to distribute grants to mismanaged economies, will now be forced to pay the interest costs through another increase in the EU fee. It is worth pointing out that the Social Democrats in Sweden have warned against even threatening to veto this. If we are to succeed in pushing through reprioritisation and savings, a new Swedish EU strategy is needed. Otherwise, countries like mine will be completely run over in future negotiations.

Madam President, thank you very much. United States of Europe. That is what the majority in the European Parliament voted in favour of here today. But I must say that I welcome the sincerity of the proposal for amendments to the founding Treaties of the European Union. Once upon a time, EU centralists could get away with waving away our warnings that the EU is turning into a superstate. Not anymore. For today, the Conservatives, the Christian Democrats, the Social Democrats, the Green Party, the Liberals and the Centre Party have voted through a report that wants to transfer power over taxes and finance, education, health, defence and much more from the Member States to Brussels. In such a Europe, Sweden has as little power as a state in Germany. We will be a tax province in the north with symbolic parliamentary elections. Trust that the Sweden Democrats will do everything we can for Sweden to protect our democracy and independence and stop the planned takeover of power by the centralists.

Madam President, thank you very much. Commissioner, thank you very much. In the late Middle Ages, no one would have guessed that Europe's many warring and divided small states would dominate the world. The Ming dynasty, the Ottomans, and the Grand Moguls had larger populations, better military personnel, and were economically and culturally superior. But it was Europe that came to rule the world while the others sank back. The cause? The demand for uniformity from the central institutions of the empires. The absence of a central power and the rivalry between different kingdoms stimulated a quest for innovation and progress. Europe experienced an upward spiral of economic growth that over time gave us a head start over all others. While others have embraced our recipe for success, we have abandoned it. The EU's deregulation and micro-management is today the biggest obstacle to innovation and development. More than 9,300 new or updated acts during this mandate speak for themselves. Today, this House voted to ban the wooden packaging contained in Camembert, as an example. Member States, businesses and citizens do not need better regulation. They need significantly fewer regulations, less bureaucracy and much more freedom.

Mr President, thank you very much. This summer I was with my family at Poker Run at home in Värmland. There were big American cars everywhere. A delight for the eyes and ears, for us who like chrome and the sound of V8 – the dull rumble. However, many in Brussels cannot see the value of a Buick Impala, a Cheva or a Cadillac. For them, cars are something that should take individuals from point A to point B. A kind of bureaucratic soullessness. Such a kind of selflessness characterises the European Commission’s proposal for a regulation on circularity requirements for vehicle design and on the management of end-of-life vehicles. In short, the proposal is to classify old cars as scrap. There are vague wordings about exemptions for historic vehicles, but that is not enough. We cannot allow EU bureaucrats to define which vehicles may be exempted. All historic vehicles must be excluded. Those citizens who put their souls into polishing chromium strips, oil engines and rearranging seats deserve respect. Without them, future generations will never be able to get behind the wheel, turn the key and smell and hear the rumble of freedom.

–Madam President, most of the West condemned Hamas murders, rapes, torture and kidnapping of innocent civilians. But far too many did the opposite. Colleagues, too many migrants are nominally European, but their loyalties lie elsewhere: a fifth column. But what to do about those that reject European values? Well, France is considering fast-track deportations, and Germany talks of rejecting citizenship for anti-Semites. If implemented, this is a good first step. But as we know, talk is cheap. The hatred and antisemitism we’ve seen in European cities has no place here. This is a matter of Europe remaining Europe. Send them home.

Madam President, the civilised world watched in horror as Hamas death squads slaughtered civilians. Europe’s leaders united in condemnation and support of Israel’s right to defend itself. Colleagues, Hamas’s raison d’etre is to annihilate Israel. But what’s our response to Israel’s defensive military action? Well, President Macron proposed a humanitarian truce and MEP after MEP, like the last speaker from the Greens, is calling for a ceasefire. And I wonder, would we support a ceasefire if more than then 10 000 French citizens were butchered and taken hostage? Ceasefire is doublespeak for Israel losing the war. Europe must not stand in the way of Israel crushing Hamas. Terrorists started this war. Israel will finish it. (The speaker spoke a non-official language)

Mr Pineda, you have fraternised with the leader of Hamas, Ismail Haniyeh, in the past. My question to you today is whether you condemn the terror attack by Hamas on 7 October – yes or no?

