Speeches

Mr President, Commissioner, according to the United Nations, women, girls and boys are 14 times more likely to die in a climate disaster than men, and it is not because, as has been said here, there are biological differences but because women are still, or continue to be, more of the priority responsible for the creatures, and that makes us more vulnerable. Also because we have access to fewer resources, and that also explains why we constitute 80% of the people displaced by climate change. Therefore, we must include this feminist perspective to combat climate change and so that the transitions we undertake are really just transitions and address, and do not feed, do not increase, inequalities. Therefore, we need to do an exercise in collective intelligence in favor of the planet and in the service of the common good, incorporating more women into decision-making. Socialist women and men propose constant work for just transitions, and our commitment, without a doubt, is for a progressive, sustainable model that promotes transformative climate action from equality and social justice.

Madam President, Commissioner, we know that responsibility for health falls within the competence of the Member States, but the Union is playing an increasingly important role, as we have seen, in harmonising the rules to combat COVID. It is even working on the implementation of a European Health Union, but I wonder if it is also about women's health, about our sexual and reproductive rights. Faced with this Europe, we have been finding groups of religious or non-religious origin, groups of extreme right or right, which add obstacles to abortion in different countries and have extraordinary funding. We also find government actions from Poland to my own land, Andalucia, where the Conservative government is funding associations to harass women who decide to end pregnancy. They are groups and governments that instrumentalise sexual and reproductive health and rights in order to undermine human rights and EU values and democracy. That is why, yes, we socialists have indeed proposed this debate, we applaud President Macron's proposal yesterday in this House to include abortion in the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union and we also hope that President Metsola will defend the resolutions adopted in this own House, including respect for sexual and reproductive rights, and that she will be on the side of women in this struggle.

Mr President, Vice-President, Commissioner, first of all, I would like to congratulate my colleague Christel Schaldemose and her team for their hard work in these months. We all have to be aware that it has not been easy to try to advance the democratic control of the digital field with clear rules that put the common good before the interests of the big platforms. We are facing a very complex legislation that will undoubtedly mark a before and after, helping to redefine the relationship between citizenship and the digital sphere, contributing to democratize the Internet and possibly establishing global standards. As shadow rapporteur for the Committee on Industry, Research and Energy, I would like to highlight the work of the teams involved and the cooperation in these months of intense work. The first objective we pursued was to ensure that the digital sphere was a safe place, regardless of the size of the platform. Throughout these months of negotiation we have managed to strengthen the obligations for very large platforms and have facilitated access to data for researchers, something that was very important for us, as well as for non-profit organisations and bodies. Likewise, we have managed to increase interoperability and data portability measures to counteract the dominance position of large platforms. In addition, we have worked to achieve greater transparency on all online platforms, both in digital advertising, as well as greater protection for minors, and for recommendation systems. Although there is still a way to go. I would like to highlight that this week three Democratic congressmen introduced a law to ban the use of personal data for targeted advertising in the United States. Another proof that it is a debate and much-needed work in which we still need to move forward to regain control over our data and our privacy. We believe that the Digital Services Act is a first step in the right direction that will contribute to making digital services safer, helping to protect the rights of citizens, of our children, and also to improve our democracy. Socialists will continue to work to make the digital environment a fairer space and with greater democratic control of our data.

Mr President, we know that sexual harassment is like an iceberg from which only the dot is seen and all or most of it is hidden; We also know from the first survey by the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights that, in a single year, one in four citizens has been the victim of sexual harassment, although we should say citizens, because 90% of us are women. As with gender-based violence, we know what difficulties people who have been victims have in asserting their rights and verbalizing, in telling their problem; That is why only a small part comes to light, and in the face of this invisibility of sexual harassment, the EU institutions must take a firm and clear stance against this problem and make it visible. Hence the importance of this resolution, which I also thank Mrs Regner and my entire group, the Socialist Group, for promoting, because it seeks precisely to facilitate these complaints and obtain justice, obviously by giving support to the people who have been victims; Resolution that we know already joins the one of 2017, but that after the movement "Me Too" takes much more force, in part because not enough has been done. We know that in this 'Me Too' movement it managed to create common knowledge about the inappropriate behaviour of powerful men, but we have to go further, both in Parliament and in the rest of the European institutions, and fight against the sexual abuse and harassment often perpetrated by men who are neither so famous nor so powerful, but who continue to have that sense of impunity. All women know, we all have our "Me Too" more or less, so the message has to be clear: non-impunity and zero tolerance; We have to create the institutional channels that allow us to say what they are capable of doing.

