Speeches

Mr President, it has now been six years since we pledged to end the ‘trade for all’ strategy, to reach an agreement with Taiwan. Six years, and we are still not there. We concluded an agreement with China, yet Taiwan is still waiting. And this is not right. We need to have a bilateral investment agreement. There is no single reason not to have this. China shouldn’t be used as an excuse to prevent us from pursuing our own interests in the region. Taiwan shares the same values as us. Our business leaders are overwhelmingly in favour of this, and as is clearer today than ever, this House is calling for a deal. For a deal now.

The second announcement: the President has received from the Council its position at first reading, as well as the reasons which led to its adoption and the positions and opinions of the Commission. The title will be listed in the minutes of this sitting. The three—month period available to Parliament to adopt its position will therefore begin to run from tomorrow, 8 October 2021. (The sitting was suspended at 13.47)

– I have two announcements. Mr Sven Schulze has been appointed as a member of the regional government of Saxony—Anhalt. Parliament takes note that his seat has become vacant with effect from 29 September 2021.

– I will now move to the second voting session of today. We will vote on the files as indicated on the agenda. The voting session will be open from 13.45 until 15.00. The same voting method will be used as during the previous voting sessions. All votes will be held by roll call. I declare the second voting session open. You have until 15.00 to vote. The results of the second voting session will be announced at 16.30.

Mr President, well seven months have passed since I last addressed this plenary on the human rights situation in Myanmar, and sadly, here we are again. We watched in horror as the military junta staged a coup and ruthlessly set the clock back by 15 years. Since then, hundreds of thousands of civilians have been displaced due to fighting and the army’s brutal campaign. Political opposition, peaceful protesters are in prison being tortured and the already persecuted Rohingya and other religious minorities continue to be targeted. Europe’s message today must be loud and clear. We stand firmly with the people of Myanmar in their struggle for democracy. We condemn the abuses by the military regime. We demand the release of all political prisoners, and we call for justice – that all those responsible for the crimes be held accountable. And we call for action, action from the European side to extend the EU sanctions. Let’s show that Europe stands firm by Myanmar.

Mr President, I say the High Representative: I would like to take this occasion to welcome the Technology and Trade Council of last week. The United States and Europe must work together if we want an open and free digital future. The digital world rests on the EU and US creating common digital policies. This is about our security, our competitiveness and, most importantly, it is about protecting basic fundamental freedoms online. I don’t want a digital Europe to be a walled garden. If digital sovereignty or strategic autonomy means a closed and isolated Europe, we will be harming our citizens, not helping them. For all the latest disagreements, the best ally that we have in digital freedom is the United States. If we turn away from this alliance, I ask us, who are we turning to?

I will now move to the second voting session of today. We will vote on the files as indicated on the agenda. The voting session will be open from 13.45 until 15.00. The same voting method will be used as during the previous voting sessions. All votes will be held by roll call. I declare the second voting session open. You have until 15.00 to vote. The results of the second voting session will be announced at 16.30. (The session was suspended at 13.46)

I also have one announcement. The non-attached Members have notified me of the decisions relating to changes to appointments within committees. These decisions will be set out in the minutes of today’s sitting and shall take effect on the date of this announcement. (The sitting was suspended at 13.05)

Madam President, Cubans want change, they want a better life, a democratic and free Cuba. They have every right to demonstrate peacefully, but instead of protecting their people, the regime has attacked, detained and mistreated them. Europe should be supporting Cubans, but the High Representative's response remains the same as always: statements that we are concerned; We urge the Cuban government to respect human rights... I want to ask the High Representative and I want a concrete answer this time. What do you think needs to happen in order for it to recognize that Cuba is not complying with the Agreement? What do you consider to be a breach of the essential elements of the Agreement? What has to happen in Cuba to punish human rights violators? The list of abuses of the regime grows every day, and with it the degree of distrust in the Agreement between the European Union and Cuba. For the European Parliament it has been very clear for a long time: Cuba violates human rights and there must be consequences. It is time to suspend the Agreement with Cuba, it is time to sanction human rights violators and implement the European Union's Magnitsky Law.

