What Jörgen spoke about.

Mr President, thank you very much. Commissioner, thank you very much. The EU is now going through the worst crisis of modern times: energy, inflation, growth, competitiveness, climate and sustainability challenges and Russia’s illegal invasion of Ukraine. The multilateral world order is threatened by increasingly aggressive power play. The difficult external environment highlights the importance of the European Community and cross-border challenges that require cross-border solutions. Now the EU needs to safeguard free trade and work through international cooperation on the EU’s ambitious sustainability agenda and build resilience to tackle future crises. Openness pays off – even in a troubled world. We need to trade with countries from all corners of the world. The EU and New Zealand have now concluded a free trade agreement, and we must press ahead with negotiations with, for example, Australia, Chile and Mexico. It is also time to lift the EU-Mercosur agreement from the freezer and open up a market for over 260 million consumers – an agreement worth fighting for. It also includes an ambitious sustainable development chapter and a clear commitment to effectively implement the Paris Agreement. Sustainability chapters should promote the conclusion of free trade agreements, not create more obstacles that complicate already complex negotiations. The EU should not tear up existing free trade agreements. We're going to draw new ones.

Mr President, thank you very much. At a time of instability and changing global order, the EU-China Summit was a useful reminder that there is another unreliable superpower. While the EU and the West show solidarity by condemning Russia's illegal invasion of Ukraine, China has expressed criticism of Western sanctions against Russia. The EU must have a clear and strong voice if China actively helps Russia avoid sanctions. We also cannot forget Beijing's persistent military threat to Taiwan, while Lithuania is being financially punished because of its relationship with democratic Taiwan. China still has a lot to prove. whereas the communist regime in Beijing and the war in Ukraine underline the importance of deepening cooperation with stable, credible and democratic allies; We need to strengthen our relationship with the United States in order to deal constructively with China. The EU should explore the current possibilities for a free trade agreement with the US. However, the EU should not seek to isolate China economically, as neither China's neighbours nor the EU are made safer by it. We will work together where possible, we will compete where needed and we will confront where necessary.

Madam President, thank you very much. I have to say that I do not agree with the previous speaker a single word, I think. But that is not what I would say, but I would like to say that the World Trade Organisation is our most important arena for achieving freer, rules-based and fairer global trade. At the same time, the organization is now weakened by dark clouds torn up on the world order. Not least, we need to resolve the current lack of a dispute resolution body to resolve trade disputes. At the same time, the COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated and focused attention on the importance of trade in addressing health challenges and the importance of intellectual property rights. Nevertheless, we can hear in this House how voices are now being raised to suspend patent protection. This is a deadly path, because patent protection is a crucial incentive to get companies to invest in innovation and produce new medicines. Depriving pharmaceutical companies of their patents would thus reduce access to vaccines. Instead, the way forward is to remove export restrictions and tariffs on medicines and medical products. This is how we fight this pandemic and future pandemics.

Mr President, thank you very much. Commissioner, thank you very much. Global trade is now increasingly being disrupted by protectionist winds, and we must urgently change that. Global trade is the answer to many of our challenges. People, jobs and our prosperity depend on trade. I welcome the TTC as a fresh start to chart our common values and to deepen the EU-US alliance. We will work with all all allies who want to maintain free, fair and rules-based trade. That is why it is important that we now weave together our ambitions, that we maintain secure and resilient supply chains for digital products and services, and that we fully support globalisation. Of the ten working groups, I would like to focus on the one on small business owners today. My question to the Commission is as follows: What is the Commission's objective with regard to the work of the Trade and Tech Council for European SMEs?

Mr President, thank you very much. Commissioner, thank you very much. Taiwan is Asia's champion of democracy. A country now under serious political and military threat from the one-party communist state of China. China's recent lust for power and oppression in Hong Kong have created too real a concern in Taiwan that they may be next. The West must show its strong support for the Taiwanese people and their democracy. That is why we need a clear political signal from the European Union that our democracies do not accept China's policies. Taiwan is an open and international trading place, with great importance for world trade. Taiwan is also a given destination for innovative European companies wishing to get closer to Asia's many emerging markets. This is why the EU needs to accelerate work on a bilateral investment agreement. An agreement will help boost economic growth, increase global competitiveness and secure a strong, robust investment landscape for European companies.

Madam President, thank you very much. Electricity prices in Europe have reached unprecedented levels. Shocked electricity customers have received bills that more than doubled compared to normal. But this is no coincidence. Under the red-green government in Sweden, six out of ten nuclear reactors have been shut down. Other countries are also in the process of early retirement from nuclear power, even though it is stable, safe, cheap and emission-free. It is incomprehensible how this can be done, at the same time as the electricity shortage is becoming more and more pronounced and prices are stagnating. The only short-term options will be to mine dirty coal and restart oil power plants. Good luck with the climate transition! This energy policy is downright harmful, and it is characterised by blinders and the nuclear resistance of the 1980s rather than genuine concern for the climate. Anyone who really thinks about the climate would never close emission-free nuclear reactors before coal-fired power plants, and it is electricity customers and the manufacturing industry who have to take the bill. The solution to this is not new equalization funds or grant crusades. They never built real wealth. EU countries must now come up with a plan to avert the electricity crisis. Otherwise, we will face a dark, cold and very expensive future. The situation just makes me even more confident about what I already knew: We need more nuclear power in Europe.

Mr President, thank you very much. Commissioner, thank you very much. Transport policy is one of the areas where the EU can bring the greatest added value to EU citizens and businesses. With cooperation and co-financing of robust transport corridors, we can make it easier for companies to create new jobs and for people to get to the jobs that are being created. It is very good that we are today securing the continuation of the Connecting Europe Facility so that we can roll out more double-track railways, broaden more roads to motorways and increase the capacity of EU ports. This is how EU money should be spent, for things that generate real competitiveness. Because when we remove bottlenecks on the busiest routes, it will be easier for industries to get their goods out, and citizens will not have to waste hours in traffic jams and on delayed trains. So this is very important now that we are going to relaunch Europe's economy after the crisis. So let us use this opportunity to equip Europe and move up a gear in the transport network. This will enable us to build a strong and connected Europe.