What Dan spoke about.

8

Oct

2024

RO Speech

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The crisis facing the EU’s automotive industry, potential plant closures and the need to enhance competitiveness and maintain jobs in Europe (debate)

Madam President, Commissioner, why is European industry losing competitiveness? Let's take two examples: 1. Steel industry: in steel we have lost over 20 million tonnes of capacity in the last two years for a few simple reasons: 1. the price of energy, which is also much too high and very volatile, from simple to double in one year and, on the other hand, the import from countries outside the Euro…

8

Oct

2024

RO Speech

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Preparation of the European Council of 17-18 October 2024 (debate)

Mr President, Vice-President Šefčovič, we are discussing the competitiveness of European industry and I would like to draw your attention today to the situation of the steel industry in the European Union economy. We have lost more than 20 million tonnes of steel capacity in the steel industry in the European Union in recent years, for two reasons: 1. energy prices, which had an absolutely unaccep…

18

Sep

2024

RO Speech

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The devastating floods in Central and Eastern Europe, the loss of lives and the EU’s preparedness to act on such disasters exacerbated by climate change (debate)

Mr President, unfortunately, in Romania, in Galati, in one night, in five hours, seven people lost their lives, 7 000 houses were destroyed, more than in a day of war in Ukraine, tens of thousands of people lost everything. They ran out of clothes, nothing in their houses. All they had left was what they were wearing that fateful night. Floods, which some say have been unprecedented in the last 10…

17

Sep

2024

RO Speech

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State of the Energy union (debate)

Mr President, Commissioner, how is the state of energy in the European Union? Let me tell you how it looks from Romania. Well, I had this: a period when prices, through 2022 and in 2023, went haywire. We found that this situation is almost general at the level of the European Union, that we are talking about an amount of tens, hundreds of billions of euros, which would have been money that was ill…

17

Sep

2024

RO Answer

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The future of European competitiveness (debate)

Mrs Soşoacă, I want to tell you that I come from there – by the way, I changed my boots with my shoes so that I could come to Strasbourg – and I saw exactly what level of aid was granted from day one: water trucks because those people didn't have water, barracks, blankets, mattresses. Camps were brought in and set up so that people could stay somewhere because their houses had been destroyed. Toda…

17

Sep

2024

RO Speech

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The future of European competitiveness (debate)

Madam President, Vice-President Šefčovič, in Galati, my region, there have been devastating floods these days that have destroyed more than 6 000 houses, dozens of roads and bridges and left tens of thousands of people with nothing, literally nothing. At this point, urgent financial help is needed so that we can bring these people back to life, send children to schools that have been devastated an…

25

Apr

2024

RO Speech

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Framework of measures for strengthening Europe’s net-zero technology products manufacturing ecosystem (Net Zero Industry Act) (debate)

Mr President, today we are approving an important piece of legislation, one on zero-carbon technologies. Thanks to an extraordinary effort on the part of the European Parliament, we have succeeded in introducing, in this piece of legislation, the recognition of the steel industry as a strategic industry at European Union level. This will allow us to be able to finance the steel industry in the Eur…

24

Apr

2024

RO Speech

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The attack on climate and nature: far right and conservative attempts to destroy the Green Deal and prevent investment in our future (topical debate)

Mr President, one of the promises that has remained unfulfilled under the Green Deal is support for the European steel industry to produce clean, low-carbon steel. Instead of these measures, which we all expected, in addition to the lack of financing and the lack of money for this industry, the steel industry, and I mean the one that was most affected, with a decrease of 40 million tonnes last yea…

11

Apr

2024

RO Speech

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Internal markets for renewable gas, natural gas and hydrogen (recast) - Common rules for the internal markets for renewable gas, natural gas and hydrogen (recast) - Union’s electricity market design: Regulation - Union’s electricity market design: Directive (joint debate – Reform of the energy and electricity markets)

Mr President, Commissioner, energy market reform in the European Union must mean a few things. It will mean some important things for European industry, which will finally have access to medium-term contracts at prices that are predictable and allow European industry, small and medium-sized firms to remain in the market and be competitive. This energy market reform also means something: that no on…

12

Mar

2024

RO Speech

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Council and Commission statements - Preparation of the European Council meeting of 21 and 22 March 2024 (debate)

Mr President, Minister, Vice-President Šefčovič, I expect this Council to adopt and take a very tough measure to protect European Union agriculture. Today, when we talk, we had farmers on the street, we had protests, because there are many, many, many farmers who see their businesses in jeopardy. There are people who will lose their jobs and we are putting the food security of the European Union a…

28

Feb

2024

RO Speech

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Improving the Union’s protection against market manipulation on the wholesale energy market (debate)

Madam President, Commissioner, at last, speculation on energy prices is receiving a tough response, expected by all those who have been victims of these deceptive, illegal practices. I am referring here to companies - some of which went bankrupt - who had to pay unjustified prices, people who lost their jobs, people who at home had to give up what they needed to be able to pay their energy bills. …

27

Feb

2024

RO Speech

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Multiannual financial framework for the years 2021 to 2027 - Establishing the Ukraine Facility - Establishing the Strategic Technologies for Europe Platform (‘STEP’) (joint debate - multiannual financial framework revision)

Mr President, great news for European industry, which has been hard-pressed by the energy crisis, by the situation we have experienced as a result of Russia's aggression in Ukraine, and for the industries that have suffered the most, such as the steel industry in Romania. We now have provisions that allow Romania to adopt measures to support investments, to support the functioning of these entitie…

