What Gheorghe spoke about.

Madam President, while Europe is regulating, others are innovating. The United States is investing heavily in reindustrialization and global technological leadership, China is strengthening its power through manufacturing and strategic supply chains, while Europe is busy adding new layers of bureaucracy and gold-plating. Take, for example, the digital euro. No one knows how it works because it's not easy. No one trusts because it leads to digital prison. We have one of the largest markets in the world. We do not lack talent or economic capacity, but we lack economic common sense. It is the companies that create jobs and support the European economy that have the hardest access to predictability and stability. It navigates 27 different interpretations, complicated by hyperregulation here from the European Union and also by administrative barriers and procedures that slow down investment. And the citizens feel it, I assure you. I feel it through job insecurity, rising costs and, above all, the feeling that the European economy is starting to lag behind. We need less fragmentation, not two-speed Europe, less bureaucracy, more predictability for companies and more support for those who produce, invest and create jobs here in Europe. If we continue to make our own path more difficult, others will continue to build the economic future for us.

Mr President, Europeans, who are already suspicious of the administration of the European Union in Brussels, will not trust new initiatives and instruments proposed by the Commission or the Council as solutions to the multiple crises and challenges that our world is facing. The opaque rules of the Treaties and abusive interpretations of the EU decision-making infrastructure are used to bypass the European Parliament, the only European institution composed of members elected by the people. The agreement with the Mercosur states and the Security Action for Europe (SAFE) programme have provisionally entered into force, bypassing Parliament. Both the SAFE programme and the Mercosur agreement are under attack today when we discuss it at the CJEU, with a very likely destiny of annulment. It's dramatic, but neither NextGenerationEU and the financial support to Ukraine was neither transparent nor democratically subject to debate and decision. The lost credibility of European democracy is worse than the economic crisis and only recovers through the dismissal of the current body of European Union leaders.

Madam President, the European Union is dependent on online technology developed in non-EU countries. The future of European security is no longer decided only at borders, but also in data centres and AI laboratories. But access to technology and funding is limited and unevenly distributed among Member States. There is already a two-speed Europe in technology and artificial intelligence, and this fracture will cause a splash in defence and security. European resilience cannot be limited to a few Member States, the rest being blocked as a consumer market and labour suppliers. Romania is the victim of a European paradox: It produces and still concentrates technology-oriented human intelligence, but is determined to export it massively. We are very good at developing technologies for others, but not good enough to count as a technology pole. It is not because of the dissidents in the cordon sanitaire, but because of the incompetent and unsightly leaders of the European Union.

Madam President, implementation Digital Markets Act is incomplete, slow and marked by real problems. Compliance reports clearly show that the rules are difficult to enforce, the economic impact is insufficiently assessed and the Commission's approach is ideological rather than pragmatic. At the same time, the European Commission is investigating platforms and imposing fines with a level of transparency that raises questions. The general tone is directed against large platforms, especially American ones, although they contribute significantly to the European economy, innovation and access to essential services. Without strong European alternatives, a rigid and punitive approach not only hits the target companies, but also directly consumers, SMEs and our global competitiveness. DMA Ignores, more than would have been justified, classical economic analysis. On behalf of the ECR group, I called for clear evidence before any extension of the framework and advocated the protection of innovation, avoiding gold-plating that risks isolating technological Europe. We can't afford to lose this digital race, so let's not!

Madam President, while we are debating the strengthening of the European single market, Ursula von der Leyen decides at her discretion to apply the Mercosur agreement before the opinion of the CJEU and the vote of the European Parliament. We require farmers to produce more expensively and with more and more restrictions, and then compete with products that do not meet the same standards and costs. The European Commission is engaging in new trade and migration agreements while plunging into debt. There are already 600 billion euros due, with no realistic sources of repayment. An economy in recession does not produce enough to pay debt and social costs. At most, it can turn today's debt into tomorrow's crisis. A single market cannot function without a touch of oxygen for our businesses, weakened by the pandemic, the fight against climate and the war of others. The high cost of living already makes the idea of a single market hostile to the average person. And now, a few things about the Single Market. In the area of insolvency, we have regulations that are more for the survival of businesses, such as France - others are more for liquidation, such as the Netherlands. In the area of capital markets, there are economies that have highly developed capital markets - others that are emerging. In the economic field of State aid to undertakings, there is, even in the practice of the CJEU, a case-law which is favourable to State aid in certain States, such as Italy - and entirely against the idea of State aid to undertakings, in States such as Romania. Are we not talking about a single European market in these three areas, while being very, very hypocritical? From this point of view, when we talk about such a beautiful concept as the European single market, I think we should, first of all, abandon hypocrisy.

