Speeches

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 some of the good examples in our work. We also find it very progressive that the report addresses the shortcoming in the Internet of Things market and touches upon foreign subsidies. At the same time, I also have to underline that the IMCO Committee correctly pointed out several other important issues in its opinion, such as that competition policies can contribute to the energy union, but this does not mean to facilitate the creation of industrial giants. For us, it was also a key issue to tackle killer acquisitions and to highlight the role of the DMA in this regard, but also to clearly state that merger control should be assessed by the rules of the Merger Regulation. Finally, I also want to underline our suggestion that calls for further strengthening the role of the European Consumer Centres Network. With all respect, I suggest that we should vote for this report and thank the two rapporteurs for their work.

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, regional authorities, Council and Commission Members, all were able to join forces to reach compromise, to make Europe stronger, more resilient, more sustainable, and more social. Yes, and these citizens represented all the citizens because there was a recent Eurobarometer poll where nine out of ten Europeans said they want a more social Europe, so they were representative of these citizens. The dynamic of the working groups also translated later into the plenary and last Saturday we concluded this unique democratic process with this fantastic 56-page document containing 325 concrete proposals endorsed by all components. Now action is needed. Of course, we must deliver on the citizens’ requests, and this requires, of course, policy change, legislative acts and in a few cases also treaty change. And therefore we need to convene the Convention as this excellent joint resolution with debate suggests. To conclude, I think we proved during one year that representative democracy and participatory democracy can go hand-in-hand, and we must continue this exercise.

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 functioning social systems. We should also ensure that our tax systems do not disproportionately tax labour, and therefore we need a fair balance between taxation of labour and capital, and we must ensure that multinational companies are properly taxed. I fully support the efforts to update international tax rules, notably through the two-pillar solution of the OECD/G20 agreement. Better cooperation between national tax authorities and increased transparency will also be necessary. The excellent report we debate today proposes pertinent recommendations to the Commission on fair and simple taxation. I am concerned, however, that future good initiatives risk getting stuck in the Council. We should therefore consider rethinking the requirement for unanimity on tax matters in the Council, as the citizens who are participating in the Conference on the Future for Europe recommend us in their written texts.

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 move away from an obstinate focus on quantitative growth and budgetary orthodoxy. The Recovery and Resilience Funds and the national recovery and resilience plans already show that well-designed instruments can bring about lasting change. We should learn the lessons and transform the European Semester into an instrument to achieve inclusive and sustainable growth, meet environmental and social objectives and improve the well-being of our citizens. This means integrating the pertinent environmental and social indicators related to the Paris Agreement, the SDGs and the European Pillar of Social Rights. The European Semester can be more than a somehow dreary bureaucratic process. If we democratise it, ascribing a clear role to social partners, involving other relevant stakeholders and claiming a stronger role for the European Parliament throughout the process, then we can find solutions to the real problems on the ground and we will be able to adapt to the new sad reality with the war on our eastern border.

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 the workplace, and we are really looking forward to the updates of this directive because there is a continuous development in scientific research and we need to make sure that we protect workers accordingly. We should also not forget about asbestos, which causes 80% of occupational cancer. I remind you that this Parliament voted for a strong resolution on asbestos, calling for a European strategy for the removal of all asbestos. Therefore, we also call today on the Commission to be ambitious and to quickly revise the Asbestos Directive with an exposure limit for asbestos to be set at 1 000 fibres per cubic metre. To achieve zero asbestos, we need a comprehensive approach, including an EU framework directive for national asbestos removal strategies, mandatory screening of buildings, provision of sealing and encapsulation of asbestos-containing materials, and, very importantly, better recognition and compensation of asbestos—related diseases to all exposed workers. I would like to finish by thanking the rapporteur and all the colleagues who worked on this important work today.

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 the single market can grant. We have a text that remains focused on Committee on Internal Market and Consumer Protection (IMCO) competences, and we always draw clear distinctions between justified and unjustified barriers. We also find it crucial that we clarified what gold—plating means, and that the report correctly distinguishes it from setting of higher standards that go beyond EU—wide minimum standards for environmental and consumer protection, as well as healthcare and food safety. It is also extremely important for us – as is clearly stated in the text – that Member States keep their right to regulate and the pursuit of legitimate public policy objectives such as protection of the environment and consumer or employment rights. Let me also underline that we agreed to call on the Commission to propose ways to remove unjustified geo—blocking, and we made sure to have a clear reference to Territorial Supply Constraints, which are clearly hampering the development of the single market and its potential benefit for the consumers. I must also highlight that for S&D it was and will always remain a key issue that economic freedom cannot be put on an equal footing with fundamental rights. In this report, we also clearly stand against state—sponsored discrimination that can establish a non—tariff barrier, such as happened in the homophobic and transphobic Russian—style Hungarian law on LGBTI propaganda. I guess we all agree that we already voted a good report at IMCO level, but we also believe in the special protection of the public services, especially based on their general interest role, and this is why we intend to include this in the report by supporting Amendment 2. We are convinced that this report will serve to strengthen the single market, and therefore S&D will support this report.