Monsieur le Président, Madame la Commissaire, dans la lutte contre l’islamisme, la France sera la première à triompher, ou elle sera la première à tomber. Three years after Samuel Paty's beheading, Dominique Bernard, another teacher, was murdered by a radicalized migrant. This week, two of my Swedish compatriots were murdered. There are pro-Hamas protests across Europe. Islamisation is a European problem, but France is on the front line. President Macron’s condemnation of the barbarity of Islamist terrorism is welcome, of course, but not much can be done as long as we depend on the support of the Greens. In Sweden, President Macron’s liberal colleagues understood that meaningful action against criminal gangs and Islamism required the end of the cordon sanitaire. Do the same: the homeland before the party. The situation in France is worse than in most other countries, but France can also lead the way towards a better future, free of Islamism. Long live France, long live Sweden, long live life!

Mr President, we were all appalled by the images of butchered babies and the burning of people by Hamas. Sorry, not all of us, unfortunately: not the celebratory crowds on the streets of Europe, not Manu Pineda from the Left Group, who fraternised with Hamas’s leader, Ismail Haniyeh. Instead of being thrown out of the Left Group, they nominated him for Head of the EU Parliament delegation for Palestine. And when you hear Madame Aubry ignoring evidence that says that it was the Palestinian Islamic Jihad that fired that rocket that hit the hospital, you understand, don’t you? And my question to the Swedish Social Democrats: why are you keeping your MP, Jamal El-Haj, in your party? He protested under the banner of Hamas, worked with the Hamas-linked Al-Aqsa Foundation and attended a conference with a Hamas leader. He wasn’t kicked out! Mr President, if they on the left don’t want to be associated with antisemitism, terrorism and cynical electoral politics, they need to stand unequivocally with Israel against Hamas.

Mr President, I am not simplifying anything here. I’m just stating the facts that failed migration policies to Sweden have led to a very urgent situation in which, as I said, there are 30 000 members of these gangs, not Islamist gangs, but violent drug-trafficking, weapons-trafficking gangs. And they are killing each other, and people –innocent people – are suffering. And I am asking you to focus on this in your future work.

– Mr President, Commissioner Schinas. One of the countries in which organised crime has been on a steep rise since the onset of the millennium is Sweden. 20 years ago, Sweden used to have the least amount of deadly shootings in Europe; now it’s at the top. The only country not at war with more bombings than Sweden is Mexico. Europe would do itself a favour by asking how this was allowed to happen. For many years, Sweden was in a state of denial. The size of the migration had nothing to do with failed integration, they said. Now, to prevent and to fight organised crime, we must recognise the connection between mass migration and the steep rise in organised crime and violence. The fight against illegal migration must take priority over the universal right to apply for asylum, and illegal residents must be expelled. This won’t solve anything, Commissioner. It won’t solve everything, but it would give some breathing room in a situation where the criminal organisations have 30 000 members in Sweden, while there are only 11 000 police officers. My question to you, Commissioner, is: are you ready to commit yourself to anything of this?

Madam President, yesterday, two of my compatriots were murdered on the streets of Brussels simply for being Swedish. Our thoughts and our prayers go to the victims and their families. But, dear colleagues, condolences are not enough. The terrorist, a Tunisian national, was a convicted criminal, an illegal resident and had his asylum application rejected three years ago. For our citizens’ sake, illegal migration to Europe must end. The terrorist shared Islamist disinformation, claiming that Sweden kidnaps Muslim children – a campaign ongoing since 2019, a claim amplified by Islamist organisations here in Europe. For our citizens’ sake, financing of Islamist organisations must end. Jews in Europe are being asked to hide their Jewishness. Now, Swedes, we are recommended to hide our nationality in Europe, our home. Madam President, European complacency in the face of Islamism must end right here, right now.

