What Thomas spoke about.

8

Sep

2025

DE Speech

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One-minute speeches on matters of political importance

Mr President, ladies and gentlemen. The European Union is committed to the fight against disinformation. A committee has even been set up in this Parliament to act as a shield of democracy and to protect the people of Europe from disinformation and malicious propaganda. I recommend that this committee deal once with the Vice-President/High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Securi…

9

Jul

2025

DE Speech

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The EU’s post-2027 long-term budget: Parliament’s expectations ahead of the Commission’s proposal (debate)

Madam President, Madam Minister, Commissioner, ladies and gentlemen! According to the presentation of the Commission and the expectations of at least a majority of this House, significant funds will probably continue to flow into Ukraine after 2027 – for weapons and for the reconstruction of the country after a terrible war. But we should be careful that Europe does not become the paymaster, while…

19

Jun

2025

DE Speech

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Institutional and political implications of the EU enlargement process and global challenges (debate)

Mr President, Commissioner, ladies and gentlemen! The enlargement debate is detrimental to the European Union mainly because it is dishonest. It is dishonest because it is politically motivated. For example, we would not discuss Ukraine’s EU membership without the Russian war of aggression, because it would mean the end of the common agricultural policy – no one wants that, and that is why it will…

17

Jun

2025

DE Speech

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Implementation report on the Recovery and Resilience Facility (debate)

Madam President, Mr Executive Vice-President, ladies and gentlemen! Three quarters of the RRF's duration is now over, and it is indeed time to take stock – and it is quite pathetic. So far, just under half of the funds made available have been mobilised by the Member States and there are reasonable doubts as to whether they have been used as intended. Now the flexibility is to be further increased…

21

May

2025

DE Speech

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One-minute speeches on matters of political importance

Mr President, ladies and gentlemen. Yesterday, in the ECON and BUDG Committees, the own-initiative report on recovery and Resilience facility adopted, in essence, extending the deadline for the submission of projects and broadening the scope of eligible projects. Should the Commission follow this request and, for example, so-called dual-use projects or the establishment of a common defence industr…

21

May

2025

DE Speech

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Russian energy phase-out, Nord Stream and the EU's energy sovereignty (debate)

Mr President, Commissioner, ladies and gentlemen! The Commission's decision to end all gas purchases from Russia by 2027 is a very stupid decision. Firstly, because we are still dependent on natural gas for decades to come. The new German Minister for Economic Affairs has just announced the construction of new gas-fired power plants with a capacity of at least 20 gigawatts in order to ensure secur…

21

May

2025

DE Speech

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Order of business

(Start of speech off mic) ... of the Rules of Procedure of this Parliament, I would like to raise the following point. A joint meeting of the LIBE, CONT and BUDG Committees took place on 13 May, during which two professors presented their views on the Smart Rule of Law Conditionality presented. In the debate on this subject, the representatives of the political groups first took the floor. I then …

7

May

2025

DE Speech

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The role of gas storage for securing gas supplies ahead of the winter season (debate)

Mr President, Commissioner, ladies and gentlemen! If you look at the turbulence in the European gas markets, you can only say: Something like that comes from something like that. At the instigation of the European Commission, gas markets were liberalised, with the result that most long-term contracts, such as those with Norway, were dissolved. At the same time, the door and gate were opened to the…

2

Apr

2025

DE Speech

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The importance of trans-European transport infrastructure in times of stalling economic growth and major threats to Europe’s security (debate)

Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, Commissioner! What is it called so beautiful? Nothing is so bad that it doesn't have its good. The war in Ukraine has led to fears of menace, which, although not subject to reasonable scrutiny, are at least sacrificing to it all sorts of principles that Europe has upheld for so long. Suddenly, for example, debts can be communitized. Soon Europe will be liable fo…

2

Apr

2025

DE Speech

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Energy-intensive industries (debate)

Madam President, ladies and gentlemen! You can, of course, play ‘Wish you something’. Europe is supplied exclusively with renewable energies, and in the dark we have an energy storage system in the form of green hydrogen that is available at all times. But this is probably an illusion, but at least future music. We need affordable energy today, here and now if we want to maintain the competitivene…

10

Mar

2025

DE Speech

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One-minute speeches on matters of political importance

