Speeches

Dear Chairman, Commissioner, I must share with you that the debate on this budget has often sounded to me as if we were discussing a national budget, not a European one. And colleagues are confusing the notions of whether this is a national or a European budget, which is not surprising to me because the proposal that came from your side went a lot in the direction of nationalization of the budget. This is why it is important that this Parliament now sends a clear message: No, we need to improve and have strong guarantees that this is a European budget. That's what we'll expect in the next iteration. Two things need to be improved as well. The first is that national plans, which have instilled this fear that they are increasingly about national budgets, rather than European ones, really need to be bottom up. The Commission should therefore be given powers. If cities, municipalities, regions will not be at the table and will not work on plans together with prime ministers, then these national plans must not be approved. And the last thing, in the last budget when we spent money for resilience, we saw that some countries were spending money successfully, but for example, my country, which spent a lot, did not manage to curb inflation with that same money. And we need to improve these mechanisms.

Madam President, dear colleagues, this was really a pleasure to listen to this debate because I hear a lot of echoing from you supporting what the citizens and activists are also requiring: to ban the conversion practices in the European Union, and I am convinced we will do it. But we should do more. In my gay life, I haven't met any LGBTQI person who became straight, but also in my gay life, I met more than 100 people who were being homophobic and then they changed, so actually what we can convert, where we can do the progress is, we can heal homophobia. So, dear Commissioner, let's put more efforts into the health public system and give support to the homophobic people to have access to the mental health support. Heal homophobia – because this really, really works.

Dear Chairman, I will continue with the previous speaker because I want to talk about bilateral blocking of negotiations and instead, to discuss the veto, yes or no, to try to see what we can do with policies of relaxation and common sense. I remember Slovenia blocking Croatia. We ended up in an arbitral tribunal because we couldn't agree on a boundary line. And today Commissioner Kos thinks the line is going here, I think it's going here, but here we are, working very well together. We lost a few years for nothing. Also, Croatia and Montenegro are currently discussing whose ship it is and how to repair that ship, and perhaps the solution is ahead of us. Let's renew it together with the money of the European Union and enable it to protect our common Adriatic Sea, i.e. our Mediterranean. So relaxation policies and common sense policies may be a way to avoid bilateral blockages. I would especially like to say this to my dear friends from Bulgaria and North Macedonia.

Madam President, millions of our fellow citizens are looking at this House with the expectation to deliver a solution on the devastating housing crisis. Today, a strange divided majority will deliver the report, which unfortunately will not provide solutions. On the contrary, it may even deepen the crisis. The housing crisis is not a natural disaster. It is the result of political choices, decades of policies that have treated homes as financial assets rather than a place to live. The EPP Group wants to keep on going in this direction. How else to explain that they even do not want to recognise housing as a human right. They do not recognise speculation and devastating short‑term rental policies as root causes of this crisis. With this report, EPP and the right wing are betraying people in Europe, especially European youth, some of whom are sitting up there in the gallery, who are struggling with the rent and loans, but there is no surrender. We shall keep on struggling together to ensure a decent home for everyone.

Dear colleague, you have mentioned how it's really important also to solve the crisis on the local level in the cities. And you come from Italy, with beautiful Milan and Rome, etc. But where to build more in Milan? Where to build more in Rome? Can you explain it to us? Is there still some space to give it and to build the new stock? Can you explain a little bit about that?

Madam President, dear colleague, you mentioned how you warmly support this report and you also said that there is really great need to build a new stock to solve this crisis. But at the same time you are coming from the Netherlands and I am reading the data that there are 200 000 empty flats in the Netherlands, 21 000 in Amsterdam alone, and this in this report there is nothing about that. So what do you think about this? How we can actually mobilise the empty stock? Do we really need only to build, build, build?

