Speeches

Madam President, Madam Prime Minister, I fully agree with you – the European Union should have security and competitiveness as priorities. But there will not be real security as long as foreign governments can corrupt our public officials. And there will not be competitiveness in a corrupt system. That is why we need a strong anti-corruption directive. And it is a disgrace that Member States are blocking this at this moment. They are playing political games in a dirty tit for tat: 'If you support my opposition to an anti-corruption directive, I will support your opposition to better green legislation.' We cannot allow this to happen. Citizens are watching, and I hope, I really hope that under your leadership, the Danish Presidency will manage to convince Member States of the need for a new anti-corruption directive. I wish you all the luck.

Let's talk about the regions: in Emilia-Romagna and in Lombardy, where your own party is very popular, I believe, thanks to anti-immigration rhetoric, 85 % of caregivers for children, for the elderly and for people with disabilities are migrants. Italy, your own country, will need in the next few years 1.3 million caregivers also for people with disabilities and many of them, two-thirds, will be migrants. Do you agree with me that we should be doing much more to welcome these people and not discriminate against them, as we hear your party do in this House? Thank you.

You said we think we have a mandate. We do have a mandate: the mandate of the Treaty of the European Union, Article 2, which says that everyone should be free of discrimination, among other things, which says that we have fundamental values that we have to abide by. You don't feel bound by the Treaty of the European Union standing in this Chamber?

Mr President, what an obsession with underwear. Dear Commissioner, dear colleagues, last time we stood here to discuss Orbán's attacks on the rule of law, I said he was a bit like the emperor without clothes. But actually, I have come to the conclusion that he's much more like the evil queen from Snow White. He only cares about one thing. And it's not beauty. It is power. It is power to keep stealing from the Hungarian people and all of us Europeans. Mirror, mirror, who can keep tricking the EU into thinking that I'm untouchable? he keeps asking. But the restriction of the right to peaceful assembly, his attacks on the LGBTI community is Orbán showing that he's afraid, he can feel it, his reign is coming to an end. So Commission, it is your role and that of the Member States to break the spell. Freeze all funding. Take away Orbán's rights to keep kidnapping the EU and our fundamental values. Support the Hungarian people. Be the princess who kisses Hungary back to democratic life.

Mr President, Madam Commissioner, nice to see you again. And to the ladies: this is our workplace. And I know that many of you who also have care responsibilities back home will spend a significant amount of your energy not only thinking about what we are doing here, but also what needs to happen there – children who need new shoes, parents who need a medical appointment. Now think of all those female engineers and nurses and bankers and teachers and soldiers and the nice lady of the corner store – they're working and they're still doing the thinking, the planning, the managing. Women are still the default project managers of private life, carrying the same responsibilities but with double the weight. And this has consequences: women burn out more often than men, and the group most at risk are young women under 35. So, if we truly care about mental health in the workplace, we have to talk about what happens at home. We need shared responsibility and not only delegated tasks, and we need policies addressing the root causes, not the symptoms.

Mr. Ruissen, you often refer to the Bible as a moral compass. I also learn from it sometimes. For example, the wise lesson from Proverbs 6 about six things the Lord hates, including hands shedding innocent blood. My question to you is very simple: Can you explain why you support the mass slaughter of children in Gaza as long as they are not Israeli children?

Thank you, Mr Bjada. I agree with you that Malta is a very well esteemed member of the European Community and the European Union, and it is so because it made a sovereign decision to join the European Union. And in doing so, it agreed to accepting the ECJ rulings, but also the rest of the lawmaking within the European Union. And in doing so, it also receives funds from the European Union to support your people, which is our people, like EUR 312 million from the Resilience and Recovery Facility. So please do explain to me what allows the Maltese people to take an exceptional position, to not follow what we all agree is the law of the European Union for such a long time?

Mr President, thank you, Commissioner, thank you, Council Presidency. Yes, of course, we all agree here: this is a very good decision of the courts. This is good news. There will be no more rolling out the red carpet for Putin's cronies and other corrupt people trying to access the EU to launder their money, for example. But let's also face it: this comes a bit too late. In 2014, this House already demanded that we put an end to this scheme in Malta and in other countries, and the Member States did nothing. So the Council also has a responsibility here. You know, I think life doesn't very often give us second chances and, dear David and dear Peter, for Daphne Caruana Galizia, there won't be a second chance. She won't get that second chance. But we do have a second chance here to do what's right and protect our citizens. And we can do that immediately. We can ban all sorts of golden passport schemes forever within the European Union. And, maybe more importantly – also for the long term – I'm asking the Council, the Member States, to please, please, please allow us to have an anti-corruption directive in the European Union with real teeth, which will help us now and in the future. Because Europe is watching!