The next item is the debate on the Council and Commission statements on media freedom and further deterioration of the rule of law in Poland (2021/2880(RSP)).

Madam President, this has been an incredibly tough year, but we are now seeing the light at the end of the tunnel and looking to our economic recovery. We need to get back on our own two feet and regain competitiveness as soon as possible. We now have the money, but the policies we adopt and the kind of business environment we create will determine how we emerge from the crisis, and how quickly. The approach we take on digital and climate transitions are key. While we shape this new digital decade, we must be careful to avoid overregulating, which will just hold our companies, especially SMEs, back. We need them to be free to innovate and thus, to grow. We must fight the isolationist and protectionist tendencies in the name of European sovereignty. We can be strong and open to the world. We can have strategic crisis reserves, but still be open to free trade and open industry. Without a global alliance, we will just fall further behind other world powers. Now is not the time to hide, but to get into the game. We all want to protect the environment, but we have to take into account the impact on the lives of our citizens. It was a mistake to include private houses in the Emissions Trading System (ETS), and we need to fix it. The policies we adopt in Brussels must be about making lives better, both for our citizens and our businesses. We must make policy with and for our citizens, not against them.

Mr President, Madam Commissioner, one year ago this House condemned the introduction of Hong Kong’s national security law for violating the city’s autonomy, rule of law and fundamental freedoms. The Hong Kong government ensured that this law would ensure stability. One year later we stand here again, witnessing the brutal attack on freedom of press, freedom of speech, as China cements its control. The message from the European Parliament is clear today. The forced closure of Apple Daily and harassment of journalists are unacceptable, and the EU must take action. But while China desperately tries to silence voices, it can never silence ideas. The seat of democracy is planted firmly in the minds of the people of Hong Kong, and the European Union will stand firmly beside them in their defence of their freedom.

The next item is the debate on six motions for resolutions on Hong Kong, notably the case of (2021/2786(RSP))*. _______________ *See Minutes.

The next item is the debate on seven motions for a resolution on the case of Ahmadreza Djalali in Iran (2021/2785(RSP))*. ______________ * See Minutes.

The next item is the debate on the report by Grace O’Sullivan, on behalf of the Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety, on the proposal for a Decision of the European Parliament and of the Council on a General Union Environment Action Programme to 2030 (COM(2020)0652 – C9-0329/2020 – 2020/0300(COD)) (A9-0203/2021).

The debate is closed. The vote on the amendments will be held shortly, and the final vote on Thursday, 8 July 2021. Written statements (Rule 171)

Before continuing this debate I would like to make an announcement. I would like to inform the House that the vote on changes to the composition of the special committees and the committee of inquiry will be held tomorrow. The deadlines are as follows. Proposal for a decision: today, Wednesday, 7 July at 17.30. Amendments: today at 19.30. Requests for separate and split votes: today at 21.30.

The next item is the debate on the report by Nicolás González Casares, on behalf of the Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety, on the proposal for a regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council on a reinforced role for the European Medicines Agency in crisis preparedness and management for medicinal products and medical devices (COM(2020)0725 – C9-0365/2020 – 2020/0321(COD)) (A9-0216/2021).

Mr President, 200 million Europeans already have an EU Digital COVID Certificate. It's on our phone and it's a great thing! From the beginning, together with our political faction, I appealed to us to have a simple solution that will open up Europe for us, a ticket through Europe without further restrictions. But what is the practice? Slovakia first announced the closure of border crossings to take it back immediately. However, unvaccinated arrivals will be quarantined with the EU Digital COVID Certificate. Croatia changes the entry conditions in a matter of hours. The confusion is growing. If this goes on, we'll need to navigate through stamps and regulations to travel through Europe. So my appeal today goes to the Member States: Please, let's not be surprised! Try to achieve maximum freedom of movement in Europe. That was our goal from the beginning, and that's what we promised our citizens.