Dear Chairman, the memory of Croatia is most often associated with our blue sea and beautiful beaches. You may have been lucky enough to try Pag cheese or Istrian Malvasia, and what kulen is, probably few of you know. Few of you probably know that Croatia has the poorest pensioners in the European Union. That these benefits, which I have mentioned, can only be dreamed of by many, as the EUR 5 600 they receive on average per year covers barely 60% of the cost of living, and women are particularly affected by this because years of wage inequality have turned into unequal pensions. In this report, we call on the Commission to push for the economic strengthening of pensioners and for the reduction of the gender pay and pension gap. And let's not take it out that we don't have jurisdiction over pensions. If we've found jurisdiction over the defense, we have to find jurisdiction over the pensions.

Madam President, remember, Trump did not pick Minneapolis accidentally. Ranked the happiest city in the US with affordable housing, a high minimum wage and valuable scholarships, unleashing agents with near-total immunity to abduct and kill had one goal: to divide this community. Simply, when divided, it's easier for Trump to loot the economy, cut financing for schools and hospitals while enriching himself and his buddies. But the people of Minneapolis did not take that well. Instead, they took it to the streets. They helped each other. They organised and united against the federal government that became lethal to its own people. As Jacob Frey said, 'Mayors don't back down to bullies.' But now, as Trump and his extremist cronies try to spread authoritarian practice all over Europe, we, the politicians from this House, have a duty to stand up to the bully as well.

Madam President, Commissioner, Madam Minister, I will not call it historic, but an unusually important European Council meeting is taking place tomorrow. For the first time ever, the Member States will discuss affordable and, I also hope, social housing. And this is good news. We have seen what the leaders will put focus on tomorrow, first discussing and then calling on the Commission to present the plan. Not that much for the first time, but okay. I am using this stage now to call the leaders to go out of the comfort zone and be more ambitious tomorrow. I call on them to commit to take the mid-term review of the cohesion policy into account and increase investments in housing already this year. They can invite our cities and regions to have an actual seat at the table and draw up plans to invest enough money in housing and secure the money through cohesion. There is really no time to waste and we have to act, starting from tomorrow on.

Dear President, Dear Commissioner, on the eve of the anniversary of the tragedy of Novi Sad, I would like once again to express my condolences to the families of the victims, who to this day have no answers to the causes of the tragedy and no adequate compensation. Justice must reach them as soon as possible. This tragedy has put Serbia on its feet. The protests mobilized an incredible amount of young people who decided to pause their education to fight for justice. The generation we sometimes see as apathetic now shows extraordinary courage and determination, taking responsibility for the society in which they want to live. Their energy and perseverance have become a symbol of hope that change can be fought not by violence, but by the persistent demands of freedom. Unfortunately, Vucic responded with exhaustion tactics, media smear, violence and repression. And how to proceed? Free and fair early elections are one way out of this crisis. We as the EU cannot decide what and how on behalf of the citizens of Serbia, but we can and must stand by them on the right side of history.

Since the beginning of this term of office, we are today discussing for the first time the situation of older people in the Union, people who have worked and built our European Union every day throughout their lives. Without their contribution, the Union would not be such an attractive place to live today. And what do we offer them in return? Almost nothing or too little. We hide behind the phrase that the issues of pensions, health and social care of pensioners fall within the competence of the Member States. Let us stop unwinding and face the fact that one in five elderly people in the European Union live at risk of poverty. It is particularly dramatic in my country of Croatia and other, as we have heard, Eastern European countries, where pensions are shamefully low and often burdened with meaningless taxation. As we encourage young people through the Erasmus programme, why not have programmes to strengthen the quality of life of older people? In the areas of travel, housing, culture, health and social protection: Erasmus for the elderly. And to begin with, every elderly person must have equal access to public services wherever they are in the European Union. Our senior citizens are not a nuisance. They are, indeed, solid anchors that have raised us, shaped us, and many of them will selflessly build a better European Union until their last breath. So let's start with concrete, not principled, measures to improve the quality of life of our older fellow citizens.

