Speeches

Mr President, Commissioner, the unscrupulous use of spyware such as Pegasus is opening up a new front in the battle we are fighting to defend democracy and the rights of European citizens. Scandalous revelations of wiretapping of state leaders, politicians, journalists and human rights defenders raise alarm about gross violations of European legislation. Moreover, to violate the fundamental values that underpin our Union, such as respect for human rights and freedom of speech. Effective countermeasures are needed. They're needed now. The number of abuses is growing, so before it is too late, we must protect the victims of unregulated interference and take firm measures to limit the risks. Without, of course, tying the hands of the intelligence services. New technologies are and will continue to be an integral part of the effective fight against terrorism and serious crime. Therefore, regulation is the only way to set clear and certain limits for the permissible use of spyware, such as Pegasus. In other words, we are faced with the question of how to curb these technologies so that they do not become an unregulated machine for comprehensive tracking of the inconvenient of power, a powerful weapon against political opponents or representatives of civil society. Setting up a committee of inquiry in the European Parliament is important to understand the extent to which spyware has infiltrated Member States, but I expect a serious response from the European Commission as well. Measures are needed in many directions: from the urgent interception of abuses to data security and access. And it's no coincidence that I'm putting an emphasis on rapid response, because risky technologies, which are the product of a billion-dollar industry, won't stop evolving as institutions debate the tools to control them.

Mr President, scandals such as Panama Papers, Paradise Papers and Pandora Papers prove that money laundering remains a serious problem in Europe. To this long series of revelations, we must add the so-called ‘Swiss secrets’, which have shed light on the dubious business practices of the large Swiss bank Credit Suisse. This is not just the largest data leak by a major Swiss bank to date, but a scandal of nearly 100 billion euros involving more than 30,000 clients of the financial institution. Dozens of prominent civil servants and businessmen from more than 120 jurisdictions have been involved, mostly outside the borders of the European Union. Against this background, the Bankers' Association of the country announced that on accounts in Swiss banks there are between 160 and 213 billion dollars, which belong to Russian customers. Experts claim that the actual amount of funds is many times greater than announced. The revelations have also taken on a new meaning in the context of the military aggression against Ukraine and the sanctions that the European Union is imposing on Russia. Swiss banks have close links with other European banks, so the shortcomings identified in the fight against money laundering should not be seen as isolated cases, but as a problem for the entire European financial sector. There is a clear need to carry out a detailed and objective risk assessment. Otherwise, in the absence of effective supervision, any deviation from the rules could open a gap in the security of the financial system of the European Union.

Mr President, Commissioner, colleagues, according to the latest revelations in the Pandora Papers, it has become abundantly clear to everyone that we need a comprehensive European policy, a strengthened legislative framework on money laundering and terrorist financing. The new legislative package in this area is therefore much more than necessary and timely. It is very important that this framework is applied uniformly in all Member States. I welcome the European Commission's proposal for an anti-money laundering regulation, because only in this way will we unify the rules and close the loopholes in European legislation that criminals skillfully use to abuse the financial system. We need to establish effective supervision based on common supervisory methods and convergence of high standards in the financial sector. There is also a need for better cooperation between administrative, judicial and law enforcement authorities in the European Union. In this regard, the exchange of information between Financial Intelligence Units is of utmost importance. Ultimately, in order to be effective, the fight against abuse must be based on a strong cross-border partnership and, respectively, on good information.