What Maria spoke about.

6 May

2025

RO Speech

A unified EU response to unjustified US trade measures and global trade opportunities for the EU (debate)

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Mr President, Commissioner, ladies and gentlemen, today's topic is extremely important for the future of the European Union. Commissioner, negotiating power is extremely important from the point of view of negotiators, but also what arguments they have behind it. If we don't have a strong internal market, we don't have anything to negotiate with. If we do not take our fellow citizens to increase t…

5 May

2025

RO Speech

One-minute speeches on matters of political importance

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5 May

2025

RO Speech

Ninth report on economic and social cohesion (debate)

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5 May

2025

RO Speech

Control of the financial activities of the European Investment Bank – annual report 2023 (debate)

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5 May

2025

RO Speech

Protection of the European Union’s financial interests – combating fraud – annual report 2023 (debate)

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3 Apr

2025

RO Speech

Health care related tourism: protecting EU patients abroad (debate)

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Mr President, Commissioner, we are discussing a subject for which, it seems to me, the title has nothing to do with reality. I was also the Minister of Tourism in my country. I would prefer to do medical tourism only on what is related to nature, water, mud, air, but medical tourism, as we now understand it from what you have presented, is an ordeal for the patient. The patient should have the clo…

3 Apr

2025

RO Speech

European Action Plan on Rare Diseases (debate)

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Mr President, Commissioner, imagine that 30 million sick people would have listened to what you said today. That's right, you told us it was going to be, we're going to be, we've spent five billion in 25 years, which means little in research. Do you think you shouldn't have presented us here with an exact situation or at least proposed us? What will you do to make cross-border treatment work? What…

2 Apr

2025

RO Speech

Energy-intensive industries (debate)

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Madam President, Commissioner, ladies and gentlemen, without a solid industry, you said yourself, Commissioner, we cannot have economic security and we cannot have social security. And yes, the metals industry, the cement industry, the chemical industry are energy intensive, they consume a lot of energy, but we need to have a combined plan, Commissioner. You presented the plan for steel and metals…

1 Apr

2025

RO Speech

Improving the implementation of cohesion policy through the mid-term review to achieve a robust cohesion policy post 2027 (debate)

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Mr President, Commissioner, cohesion, cohesion policy, keeps Europe united. If we do not understand this - and yes, you have now proposed to modernise, but, Commissioner, I think there should be a Commission exercise, to look at the impact, because we have always had money earmarked for cohesion policy, and yet regional disparities exist: the difference between rural and urban areas, the differenc…

31 Mar

2025

RO Speech

Savings and Investments Union (debate)

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Mr President, Commissioner, ladies and gentlemen, we have not succeeded in setting up the capital market and we are rebaptising it now. You've come up with a new name, very poorly explained. You know, Commissioner, and you have heard here in my country, too, that people are already afraid, they want to take their money out of the bank, because they understand that yes, the European Commission is t…

31 Mar

2025

RO Speech

Guidelines for the 2026 budget - Section III (debate)

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Mr President, Commissioner, setting the priority directions for the 2026 budget is extremely important. Why? We cannot have more money in the next period if we do not invest it where more money can bring us, namely in research, in innovation, in SMEs, in order to be able to develop well-paid jobs. We cannot have a competitive economy if we do not have well-trained people – that is why we must have…

13 Mar

2025

RO Speech

Action Plan for Affordable Energy (debate)

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Mr President, Commissioner, we are talking about affordable prices, but I wish you had given a definition: What do you mean by affordable energy prices? Because another price is affordable for citizens of Luxembourg, another price is affordable for those of Romania or Eastern countries. You were very sure of yourself, as if you had the ace in your pocket. You can work it out by making an energy un…

13 Mar

2025

RO Speech

A Vision for Agriculture and Food (debate)

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Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, today's debate must be immediately followed by action, Commissioner. That's what farmers expect. We need to have more economic and social fairness in the internal market if we want to have sustainable agriculture, because that's what we're talking about. We need to have regulations that combat inflation and stabilize prices. Inflation eats from the budget. We ca…

12 Mar

2025

RO Speech

European Semester (joint debate)

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Mr President, Commissioner, ladies and gentlemen, what we do is very important, not just what we say. The European Semester was a concept, a concept that, of course, brought a lot of expectations in the Member States, brought a lot of expectations to the citizens, because, after all, we have to work for the citizens. The results of our work here, of the regulations, must lead to an increase in liv…

