Speeches

Ladies and gentlemen, I would like to inform you – for the sake of order – that our Rules of Procedure contain a very clear rule. The clear rule is that no member of this House uses and exhibits banners within this House and the Plenary. Up to the hour, this rule was also applied to garments. Now that this is the second time that such a procedure has taken place, I will raise this issue at the next Bureau meeting, with a view to clarifying it once and for all, in order to elaborate on this point of order in more detail. Thank you very much for your understanding.

The next item on the agenda is the debate on the Council and Commission statements on the outcome of the Western Balkans Summit (2021/2930(RSP)). On this item on the agenda, I would also like to welcome the Council representative, Foreign Minister Anže Logar, and Commissioner McGuinness - welcome to our debate.

I will start by announcing the results of yesterday's second round of voting. (The President announced the results of the vote.) Before we start the debates and before today's first voting session, in which we will vote on the LIBE decision, we will start interinstitutional negotiations on: Proposal for a Regulation amending Regulation (EU) 2016/794 as regards Europol’s cooperation with private parties, Europol’s processing of personal data in support of criminal investigations and Europol’s role in research and innovation and the proposal for a regulation amending Regulation (EU) 2018/1862 on the establishment, operation and use of the Schengen Information System (SIS) in the field of police cooperation and judicial cooperation in criminal matters as regards the entry of alerts by Europol; only one speaker at a time can support the Committee's decision to enter into negotiations and one speaker can speak against it.

We now come to today's second round of voting. The dossiers on which we are voting can be found on the agenda. The voting session will be open from 8 p.m. to 9.15 p.m. I ask you to participate fully. The voting procedure is the same as in the previous voting rounds. All votes are roll call votes. I declare the second voting session open. You can vote until 9.15 p.m. The results of the second voting session will be announced tomorrow at 8.30 a.m. The debates will resume at 20.30 with the debate on the Council and Commission statements on the forcible repression of migrants at the EU's external border (2021/2932(RSP)). (The meeting adjourned at 20.01)

I thank you for this declaration and hope for a swift start to the negotiations and for a positive outcome to ensure the future of Europe. (The President announced the results of the other votes.)

Before we continue the debate, I would ask you to be patient for a moment. (The President announced the results of the vote.) Following this vote on the general budget of the European Union for the financial year 2022 – all sections (2021/0227(BUD)), I now invite the Slovenian Presidency of the Council to make a first statement in accordance with Article 314(4)(c) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union.

The next item on the agenda is the debate on the Council and Commission statements on the approval of global tax agreements at the G20 summit in Rome (30-31 October) (2021/2936(RSP)).

Mr President, Commissioner, ladies and gentlemen! Money laundering creates inequality, distorts competition, weakens the single market, the economy, the financial system and us together as the European Union. Money laundering is criminal. The revelations of Pandora papers They are the latest tip of the iceberg of the many worrisome, even hair-raising, tax and money laundering scandals. Pandora's open box once again impressively shows that the current measures are toothless, not enough, and sometimes do nothing. At the same time, there are infringement proceedings against 17 Member States for failure to transpose the Anti-Money Laundering Directive. We must therefore evaluate the existing regulations as to whether they are suitable at all. And we must quickly tackle the treatment of the new proposed package. Let's finally make nails with our heads and make sure that money laundering is no longer part of the future.

Mr President, Madam President of the Commission, ladies and gentlemen! I'm horrified, and because I'm horrified, I'm worried. I am concerned about your irresponsibility. And I am concerned that you are throwing the gauntlet at the European Union and the European idea. Look into this room. This space represents the citizens of Europe: Different people, different religions, different nations, different opinions. And yet today, 80-90% of all speakers have joined forces because we are united by common law, common values, liberal democracy, the independence of the judiciary and the independence of the media. And you have stood outside this common business basis of cooperation in Europe. It is therefore about the future of the European Union. It is about the future of Poland. We are on Poland's side. We are on the side of the citizens. We ensure that they are protected from arbitrariness, abuse and authoritarian traits. And 64% of Polish citizens say that Poland is on the wrong track. 88% want to stay in the European Union. (The President withdrew the floor from the speaker.)

Ladies and gentlemen, the minutes of 7 October will be submitted to Parliament for approval at the beginning of the next sitting. If there are no objections, I will forward the resolutions adopted at these meetings to the persons and bodies referred to in these resolutions. I declare the session of the European Parliament adjourned.