Madam President, ladies and gentlemen, One thing President Trump has done: Europe is only talking about defence, armaments and weapons. The Commission President von der Leyen wants to spend 800 billion. to rearm Europeto arm Europe again. Even more worrying than the sheer sums, however, seems to me to be what the money is to be spent on. A study by armaments lobbyists from Germany with the distinc…

10

Mar

2025

DE Speech

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Establishing the Reform and Growth Facility for the Republic of Moldova (debate)

Madam President, ladies and gentlemen, The EU wishes to provide the Republic of Moldova with EUR 2 billion in funding; The aim is to make the country fit for an upcoming EU accession. But who really wants to join? Moldova's population is deeply divided on this issue. In the referendum in November last year, the supporters of EU accession were able to assert themselves only very narrowly, namely du…

12

Feb

2025

DE Speech

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Commission Work Programme 2025 (debate)

Madam President, Commissioner! Dear colleagues! Do you know Karl Valentin's words? Hopefully it won't be as bad as it already is. I was thinking about this when I heard that Mrs von der Leyen announced an unprecedented reduction in bureaucracy with the Compass for Competitiveness. This is because it is deliberately concealed that it was Mrs von der Leyen's Commission that has been building up an u…

22

Jan

2025

DE Speech

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EU financing through the LIFE programme of entities lobbying EU institutions and the need for transparency (debate)

Madam President, Commissioner, ladies and gentlemen! When I first heard about this, I honestly couldn't believe it. The European Commission is paying its own lobbyists. In 2024 alone, more than 15 million euros were spent on lobbying organisations in a rather non-transparent process, apparently to provide an inclined backdrop for the Green Deal to create. I really wonder: What kind of commission i…

22

Jan

2025

DE Speech

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Uniting Europe against actors hostile to the EU: time to strengthen our security and defence (topical debate)

Madam President, Commissioner, ladies and gentlemen! “Time to strengthen our defence” is the topic of this debate. And rearmament does indeed seem the Flavour of the Day Mr Kubilius would like to invest €500 billion in common defence, and there is a real competition for overbearing within NATO, according to the motto: Can it be a little more? I used to be happy with 2 percent. Mr Habeck of the Ger…

18

Dec

2024

DE Speech

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Need to ensure swift action and transparency on corruption allegations in the public sector to protect democratic integrity (debate)

Mr President! Commissioner, ladies and gentlemen! The reason for this item is the accusations made against former Commissioner Reynders. These are indeed serious, although, at least according to my research, they have not yet been conclusively proven. In this respect, the presumption of innocence also applies to Mr Reynders, which must also not be sacrificed to the need for swift action. It is tru…

27

Nov

2024

DE Speech

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Presentation by the President-elect of the Commission of the College of Commissioners and its programme (debate)

Madam President, ladies and gentlemen! I fear that with the Commission that Mrs von der Leyen has put together, the importance of Europe will continue to decline. I am particularly concerned about the Commission's position on foreign and security policy. This is the responsibility of Ms Kallas and Mr Kubilius. They represent a foreign policy that is clearly directed against Russia. This may be und…

22

Oct

2024

DE Speech

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General budget of the European Union for the financial year 2025 – all sections (debate)

Mr President, Mr Minister, ladies and gentlemen! I have not been in this Parliament for a long time, but I have the impression that the same procedure always applies to the budget: The Commission puts forward a draft budget, the Council then puts it down a bit, and then Parliament comes, restores the Commission's draft and puts something on it here and there. I am not sure that this ritual really …

8

Oct

2024

DE Speech

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The crisis facing the EU’s automotive industry, potential plant closures and the need to enhance competitiveness and maintain jobs in Europe (debate)

Madam President, Commissioner, ladies and gentlemen! It is true that the European automotive industry is in crisis. But before we want to save them now with protective tariffs and subsidies, we should also ask ourselves what we actually contributed to it ourselves. I am convinced: The ban on internal combustion engines from 2035, which was also passed in this House, was a big mistake. It is not th…

18

Sep

2024

DE Speech

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The devastating floods in Central and Eastern Europe, the loss of lives and the EU’s preparedness to act on such disasters exacerbated by climate change (debate)

Madam President, ladies and gentlemen! The images of the destruction caused by the severe weather disasters in Romania, Poland, the Czech Republic, Hungary and Austria have all moved us. Many people have lost everything. Basements need to be pumped out, houses and buildings need to be rebuilt, roads, rails, bridges - the damage to them needs to be repaired. Above all, fast and unbureaucratic help …