What João spoke about.

7 May

2025

PT Speech

Competition policy – annual report 2024 (debate)

Watch

Madam President, Commissioner Ribera, there are two central ideas in this debate. The first central idea is that competition only serves the European Union when it suits economic groups and multinationals. When it serves to limit public investment, the operation of public enterprises or to impose their privatisation, the pretext of competition is useful. When competition rules limit the interests …

7 May

2025

PT Question

Competition policy – annual report 2024 (debate)

Watch

Madam President, Mr Andrus, competition has served as a pretext to limit or even prevent public investment and the strengthening of state-owned enterprises. The Portuguese State had to face a thousand and one difficulties to recapitalize the public bank, Caixa Geral de Depósitos, and has suffered a thousand and one forms of pressure to sell the public airline, TAP. This means that competition serv…

6 May

2025

PT Speech

An urgent assessment of the applicability of the Political Dialogue and Cooperation Agreement (PDCA) with Cuba (debate)

Watch

Madam President, it is absolutely essential that there be respect for the sovereign will of the Cuban people and that there be channels of relationship, cooperation and dialogue with Cuba so that, in relations based on these principles, solutions can be found to overcome the problems facing the Cuban people, particularly the truly criminal consequences of the blockade that the United States contin…

6 May

2025

PT Speech

A revamped long-term budget for the Union in a changing world (debate)

Watch

Mr President, the proposals we have put forward for this multiannual financial framework report state an alternative with clear priorities: prioritising economic, social and territorial cohesion and considering it as a cross-cutting principle of the multiannual budget of the European Union; prioritising objectives such as full employment, raising the living conditions of workers or eradicating pov…

6 May

2025

PT Speech

A unified EU response to unjustified US trade measures and global trade opportunities for the EU (debate)

Watch

Mr President, Commissioner Šefčovič, the response to Trump's tariff policy must be based on three essential elements. First, strengthening the internal market by increasing purchasing power, supporting policies to increase wages and pensions. By strengthening our internal market, we have an economy that is less dependent, less vulnerable, less exposed to the decisions that others make, especially …

6 May

2025

PT Question

A unified EU response to unjustified US trade measures and global trade opportunities for the EU (debate)

Watch

Mr President, Mrs Pereira, you spoke about the need for diversification of markets and a broader trade policy. Unfortunately, this is one of the competences that has been transferred to the European Union and in which the national states today have no possibility of developing their action – the case of Portugal is a blatant example of this. But the question I want to ask you has to do with anothe…

5 May

2025

PT Speech

Ninth report on economic and social cohesion (debate)

Watch

5 May

2025

PT Question

Ninth report on economic and social cohesion (debate)

Watch

2 Apr

2025

PT Speech

Delivering on the EU Roma Strategy and the fight against discrimination in the EU (debate)

Watch

Mr President, Commissioner Lahbib, on 28 March I took part in an initiative of the European Anti-Poverty Network, where I heard the report of a young gypsy who explained how the door to a job is always closed to him when it is known that he is a gypsy. And on March 14, I contacted in Portugal, in the municipality of Moita, a couple of young gypsies in the tent where they live with a four-year-old …

2 Apr

2025

PT Question

Delivering on the EU Roma Strategy and the fight against discrimination in the EU (debate)

Watch

Mr Francisco Assis, Portugal has not had a national Roma integration strategy since 2022. It is, moreover, the only country in the European Union in this situation. Not even the evaluation of the previous strategy, which ended in 2022, was completed. And the questions I ask you are simple. How is it possible to ensure the integration of Roma communities if we do not even have a strategy for that g…

2 Apr

2025

PT Speech

Outcome of the recent COP16 biodiversity negotiations in Rome (debate)

Watch

Mr President, Commissioner Roswall, reversing biodiversity loss while ensuring progress and social justice requires a profound change of policy and economic model. Defending biodiversity and preserving the environment requires policies for the rational use of energy and increasing energy efficiency, as well as an effective promotion of public transport, reducing dependence on fossil fuels by promo…

2 Apr

2025

PT Question

Outcome of the recent COP16 biodiversity negotiations in Rome (debate)

Watch

Mr Sérgio Humberto, the theory that you have brought here is a good one. The question you ask him is: Why don't you practice it? Why, for example, in Portugal, the government, which is from the same party as the honourable Member, is pursuing a policy exactly contrary to that which you have advocated here. For example, when it does not support traditional agriculture, smallholders, productive prac…

2 Apr

2025

PT Speech

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

Watch

Mr Tzitzicostas, we should in fact be discussing transport networks not on the basis of war and security issues, but on the contribution that transport networks have to make to territorial, economic and social cohesion within the European Union, to ensuring the mobility of people, to supporting economic activity. What support should the European Union give to national transport infrastructure inve…

