What Bert-Jan spoke about.

13

Nov

2024

NL Speech

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One-minute speeches on matters of political importance

Mr President, last week in the hearing with Mr Várhelyi, something very strange happened. Many colleagues forced him to speak out in favour of abortion, while the European Union is not about it at all. It is illustrative of the way in which the European Union deals with the subject. She has nothing to say about it and yet she is trying to impose a wide-ranging abortion law on the whole world. Thro…

13

Nov

2024

NL Question

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Deplorable escalation of violence around the football match in the Netherlands and the unacceptable attacks against Israeli football fans (debate)

What strikes me in your speech is that you put the behaviour of the supporters on an equal footing with the hit-and-run actions. I would ask you to reflect on that. Do you agree with me that chasing people, chasing them into the canals, so that people have to flee for their lives, that that is a much more dramatic, worse thing than chanting slogans and removing a flag from the wall?…

13

Nov

2024

NL Speech

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Deplorable escalation of violence around the football match in the Netherlands and the unacceptable attacks against Israeli football fans (debate)

Mr President, Commissioner, ladies and gentlemen, what happened last week in Amsterdam is unacceptable: Jews who had to run for their lives because of brutally organized anti-Semitic violence. These events are not isolated. They unfortunately fit the pattern of increasing Jew-hatred, strongly fueled by Muslim extremists and left-wing activists, a curious coalition of groups and people who together…

22

Oct

2024

NL Speech

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State sponsored terrorism by the Islamic Republic of Iran in light of the recent attacks in Europe (debate)

Mr President, last November Vidal Qadras, former Vice-President of the European Parliament, was shot in the street in Madrid. He barely survived the attack. A few months later there was an attack in London on an Iranian journalist and in June a foiled attack on an Iranian activist in the Netherlands. Who's behind this? Everything indicates that we need to look at Tehran. Iran appears to be a threa…

22

Oct

2024

NL Speech

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Situation in Azerbaijan, violation of human rights and international law and relations with Armenia (debate)

Mr President, last year I visited the Lachin corridor, where I spoke, among other things, with Armenians from Nagorno-Karabakh. Guess how the Ambassador of Azerbaijan reacted? He placed an image of a rifle on X, including the threatening message that I should not show myself there again. This intolerable incident, of course, falls short of what the people of Nagorno-Karabakh must experience: exile…

22

Oct

2024

NL Speech

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Urgent need for a ceasefire in Lebanon and for safeguarding the UNIFIL mission in light of the recent attacks (debate)

Mr President, Commissioner, ladies and gentlemen, the UN has failed in Lebanon. According to UN Resolution 1701, South Lebanon was to remain free from Hezbollah fighters. Hezbollah, however, did not care and enlisted a huge force. Unifil stood there, looked at it and did nothing. Israel therefore had to intervene militarily, especially in view of the daily shelling since 7 October. Now that this i…

10

Oct

2024

NL Speech

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The rise of religious intolerance in Europe (debate)

Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, Commissioner, Europe has been stamped by Christianity for centuries. The late Chancellor Helmut Kohl said: “Europe ends where the church towers end.” In the meantime, many churches are empty, they are being converted into fitness centers or worse, demolished. That's very sad. Not only because of the cultural heritage that is lost, but especially because with it …

7

Oct

2024

NL Speech

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One year after the 7 October terrorist attacks by Hamas (debate)

Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, tonight we commemorate the victims of the terrible 7-October attacks that took place exactly one year ago. And we express our support to the families and call once again for the immediate release of all hostages. Meanwhile, we look with dismay at the devastation in Gaza and now also in Lebanon. But I also note that Israel has no other choice, given Hamas's obsti…

19

Sep

2024

NL Speech

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Droughts and extreme weather events as a threat to local communities and EU agriculture in times of climate change (debate)

Mr President, Commissioner, ladies and gentlemen, the greater extremes we see in the weather present major challenges for agriculture. What is needed? I would like to mention two main points: The first main line is to strengthen resilience by plant breeding, using NGTs for example, by promoting soil life and by making good choices in the building plan and cultivation methods. The second main line …

17

Sep

2024

NL Answer

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War in the Gaza Strip and the situation in the Middle-East (debate)

Mr President, I do not deny that there is a humanitarian crisis in Gaza. I know, of course, that there are bombings and that the situation in the area is difficult. That is why, in my speech, I also expressed the hope that in the end it will be possible to reach a deal. However, this must be done under two very clear conditions: Hamas must release all hostages and Israel must have clear security g…

17

Sep

2024

NL Answer

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War in the Gaza Strip and the situation in the Middle-East (debate)

Mr President, it seems crystal clear to me that we are supposed to protect the State of Israel. In view of the future of the whole region, it is crucial that we relaunch a process of negotiations, including the future of the Palestinian territories. The hard condition is that the terror must first stop. If there is room for negotiations again, I see perspective. However, I think it is a misreprese…

17

Sep

2024

NL Speech

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War in the Gaza Strip and the situation in the Middle-East (debate)

Mr President, yesterday we talked about the future of the Jewish community in Europe, in the light of rising anti-Semitism. Today we are talking about the future of the Jews in their own country, which is at stake. Iran, Hezbollah, Hamas, the Houthis and Islamic Jihad want to wipe Israel off the map. So we should not be asking ourselves which side we should be on in this conflict. We must stand fi…