Colleague, you said that Viktor Orbán and the Hungarian regime, his regime, care about families. That means they care about children. But would you care to explain to me then why it is that two thirds of Hungarians describe the education system as bad – purely bad? And would you care to tell me why the population in Hungary is still shrinking, despite all of the efforts from Viktor Orbán to encourage people to have more children? And would you care to tell me why young people are leaving the country by the tens of thousands because they have no opportunities? How is that caring for families?

Madam President, Commissioner, Minister, colleagues, the emperor has no clothes. Hungary is one of the poorest countries in the EU, but Viktor Orbán chooses to wage yet another culture war. Two thirds of Hungarians describe the education system as bad, but Viktor Orbán cares more about schoolbooks being kind to him. Hospitals are crumbling down because of government corruption, but Viktor Orbán thinks undermining our international justice system is more important. Colleagues, the emperor has no clothes. When he cracks down on the pride parade in beautiful Budapest, it means he has nothing. He picks on the most vulnerable because he himself is naked. The majority of Hungarians have no issue with the parade. The majority of Hungarians believe in Europe. So no, Viktor Orbán does not speak for the people. And we must be at their side, and not at his side. Viktor Orbán is a weak autocrat who does not belong in our Union. Member States, please stop the attack against our European unity, values and opportunities. Activate Article 7 now.

I am pleased to know that we are continuing along the same lines as regards the final destination of the cohesion funds, which must contribute to territorial, social and economic cohesion within the European Union. I wanted to ask you, in particular, about the attempts to centralise cohesion policy. You come from a region that surely has a lot of direct access to funds. Mine too. I would like to know if we can work together to maintain that direct access of our cities and regions to cohesion funds, without them being centralised in all Member States.

Mr President, Commissioner, Europe must fundamentally change. But let us not throw away the foundations of Europe with the bathwater. That foundation is our solidarity. The knowledge that we are as strong as our weakest link and as rich as our poorest region. That is a very strong logic, as also endorsed by Draghi and Letta. In our poorest regions, support for Europe is lowest, where Russia and China are trying to buy their influence. Cohesion policy is therefore crucial for our democracy and our security. It can also contribute even more to other strategic goals. However, this will not be possible if we use the mid-term evaluation to transfer money from the poor to the rich regions. That is what, I fear, is going to happen with this proposal, or that we are at risk anyway. That's what I'm worried about. We all want to build a strong Europe, but that is only possible if the whole of Europe participates.

Madam President, I would like to start with reminding all of us here that two thirds of all Europeans believe that corruption is a major issue in the European Union in their countries, and that they expect us to combat this with all we have, with all tools, and they expect us to deliver. So, I really have a very hard time – and I'm sorry that I'm not seeing many of my EPP colleagues here anymore tonight – but I'm having a hard time believing that the EPP is serving these citizens, when they are ready to sacrifice the EU ethics body which will be crucial in ensuring transparency within the EU institutions. I am also concerned that the European Commissioner has not mentioned this very prominently in her statement tonight. So, please, EPP colleagues, stop siding with those who are obviously not interested in fighting corruption. Take responsibility. Give us the tools we need. Prevent even more scandals. Protect our reputation and protect the taxpayer.

Madam President, dear colleague, today, Viktor Orbán tweeted 'Je suis Marine'. Orbán is busy fighting culture wars while Hungarians suffer from his corruption. And I don't say that, Trump's people say that. Health care is a mess. Education is bad, say two thirds of Hungarians. Inflation is up and people leave the country. So please do inform us if Viktor Orbán is Marine Le Pen, why hasn't been he been convicted yet?

Mr President, I'll take the risk. I would like to make a point of order on the basis of Rule 10(7). Based on media reports today on another corruption scandal in this House affecting the integrity of this House, we finally need to implement the EU Ethics Body fully. I call on the colleagues still blocking the group of experts, as a first step, to stop blocking this. (The President cut off the speaker)

Mr Inselvini, here we are again with the blue-card, I hope that this time you will answer my question instead of answering something else. You always talk about the interests of children – and I agree with you, we are all here trying to protect the interests of children. Now, would you be able to explain to me how the interests of a child who has always known two mothers, of whom one of the mothers now may be terminally ill and might die, will be taken care of, the interests of that child, if the other mother – who is not his biological mother – is not recognised as a mother? Because that is what is happening in Italy at the moment.

