Speeches

Madam President, ladies and gentlemen, I would like to stress in particular the importance of the present legislation for cancer patients in Europe. First of all, you will benefit from the fact that we become more efficient in the benefit assessment. When the EPP asked systematically for the first time in 2018 how we can better help patients suffering from cancer, one of our demands was: HTA must be accepted. I am glad that we have finally done this. The institutions responsible for the benefit assessment will have to cooperate with the European Medicines Agency in the future. This can lead to real innovations, especially in cancer patients, and little sham innovation. In women's politics, MeToo Necessary and urgent. In pharmaceutical policy, MeToo waste of resources. This means: A company puts only one drug on the market to get a piece of the cake without it being a real innovation for patients. And if you get signaled in time in the cooperation EMA and HTA institutions: This is not a real innovation, you might get an approval, but never a refund – hopefully you will focus on real breakthroughs such as mRNA technology against cancer. I would like to thank all those who have helped to come to this conclusion: Tiemo Wölken, Nathalie Colin-Oesterlé for the EPP, Stella as Commissioner. I believe that with this proposal we will conserve resources and avoid duplication of efforts. Funding is still decided nationally. If you order the music, you also have to pay for it, as it is said in German. But that a drug in France extends life by two years and in Germany only by six months or vice versa, that can not be. Therefore, the benefit assessment on a scientific basis must be made jointly in Europe. The high-paying people who do this 27 times are supposed to really care about the innovations and not about duplication.

Mr President, ladies and gentlemen. This glass is more than half-full, and I also evaluate the results of the Glasgow climate conference in such a way that the glass is more than half-full. Much has been achieved. When we were in Madrid two years ago, the EU was the only major economy committed to climate neutrality. In the two years leading up to Glasgow and Glasgow, practically the whole world has joined. Not only developed countries such as the USA, Canada, Australia, Japan, but also an emerging country such as South Africa has agreed to be climate neutral by 2050. The conversation with the South African delegation was particularly impressive for me. However, it remains a huge problem and that is why the glass is not really full – it is not enough. Above all, what we have in terms of ambitions for 2030 is not enough. We still have the fact that the world's largest issuer, China, wants to increase its emissions by 2030. Then, in the interests of our children and grandchildren, we will not be able to control climate change. That's why we're not on target yet. Four points are important to me now. Firstly, we must work even more with third countries, especially with African countries, and also write our legislation in such a way that they go along with it. Second, we need ambitions, of course. But we also have to do it in such a way that we are a role model for others, that the world says: We want to do it like the European Union does. For this we need technology, and for this we must achieve climate protection at the lowest possible cost. And that does not mean that we politicians decide what is done in detail, but the citizens. This is best done with market economy systems. I would therefore like to thank the Commission for Fit for 55 This is also the case with emissions trading. In the end: If this is the case that we are not yet on target and that China has this irresponsibly bad target, then we still need protection against carbon leakageWe do not want to de-industrialise Europe, we want to decarbonise industry.

Madam President, ladies and gentlemen, First of all, thank you very much to Maria Spyraki and congratulations on the report she has presented. Methane is a huge problem: It is the second most important climate gas. Although it has a shorter lifespan than CO2, it has a significantly higher greenhouse gas potential. Precisely the next ten years – we do not know exactly, but the next few years – will be crucial to avoid dangerous tipping points in the climate system, such as the thawing of the permafrost soils in Siberia. So too much methane in the next decade can mean very, very much methane for our children and grandchildren, and then we can't get a handle on climate change. But I am very much in favour of not making this a dispute between climate protection and agriculture. Farmers are part of the solution. They also offer many sinks, for example through humus formation or sustainable forestry. That is why we should not stigmatise them, but work together with farmers to reduce methane emissions. We should prevent leaks in the gas sector and we should finally ensure that no more waste ends up in landfills across Europe. This must come to an end, because methane is also produced there, and we are destroying important raw materials that our children still need. And last but not least: Commissioner, congratulations on the agreement with the United States. Climate protection is not a national or purely European task. We need international cooperation and we need to continue along the way.

Mr President, ladies and gentlemen. During the last COP in Madrid, the European Council - later than the European Parliament, but at least - advocated climate neutrality by 2050, and this is now the law in Europe. We spoke to many members of parliament and representatives of other nations in Madrid and encouraged them to follow this path. Japan, South Africa, the US and Canada and many others have done so. I agree with the resolution when we say that a lot of work is still needed on China, because CO2-neutral 2060 is certainly not enough. But I find it particularly shameful that Australia, as a rich industrialized country, has not yet made such a commitment, and we have to work hard on that. International climate policy must be a priority at all levels. And we also need to do more - as the Vice-President rightly said - in shipping and air transport. We should not argue as if we have an air column nationally or in Europe, and if we decarbonise it, then all would be well, but we must work much more internationally and together. But I strongly disagree with all those who say that we need to cut back on the Fit for 55 package now because we have high energy prices. Renewable energy and energy efficiency can be something like vaccination during the coronavirus crisis: If we invest, we become immune to high fossil fuel prices. And if the disease gets worse, it's the same with Corona as it is with the high energy prices: Then one must not stop producing the vaccine, but then one must make faster with the vaccination. Therefore, yes to ‘Fit for 55’ – precisely because of the high energy prices.