16

Sep

2024

NL Speech

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One-minute speeches on matters of political importance

Mr President, this week I receive a volunteer who comes to Strasbourg from the Netherlands on a bicycle to draw attention to persecuted Christians, and in particular to Christians in Nigeria. When I hear the stories of persecuted Christians, I always notice how, despite the many trials, they often experience and radiate a lot of inner peace, because they know that God carries them. This does not r…

16

Sep

2024

NL Speech

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Persistent problems of anti-Semitism in Europe and of other forms of hate speech and hate crimes (debate)

Mr President, it is sad that we have to talk again about anti-Semitism, but we cannot ignore it. What can be heard and seen on our streets, squares and universities today is chilling: calls for jihad and expulsion of Jews from their own country, flags of terrorist organizations and swastikas. With a few positive exceptions, the government simply allows this to happen and hardly any action is taken…

16

Sep

2024

NL Speech

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Outcome of the Strategic Dialogue on the Future of EU Agriculture (debate)

Mr President, we have finally had serious discussions with farmers and stakeholders. This is perhaps the most important added value of this strategic dialogue. Now it is up to the European Commission, when following this advice, to make sure that it actually listens and takes farmers' concerns seriously. The report rightly highlights the strategic importance of our food production. In addition, it…

24

Apr

2024

NL Speech

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Iran’s unprecedented attack against Israel, the need for de-escalation and an EU response (debate)

Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, Iran is the great destabilizer of the Middle East. This has been the case for years, and the recent major attack on Israel has confirmed this picture. Their main objective is also clear: Wipe Israel off the map, using terror groups such as Hamas and Hezbollah and dubious alliances with countries such as Russia, Pakistan, China, North Korea, thus making Iran a th…

23

Apr

2024

NL Speech

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Production and marketing of plant reproductive material - Production and marketing of forest reproductive material (joint debate - Plant and forest reproductive material)

Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, good and healthy basic material is the basis for good cultivation. This requires a well-functioning system that provides guarantees. We have, and it works fine. Look at the result: very high quality starting material. I stress this point because I am very concerned about the proposals that are now on the table. Proposals that threaten to undermine the well-funct…

22

Apr

2024

NL Speech

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Amending Directive 2011/36/EU on preventing and combating trafficking in human beings and protecting its victims (debate)

Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, trafficking in human beings is a multi-faceted monster that we cannot control. What certainly does not help is that many countries have come to regard prostitution as a normal profession, while there is a lot of human trafficking there. The fact that we are now updating the directive on combating trafficking in human beings is a good thing. But more is needed, i…

22

Apr

2024

NL Speech

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Common rules promoting the repair of goods (debate)

Mr President, always wanting to have the latest of the latest, that is actually a very good thing for our disposable society. Of course, sometimes new stuff is just needed, but often not at all. For example, I ride a 30-year-old bicycle myself and that's just fine. Isn't there an important key here in preventing huge waste mountains? Namely: Stop throwing everything away and be satisfied with what…

14

Mar

2024

NL Speech

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Inclusion of the right to abortion in the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights (debate)

Mr President, what Macron achieved last week in France, he is now trying, through his delegation to the European Parliament, to regulate also in the rest of Europe, namely to make abortion a fundamental right, a human right. I would like to ask all those colleagues who support him in this and who pride themselves on our so-called Western civilization: What is one of the most important characterist…

14

Mar

2024

NL Question

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Inclusion of the right to abortion in the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights (debate)

Mr President, Mr Matić talks, among other things, about women's rights. I would like to ask him a question about children's rights. My question is as follows: Are you aware of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child? Are you aware that that convention states that every child has the right to care and that this applies both before and after birth? How do you view this duty of care and how does…

13

Mar

2024

NL Speech

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The immediate risk of mass starvation in Gaza and the attacks on humanitarian aid deliveries

Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, the humanitarian situation in Gaza is extremely worrying and we must therefore do everything we can to ensure that the aid reaches the people, and I think we all agree on that. But who actually causes the biggest problems here? Is that Israel, as is constantly being claimed, or is that Hamas? Certainly: Israel has a responsibility here. Israel is aware of this a…

11

Mar

2024

NL Speech

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Energy performance of buildings (recast) (debate)

Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, energy saving, and therefore also the insulation of buildings, deserves all the attention. After all, everything we save on energy does not have to be generated. However, the question is: How do we send this? The package now before us is full of detailed EU rules. That's not sensible. Many national initiatives are already under way. With a detailed European appr…

28

Feb

2024

NL Speech

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Need for an urgent Council decision in favour of amending the protection status of wolves in the Bern Convention (debate)

Mr President, the wolf's protection status must be reduced. Our adopted resolution of 2022 was crystal clear on this. The Commission now supports this request. Now the Council. To ministers who are still struggling and still think they can solve the problems with social dialogues, I would like to say: The time of talking is over. We need to act now. Especially when we realise that there are now mo…

27

Feb

2024

NL Answer

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War in the Gaza Strip and the need to reach a ceasefire, including recent developments in the region (debate)

I can certainly explain that. What do I mean by this? I mean that in Gaza and in the Palestinian territories a generation is growing up that is filled with hatred and with Jew-hatred. That's what we need to break through first. It is also clear that as long as Hamas is in charge, there can be no lasting peace. I sincerely hope that a solution can be found when it comes to a deal with Hamas on the …