Speeches

The President received from the Council her positions at first reading on the following three files: – the scope of the rules applicable to benchmarks, the use in the Union of benchmarks provided by an administrator located in a third country and certain disclosure requirements; – Instrument for the Development and Growth of Border Regions in the EU – BRIDGEforEU; – labour market statistics on enterprises. The Chairperson also received the reasons for their adoption and the Commission's positions and opinions. The full titles will be published in today's Minutes. The three-month deadline for Parliament to adopt these positions therefore starts tomorrow, 4 April 2025.

This agenda item was closed. The next meeting will take place tomorrow, Thursday 3 April 2025 at 9 a.m. The agenda has been published. It is available on the European Parliament’s website.

The next item is the debate on six motions for resolutions on the imminent risk of increased repression by the Lukashenko regime in Belarus and threats from the Investigative Committee [2025/2629(RSP)].

The next item is the debate on six motions for resolutions on the wave of executions in Iran and the confirmation of the death sentences of activists Behrouz Ehsani and Mehdi Hassani (2025/2628(RSP)).

The next item is the debate on eight motions for resolutions on the persecution of journalists in Cameroon, including the cases of Amadou Vamoulké, Kingsley Fomunyuy Njoka, Mancho Bibixy, Thomas Awah Junior and Tsi Conrad (2025/2627(RSP)). I give the floor to Tomáš Zdechovský, author, for two minutes.

The next item is the debate on the Commission statement entitled ‘A threat to freedom of expression in Algeria: the sentencing of French writer Boualem Sansal to five years in prison’ (2025/2655(RSP)). I would like to draw your attention to the fact that, following the Commission statement, there will be only one round of speakers from the political groups. There is therefore no on-demand intervention procedure and no blue card will be accepted for this debate.

I would like to inform you that the non-attached Members have communicated to the President decisions on changes to appointments in delegations. These decisions will be recorded in the minutes of today's sitting and will take effect on the date of this announcement.

The next item is the Commission statement entitled ‘Union of competences: increasing and improving opportunities for study, training or work in the EU and bringing our brains back” (2025/2563(RSP)). We are waiting for Commissioner Roxana Mînzatu to arrive. We have it for a few seconds, and I will ask him to go immediately to the gallery for his statement. Madam Vice-President, welcome, and I give you the floor immediately.

Mr President, first of all, as a Reunionese, I would like to thank all the political groups for this debate, which expresses the European Parliament’s solidarity with the people of Reunion, who have been affected by the immense damage caused by Hurricane Garance. My thoughts go above all, tonight, to the victims, to the bereaved families as well as to those who have lost everything. From this rostrum, I want to tell them that we stand with them and that all the European Union's means of solidarity are immediately available, as you said, Commissioner. I would like to welcome the decision of the President of the Regional Council of Reunion, Huguette Bello, to activate the Restore fund, which I had the honour of defending here, before this Parliament, as rapporteur, and which will make it possible to mobilise immediately EUR 100 million: €100 million to help families who have lost their homes, repair destroyed roads and repair damaged infrastructure. I also want to welcome the changes we have made to the EAFRD, which will make it possible to help farmers immediately by allocating EUR 40 000 per farm affected. To conclude, Mr President, I want to say that these natural disasters remind us of our duty to continue to act against global warming, and that we must place particularly fragile islands at the heart of the policy of adapting to global warming. I would like to conclude by saying to the people of Réunion that I salute their courage and resilience. They are standing up, and that is how they will be able to get up.

The next item is the report by Mrs Van Brug on the European Central Bank Annual Report 2024 (A10-0003/2025) (2024/2054(INI)). I am pleased to welcome Christine Lagarde, President of the European Central Bank. Madam President, welcome. To open this discussion, I will give the floor to Mrme rapporteur Anouk Van Brug.

I thank all colleagues for the great dignity of this discussion and the very strong emotional burden that says how much we stand in solidarity with all the Swedish people.

The next item is Parliament's statement on the situation in Sweden following the recent mass killings in Örebro (2025/2561(RSP)). I would draw your attention, ladies and gentlemen, to the fact that there will be only one round of speakers from the political groups for this debate. There is therefore no on-demand intervention procedure and no blue card will be accepted.