What Marieke spoke about.

6 Oct

2026

NL Speech

Effective measures to protect and empower children in the digital world (debate)

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Mr President, Commissioner, a European KIDS law is well-intentioned, but as is often the case, the road to hell is paved with good intentions. This proposal is no exception. A social media ban is not a solution, because young people bypass it anyway. But soon all users will have to show how old they are. Users of VPN connections cannot escape this either. The Commission is thus setting up the infr…

16 Sep

2026

EN Answer

State of the Union (debate)

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I have tried very hard to recognise anything from my speech in the question that you have asked, so I assume this was a pre-prepared question that you wanted to ask me. Of course we are patriotic, but that means strong nation states, not a strong European Union.…

16 Sep

2026

NL Speech

State of the Union (debate)

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Mr President, we have been hearing for years that, without Brussels, almost half of civilisation is collapsing. However, the reality is different, because Brussels creates the problems itself nine out of ten times and then sells the solution. Competitiveness? First a broken regulation and then an action plan. Energy? Unaffordable and then a strategy. Migration? Look away for years and then a pacif…

15 Sep

2026

EN Speech

Findings and recommendations of the Special Committee on the European Democracy Shield (debate)

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Madam President, Commissioner, during the last debate on the EU Democracy Shield, I gave you a copy of Nineteen Eighty-Four. Not as a manual, but as a warning. Today, I remind you again: free citizens do not need permission to think for themselves. People have the right to impart information and to decide for themselves whether that information is true, foolish or credible. They also have the righ…

7 Jul

2026

EN Speech

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

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Madam President, Prime Minister, Commissioner, Europeans are asking simple but existential questions. How do we pay for food, electricity and rent? Will we still have a job tomorrow? And why are our streets no longer safe for our women and children? These are the concerns of ordinary citizens. Yet in your chapter on security, I find little to nothing about criminal migrants or returning those with…

21 May

2026

EN Speech

Situation of women and girls in Afghanistan following the Taliban's adoption of the Criminal Procedure Code for Courts (RC-B10-0247/2026, B10-0246/2026, B10-0247/2026, B10-0249/2026, B10-0251/2026, B10-0252/2026, B10-0254/2026, B10-0255/2026, B10-0258/2026) (vote)

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Under Rule 10 of the Rules of procedure, I would like to point out that, in the conduct of Members, it is respectful to wait until the Member has finished reading their oral amendment before the other Members start rising. They should wait for you to ask if anyone objects. It's disrespectful. We could at least listen to what the Members are asking for.…

19 May

2026

EN Speech

EU governance under pressure – institutional responses to global challenges (debate)

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Mr President, today, every disagreement has become an argument against unanimity and an excuse for centralising more power in Brussels. But Europe is not weak because of vetoes. Europe is weak because, for far too long, we have lacked political courage and strong national leadership. Our leaders hide behind institutions and procedures instead of taking political responsibility. They have forgotten…

29 Apr

2026

EN Speech

Amendment of the European Electoral Act allowing Members to vote in plenary by proxy voting during pregnancy and after giving birth (A10-0123/2026 - Juan Fernando López Aguilar) (vote)

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Madam President, as a proud mother of four, I welcome the Council agreement to allow proxy voting for Members of the European Parliament during the final stage of pregnancy and early motherhood. This is a practical and proportionate solution for a very specific situation when mothers can no longer travel for medical reasons, yet remain fully committed to their mandate. It sends an important signal…

28 Apr

2026

NL Speech

Situation of fundamental rights in the European Union in 2024 and 2025 (debate)

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Mr President, the European Commission is carrying out a frontal attack on freedom of expression. Who says there are only two genders is immediately canceled because of hate speech. Anyone who criticizes the green madness spreads disinformation. Anyone who wants to return illegal migrants is guilty of pushbacks. Our privacy must also be destroyed. Via Chatcontrol 2.0, Ursula von der Leyen wants to …

27 Apr

2026

EN Speech

Importance of consent-based rape legislation in the EU (debate)

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Madam President, Commissioner, let me be absolutely clear from the outset: rape is a horrific crime. It must be unequivocally condemned, and victims deserve justice, protection and the utmost respect. But the proposal we are discussing here today is not the answer, and harmonisation at EU level is certainly not the answer. Of course consent must be central, but reducing it to a constant, contract‑…

27 Apr

2026

EN Speech

Order of business

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Madam President, on behalf of the Patriots, I request adding to the agenda a Council and Commission statement on the so‑called One Europe, One Market joint declaration that was signed last week. What has been agreed by the three institutions is not a simple declaration. It is a roadmap with political direction, legislative priorities and timelines. The place to decide on such matters is here in th…

11 Mar

2026

EN Answer

Rise of political violence, notably by far-left organisations (debate)

