Speeches

Madam President, history teaches us hard lessons. 1925 – Germany signed the Locarno treaties. 1934 – the non-aggression pact with Poland. 1938 – the Munich Agreement. All presented as peace efforts; all used to buy time for further aggression. So let's not forget, not every peace is a real peace. Today, we face a similar risk. The United States is leading talks on a proposal for Ukraine, and we see clearly what Russia is willing to accept – so clearly that Washington had to explain that the plan was not written by Putin. It is the US and Russia who are shaping the talks and setting the terms. The agreement would limit Ukraine's army while Russia rebuilds its own. The agreement offers amnesties for war crimes and forces territorial concessions. Europe must stand up. We will not agree ...

Mr President, what is unacceptable in the real world should not be acceptable online. What is illegal in the real world should also be illegal online. Algorithms are currently guiding children into dark alleys. Cyberbullying is commonplace and chatbots at worst encourage self-harm. With one click, the child can access harmful content, content that is dangerous to mental health. According to studies, one in ten young people suffers from harmful content on the web. Anxiety, sleep deprivation, concentration disorders, screen addiction. It is up to us politicians to make legislation that genuinely protects children and young people. Protecting children and young people should be a priority for everyone, including online platforms. It takes an entire village to raise children. It is the responsibility of families, it is the responsibility of all our communities, it is also the responsibility of our politicians.

Mr President, Commissioner, when a problem is so obvious, we should be able to resolve it politically as quickly as possible. This hasn't been the case. Clock shifting, depression, concentration disorders, sleep problems, even an increase in myocardial infarctions have been proven. Changing the clock causes all of these. In Finland, Timo Partonen, sleep researcher and research professor at the National Institute for Health and Welfare, says that everyone would benefit from abandoning clock changes. Studies have shown that even a slight change in schedule, especially when combined with the darkness of our northern citizens, causes many health problems. Citizens have spoken, Parliament has spoken, the Commission has given the green light, and yet we are here. So what's the matter? It is important to note that the member states have not been able to make a decision. That is to say, the representatives of the Member States, the ministers sitting in the Council of Ministers, have not been able to take a decision on such a matter, which endangers the health of Europeans. In Finland, Minister of Transport and Communications Lulu Ranne is sitting on this matter. Greetings from the European Parliament. Is it not time to reach agreement in the Council of Ministers, to bring this matter to a final conclusion and to put an end to this madness, to the shifting of clocks? This is the right time. Here in Parliament we are waiting, in the Commission we are waiting, Europeans are waiting. Do your job.

Thank you very much for the question. Simplification is in order in this manner, but also customers, and protecting Europeans from faulty products that can even endanger lives – for example, with children. If the toys – 80 % of them do not apply to our regulations. This is a big danger for the future of Europe, because children are the future of Europe. We need to educate our people, already at the school level, and we must teach that everything that looks gold is not good for you, and everything that is claimed to be good for you can actually be a very dangerous thing.

Mr President, dear colleagues, in 2024 alone, the EU received 4.6 billion e-commerce parcels, mostly from outside our borders and many of them failing to meet European safety standards – the risk in millions of European homes – products that endanger consumers and harm our fragile environment. This alone is a call to action. The new legislative framework was adopted over a decade ago, and it no longer reflects the huge changes in our economy, technology and environment. This gap must now be closed. Customers deserve the power of knowledge – clear, trustworthy information, through tools like the Digital Product Passport – to make decisions on their purchases. Without this transparency, our ambitions fall flat. This revision is a crucial opportunity to align our product rules with today's and tomorrow's realities. So let's not waste it.

Mr President, dear colleagues, media freedom: it's one of Europe's core values. It's the heartbeat of our democracy. And today, once again, we discuss Google's dominance, and we must remember what's at stake. Google controls much of how Europeans find news, how publishers earn on it. As a digital gatekeeper, it decides who is seen and who is silenced. Our media depend on visibility and fair revenue to survive. When these are taken away, our press weakens, our voices shrink, and democracy itself is poorer. But Europe has never been afraid to stand up for fairness and freedom. So let's keep fighting, not against technology itself, but for our values, for our journalists, and for the right for every citizen to be freely and truthfully informed.