Mr President, the digital environment is the new commercial space that opens access to 450 million potential European customers, at least in theory. The European Consumer Agenda 2030 must ensure that the Single Market fulfils its role for all these consumers, regardless of their postal code. For Romanian consumers, a persistent problem is geoblocking, sites that refuse delivery to Romania, forcibly redirect users to less bidding national versions or apply higher prices for the same products. The same is true in the opposite direction. When a Romanian producer wants to reach customers in the large European single market, the same happens. We are still facing rudimentary competitiveness in foreign markets due to unfair competition and the digital market dominated by large platforms, especially from outside the European Union. The 2030 Agenda must accelerate the removal of such administrative, trade, digital barriers and focus on consumer protection. The true efficiency of the Single Market is measured not only in the freedom to buy or sell, but also in consumer protection.

Mr President, the European Union's rearmament programme, as well as the indefinite freezing of Russian assets, were based on Article 122 of the Treaty. Only for use in situations of extreme urgency, this text cannot be used to bypass Parliament. Therefore, an action for annulment of SAFE is currently pending before the CJEU in Luxembourg, and the European Union's plan for a future loan to Ukraine with the use of Russian assets as collateral violates bi- or multilateral international treaties. This is why many European Union Member States, including Belgium, as well as third countries such as the US, Japan and China oppose this illegal plan. Totalitarianism is disturbing through volunteerism beyond law and morality, tyranny by double measure. The weak obey, the privileged impose their irrational will. The European Union is violating its own founding treaty and the rules-based international order, and with that, folks, we cannot be proud, nor can we pretend to teach lessons to others.

Madam President, the protection of children, both online and offline, is built at home, in the family. The safety of children is not an algorithm setting. Their safety comes from simple and enduring values learned in the family. Responsibility, respect, caring for others, common sense, are values with which they leave the family. Parents are the real firewall against the dangers of the internet. Our role as legislator is limited to legal instruments to help parents. It is not up to us to impose the Brussels uniform on our parents. Platforms must be with simple, clear, visible settings. With a single click, parents must be able to block ads, restrict videos, disable chats with strangers, or receive real-time notifications when their child is accessing something dangerous. But that's all. The common digital age opens the door to excessive control, to an infrastructure that can monitor or restrict internet access, including for us adults, and make us suspects. This is another step towards mass surveillance, not freedom and security.

Mr President, before we think of an enlargement of the European Union, we need to solve the Union's own problems, which are gradually becoming a centralized, Soviet-style, unenviable one. Corruption has invaded the Union, freedom of opinion and choice has become the subject of a fractured relationship with the United States of America, as it is no longer a common value of the West. We are becoming a militaristic alliance that aims to compete with NATO and a space of poverty, economic inequality and technological obsolescence. Marginal themes of European Union bureaucracy, such as gender identity or climate change, shield the real problems of the Union. Here's one: European consumers are victims of daily disinformation and commercial aggression, but the European Union is throwing resources into the black hole of the European democratic shield to protect its politrucii and unelected bureaucratic apparatus. We no longer have an honourable business card, how can we afford to ask third countries that accept the idea of someday joining the European Union to do their homework on the values of freedom, on the values of honesty on the values of stability? I say we clean our own yard first, before we prepare to receive other co-habitants.

Mr President, the artificial intelligence industry is dominated by the tech giants in the US and China. A battle with such giants, strongly supported by these two states, is uneven. Dependence on technology giants creates strategic vulnerabilities in the current context of geopolitical tensions and cybersecurity risks. But the answers are not hyper-regulation, the obsession with climate change, censorship or the so-called European democratic shield. Our regulations must be based on indisputable values for the US, China or other non-EU countries, such as freedom of opinion, consumer protection, freedom of competition, antitrust rules, the protection of minors, the sanctioning of truly illegal content. Otherwise, EU regulations such as Digital Services Act, will be rejected by the recipients. If Europe becomes a civilization again, abandoning the machine avatar and automatically bureaucratic, the competitiveness of EU businesses, digital independence and sovereignty will come naturally, without the need for sanctions and processes that are always expensive, time-consuming and unnecessary.

Madam President, Romania is facing harsh fiscal measures, which put additional pressure on low- and middle-income families. The government has increased VAT, including on basic food, water and heat. Health becomes a luxury. The state has come to take a part of the health insurance pensions. We are talking here about a single European market, but about integration and about shared prosperity, less so. In Romania, the reality is quite different. The bill for daily living becomes a burden for the common man. The impact is not only social, but also economic. Small and medium-sized enterprises, suffocated by taxation, are losing their competitiveness. Small Romanian businesses fight with their hands tied, while competitors have infrastructure, support and open markets. The single market cannot be complete as long as economies in the East, like Romania, lag behind. We need measures that reduce disparities, not deepen poverty, as is the case with the draft multiannual budget. For this market to be truly functional and fair, strategic investments for convergence and easier access to finance for small and medium-sized enterprises are needed.

Madam President, Mrs von der Leyen, please, I ask you here and now to resign, not just because two other motions of censure await you, but above all because you are no longer credible for your dignity as president. Uncontested official surveys show that 60% of European citizens want to resign because of the disastrous trade deal with the US, and 91% of citizens want full transparency in spending public money that you systematically refuse. Parliament has taken the Council to court, demanding the annulment of an arms financing programme for Member States for illegally bypassing this Parliament. The lie with the diversion of your plane's route to Plovdiv shows you the inadequacy and logical failure. The Trump administration, the governments of China and India and even the Mercosur states refuse diplomatic contacts with you. Your presence at the helm of the Commission is debilitating the Union, bankrupting the Member States, eroding our democracy and impoverishing us. Do us a favor. Get out of here!