Mr President, colleagues, do you really want to fix this migration crisis? You, Commissioner Schinas, say it out loud. The pact is intended to deprive the demagogues and populists in Europe from campaigning on migration in the EU elections. Commissioner, are you even aware what’s going on in Sweden? Ordinary men and women face the consequences of a migration policy that spawned the monster that is gang violence. Where’s your pact for the 25-year-old girl blown up by gangsters or the 71-year-old shot in the pub while having a pint? Your job, Mr Schinas, I’m sorry, but it’s not to be campaign manager for the left. It’s to deal with illegal migration. So, do your job and inform us on how we escort the boats back to their ports. Otherwise, the low intensive war on the Swedish streets, as the police puts it, will worsen. You laugh. Laugh to the 17 innocent victims shot to death, bombed to death in Sweden. Shame on you. You know, this will become the reality... (The President cut off the speaker)

Madam President, At the beginning of each week, my daughters, seven and nine years old, at school will discuss the latest news. "Two new bombings around Stockholm, Dad", summed up the seven-year-old this morning after listening to Ekot. Last week, a 25-year-old woman with no gang connection was bombed to death. The week before, a 71-year-old blind man was shot taking a beer at the local pub. How do you explain to your children what is happening in Sweden? I'm probably not the only parent struggling with it. On the other hand, one thing is certain: I will never let them think that this is normal. Madam President, thank you very much. Gang violence in Sweden is a direct consequence of large-scale immigration without an impact assessment – mass immigration. For those of you who want to follow this path, I have one question: What Europe do you want our children and grandchildren to grow up in?

Madam President, thank you very much. Mrs von der Leyen! You promised a political commission, and we certainly have. You sprinkle EU money on super bonuses in Italy – 110% in compensation for renovations, while at the same time you want homeowners in Sweden to pay over half a million kronor to renovate their houses. Not to mention rent increases for tenants. I am, of course, talking about the forced renovations that you want to impose on European citizens. 35 million properties throughout Europe, of which 1.8 million in Sweden, will achieve energy class D by 2033. All energy class A in 2050. You were clear about your environmentalist vision, Mrs von der Leyen, right from the start. That is why we voted against you. My question to the Swedish bourgeois is: ‘Are you satisfied now?’ My question to Swedish Social Democrats is: “How can you push for these forced renovations when you know how it hits working-class families?” Mrs von der Leyen, you will be remembered for these forced renovations – these attacks on property rights – when people see the value of their properties raging, when they cannot fall asleep at night because they worry about whether they can stay.

Mr President, one year has passed since the murder of Mahsa Amini. During that time, we witnessed the greatest uprising the Islamic Republic has ever seen: protests worldwide for ‘women, life, freedom’. Out of fear and desperation, the regime attempted to suffocate the burning embers of hope, imprisoning bereaved family members and friends for simply gathering near the gravesites of the mullahs’ victims. And what has Europe’s response been? Have Member States expelled the ambassadors of the mullahs while recalling their own? Did this House vote to terminate the Iran nuclear deal? Has the Council designated the IRGC as a terrorist organisation and used their assets to create a strike fund? No. High Representative Borrell, your Iran policy has failed. Iranians don’t want your rapprochement. They’re waiting for Europe to show maximum support for the people and to put maximum pressure on the regime. Dear colleagues, let’s honour the memory of Mahsa Amini by working together from left to right for a new Iran policy.

Mr President, Islamists and Islamic states are attacking free speech in Europe and some are waving the white flag. Denmark’s proposed ban on Quran burnings was praised by the Turkish Government. The speaker of the Arab League urged European states and the EU to adopt similar laws. Pakistan called Denmark’s bill a step in the right direction – a step, ladies and gentlemen. 97 % of mosques surveyed in Sweden want more. They want to criminalise desecration, provocations and insults of Islamic symbols and values in general – a giant leap toward Sharia. Mr President, if you know the Islamist end game, the proper response can only be this: not one inch. No appeasement, no submission, no surrender. Never.

