What Marc spoke about.

15

Feb

2023

EN Speech

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The erosion of the rule of law in Greece: the wiretapping scandal and media freedom (topical debate)

The next item is the topical debate under Rule 162 on ‘The erosion of the rule of law in Greece: the wiretapping scandal and media freedom’. I should like to inform Members that for this debate there is no catch-the-eye procedure and no blue cards will be accepted.…

15

Feb

2023

EN Speech

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Approval of the minutes of the previous sitting

The minutes of yesterday’s sitting and the texts adopted are available. Are there any comments? I see no comments in the room so the minutes are approved.

15

Feb

2023

EN Speech

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A Green Deal Industrial Plan for the Net-Zero Age (continuation of debate)

That concludes the debate. Written statements (Rule 171)

15

Feb

2023

EN Speech

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A Green Deal Industrial Plan for the Net-Zero Age (continuation of debate)

So far I would like to thank colleagues for respecting the speaking time. This makes it very easy for me during my first chairing not to use the hammer. Thank you very much, and I hope it will continue like this!…

15

Feb

2023

EN Speech

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A Green Deal Industrial Plan for the Net-Zero Age (continuation of debate)

We now resume our debate on the Council and Commission statements on ‘A Green Deal Industrial Plan for the Net-Zero Age’ (2023/2559(RSP)). I would also like to inform you, dear colleagues, that we will finish the list of registered speakers and, due to the time constraints, we will not have a catch-the-eye on this debate.…

13

Feb

2023

EN Speech

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Following up on measures requested by Parliament to strengthen the integrity of European institutions (debate)

Madam President, dear Vice-President of the Commission, dear colleagues, the scandal of corruption put all of us in a state of shock. This is now not the moment to defend the status quo that allowed the poison of corruption to fester. We have to act quickly and forcefully to protect the integrity and increase transparency of the Parliament and the European Union as a whole. That is why my politica…

19

Jan

2023

EN Speech

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Revision of the European Works Councils Directive (debate)

Mr President, dear Commissioner, dear colleagues, if we want a successful green and digital transition, it is crucial that we involve the workers in decision—making. When workers are empowered to shape decisions, we know that productivity, innovation and working methods improve. Good governance requires more democracy at work, and strong trade unions are playing a key role related to health and sa…

18

Jan

2023

EN Speech

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Conclusions of the European Council meeting of 15 December 2022 (debate)

Madam President, Commission President, Vice—President, President, dear colleagues, the cost—of—living crisis affecting our European citizens unfortunately persists, and we are therefore concerned that the European Council conclusions fail to prioritise the support for our citizens and the cushioning of the crisis’ social consequences. While we support the European Council’s efforts to safeguard Eu…

12

Dec

2022

FR Speech

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Towards equal rights for persons with disabilities (debate)

Madam President, ladies and gentlemen, many reports have been voted on in this Chamber concerning the rights of people with disabilities, whether it is a harmonised approach to the definition of disability, company quotas for greater inclusion, or good social security coverage for people living with disabilities. The European Parliament calls with one voice for concrete actions to put an end to th…

23

Nov

2022

EN Speech

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Legal protection for rainbow families exercising free movement, in particular the Baby Sara case (debate)

Mr President, first the Coman—Hamilton case in 2019, and now the Baby Sara case. How many European Court of Justice cases do we need to guarantee the mutual recognition of administrative documents and parenthood between Member States? How many court decisions will be needed for children’s rights to be respected in Europe? This is not merely another LGBTIQ question, but concerns the rights of child…

22

Nov

2022

EN Speech

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Gender balance among non-executive directors of companies listed on stock exchanges (debate)

Madam President, Commissioner, dear colleagues, it is a sad fact that only 30.6 % of board members in our largest companies are women, knowing that girls do better in schools than boys and knowing that in the European Union 60 % of new graduates from universities are women. Many studies show that gender quotas are the most effective instrument for increasing women’s presence on company boards. Vol…

10

Nov

2022

EN Speech

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Racial justice, non-discrimination and anti-racism in the EU (debate)

Mr President, let me start by thanking Evin Incir for this excellent report on racial justice. And it is right that the report mentions cases of double standards and discrimination at the EU borders based on skin colour, including recently against some people fleeing Russia’s war in Ukraine. Therefore, the call for equal treatment at the European Union’s borders is so important. And this is not on…

18

Oct

2022

EN Speech

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Growing hate crimes against LGBTIQ people across Europe in light of the recent homophobic murder in Slovakia (debate)

Dear President, Commissioner, Deputy Prime Minister and colleagues, hate speech, especially when coming from public figures, leads to hate crime. This must stop. Last Wednesday it was Matúš and Juraj who were brutally murdered by a far-right radicalised student in Bratislava. Today our thoughts are with their families and friends. Next week, anyone belonging to the queer community – one of your ki…

17

Oct

2022

EN Speech

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Guidelines for the employment policies of the Member States (debate)