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 of all EU institutions. And the Council, which is absent today, has the worst record of transparency. We, as the European Parliament, must continue to keep up our pressure together with the European Ombudsman, with national parliaments and with the civil society organisations to change this. Our call for Council transparency is nothing abstract; it is also a demand from citizens. This becomes very clear in the citizens recommendations in the framework of the Conference on the Future of Europe. EU transparency law is now over 20 years old, dates from a pre-social media and pre-smartphone era, it needs to be modernised, and it needs to be updated. The Commission must adapt this outdated regulation. Let me finish by thanking Emily O’Reilly once more for being a real influencer of change. And I also want to thank our rapporteur Ms Evi and the shadow rapporteurs for the excellent work they have done in the Committee on Petitions (PETI).

Madam President, let me recall, in this year of 2022, the European Year of Youth, that sexuality and relationship education in school is an international human right for children and adolescents. According to the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, children and young people have the right to receive comprehensive, scientifically accurate and age—appropriate sexual health education. Access to information on sexual and reproductive health, as well as sexual orientation and gender identity, plays a key role in preventing and raising awareness on sexual abuse and gender—based violence. It helps our youth understand sexual orientation and gender identity and to dispel common myths and stereotypes about LGBTIQ+ people. It equips children and young people with knowledge, skills, attitudes and values that will empower them to realise their health, their well-being and their dignity. It also develops respectful and positive social and sexual relationships. Curtailing comprehensive sexual education does not serve children or the interests of our society. Moreover, comparing sexual education with LGBTIQ propaganda, as the Hungarian and the Polish Governments do, violates human rights. Let us not forget that children’s rights, women’s rights and LGBTI rights are human rights, and they must count for all Europeans.

Mr President, unilateral national measures taken in response to the COVID—19 pandemic often hindered the free movement of goods and seriously affected especially small Member States, relying more on a proper functioning internal market. This is especially when we are talking about medicines and medical devices, for instance. But I also want to profit from this debate to recall that we should not forget barriers which already existed before the pandemic, such as the territorial supply constraints (TSCs), which can materialise through different practices, such as refusing to supply, or threatening to stop supplying, a particular distributor, limiting the quantities available for sale, inexplicable differences in product ranges and prices between Member States, or limiting language options for product packaging. Territorial supply constraints are hampering the development of the single market and its potential benefits also for consumers. Therefore, the Commission must come forward with adequate measures to eliminate them and, thereby, reduce barriers to cross-border trade in view to achieving a fully functioning single market.

Mr President, Commissioner, ladies and gentlemen, in the face of the environmental and digital transition that our businesses and workers are facing, a new path must be opened to make this transition inclusive. This includes more democracy and transparency at work. Indeed, giving employees a voice will guarantee better support towards a just transition that will leave no one behind. That is why we Socialists and Democrats demand a reform that will ensure fair representation of workers in all their diversity on company boards in the form of quotas. In a social Europe, from upward convergence, corporate accountability in the face of social and fiscal dumping is also a crucial issue. A revision of the Directive on information and consultation of workers needs to be initiated, in order to strengthen workers' rights in relation to matters affecting the economic and employment situation of the company. Promoting sustainable governance practices is rightly mentioned in the report. A concrete example would be the setting of a maximum CEO-employee remuneration ratio. Finally, our Europe is part of a globalised world and must play an important role. We are convinced that Europe must be heard as a responsible partner in upholding its core values. That is why we Socialists and Democrats call for the swift adoption of new binding measures on corporate due diligence and accountability. Liebe Gaby Bischoff, vielen Dank für Deinen exzellenten Bericht über Demokratie am Arbeitsplatz! Dieser Bericht ist kein ‘Art for art’ oder Beschäftigungstherapie für dieses Parlament! Nein, er ist eine klare Antwort auf das Begehren unserer Bürgerinnen und Bürger. Genau vor einem Jahr haben in einer Eurobarometer-Umfrage 88 % der Befragten bestätigt, dass für sie ein soziales Europa persönlich wichtig ist. Das heißt, ein Europa, das für Chancengleichheit, do Arbeitsbedingungen und Sozialschutz sowie Inklusion sorgt. Wir wissen alle: Make Arbeitsbedingungen gibt es nicht ohne Mitbestimmung und Partizipation.