Madam President, ladies and gentlemen, We are facing a serious challenge due to high energy prices in the European Union. We need to react very wisely now. It is a popular reproach to politicians that they always think only of the next election and never of the next generation. And, Commissioner, there is pressure on you from the Member States, now, for example, to weaken emissions trading and not to implement new steps on emissions trading, which are included in the Fit for 55 package, because of the current high energy prices. Fit for 55 measures will only really work in 2025, 2026, 2027. Anyone who says we need to weaken the ETS now confirms any prejudice. And I'm not ready for that. We need to invest in energy efficiency and renewable energy. It helps directly. And we have to do this, especially for the socially weak, by enabling them to buy energy-efficient products. That is because – as Pernille Weiß rightly put it – energy that I do not consume does not require any costs. This also applies to the economy: The less we consume, the less we are dependent, and the less we are exposed to such price shocks. And investors in this technology need clarity. Anyone who behaves in a climate-friendly manner should make money. That is why we now need a smart, long-term strategy with targeted aid, but we must not question European climate policy at any point.

Madam President, ladies and gentlemen, The European Union is now doing very well in the fight against the pandemic. We have the highest vaccination rate in the world, and we have been successful together. But we experienced three difficult months earlier this year. There was too little vaccine and too late for many citizens in the EU. This was due to export bans from other countries. It was because the company Pfizer has strayed in liability. And it is good that the Commission has remained hard on that. But it was also because we didn't have something like HERA. The Americans had the BARDA and were therefore able to produce more vaccines faster. That is why, as a Parliament, we have said in a large majority: We want something like the US-BARDA. And we also explicitly want the cooperation of private companies and public institutions. The BioNTech vaccine is an absolute hit worldwide, and it brings us out of the pandemic. The EU, national funds and private capital have contributed to this, and that would have deserved the Nobel Prize in Medicine. That's why we need something like the Americans. And that is why we, as the EPP, are fundamentally in favour of HERA. We see the democratic deficit. That is why we propose: Yes, we accept HERA, but for a limited time, and we want to then have an ordinary legislative procedure with Parliament as co-legislator – so don't waste time, but fight for a democratic solution.

Mr President, ladies and gentlemen. A few weeks ago I had the opportunity to visit with the mayor of Altenahr, which is in my constituency, the place where the first person died on 14 July: A firefighter who just saved someone else and then died in an accident in the floods himself. And I've seen people who have lost everything, who have tried to renovate their house without knowing if the building fabric still bears that at all. And there sits colleague Ralf Seekatz, who has the whole thing in his constituency much worse: Altenahr, one dead, Altenahr, the Ahrtal, many, over 100 dead. And that is why it is so important to us that Europe is now in solidarity. We are very concerned about the reports that the money is not enough. I think we really need to think about this, Commissioner. I am sure you have the support of the European Parliament and we must challenge the Council accordingly. We must help unbureaucratically, again please make it clear that public tenders, state aid rules are now being overridden here so that we can tackle them. But then we also have to invest funds from the European Solidarity Fund. In one city I visited, in my constituency alone, the damage to public infrastructure amounts to 60 million. And when we see this across Germany, across Europe, it's a lot more. So tackle and help.

... this summer and the IPCC report were a wake-up call. We need to turn on the climate protection turbo in Europe and worldwide. As an EPP, we say yes to the European Commission's proposals. Nor do we say: yes, but – we say yes, and we see potential to make it even better. For example, we see the possibility of opening up a way for cars that use synthetic fuels, so that we use all the possibilities to become truly climate neutral. Above all, we support the Commission in adopting a market-economy approach and at the same time presenting social compensation. I would like to express my unequivocal support for this proposal from the European Commission, for the new ETS and for the Social Climate Fund. The point is that everyone who behaves in a climate-friendly manner benefits. Every private individual, every company that has a good idea, should realize this, and not only those that fit into some sort of bureaucratic scheme of Brussels. Congratulations, Mr. Timmermans, for this combination! And you have presented a social compensation. This is the first time, and I am addressing Greens and Social Democrats: Where was the social balance in the existing ETS? Where is the social compensation for the EEG, which was introduced in Germany, for example, to achieve targets in the field of renewable energies? Child-rich families and the socially weak are also burdened by high electricity prices, and not only by considerations for a new ETS. That's why we're looking for social balance. And let's not be fooled by the principle that we need a price signal so that we can use all technologies! We shouldn't mess around, we should tackle and get this package off the ground together and make it even better.