Mr Vice-President, Commissioner, ladies and gentlemen! Flight and migration remain high on our agenda for the coming years, not despite Corona and climate change, but above all because of Corona, because of climate change, because of increasing violence, because of the increased readiness for conflict on our earth. As the European Union, we are still struggling for a new, genuine common asylum and migration plan. That's a shame! And we still do not have a common foreign, security, defence and development policy. Today, however, we can look forward to a small step of improvement. The former European Support Office will become a fully-fledged Agency for Asylum. It provides legal, operational and practical support to all Member States, from training for faster and better asylum procedures to cooperation on resettlement, yes, and also on joint control and monitoring. But there is still a lot to do. We must not lose sight of the whole and the adherence to our values. There can and must be no either-or in the European refugee debate. Of course, we need help on the ground, a secure external border, but above all we must ensure the right to asylum for those fleeing persecution, terror and violence. The Asylum Agency is an important building block. Let us take advantage of this opportunity to finally eliminate the other construction sites and contribute to solutions. Europe finally needs a new common, determined asylum and migration policy, which is unwavering and based on our common European values and full compliance with international and European law.

Madam, you will understand that, as the Vice-President of the European Parliament currently presiding, I very clearly state that the Bureau has reviewed the Rules of Procedure, applied them and has not withdrawn the right to speak, but that Mr Urbán Crespo, as he entered this room today, has also entered the lectern. But it is part of a community of law, as we are, that when we have doubts, we review so that every colleague is equal before the Rules of Procedure. Nothing was forbidden to anyone, but the Rules of Procedure were examined. That is what I am saying here, and this test should not be reinterpreted, but respected.

Before we proceed with the debate, I will open today's first voting session. The dossiers on which we are voting can be found on the agenda. The voting session will be open from 9.45 a.m. to 11 a.m. The voting procedure is the same as in the previous voting rounds, which you are all well aware of. All votes shall be by roll call. I declare the voting session open and ask all colleagues to vote by 11 a.m. at the latest. The results of the first voting session will be announced at 1 p.m.

My fellow Members, I would like to inform you briefly about why there was a somewhat louder debate on the page here and I did not ignore Mr Urbán Crespo when he spoke, but asked him to clarify a question. They know that all Members, male and female, of course, can always exercise their right to speak if they abide by the Rules of Procedure. And there was a debate here in the Bureau about whether the clothing complies with the ban on wearing and displaying banners. Unfortunately, I had to withdraw the right to speak for today. In our Rules of Procedure, it is clear that the rules of conduct are: Members shall not and shall not disturb the order in the Chamber and shall refrain from inappropriate behaviour. They do not issue banners, this applies to held banners as well as to garments. Secondly, I was remotely accused of strange behaviour for this business-regular inspection with hand signals here, so I wanted to clarify this. Mr Urbán Crespo considered that his garment had nothing to do with the speech and could not be equated with a banner. I ask him to respect the Rules of Procedure when choosing clothes and give him the floor. I am of the opinion that there is an urgent need to review the Rules of Procedure. We have them not only to write them down and not to comply with them, but we have them to have a basis for ensuring that the procedure in the House runs smoothly and for treating all our colleagues in this House equally. These questions have been clarified by the services and I would ask Mr Urbán Crespo to speak after this clarification.

Mr Urbán Crespo, I would very much ask you to abide by the Rules of Procedure. If you adhere to the Rules of Procedure, you can of course also exercise your right to speak.

The next item on the agenda is the debate on the report by Elena Yoncheva, on behalf of the Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs, on the proposal for a regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council on the European Union Agency for Asylum and repealing Regulation (EU) No 439/2010 [COM(2016)0271 - C8-0174/2016- 2016/0131(COD)] (A9-0392/2021). I remind Members that all debates at this part-session do not involve spontaneous interventions and do not accept blue cards. In addition, as in the previous part-sessions, connections from the European Parliament's liaison offices in the Member States are foreseen.

The meeting closed today at 9.45 p.m., not now, with the end of the second voting session and resumed tomorrow, 7 October, at 9 a.m. with the announcement of the results of today's voting session. The agenda has been published and is available on the European Parliament's website. I wish you all a nice evening.

Minister, thank you very much. I look forward and, if I may make a request to conclude, I would very much ask you to share the unanimous opinion in this debate with the relevant Council working group. Cross-border cooperation and its improvement remain on our agenda and we must do everything we can to improve it. I would therefore ask you to share this basic sentiment, which has been expressed in all the interventions, with the Working Group and to find a way to resolve the issues raised, including with a new proposal that addresses the concerns of the legal services. The debate is closed.

Minister, you have the last word, but I believe that you have very clearly received the unanimous and unanimous call from across political groups, Member States, that we expect the blockade to be lifted and that we can enter into constructive talks in the interest of the border regions. We look forward to your summary statement.

I can respond to your intervention by saying that he has just arrived in Strasbourg and that I was able to welcome him and welcome him to our house.

The next item on the agenda is the debate on the oral question to the Council by Younous Omarjee, on behalf of the Committee on Regional Development, on the Council's lack of will to move forward with the ECBM (O-000061/2021) (B9-0037/2021).