Mr President, dear Commissioner, dear colleagues, we need to invest in our workforce. And when it comes to the digital and environmental transition, our human capital must be at the heart of all our action. For my political family, the Socialists and Democrats, this is self—evident. But all too often, curiously, we find that others seem to backtrack or to oppose such policies. What more noble caus…

4

Oct

2022

EN Speech

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AccessibleEU Centre in support of accessibility policies in the EU internal market (debate)

Madam President, more than 87 million people in our Union have some form of disability and they still face considerable barriers in accessing too many areas of life. Accessibility is an essential precondition for everyone to enjoy human rights and fundamental freedoms. Therefore, the aim of the European Union must be to identify and to overcome all gaps and inconsistencies in the current legislati…

15

Sep

2022

EN Speech

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Implementation of the Updated New Industrial Strategy for Europe: aligning spending to policy (debate)

Madam President, dear Commissioner, dear colleagues, first of all, let me thank the rapporteur Mr Berendsen but also the IMCO rapporteur, Ms Carvalho, and colleagues in IMCO for the good cooperation we had. I am glad that the European Parliament will call for developing a more resilient, sustainable and also efficient single market that can better tackle supply disruptions on critical products suc…

14

Sep

2022

FR Speech

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Existence of a clear risk of a serious breach by Hungary of the values on which the Union is founded (debate)

Mr President, Commissioner, ladies and gentlemen, this morning the President of the Commission, Mrs von der Leyen, recalled the importance of the media, the opposition and civil society when a state is in danger of switching to totalitarianism. For almost a decade, this Parliament has consistently called for European action in Hungary to uphold the independence of the media and the independence of…

13

Sep

2022

EN Speech

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Adequate minimum wages in the European Union (debate)

Mr President, dear all, this historic directive introducing an adequate minimum wage and strengthening collective bargaining in Europe is a very important step towards a more social Europe. And my political family, the Socialists and Democrats, we do not stand alone in this fight. We have the trade unions on our side, but not only them. We have the citizens on our side – in recent Eurobarometer po…

4

May

2022

EN Speech

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Competition policy – annual report 2021 (debate)

Mr President, dear colleagues, as S&D IMCO shadow rapporteur, I will focus on the internal market and consumer protection aspects of this report. Strengthening consumer rights both online and offline, contributing to the Green Deal objectives and sustainability policies, as well as strengthening the internal market by addressing unjustified geoblocking or territorial supply constraints are just so…

3

May

2022

EN Speech

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The follow up of the Conference on the Future of Europe (debate)

Madam President, in the beginning the Conference on the Future of Europe was very abstract and very slow, and it only gained momentum because of the fantastic dynamic in the nine working groups, where finally all components came together to debate. Citizens from the European and national panels, colleagues from the national parliaments, MEPs, representatives of civil society, social partners, regi…

9

Mar

2022

EN Speech

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Fair and simple taxation supporting the recovery strategy (continuation of debate)

Mr President, secure tax revenues and fair and simple taxation are crucial underpinnings of a strong recovery. They contribute to achieving our far-reaching ambitions, including social justice. All Member States must continue to fight against tax evasion, tax avoidance and tax fraud because that undermines tax revenue needed to build a better future for our citizens and hinder fair competition and…

9

Mar

2022

EN Speech

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European Semester for economic policy coordination: annual sustainable growth survey 2022 – European Semester for economic policy coordination: employment and social aspects in the annual sustainable growth strategy survey 2022 (debate)

Madam President, the review of the EU’s economic governance framework must come up with an ambitious proposal that recognises the need for far—reaching investments. The European Semester remains far from being obsolete and will remain a crucial instrument for Member States to coordinate economic, fiscal, social and employment policies. However, it should also be more than that. We must generally m…

17

Feb

2022

EN Speech

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Protection of workers from the risks relating to exposure to carcinogens, mutagens and reprotoxins at work (continuation of debate)

Mr President, the Socialists and Democrats welcome that today we can take another step forward in the protection of workers from exposure to harmful substances, which can cause cancer, infertility and many chronic diseases. We are also happy that beating cancer is at the top of the European agenda. We expect the Commission and the Member States to be ambitious in their measures against cancer at t…

15

Feb

2022

EN Speech

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Tackling non-tariff and non-tax barriers in the single market (debate)

Mr President, first of all, I would like to thank our rapporteur, Mr Sadowski, and also the shadow rapporteurs for the constructive negotiations and the good compromises. I believe that we achieved a correct balance between economic freedoms, social rights and the interests of consumers, workers and businesses, as well as the general interest, instead of focusing only on the economic benefits that…

14

Feb

2022

EN Speech

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Activities of the European Ombudsman – annual report 2020 (debate)

Madam President, I want to thank our ombudsman, Emily O’Reilly, and her office for her tireless fight for transparency. Transparency and information strengthen the rights of our citizens and let me remind you that without access to documents, there is no information and there is no transparency. And this becomes even more true in COVID times. Giving access to documents increases the accountability…