Mr President, we are living in dangerous times in Europe. We often look at the dangers according to their size. We think that dangers are visible, that they are easy to detect. But the reality is that even smaller dangers need to be taken seriously. The subject we are discussing here is very serious. I myself come from Finland. We have a huge problem with ticks right now. But if we look at diseases spread by mosquitoes worldwide, for example, we cannot avoid realising that climate change has brought infectious diseases to Europe that are increasingly transmitted by mosquitoes and mites. Singapore is a good example of how to reduce the spread of mosquitoes, for example. Households can even be fined there if they do not take care to avoid the accumulation of extra water on their plots. Mosquitoes spread in the water. But preventing the spread of ticks is a more difficult case, and that is why we need to be able to prevent the diseases that these small organisms cause to humans. In Finland, a good example is tick buses that go to village centres and where people can often get their vaccines for free, because we, as a society, consider that the treatment of tick-borne diseases is much more expensive than the administration of vaccines.

Mr President, I come from Finland. We have less than six million inhabitants, and the figures are bleak: 100,000 Finns are on long-term sick leave every year due to mental health problems. This is a serious problem, and these figures for Finland are not very different from those for other European countries. We shouldn't be able to afford this. Our society cannot stand the fact that something that should be able to prevent and deal with effectively after the first signs have emerged causes such personal catastrophes, which also affect the well-being of society as a whole. Today, mental health problems are also increasingly concentrated in children and adolescents. Almost one in five 18-22 year-olds in Finland have had to use mental health services alone. One of the reasons for this is the internet. When we have rules in the real world, how we protect children and young people, the internet is still the Wild West. We have DSA legislation that should be able to make the internet a safe place for children and young people to move around. But the DSA has been implemented in such a way that it has not been looked at enough. Here we in the European Parliament also have a place of influence now.

Madam President, dear Commissioner, societies can be valued by the way they treat their elderly. Is age discrimination common? About 50 % of Europeans say that it is. There is inequality in housing, in work life. Pensions threaten social cohesion. Public services do not treat people equally. We need to recognise that the future of Europe depends on how we care for all generations, not just in words, but in policies that honour both the young and the old. In this, I am happy to say that Finland leads by example. Youth and elder councils are a standard in municipal decision-making. Both groups have a legal right to influence local decisions. This was one of my priorities when I worked as a Minister of Social Services. What Europe needs is well-being that derives from age-aware policies. They must be taken into account in everything, from age-friendly communities to lifetime learning and extending careers. The Commission's European care strategy and its work on a strategy for intergenerational fairness are welcome, but these frameworks must now deliver. We need investment in quality long-term care, inclusive public services and age-friendly communities. No age group should be invisible – each generation deserves to be heard, valued and supported.

Mr President, dear Commissioner, to begin with, I want to thank my S&D colleague Hannes Heide for his excellent work on this very important file. Thank you, Hannes. Athletes have been powerful role models for our youth throughout time. For example, our Finnish basketball team or the Special Olympics athletes I recently met; they inspire with their courage and strength. But there are unfortunately different kinds of sports examples. Profit-driven spectacles in the US and around the world risk compromising athletes' health and send the wrong message to our youth. I am talking, for example, about the Enhanced Games said to begin next year. They have very little to do with the pure sports. Our youth needs its heroes and the understanding that the basis of sport lies in a healthy lifestyle. Sport brings people together. It promotes health, peace and unity. It teaches core values such as solidarity and respect. To protect these values, we need strong EU support. We need investment in sports infrastructure. We need positive examples of sportsmanship. And when we talk about the youngest, we need to ensure that the joy of movement and achievement is every kid's right.

Mr President, dear colleagues, as a daughter of a mother who suffers from dementia, I often ponder the essence of being human. The illness takes so much, leaving behind only basic needs. For us, the relatives, the gradual fading of a loved one's mind feels like a very slow, long goodbye. Each visit to my mother in the care home is a goodbye, as I never know whether she will remember me tomorrow, or the day after tomorrow. And what I experience with my mother, it is experienced and affects the relatives and the sufferers of dementia – 9.1 million people – all around Europe. And according to the World Health Organization, this number could exceed 14 million by 2050. So, the work we're doing here and in the Commission is very important. Dementia is often associated with older individuals, but increasingly it affects also working age people. So we must invest in dementia prevention throughout the lifespan. It involves how we use our brains, take care of our health and how society responds when people, individuals, need help. Doctors, paramedics, nurses and even police encounter individuals with dementia and their families daily. During my time as Minister of Basic Services, I aimed to ensure that society supports those with dementia and their families humanely. A person with dementia is not a piece of furniture that can be tossed around. When I visit my mother, I admire the staff at her care home. They approach their work with love. My mother's cheerful smile, her neatly combed hair and the clothes reflecting her personality – they ease my mind as her daughter. I'm passionately committed to ensuring that caregivers do their jobs efficiently and have a chance to do it efficiently, and that families who care for their loved ones at home receive the necessary support. They all deserve the support of us, the support of societies, and recognition for the important work they are doing.