Madam President, Mr Vice-President of the Commission, the fact that the topical debate in this last plenary session of the European Parliament revolves around an internal document of the Commission that no longer exists shows that, with all due respect, the proposal of the European People's Party in this case has been unserious. I can assure you that the European right, especially coming from a Spanish one, has always seemed democratic and focused, but also that with this course it may undoubtedly be embarking on the path of populism most characteristic of the extreme right, far, undoubtedly, from the common European project. The European People's Party has been pointing out the Commissioner for Equality, I think undeservedly, and it is worth asking whether she is doing so to divert attention from the serious attacks on the rule of law and the rights of women and LGBTI people that are taking place in some Member States led by governments of her political family. Let's be serious: Moving forward on inclusion, equality and equal treatment must be a very serious issue for this Parliament, and it certainly is for socialists and democrats, who believe in an inclusive and progressive European Union, regardless of people's religion, gender, sexual orientation, age and ethnicity: We certainly count on your party, and also on the Commission, to build this Europe of all.

Mr President, Commissioner, I would like to start by stressing that today is World Science Day for Peace and Development, so I would like to highlight the intrinsic value of research for our societies and, as the Commissioner has referred to, that it has a significant participation of women. I do not want to miss this opportunity to remember that support and investment in science is not a luxury, it is a necessity: the pandemic has made it clear to us, as does the constant struggle to mitigate and curb the effects of climate change, how important research and investment in research is. In relation to the European Metrology Partnership, I join the comments of the colleagues who have worked very well and very consciously on this dossier of support for this initiative which aims to accelerate Europe's global leadership in metrology research by establishing European collaborative networks. What is not measured does not exist and, if something does not exist, we do not know it, we cannot really transform it, so I take this space to highlight the importance of metrology as a facilitator of economic and social activity and the need to support existing structures for the development of the metrology community and promote synergies between European centers.

Madam President, Commissioner, first of all, thank you very much to all the political groups, shadow rapporteurs and teams for the magnificent work they have done on this file. Today, we are discussing the proposal for employment and social policies in the euro area in 2021. I would like to stress once again that this is the starting point for laying the foundations for that new Europe, for that new economic and social framework that we must build together and urgently, because the situation has changed, and that we must adapt and anticipate, creating the conditions that allow stable, dignified jobs to be created and that also allow people to live with dignity. We have no excuses. We must face the profound social consequences of the pandemic, which has also ridden on previous crises, offering political solutions that leave no one behind, wherever they live. It is our historic duty to improve the well-being of all citizens. We must continue to work on the new roadmap, in which social rights and equity prevail, if we are to truly build a Europe with a future. And we will only achieve this by insisting on the need to design our economic policies including social conditionality. This was necessary before COVID-19 and now it is even more so, because we are talking about people and we know that economic policies have a differentiated impact on social groups and, also, on people, because we do not all have the same preferences, interests or desires, nor do all people have the same access to resources or decision-making space, nor have they socialised or prepared us in the same way or to have the same role in society, as we women very well know. Going out on the street we see that there are still families that do not reach the end of the month, fathers and mothers who cannot give their sons and daughters the education they would want. The consequences of the pandemic in some cases have opened and in other cases have increased deep gaps that already existed within the Union. We risk our future, our well-being and the consolidation of the European project. If inequality continues to rise, this will make us weak, and if we do not defend the well-being of our society, or a gender-responsive economy, or opportunities for the most vulnerable people, we will be weighing on everyone's opportunities. It is urgent that our economy includes macroeconomic indicators that incorporate or mitigate the unequal consequences of economic policy between different social groups, individuals, economic sectors or territories, reflect the reality of our society and take into account all citizens. It is the people who build Europe and we, their representatives, must live up to it. I will highlight a dozen key points in this report. First: the European Semester should be aligned with the objectives and strategies of the Sustainable Development Goals, the European Pillar of Social Rights and the Green Deal;, and to underpin Member States’ recovery plans. Second: the Semester should be based on an approach that integrates economic, social and environmental policies and promotes structural change so that social progress, sustainable development and well-being take into account the root causes of long-term economic and social imbalances. Only then can we ensure that Europe continues to enjoy the world's most advanced welfare systems and also becomes the first climate-neutral continent. Third: Therefore, we need to work with indicators that cover the social risks stemming from the effects of the pandemic and previous imbalances in the economy, employment, health, as well as the transformations that the green and digital transitions may bring about. Fourth: our current social indicators do not provide clear targets for measuring the impact of European Union action and we call on Member States to set ambitious national targets. Fifth: along these lines, we consider that sustainable well-being should be integrated into the annual sustainable growth strategy and the country-specific recommendations. Therefore, national reforms must have a clear orientation of solidarity, integration and social justice, with the aim of creating quality employment, fixing it on the territory and moving towards a new social organization of care so that it does not fall in a majority not recognized in women. Sixth: inequalities, as well as the employment, social and health situation of the Member States concerned, should be taken into account before taking the decision to deactivate the general escape clause. Seventh: We need to work towards establishing a European fiscal capacity that will provide stability to the economies of the euro area. Well-designed tax systems are essential to ensure a high level of protection of workers from risks throughout their lives, as well as their pensions. Eighth: people and also small and medium-sized enterprises must be protected so that they are not caught up in over-indebtedness, and because we know that they need support when it comes to non-performing loans. Ninth: we face this necessary coherence between the objectives of sustainable well-being and monetary policy. We must better integrate social objectives, social progress, well-being and sustainability in all European Union policies, especially in budgetary planning to make public investment efficient in social and environmental objectives. And tenth, and last: the architecture of the new governance of the European Union should be based on solidarity, social justice and integration, with equitable distribution of wealth, gender equality, high-quality public services, including a universal and high-quality public education system, decent employment and sustainable growth. That is why we consider investment in sustainable well-being to be vital. The scenario has changed and with the imminent digital and green transitions it will change even more. We need new recipes because we know the old ones didn't work.