Madam President, in 2023, when the United States reversed Roe v Wade, it had a direct effect on the accessibility of abortion medication in the EU, because American states – fearing further restrictions on abortion medication – stocked up. And that led to shortages, for example in France. Now, the worldwide backlash against abortion, in combination with increasingly restrictive US policies, could lead to stockpiling again and shortages. And that is why I urge this Commissioner to aim to include mifepristone and misoprostol on the list of essential medications. As the Commissioner himself said, it's about providing critical medication there and where needed. And if we don't do this, we really risk a lot of women conducting unsafe, not legal or illegal abortions at home, especially in those Member States where this right is severely restricted.

Thank you again for the Bible study lesson. It's always very interesting and I was wondering if you go around this House asking your colleagues if they have their period, because the Bible also says that you should not sit in a chair which has been occupied by a woman who has her period. Do you also abide to the Bible lesson in that sense?

Mr President, condoms, the pill, IUDs and the morning-after pill: I used them all. I have always been free to decide when and with whom I would have children. This should be the norm in Europe. Unfortunately, this freedom is under severe pressure. Ultraconservative movements are investing hundreds of millions of euros to curtail these rights across Europe. They make contraceptives difficult to obtain and priceless. They promote hopeless, natural contraception and criminalize abortion. Women with a desired pregnancy who have a late miscarriage are sent home to wait for their fetus to die on its own, otherwise doctors risk jail time. The European Union has a duty to support women when their governments abandon them, so that they, like me and my three daughters, can remain in charge in their own womb.

Thank you, Ms Łukacijewska, I really appreciate you mentioning rural women because I also live in a rural area, and I acknowledge how important it is to have the same access as other women. My question to you is: would you agree with me that access to contraception and sexual and reproductive rights – including abortion and abortion pills – for women in rural areas is something that we should all work on?

Madam President, I would like to make a point of order based on Rule 178(12). I understand this might require a bit of leniency on your side, because we're not discussing a report, and I do appreciate that the Minister is here the whole day – and it's been a very long day, so thank you so much for your statement. However, it is good practice in this House that the Council and the Commission do really react to the questions posed by the Members of this House, and I am sorry to say that I did not get a clear answer on my question. So I would really like a 'yes' or 'no' answer from the Council Presidency as to will you reprimand the Member States who undermine international law, and will you seek strong, unanimous and unconditional support for the ICC in the next Foreign Affairs Council conclusions?

Mr Ciriani, I hear you talking here about lack of independence of the ICC, according to you, and defending your government for not condemning Trump's sanctions. But just to put this in perspective, what we're talking about here: the court has sentenced three Congolese warlords for recruiting children in their army and brutalities against civilians; they issued an arrest warrant against Muammar Gaddafi before he died; and it has issued an arrest warrant against two Taliban leaders for crimes against humanity. Your government is actively undermining this court. How can you defend this?

Madam President, dear Commissioner, thank you for being here tonight dear Council Presidency. The International Criminal Court exists to hold those guilty of the most abject crimes accountable. We have this court because we believe that nobody is above the law: not you, not me, not those who commit genocide and crimes against humanity, no army which commits war crimes – no one, no matter how powerful. Donald Trump, the man the far right here so admires, clearly thinks otherwise. And Trump is not only targeting prosecutors, but potentially everybody in the Netherlands – where the court sits – who help them with building cases, arrests, detentions; civil servants who have dedicated their careers, their lives, to upholding peace and security. And incredibly, some EU Member States such as Italy, Hungary and the Czech Republic condone Trump's measures. So I look to the Council Presidency here today, and I would like really two clear 'yes' or 'no' answers. One: will you directly reprimand the Member States who undermine international law? And two: will your Presidency seek to strongly, unconditionally and unanimously support the ICC in the next Foreign Affairs Council conclusions?

Mr Vincze, I think that we share the concern for radicalisation of different groups in our youth. I would like to ask you about the recent report from Europol, about terrorist threats, where it becomes very clear that the methods and the success rate of radicalisation via online media, for example, at the hands of extreme Islamist groups and extreme‑right groups in the EU, are exactly the same. And how do you reflect on that given your contribution?

Thank you so much, colleague, for your question. I do agree that strengthening our police forces at national level is important. But international criminals need a counterpart. They need someone at international level to fight them. And that's why we need a fully operational Europol. It's not this or this, it's together. I will say this, though. We know that there are crimes which are not being prosecuted in Europe because national police forces refused to intervene. So as the case in Malta with the assassination or the murder of Daphne Caruana Galizia. So we do have an operational force above them to intervene where necessary.