Madam President, ladies and gentlemen, why should anyone do business/create jobs in Europe? Seriously? Regulations: the EU is suffocating businesses; 6000 legal acts from this mandate alone. Energy: unpredictable, impractical, expensive green energy is your solution. Overregulated, ageing, indebted, uncompetitive economies without access to cheap energy, inevitably deindustrialised. While we’re debating investments, companies are forced to spend less resources on things that matter and more on compliance. Today, you voted to strangle an emerging industry with EU red tape and you red Greens want a partial ban on forestry and farming, well aware of the massive economic damage it would do to my country and to Finland. Investments will come when start-ups are not constrained, industries can focus on production and electricity prices are low. If the EU repeals two laws for every law it passes, mark my words, investments will come.

Mr President, thank you very much. Madam Minister, colleagues! Last week, the Council agreed on a compromise on the migration pact, a compromise that was on a very, very delicate thread. The Council pleads, among other things, for swift expulsions of migrants coming from countries without a state of war, without threats to their lives, for migrants without grounds for asylum to be able to be deported to safe transit countries, and for migrant quotas dictated by Brussels to be something one would rather not see. As for my own country, Sweden, we have recently had a mass shooting that even left-liberal cultural writers associate with migration. Then the European Parliament cannot sit in the ivory tower and talk about the ‘narrative of fear’ – when teenagers in Sweden wonder: ‘Is it my turn next time? Are you going to lock me up at home now, Dad?’ It is very easy to do that, as neoliberals, you greens. If you adopt this attitude in the negotiations with the Council, I can promise you that: There will be no migration pact!

Madam President, thank you very much. Member States have now agreed on a counter-offer in the negotiations on the EU migration pact, and it rejects the coercive redistribution of migrants proposed by both Parliament’s Tomas Tobé and Commission’s Ylva Johansson. Parliament's majority, as we recall, deleted the entire portal paragraph on the fight against illegal immigration. calls for more coercive redistribution of migrants and increased family migration; They will now come to an agreement with the Member States in the Council who want to prioritise the fight against illegal immigration with faster and easier deportations, stopped shuttle traffic in the Mediterranean and agreements with third countries to house migrants in Africa. Negotiations between Parliament and the Council are now underway. If Parliament manages to pull the pact in its migration-liberal direction, it will become unsustainable. In a few months' time, we in the European Parliament will take a position on the finalized proposal. If this proposal leads to increased migration to our country and to Europe, we Sweden Democrats will vote no.

Madam President, colleagues, how can we deter illegal migration and deaths at sea, and provide protection for those in need? Well, by relocating the entire asylum process abroad, as Denmark is doing with Rwanda. The far-right government of Denmark. Oh, wait: it’s a Social Democratic liberal government. You don’t have to be a conservative to pursue reasonable migration policies, but you do have to be a realist. Although initially rebuked by Commissioner Johansson as bad and completely unrealistic, the model is gaining support. The Dutch Parliament called for cooperation with Denmark on Rwanda-style reception centres. Even Herr Weber, the EPP chief, supports this policy. Our very own Prime Minister, Ulf Kristersson, stated in Copenhagen that centres outside the EU probably is the future. Colleagues, externalising processing alone won’t remove incentives, though. Let me be clear: it’s essential that both processing and reception take place outside Europe. Only this way can we curb illegal migration, while at the same time providing refuge for those in need of international protection.

Madam President, thank you very much. Fruit is good, but it is not EU fruit support. EU support for school fruit does not exist to encourage schoolchildren to eat more fruit. It is about lobby groups having succeeded in inducing Brussels to spend EU money, tax money, on subsidising orchards, resulting in overproduction. But what will the EU do with all this fruit? What you do is either pay for the destruction of the fruit, or baptize the demand with more tax money. Swedish schools have the opportunity to apply for EU-sponsored fruit, a kind of refund on the Swedish EU fee. But our authorities have found that the bureaucracy eats up most of the fruit aid. The paperwork made it almost as expensive to buy fruit, with the fruit support as without. The EU should abolish both the aid for overproduction of fruit and the aid for school fruit, and reduce the membership fee by the same amount. Then maybe schools and parents could afford to buy the fruit our children need.