Mr President, Commissioner, according to the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights, 73% of mothers who were victims of physical and sexual violence by their partner say that at least one of their sons or daughters was aware of that violence. Violence that represents a serious social problem, that creates physical and psychological traumas in the victims and that, without a doubt, is an embarrassment for all of us as a society. We know that a batterer is not a good father. That is why it is necessary to move forward with the withdrawal of custody and visitation rights in such cases. In Spain, the Socialist Party promoted a reform of the Civil Code that was approved last May and that has been effective since this September. And in Europe we must recognise gender-based violence as a Eurocrime and we must establish both cooperation between Member States and minimum standards for the fight against gender-based violence against women and for the protection of the children of the victims of such violence. Because it is their right, it is their future and it must also be our future.

Madam President, Commissioner, at the beginning of September we saw a shocking photograph: While Hurricane Ida caused severe flooding and dozens of deaths in the United States, a food delivery worker continued to work, pedaling with difficulty with water up to his waist. It is a shocking image, but also outrageous, and that helps us to face the new emerging inequalities, such as that of workers without rights. While it is true that new types of employment and platform work can help or have the potential to help reconcile work and family life, that does not mean that many are precarious jobs and are below labor standards, and this is not tolerable. Europe must be characterised by respect for workers’ rights and fundamental freedoms, including in the digital sphere. And so, from Parliament, we urge human control behind algorithms, that companies have the obligation to report on the algorithms used and to ensure transparency in relation to the personal data used. Therefore, we are clearly against surveillance capitalism also in the workplace.

Madam President, we are facing a new moment, a new economic narrative, a new fiscal era, and we cannot miss the opportunity to build a new Europe, a new economic and social framework; and we need it urgently. In this new roadmap, social rights and equity must prevail in the design of macroeconomic policies and their short- and long-term effects must be taken into account. To the macroeconomic conditionality we must also add the social conditionality to overcome the inequalities, which have deepened during the crisis, but which have also been caused by a dysfunctional economic governance framework and with obvious failures. To this end, we must change the rules of economic and social governance, also following the conclusions of the Porto Summit. We risk our future, our well-being and the consolidation of a European project of progress.

Mr President, the European Research Area must be a solid framework for strengthening Europe's scientific and technological capacity and consolidating a common area of research and innovation focused on excellence and geared to all talents and, of course, contributing to social well-being. To this end, it will be vital, first of all, to improve the conditions in the development of the research career, especially for those who are starting out, especially women and underrepresented groups; secondly, to incentivise both the public and private sectors to make a greater commitment to European research; third, reducing territorial inequalities or the gender gap; fourthly, to increase cooperation between universities, research centres and industry; and fifth, facilitating open science and improving data availability and standardisation. Ultimately, it has to contribute to sustainable knowledge-based development and to achieving the objectives of the green transition and digital leadership, and support Europe’s social and economic recovery.