Madam President, last weekend, Russia launched 818 drones against Ukraine. Meanwhile, President Putin is laughing in Moscow. President Trump sends mixed signals: one day promising peace; the next, praising the leader of Russia. In Beijing, President Xi gave Putin yet again a global stage and Europe were absent. Peace talks are shaped by others. The days when trade power gave us leverage is over. This has given Putin a clear table to push harder and further crush Ukraine's fight for freedom. As said in the report, Ukraine is the single most important area of EU activity in the external relations realm. Madam President, if Europe is not at the table, we are on the menu.

Mr President, Commissioner, I thank all the colleagues with whom we worked together on this file. I call it the 'stop the Chinese crap tsunami' file, because it is a crap tsunami that we are under. EU consumers waste EUR 19.3 billion per year buying low-quality, dangerous products that can lead to injuries and severe health problems. EUR 19.3 billion that are detrimental to European businesses. But this file has united us – this House. In this House, we agree that concrete action needs to be taken urgently. Every seller from outside the EU should have an accountable person here in Europe. We agree on stronger enforcement of the rules we already have, with better tracking of where products come from, more testing to make sure that they are safe. We agree to push for fairness: a proper EU customs authority by 2026, a stop to massive shipments that slip through without checks, and stricter controls on foreign warehouses operating on European soil. We are making it clear: European small and local businesses deserve a fair chance to compete. They play by the rules. It's time others do too. It's about protecting what Europe stands for: quality, fairness and responsibility, and protecting our businesses. The vote on the file is on Wednesday. This file is a solid message from this House to the Commission and the Council to act with the urgency that the situation demands.

Mr President, the desire to protect children unites us in this house. What happens on social media has real-life consequences. This Directive improves access to justice and support for victims. Legislation must keep up with the digital reality. Parliament is proposing important clarifications to the directive, including on AI-generated content, and we will need tools to prevent crime and harmful content in the future. We need to implement EU legislation on digital and media services much better than at present. Platforms must be required to take the right measures to manage the identified risks. Digital literacy must be included in school education in all Member States, bearing in mind that digital literacy alone is not enough, but we must ensure that our children are aware of their right to mental and physical integrity.

Mr President, war always has many dimensions and the cost of human fate is immeasurable. We Finns know this well. We fought against Russia decades ago, and the consequences of its war are still visible in our tombstones and in the human fates that pass through generations. With more than one hundred thousand Ukrainians dead, four hundred thousand wounded and tens of thousands of children forcibly taken to Russia, Ukraine must not be treated as yesterday's news. People are still dying in Ukraine, the tragedy is real. The statement by the Council and the Commission is very important. Together we must remain resolute. By supporting Ukraine, we are also safeguarding the very foundations of European peace and security. One of the most important ways to find a path to lasting peace is to keep Europe relevant even in the midst of geopolitical plate collisions. This can be achieved by working together on the basis of European values. Europeanism is at its best when solidarity links individuals and governments to a collective effort, and here we have a place of effort.

Mr President, I am very shocked when it is said here that women's rights and fighting for them are out of the hands of men. I don't understand such rhetoric at all. Where women are equal, societies thrive. Women, men and children are better off. You said just now that people are talking bum and subjugating men. How does the promotion of women's rights subjugate men? Not in any way. Answer me, what do you base your claim on?

Mr President, right now, as we speak, thousands of Ukrainian children have been ripped from their homes, torn from the arms of their families, forcefully deported to Russia and Belarus, detained in Russian prisons, forced into adoption, stripped of their identities. These children are being erased. A grave violation of international law. Even in this room, I have heard Russian propaganda attempting to twist this horror into something it is not. Let me say this plainly: this is not a topic for propaganda. This is a moral line that demands the united will of the entire European Parliament. We must act. We must act now. The EU must impose sanctions against those responsible for these atrocities. And more than that, we must demand that these children, these stolen lives, are returned to their homes, to their families, to their loved ones. These children are not just numbers in a report; they are lives stolen. And we cannot, we must not let them be forgotten. So bring them home.