Mr President, ladies and gentlemen. We need more cooperation in the European Union to tackle pandemics and other challenges. And we need more independence from China and others in order to act as Europeans and protect our citizens. And contrary to what has been said here in part, the European treaties allow us to go further than before. There is a good proposal from the two rapporteurs here, and I would like to thank all those who have helped, in particular the EPP Esther de Lange and Radan Kanev. The EPP will support both reports tomorrow. We must continue to learn from the mistakes made during the pandemic and learn lessons. That is why I very much welcome Stella Kyriakides, the Commission's announcement to present a proposal on HERA this week so that we can buy the necessary materials, such as vaccines, more quickly. And here I would like to say something very clearly: I have just heard a lot of nonsense in the debate about the lack of benefits of vaccines and the non-existent risk of COVID-19 among people under the age of 70. Unfortunately, I know differently. I'm talking to intensive care doctors, and the clinics are full, the intensive care units are full of young people who haven't been vaccinated and are under 70. And I was recently in my old clinic where I worked, in the children's clinic. And unfortunately, it has often happened that pregnant women had a severe course and that newborns were also affected. Vaccination is important. This should also be a message of this debate.

Mr President, ladies and gentlemen. We need to act decisively, but also wisely, to protect our environment. I would like to thank all those who have contributed to this report, especially Agnès Evren, for the EPP. The first priority in the new Environment Action Programme is rightly the objective of achieving climate neutrality in the European Union. We are the first generation to suffer the consequences of climate change. We only have to look into our forests, but also at the spread of deserts in many parts of the world and much more. We are the last generation that can stop climate change sustainably because there are dangerous points, tipping points in the climate system. And if we can't do that now, then our children and grandchildren probably won't be able to keep climate change under control. That is why it is good that next week the Commission will put forward its proposal for a Fit for 55 will do. And I appeal, on behalf of the EPP, that we focus above all on a market economy, on incentives, on social compensation. We want the emissions trading system as the core of European climate policy. Ordinary law in addition yes, but who only relies on ordinal law, has also very, very many costs. And he has no way of compensating the burdens at European level. That's why I think: Incentives, a market economy, the creativity of each individual – that is the way – and not too many rules from Brussels.

Madam President, ladies and gentlemen, The EPP will support the report. It ensures that we can better tackle drug shortages, that we are better prepared for future pandemics and similar challenges. I would like to thank the rapporteur, Cristian-Silviu Buşoi as EPP shadow rapporteur, and everyone else, including the Commission, who contributed to this result. Above all, however, I would like to use my speaking time to thank the staff of the European Medicines Agency. The European Medicines Agency has been massively indecently criticised in this pandemic. People worked day and night, and also on weekends, and they didn't deserve the pain that was poured out on them. It was good that the EMA accelerated its processes and I personally motivated it again, for example when it approved the vaccine for adolescents, but this was indecent and it was good that we in Europe relied on a careful yet swift procedure. My previous speaker said that the pace of vaccination is low. What nonsense! Most European countries, such as Belgium or Italy, have already overtaken the US, and next week, I predict, the European Union will overtake the US. Our basic decisions were correct: rely on conditional approval and on the liability of manufacturers, joint European action. That was right, and we shouldn't let that ruin us.

Mr President, ladies and gentlemen. Unfortunately, the pandemic is not over yet, so we now need to ensure that as many people as possible get vaccinated as soon as possible. The vaccine is now available. In a few days as the EU, we overtook the United States of America in vaccinating. But now it's about persuading skeptics. And there are many who say: But when I'm vaccinated, I'm still not 100% protected. That's right. There is no 100 percent in medicine. But a well-known virologist once said: When it barks in the doghouse, it is usually the dog and not the zebra. That is, we should communicate: Vaccination protects, and it protects others. And that is why it is medically justified to treat people who have been vaccinated differently and to give them back their freedoms. But we need to take a closer look where little has been vaccinated. I am very concerned about what is happening in Bulgaria. I hear that the Minister of Transitional Health is not very convincing in his vaccination campaign, and at the same time Russian tourists are being allowed into the country in large numbers. This is an open border, also for Europe. On the other hand: If people are doubly vaccinated – and I have also said this critically to my own government in Germany – then it is not proportionate to quarantine them for 14 days if they come from Portugal, and that does not help to convince people. That is why I am very glad that this maladministration has been remedied. We should act medically justified: Restriction only if justified and not arbitrary.