2 Apr

2025

PT Question

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

Watch

Mr Muşoiu, the question I would like to put to you is simple. Do you not think that the priority in the discussion of transport policy should be how the European Union can support the development of transport infrastructure to ensure the mobility of people, to guarantee territorial, economic and social cohesion within the European Union and, more than defence issues, should it be the satisfaction …

2 Apr

2025

PT Speech

European oceans pact (debate)

Watch

Mr President, this discussion on the Ocean Pact should enable us to discuss a strategy that takes into account that the sensitivity of marine ecosystems and the environmental, ecological and social functions of the seas and oceans require a strong role for the State in the sustainable management and safeguarding of resources, as a way of ensuring that the common interest, the public good, prevails…

2 Apr

2025

PT Question

European oceans pact (debate)

Watch

Mr Paulo do Nascimento Cabral, one of the ways to respond to concerns about the environmental preservation of the oceans is precisely to support economic activities, which also have their place in the ocean, in a sustainable way, and, in particular, in relation to artisanal and coastal fishing, this is one of the absolutely essential elements to ensure that all these concerns are articulated. Howe…

2 Apr

2025

PT Speech

Topical debate (Rule 169) - Social Europe: making life affordable, protecting jobs, wages and health for all

Watch

Mr President, better jobs, better wages and pensions, access to housing, health, education, better social protection, a better distribution of wealth, eradication of poverty. Here are the priorities of the people, but they are not the priorities of the European Union. The petition we promote in Portugal for the increase of wages and pensions shows this demand of the people in the more than 100,000…

2 Apr

2025

PT Question

Energy-intensive industries (debate)

Watch

Mr Bruno Gonçalves, my question to you is simple: does the honourable Member agree with this approach taken by the European Commission to energy-intensive industries, disregarding the strong elements of social conditionality that should be present? This approach leaves workers, their jobs, their wages, their working conditions, sound collective bargaining processes, which should be safeguarded, co…

2 Apr

2025

PT Question

European Steel and Metals Action Plan (debate)

Watch

Madam President, Mrs Matthieu, you referred to an important aspect that has to do with social impacts, but I would like to ask you another question, which is whether you do not see with concern the concentration of political decision-making on these issues in the European Commission on competences that are the responsibility of the Member States. When we cross-reference this action plan with the C…

1 Apr

2025

PT Speech

EU Preparedness Union Strategy (debate)

Watch

Madam President, Commissioner Lahbib, this debate on so-called crisis preparedness is the debate on escaping responsibility, promoting fear and the ideology of war. The European Commission underscores the role of states and essential public services and structures, and sees crisis preparedness as an individual responsibility of citizens. While dealing with situations that justify genuine concern f…

1 Apr

2025

PT Question

EU Preparedness Union Strategy (debate)

Watch

Madam President, Mr President-in-Office, the question I want to ask you is a very specific one: Do you agree with the European Commission's choice to support the role of states, structures and public services in the response they need to ensure in situations that are truly crisis situations, civil protection situations or critical infrastructure difficulties? Does the honourable Member agree with …

1 Apr

2025

PT Speech

Presentation of the New European Internal Security Strategy (debate)

Watch

Mr President, Commissioner Brunner, the European internal security strategy sets wrong priorities, threatens citizens' freedoms and is dedicated to hunting witches while turning a blind eye to white-collar crimes and threats from the far right. The Commission's proposal commits four major sins. First, it focuses on European agencies, while the priority should be to support investment in national s…

1 Apr

2025

PT Question

Presentation of the New European Internal Security Strategy (debate)

Watch

Mr Cunha, you have come to praise the proposal for a European internal security strategy and I want to ask you two questions. The first is whether the honourable Member really thinks it is worth praising a strategy that stigmatises migrants, stigmatises religion, but closes his eyes to economic and financial crime, closes his eyes to the threats of the far right in terms of crime? And the second q…

1 Apr

2025

PT Question

Human rights and democracy in the world and the European Union’s policy on the matter – annual report 2024 (debate)

Watch

Madam President, Mrs Ridel, you spoke about the violation of human rights, you referred to several important aspects, particularly in relation to what is happening in Palestine and the Gaza Strip, and that is very important to underline. But I wanted to ask you another question: does it not believe that, in a debate on human rights, we should also deal with issues that have to do with poverty, wit…

1 Apr

2025

PT Speech

CFSP and CSDP (Article 36 TUE) (joint debate)

Watch

Madam President, Commissioner Kaja Kallas, peoples need international relations geared to peace, cooperation, solidarity, the political settlement of conflicts, the de-escalation of international tensions and respect for the principles of international law. None of these objectives are present in the Common Foreign and Security Policy or in the resolutions we are discussing here today. These resol…