12 Mar

2025

RO Question

European Semester (joint debate)

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Dear colleague, we are discussing the European Semester. You didn't say much in your speech. I want to ask you specifically: why do you think that the European Semester that we have had for a long time has not worked in terms of social cohesion, increasing employee incomes, increasing the number of SMEs, sustainability? Because this is the debate, what should the European Union do, what should the…

11 Mar

2025

RO Speech

Roadmap for Women`s Rights (debate)

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Madam President, Commissioner, first of all I would like to stress something positive, namely that for the first time we have four European institutions led by women. I am proud that Romania, my country, has had a female commissioner for three mandates. These are things that have developed in our democratic society. There's one more thing I'd like: the word ‘protect’ has been widely used – let’s r…

11 Mar

2025

RO Speech

European Council meetings and European security (joint debate)

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Madam President, President of the European Council, Commissioner, ladies and gentlemen, today we were supposed to debate the Council meeting on 20 March. Unfortunately, almost all speeches were related to rearmament, defence; are very important, but I want to stop at the three points raised by the Polish Presidency and I want you to discuss them, Mr President, on 20 March. This is about the econom…

10 Mar

2025

RO Speech

Cutting red tape and simplifying business in the EU: the first Omnibus proposals (debate)

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Madam President, Commissioner, ladies and gentlemen, Europe's problem now is not only that of conflict, it is also the economic problem. And, Commissioner, gold-plating can lead to job losses. We have to understand, we have worked much more in the economy, in industry than in politics, we have to understand that we have to treat workers' rights as a package, with conditions for SMEs, especially, a…

12 Feb

2025

RO Speech

Competitiveness Compass (debate)

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Madam President, Commissioner, ladies and gentlemen, I would first of all like to congratulate the Polish Council, the Polish Presidency, which is sitting here in the debate, unlike the President, who has not even presented her programme. Commissioner, are you in charge of the internal market? Of course it is good that we aim for competitiveness, but I tell you from experience, as an entrepreneur,…

12 Feb

2025

RO Speech

Commission Work Programme 2025 (debate)

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Madam President, Commissioner, ladies and gentlemen, I think I can start by saying that the President of the Commission is being defiant, disrespectful and disinterested. If, when he has to present the Commission's five-year programme, he does not find time to come to Parliament, I believe that we must give him a vote of blame. Now, Commissioner, 11 pages has this five-year project. Know that a st…

11 Feb

2025

RO Speech

US AI chip export restrictions: a challenge to European AI development and economic resilience (debate)

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Madam President, Commissioner, ladies and gentlemen, we are, of course, discussing a very important issue: export restrictions on chips from the United States, but I think we are not aware of these restrictions now. They started five years ago, we know well, and I think that the European Union should have been active, developing its chip production in the European Union, because we know well that …

11 Feb

2025

RO Speech

The need to address urgent labour shortages and ensure quality jobs in the health care sector (debate)

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Mr President, Commissioner, ladies and gentlemen, of course we are discussing a subject that I, at least, have known for three terms. We also know that health is a national competence. It is not only the European Union that can work here. But, Commissioner, we must say that policies at European Union level, from the point of view of allocating budgets for infrastructure, for the working conditions…

11 Feb

2025

RO Speech

Preparedness for a new trade era: multilateral cooperation or tariffs (debate)

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Mr President, from 9 to 10 I am taking part in the debate and I signed up first for catch-the-eye. I do not understand not being notified that we are not being given ‘catch-the-eye’ because we have placed a card. This has to be said at the beginning of the meeting, in order to decide whether I am carding or keeping my catch-the-eye. It's absolutely rude and irregular.…

11 Feb

2025

RO Question

Preparedness for a new trade era: multilateral cooperation or tariffs (debate)

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Dear colleague, you have said on several occasions "we must", "we must have relations with the United States", but you have not said anything concrete. What would you concretely propose that the European Union do in relation to the United States? Do you think that the European Union's trade agreement policy is sufficient? Does it sufficiently protect industry in the European Union? What should be …

10 Feb

2025

RO Speech

One-minute speeches on matters of political importance

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Mr President, Commissioner, the energy policy that the European Commission has made - not you, which was - is disastrous. The effects on competitiveness, especially for small and medium-sized enterprises, are now being seen. Commissioner, I propose that you discuss this in the College of Commissioners, that you make a real energy policy. We can't shut down energy production before we have an alter…