Mr President, dear Commissioner, dear colleagues, in light of current developments, it is crucial that the EU strengthens its resilience against disinformation. Russia has announced that they are preparing a war against NATO in the next 10 years. Shame on those in this House that make way to Putin to gain a foothold across European societies. This is not a time to surrender. This is a time to demonstrate our values of freedom, democracy and just society. There should be no room for disinformation that corrupts the minds of our innocent and weak, our children, our youth. It is unacceptable that platforms such as TikTok and X deny their responsibility where it is evident that their aim is not to uphold democratic values, but, on the contrary, to cause chaos and damage to our European way of life.

Mr President, all children should have the right to a good and safe childhood, one in which they feel loved and accepted. There should be room to play, make contact, move and be creative, but the picture of this time is more loneliness and anxiety than ever before. According to studies, children's disordered behaviour has also increased, and various diagnoses related to this have increased. Instead of social contacts, children are increasingly confronted with the flood of the internet and virtual reality. These challenges apply to all children in EU countries. Social inequality also includes playing and playing with inequality. The problem is already so big that we need to see this not only as a personal tragedy, but also as a major economic issue. I would therefore like to draw the attention of the new Commission to safeguarding and increasing the opportunities for children and young people to engage in recreational activities. All possible tools must be used for this. It is about the future of Europe and Europe's resilience.

Madam President, we all know that supporting Ukraine is also about defending European values and principles: peace, security, democracy and rule of law. We also know that eventually, if Europe is weakened, it affects the whole global balance. So, my words go to across the Atlantic to Trump. If Trump wants to make good deals, he should see Europe as equals and partners. And Trump should treat Putin as he would treat someone attempting a hostile takeover, because that's what Putin is trying to do: attack our freedom and sovereignty. In this House, we should be united. No one should for a second think that the future of Europe is secured with Putin's doctrine. North Korean soldiers brought to a European war is just one example that Putin's Russia will proceed. It will not stop if we are not going to stop him.

Mr President, President Niinistö's speech in this Chamber was extremely wise. We need to be prepared, but we also need to be able to work together better. Now I would ask you, representative, how can we plant more of this Finnish spirit here in the European Parliament? In the light of these recent developments, there is division here, there is strife here, when we need more cooperation so that we can cope with these enormous challenges that Europe will have to contend with in the years to come.

Mr President, representatives of the Commission, the EU should be the safest place in the world to buy goods. We have strict standards for what kind of products can be sold here, so how on earth is it possible that, in recent tests, up to 80 per cent of toys sold, for example, in Chinese online stores, did not meet the safety requirements for toys. It is about the health of consumers, especially children. It is about protecting our environment. It is a question of security and it is a question of the ability of European companies to succeed. Chinese giant online shops, ignoring the rules, are delivering goods to Europe at an accelerating pace. According to Finnish Customs, the huge number of Chinese parcels already endangers customs' ability to function. The Product Safety Directive, that is a good start, but it is important that we do not increase the regulation of responsible European companies, but that we ensure that Chinese shops comply with European rules. There is an urgent need to resolve this issue. The Commission must play its part in this. Europe must be united on this issue. It is about the health of Europeans.

Mr President, it is tremendously tragic that you see families on the streets of Europe, people sleeping on the streets. In Finland, the streetscape is different. In Finland, we have succeeded in reducing homelessness so that we have fewer than 3,500 people without a home. Less than 3,500. This is a miracle. But this has required the will of all parties. And yet it was only Sanna Marin's government that set the goal of ending homelessness completely by 2027. Finland's starting point has been the Housing First principle. It first guarantees permanent housing regardless of substance abuse or mental health problems. This has required cooperation between the third sector, public authorities and volunteers, and has even helped many marginalised people to find employment. In addition, social housing has provided affordable housing for people on low incomes. I wanted to share this with you as an encouragement, but also as a warning. For now the Social-Democratic government is a thing of the past and has been replaced by a bourgeois government that cuts subsidies, cuts social housing and turns back the clocks. This should not be allowed. Take an example from Finland in a good way, not from what the bourgeois government is doing in Finland now.