Dear Chair, it is close to a year since that historic press conference of Commission President von der Leyen with Vucic when she said that he is a great fighter for the rule of law. Now, it's been 11 months and things have changed drastically, by 180 degrees. They have changed thanks to the citizens of Serbia who took to the street and thank them once again for changing the atmosphere in this parliament, and it is good that this atmosphere is now changing very much in the Commission as well. As we have heard from the debate so far, only a few truly radical right-wing neo-fascist deputies support Vučić. I think the vast majority have understood what is happening in Serbia. And now we have just a question: How and what next? I expect the citizens of Serbia to continue their fight and to stand up not only for the rule of law, but also for human rights and democracy. I can promise them that we will do it on our part in the European Union and I hope that one day we will find ourselves together in this room.

I'm interested in how you talk about political blackmail in cohesion funds from your majority perspective in Hungary, where you have completely politically marginalized any opposition politicians? For example, how many European funds have you allowed to go to the city of Budapest? You don't let that money go just because someone from another party is at the head of that city. And then I don't understand how embarrassed you are to talk about some kind of political blackmail when your government in Hungary is a typical example of how you react with cohesion funds and I hope we will put an end to that.

Dear Chair, Commissioner Fitto, I am very pleased that through this first report to be adopted by Parliament on housing, we have clearly identified the problems of the housing crisis. First, speculative investment and leaving housing policy to private capital. He can't do it like that anymore. The second is the lack of investment in affordable and social housing, the mobilisation of empty dwellings and energy renovation. That's the direction we have to go. The third problem is the growth of short-term leases, i.e. the lack of control over short-term leases. We also need to put an end to that. The good news is that Cohesion Policy now recognises housing and I will welcome this, that money is now at the disposal of Member States to address these root causes. But the bad news is that in a way the Commission has capitulated to the Member States and in fact put everything in the hands of the Member States to decide whether or not to deal with this crisis or to deal with another priority. And that's bad news. Also, I would like to point out once again that regardless of the attacks we hear about the green transition in this Parliament, it has already gone too far and will not be stopped either by my ECR colleagues or by anyone from the right. And that's why I think we really need to understand that a just transition that will be adequately funded is the key to further progress. It cannot be left to the Member States alone and I would like to see a stronger role for both the Parliament and the Commission, without capitulation to the Member States.

Dear Chairman, I took the floor only because I heard again a lot of bilateral misunderstandings between North Macedonia, Greece and Bulgaria and I remembered the episode that my country, Croatia, went through when joining the European Union when Slovenia blocked Croatia. Today, here, Commissioner Kos is from Slovenia and I am from Croatia, I think we can both go for some non-alcoholic drink and have a good laugh at this situation because what looked insurmountable was a border issue, and it became, here, a few years later completely meaningless. To avoid confusion, the issue has not been resolved. So Commissioner Kos still thinks maybe there's a line on one side of the bay, I think it's on the other side of the bay. But this is irrelevant because today the citizens of Slovenia and Croatia, fishermen from Slovenia and Croatia live much better than before Croatia was in the European Union. And that is why I would appeal to everyone to lower the ball, calm down the experience and try to get everyone into the European Union and then solve bilateral issues, so that they are not put here as obstacles.

Dear Chairman, and now something different from my predecessor. I welcome this report, which clearly identifies the problems BiH continues to face on its path towards the European Union. Every time I visit Bosnia and Herzegovina, in addition to exceptional hospitality, I hear the stories of people who want only peace, security and a better life. And that's why I understand that most citizens want to join the European Union. Unfortunately, this path is constantly caught because political forces have been reluctant for years to put the European path ahead of their nationalist and private interests. I call for this to change in the Federation, in Republika Srpska, in the district, in the canton, in the city, in every village. They will only do so if you, the people of Bosnia and Herzegovina, put pressure on them. Don't let them gamble like they did with €100 million in EU money for growth. Do not allow them not to be able to agree who is negotiating on your behalf and to avoid the laws of Bosnia and Herzegovina. This parliament is waiting for MPs elected in Bosnia and Herzegovina as well.

Dear Chairman, colleague Glavak, I think you are mixing pears and apples, because you have to correct me if the information that the Government of the Republic of Croatia has invested five million euros to a private individual to build a Hilton hotel on the island is incorrect. Is this information wrong and is it a lie? I think it's accurate and easily verifiable and yes, that's not how the RRF should be spent.