6

Feb

2024

RO Speech

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Conclusions of the European Council meetings, in particular the special European Council meeting of 1 February 2024 (debate)

Madam President, President Charles Michel, Vice-President Šefčovič, the Council conclusions are superb, but one element that is extremely important is missing. What is the action plan for European agriculture and farmers? When farmers in the European Union, from Brussels, from Paris, Strasbourg to Bucharest, are on the street, something is wrong, profoundly wrong. And then, in order to avoid a sit…

16

Jan

2024

RO Speech

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Presentation of the programme of activities of the Belgian Presidency (debate)

Madam President, Prime Minister De Croo, you said that the European single market is a priority for you and I want to tell you that today, in Romania, tens of thousands of carriers are on the street protesting because they want to enter the European single market. Austria decided - Chancellor Nehammer, that Romania should not enter the Schengen area, unjustified, without any motivation. But today,…

20

Nov

2023

RO Speech

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Framework of measures for strengthening Europe’s net-zero technology products manufacturing ecosystem (Net Zero Industry Act) (debate)

Madam President, Commissioner Breton, another file on European industry, which we have taken very seriously in the European Parliament, and I congratulate both the rapporteur and those who have been shadow rapporteurs, because the naive period of not talking about European industry would seem to be over, and now we are all dealing with serious things. I want to refer to something that I found extr…

8

Nov

2023

RO Speech

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State of the Energy Union (debate)

Madam President, Commissioner Simson, there have been some good things that have been achieved lately, because after the lesson learned after a complicated, hard, almost catastrophic winter in the European Union, we have managed to correct some things. The fact that there is an obligation to store natural gas is a plus, but people ask: Will this winter be the same as last winter, when they looked …

18

Oct

2023

RO Speech

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The despicable terrorist attacks by Hamas against Israel, Israel’s right to defend itself in line with humanitarian and international law and the humanitarian situation in Gaza (debate)

Mr President, Vice-President Šefčovič, High Representative Borrell, Minister, we are here to say one thing very clearly, Hamas terrorism must stop. We've all seen the horrors that the cameras presented. I saw pictures of the massacre they committed in Israel. We have seen from babies who were killed, burned, women mocked, killed, to elderly people, even people in wheelchairs who fell victim to Ham…

4

Oct

2023

RO Speech

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Decent Housing for All (topical debate)

Madam President, Commissioner Schmit, 10% of European citizens pay 40% for housing, so that they can live in a decent house. These are worrying figures. These are the figures of despair that show why there is a need for a European policy that is adequate and that has as its main purpose the elimination of these situations that worry us all. What can we do concretely? For example, to remove the Maa…

11

Sep

2023

RO Speech

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Renewable Energy Directive (debate)

Mr President, Commissioner, great news for the millions of European citizens who have decided and dared to apply and want to put solar panels at home. With this directive we say: that within three months, if you have not received the approval, the approval is automatic, positive silence, tacit approval. For the current situation, for years. How many? For some solar and wind projects, waiting time:…

11

Jul

2023

EN Speech

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European Chips Act (debate)

Madam President, while the EU Chips Act will not ensure the EU’s independence in relation to chips, as no single player can be independent in relation to this, we want the EU Chips Act to establish Europe as an important player in the global semiconductors arena and we want to ensure that the EU is leading in research and innovation, that it has a business-friendly environment, a fast-permitting p…

11

Jul

2023

EN Speech

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European Chips Act (debate)

Madam President, Commissioner Breton, it’s a pleasure to see you again after long days of negotiations. On 18 April, after a swift and effective negotiation period and only after one month a half of negotiations, we have finalised a strong deal for the European Chips Act with the Swedish Presidency. The European Parliament pushed for a strong deal, with the Council showing a strong level of ambiti…

29

Mar

2023

RO Speech

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Conclusions of the European Council meeting of 23-24 March 2023 (debate)

Madam President, President von der Leyen, President Michel, I want to welcome the Council conclusions and I want to ask you not to forget one thing: You talked about competitiveness. It is the electricity prices that either people or industry pay that overwhelmingly determine the competitiveness of the European Union's economy. Unfortunately, two elements are missing: an exchange on which methane …

15

Mar

2023

RO Speech

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Conclusions of the Special European Council meeting of 9 February and preparation of the European Council meeting of 23-24 March 2023 (debate)

Madam President, First Vice-President Šefčovič, dear Maroš, President Charles Michel, we welcome the Council conclusions of 9 February, but I draw attention to the fact that if we do not come up with sources of cash, fresh money, existing resources, existing financial instruments are insufficient for what we have to do, including for the field of semiconductors. In the field of energy, the Europea…

14

Mar

2023

RO Speech

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Question Time (Commission) - How to ensure energy security in the EU in 2023

Mr President, Commissioner, of course our objective is to have a predictability of electricity and gas prices, because this, these bills which, on the one hand, have had a very high fluctuation, on the other hand, the very high level, have affected both people and industry. My question is: how do you get electricity operators and distributors to deal with medium- and long-term contracts, instead o…

14

Mar

2023

RO Speech

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Question Time (Commission) - How to ensure energy security in the EU in 2023

Mr President, Commissioner, for me and my political group it is very clear that if we want to have energy security in the European Union, we must look at how we manage to reduce, to eliminate this excessive volatility of the electricity and gas market in the European Union. It is clear that we need to increase renewable energy capacities, energy efficiency, and it is a question for me how do we, t…