Mr President, Commissioner, this is a scandal! Today, six Member States – Bulgaria, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Slovakia and Czechia – have still not ratified the Istanbul Convention, which protects women, girls and the LGBTI community. In addition, the Polish government is threatening to withdraw. This is why ratification by the European Union remains blocked in the Council. Refusing this life-saving convention is an insensitive gesture and a terrible cruelty to violence against women in Europe. Considering the increasing number of feminicides, I can only turn to these six governments and remind them that through their attitude, they have blood on their hands. We in the European Parliament cannot remain insensitive to this reality. That is why a very large majority, Commissioner, will take forward the legislative proposals that include the standards of excellence of the Istanbul Convention and the initiative to add violence against women and girls to the list of crimes enshrined in European law. Commissioner, count on us to overthrow patriarchy. Count on us to fight together against anti-gender movements and their ideology. They are the ideologues in this story.

Madam President, I have been in constant contact with young people for 15 days in the context of the European Youth Event and the Conference on the Future of Europe. One and the same observation: young people do not feel sufficiently taken into account in Europe. Precarity at work, difficulty in accessing affordable and decent housing, and so on. Europe needs to be more responsive to them. And yet, their message is clear. Social and ecological Europe must be brought back to the forefront. We need a Europe that can tackle environmental, social and digital challenges to provide opportunities for Europe's youth, rather than sinking into crisis. The ‘business as usual’ semester, the ‘austerity semester’, has only helped to increase disparities on our continent. It is a Europe that is refocusing on the human capital that we Socialists & Democrats are calling for. A Europe that offers young people a chance to build a dignified, prosperous and quality future for themselves. This is why there is an urgent need for the European Semester to give as much importance to social, environmental and digital issues as to economic ones. Financing youth is not going into debt, it is a profitable investment for all.

Mr President, in January 2011, the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD) came into force here in the European Union, but Member States, but also a little bit the European Union, have failed to fully promote, protect and assure equal enjoyment of all human rights and fundamental freedoms by all persons with disabilities. Efforts must be made, and I am very confident that the new EU disability strategy, presented by Helena Dalli, after a participatory process, will ensure better social and economic inclusion. The report that we discuss today highlights the need for better monitoring of the compliance with the UNCRPD by the Commission, but moreover by the Member States, and I want to recall that we should not forget to include persons with disabilities in this monitoring process. The report recalls that 1% of petitions deal with disability rights when up to 87 million EU citizens have some form of disability; 1% is not enough, and it shows how difficult it is to make the voice of people with disabilities heard in this process. I am proud that my political group fully supports the annual workshops and hearings on the rights of people with disabilities organised by the Committee on Petitions, which allows close cooperation with the Commission, with experts, with the Fundamental Rights Agency, with the European Ombudsman and representatives of civil society, such as the European Disability Forum. It is only together that we will be able to achieve the ambitious aims of the Commissioner’s strategy. The excellent work of our rapporteur, Alex Agius Saliba, sheds light on the absolute necessity to ratify the optional protocol of the UNCRPD. It will allow individuals to submit communications to the Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) on alleged violations of their fundamental rights by a state party to the CRPD. Five Member States and the EU haven’t ratified it yet, so we should stop being hypocrites. We all talk about participation, but we haven’t ratified the protocol which allows participation for individuals.

Madam President, in the European Union too many workers are living in poverty and they suffer because of social exclusion. Work, platform work included, must become the tool again for all to combat poverty. Today this is not yet the case. The growing digital economy has great potential for job creation, but these jobs must be quality jobs instead of precarious jobs. New forms of work must become a synonym of equal rights and better work—life balance. We Socialists and Democrats, together with the trade unions and civil society, will never accept that platform workers are a sub—category or a new category of workers. To prevent social dumping, platform workers deserve social rights, health and safety protection, fair working conditions and the right to collective bargaining – and therefore we need ambitious EU legislation. Here we have the opportunity to make social progress for the next generation by empowering platform workers. Our aim is a more resilient and a more social Union where vulnerable categories of workers have no place.

Mr President, conflating homosexuality and transidentity with paedophilia is yet another episode of the Hungarian Government looking desperately for election topics to distract from corruption. It is yet another attack on fundamental rights, and as the EU, we have the tools to protect our values. But what is missing is the political will in the Council to use them. Signing statements at Council is not enough. The Council must address the deterioration of fundamental rights in Hungary by issuing concrete recommendations, including a call to repeal this misleading law. The new Hungarian law is not only homo- and transphobic: it is severely restricting the rights of children, rather than protecting them. Mr Orbán, you will never prevent one single young man or woman from being lesbian, from being gay, from being bisexual, transgender or intersexual, because this is an identity! So please stop talking about ideology. What you are doing is forcing young people to hide their identity, which often ends in suffering and in suicide. Rather than protecting anyone, you foster hate, intolerance and aggression towards vulnerable groups. And we don’t have to look far to see what happens when politicians follow Russia-style narratives on LGBTI people. On Monday, thousands of far-rightist hooligans violently disrupted Tbilisi Pride. The organisers had to flee for their lives, and journalists have been beaten up. Is this the direction we want for the European Union? Will we allow the Hungarian and Polish governments to use violence against people like me and others? No, the Council and the Commission must take bold actions now and give hope to people in Hungary and Poland. (Applause)