Mr President, the report on safety in e-commerce and imports from non-Community businesses, which I negotiated in IMCO, as ECR shadow rapporteur, proposes concrete measures to combat unfair competition and the risks associated with unsafe products. Of the 4.6 billion low-value parcels that entered the European Union last year, 91% came from non-EU businesses, and 85% of these products, which came from Asia, did not comply with European safety standards. We need an honest playing field for both European and non-European producers by strengthening customs controls, empowering online platforms and introducing severe sanctions for unsafe products. With this file we oblige sellers to provide clear information about the origin of products and the safety standards respected, more efficient customs controls and measures to prevent tax evasion. It is proposed that e-commerce platforms be considered presumed importers with an obligation to ensure compliance of the products sold, including by collecting customs duties and VAT. I encourage you to support this report as it has been negotiated, because they are measures aimed at protecting European consumers and establishing a level playing field for our producers.

Madam President, ladies and gentlemen, the motion of censure is a constitutional instrument designed to strengthen democracy. It's not a problem, it's a chance for a solution. Today's motion speaks of grave acts and crucial principles being violated. The lack of transparency and the violation of the authority of justice are evidenced by the decision of the Court of Justice of the European Union in the case of Pfizer Gate, a decision which the European Commission chose not to execute. Recent reports from the European Court of Auditors speak about the inefficiency of spending public money from the Recovery and Resilience Facility. Bypassing the debate and decision in the European Parliament is why Parliament took the decision to sue the Commission at the CJEU, which is unique in history. Over the past six years, the Commission has abusively taken over powers from Member States, violated the separation of powers and bypassed the European Parliament in major decisions. The undemocratic concentration of the decision in the hands of the President of the European Commission is contrary to the principle of balance and distribution of power. The decision-making process has become opaque and discretionary and today raises fears of abuse and corruption. The cost of obsessing over the European Union's bureaucracy, such as climate change, has been huge. Economically, bankruptcies of ordinary people and entrepreneurs have increased and risks of sovereign bankruptcy of the Member States of the European Union have arisen. The fragmentation of the single market and the double standard have deepened the gap between the regions of the European Union. Example: the little money from the NRRP that Romania has managed to attract goes to imports, and not to Romania’s sustainable development. The out-of-control migration has set off social bombs. The burden of taking in migrants shifts to less developed countries. What is happening now on the German border with Poland is a scandal, but it is soon becoming commonplace. While poverty and educational backsliding have become dangerous, some of the decision-makers and their trading partners have lost their integrity, if ever. The fear industry, folks, is one of the world's most profitable businesses. That's why fear spread faster than Covid. While most of us were suffering, we were suffering, others were increasing their wealth. It is not crises that destroy the world, but the greed of those who monetize them. Today's motion, folks, invites the European people to reflect. I come from a country with 45 years of experience of totalitarianism. I assure you that no citizen, none of the states once in the sphere of influence of the U.S.S.R. wants to relive those times. We reject the Soviet model and, at the same time, the Chinese or Russian model of today. Despite all obstacles, the voice of the people was heard. Today we are in the home of 450 million EU citizens. They asked us to open the windows and air it out. They want answers today, as Churchill said, this is the end of a beginning.

Mr President, digitalisation has promised progress and innovation, but it can bring dependency and captivity. In addition, at the current pace of regulation, we risk replacing private corporate domination. Big Tech with an institutional one. Whoever controls the digital holds the truth, decides for us and against us what is politically correct truth or forbidden truth and what is disinformation or fake news. Decide whether it infects today's ubiquitous Internet with algorithms and artificial intelligence capable of camouflaging reality and simulating wisdom. The central bank’s digital currency makes the holder programmable, traceable, limited in motion or locked based on behaviour. Freedom and property become illusions. The world is becoming a digital panopticum, a digital prison. We've already seen banking systems fall, payment networks cut off. It's time for a pause for reflection! We cannot let the world turn into a library of Babel, where knowledge becomes impossible as in the prophecy of Jorge Luis Borges.

Madam President, the internet has become dangerous because it misinforms socio-psychologically, targeting children who do not yet have fully formed discernment. Especially under the impact of artificial intelligence, social networks and digital platforms cause deformation of children's normal behavior. Until the age of 16, the child can not marry, can not work legally, nor validly sign legal acts. It should not be able to decide to change sex before this age, and above all, it should be protected from pedophiles. The report misses these two main threats to children's innocence: Gender-change manipulation and the subliminal suggestion that pedophilia is a sexual practice and not a horrible crime. The European Union and the Member States should pay more attention to these criminal currents, which are forms of sexual abuse in themselves, and not waste money and resources on gender ideology.