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It just proves my point that you think the rules apply to us, but not to you. You did not ask me a question. You do not deserve an answer, but I'm happy to have given you your 30 seconds of speaking time. Have a nice evening.…

11 Mar

2026

NL Speech

Rise of political violence, notably by far-left organisations (debate)

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10 Feb

2026

NL Speech

Spain’s large-scale regularisation policy and its impact on the Schengen Area and EU migration policy (debate)

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21 Jan

2026

NL Speech

Restoring control of migration: returns, visa policy and third-country cooperation (topical debate)

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Commissioner, for years we have been told that migration is an inevitable natural phenomenon. As if policy is useless and borders are just lines on a world map. Meanwhile, the consequences of mass migration are piling up, the economic and cultural damage is huge and our citizens are paying the bill. That is not solidarity, that is administrative recklessness. European migration policy has fundamen…

20 Jan

2026

NL Speech

Presentation of the programme of activities of the Cyprus Presidency (continuation of debate)

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Mr President, while the Commission is talking about strategic autonomy and territorial integrity, the Presidency of the Council is held by a Member State that has been partially occupied by a NATO ally for more than 50 years. This occupation has so far had no impact on Turkey's NATO membership and it is formally still a candidate country for EU membership. Whoever takes the measure of territorial …

17 Dec

2025

EN Speech

The urgent need to combat discrimination in the EU through the horizontal anti-discrimination directive (topical debate)

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Mr President, colleagues, we live in some of the most tolerant, open and free societies the world has ever known. Societies built on equality between men and women, on the freedom to love whom we choose, on the freedom to speak freely and on the absolute rejection of antisemitism. And yet, in the name of this tolerance, we have invited intolerance. This is the real discrimination we should be addr…

25 Nov

2025

EN Answer

Communication on the Democracy Shield (debate)

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Thank you very much, Mr Brandstätter. I have never denied that disinformation and foreign interference is a serious threat to our democracies. What I am concerned about is that the policy that the Commission is proposing will do nothing to fight Russian or Chinese interference into societies, and it will only target our own citizens – and that we have to avoid at every cost.…

25 Nov

2025

NL Speech

Communication on the Democracy Shield (debate)

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Mr President, Commissioner, two weeks ago, the European Commission launched the attack on our freedom of expression. With this proposal for a so-called European shield for democracy, they want, among other things, to combat disinformation. No one knows what disinformation is. Certainly not the Commission itself. If a word can mean anything, a government can abuse it for anything. Questions about c…

13 Nov

2025

EN Speech

Proxy voting in plenary for Members during pregnancy and after giving birth (A10-0214/2025 - Juan Fernando López Aguilar) (vote)

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I am concluding. ... out of respect for mothers who exercise their rightful duty in this democratic arena.

13 Nov

2025

EN Speech

Proxy voting in plenary for Members during pregnancy and after giving birth (A10-0214/2025 - Juan Fernando López Aguilar) (vote)

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No, I cannot speak if they're shouting.

13 Nov

2025

EN Speech

Proxy voting in plenary for Members during pregnancy and after giving birth (A10-0214/2025 - Juan Fernando López Aguilar) (vote)

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Madam President, female representatives have a democratic duty to represent their voters in this Parliament. The goal of this amendment is simple: to ensure that female representatives can continue to exercise their mandate, even during pregnancy and childbirth. However, for the Patriots for Europe, it is important to stress that this is not an open invitation to broaden the scope of the electoral…

12 Nov

2025

NL Speech

The first European Annual Asylum and Migration report and the setting up of the Annual Solidarity Pool (debate)

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Mr President, Commissioner, the European electorate has been promised: Hold on, because the migration pact is coming and that will solve all migration problems, but what does it show? Member States hardly agree on the distribution of asylum seekers. The Commission now says to the Dutch: “You will have new neighbours, but we will not tell you how many, because we will keep these figures a secret fo…

12 Nov

2025

EN Speech

Commemorating the 10th anniversary of the islamist attacks of 13 November 2015 in Paris (debate)

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Madam President, referring to Rules 40 and 132 of the Rules of Procedure, I would like to start by thanking the Chair of the AFCO Committee for a very timely and relevant discussion on the rule of law this week. However, we as the Patriots are concerned about the political insinuations of the President of the Court of Justice of the European Union during his keynote address. It was evident to all …

21 Oct

2025

EN Speech

Commission Work Programme 2026 (debate)

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Mr President, the work programme of the Commission is called 'Europe's independence moment'. A more apt description would be 'Operation more bureaucracy in fancy wrapping paper', because nothing says freedom like being buried under a mountain of new rules dressed up as simplification. The Commission promises 'new ambition' for Europe – you promise to cut red tape and then you wrap us in even more …