The Recovery and Resilience Fund (RRF) is an important mechanism for the European Union to respond to the challenge of the COVID-19 outbreak. The good news is that a borrowing decision has been made to invest the money in recovery and avoid a new economic crisis. A lesson has been learned from the past when austerity measures were forced instead of borrowing and investment measures. But today we have to ask the question of how and what was invested in. The answer to this question is provided by the European Court of Auditors, whose findings on RRF spending are worrying. It is spent without clear indicators on investment performance, without clarity on who the final recipient is. What exactly does that mean? In my country, the government gave five million euros to an investment to build a Hilton hotel on an island. Five million euros for the Hilton Hotel. An investment that would super easy find support from any commercial bank. But no, he took public money. Shouldn't that money have gone to the house? This is a typical example of poor RRF spending, which certainly contributes neither to competitiveness, nor to recovery, nor to resilience. Let's stop spending public money like drunk billionaires and instead of deregulation, let's focus on smart and responsible spending of public money.

The Honourable Chairman, the Honourable Commissioner, to the Rapporteur, reading this report on Serbia, there is no doubt that from the country of champions and constructive dialogue, as it was until recently, Serbia is stuck in a dead end as far as EU integration is concerned. Arbitrary expulsion of EU and Serbian nationals, serious corruption problems, deterioration of media freedom, pressure on students, professors, teachers, NGO raids – this has become a daily reality. But at the same time, a different Serbia has woken up, opposing such a regime. Although students, peasants, workers, artists in huge numbers have been on the streets for months, their voices have not been taken seriously until recently. Three weeks ago, students arrived by bicycle from Novi Sad to this house to be heard. A group of students, as we have heard, are running, some are here with us. Today, their voice is much stronger, and this report recognizes that Serbia still has an alternative that cares about justice and European values. The policy of trading lithium, fighter jets, expensive tickets for MAGA events is slowly collapsing. Time is ripe for a new chapter in the process of joining the European Union.

Dear President, legal certainty, the rule of law and social Europe, where you do not go bankrupt because you go to college or because you get sick and where you have a salary for a dignified life, have made our Europe and our continent one of the most attractive places to live, but now all of this is somehow in danger. The announcement of the imposition of tariffs tonight by the US administration will certainly make the situation of a social Europe even worse. Our massive defence investments, which are also ahead of us, will certainly not contribute to strengthening a social Europe and that is why, Commissioner, someone will have to stand in front of people and tell them that simply money will not be for everyone. It won't be for housing both for a social Europe and for defence. Some higher priorities will have to be made, and the answer we see now is only deregulation, border closure and armament policies. This is certainly not the direction that will keep this kind of Europe that we have had so far.

Very good question. Because it's much easier to spend it on defence than to spend it on housing. The second thing is that I'm worried about who will control the spending in defence when on the national level, the Member States will say, but we have our security laws which are protecting us from disclosing the information on spending in defence. So, I see that for Member States it's much easier to grab into the defence than in the housing and energy transition.

Madam President, Mr Commissioner, I think one of my first speeches in this House was calling for the reform of cohesion policy, but not in my dream – or call it nightmare – I couldn't imagine that we will get such a comprehensive and, I will say, radical proposal how to change the cohesion policy, which I can partially agree with. However, we will need more time to study more in depth what was written in the documents that were released only a few hours ago. But I have to challenge the idea that with these six new priorities, defence will also be included. Because can you imagine how this priority will overburden the other ones which we are talking about from the beginning, like solving the housing crisis or working more on the green energy transition. It's really good that you also emphasise the green transition, access to water, housing, but I'm afraid that defence will just swallow up everything. Also, in my first reading, I haven't seen that you are proposing the change of Article 7(5) to enable investments from the cohesion policy directly into housing. So let's see what can happen there. And one thing which I find good: finally, you are putting more strong European urban initiatives. If we are going in the direction of more direct funding to regions and cities, this is the right way forward.