What Frédérique spoke about.

24

Apr

2024

Speeches FR

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Packaging and packaging waste (A9-0319/2023 - Frédérique Ries) (vote)

Madam President, with this legislation on packaging and packaging waste, we are finally putting this huge European sector on the road to circularity, focusing on recycling and re-use. I am particularly proud, among all the elements that we managed to put on board this regulation, that Parliament, together, we managed to impose the ban on PFAS in food packaging. It is a world first that we are making here for these eternal chemicals, which are particularly polluting, harmful to health and the environment. It is also a victory for European consumers. A European law must be balanced. That is why it was essential that our environmental ambitions meet the economic reality. This is also done with a trilogue agreement, which guarantees a horizontal derogation for all small enterprises with fewer than 10 employees. One technical point remains to be clarified – it will be Commissioner Sinkevičius who will deal with it in a moment. I would like to conclude, Madam President, if I may, because this is also my last speech in this Chamber, where I have been sitting for 25 years now. dear parents, I promise, no tears, 20 seconds. I learned a lot from you. What brings us together, beyond our differences, our differences of colour, is the defence of freedom, tolerance, solidarity, values that are shaken up in today’s world, this globalised world, this multipolar world. Faced with the Cassandra that announces the worst, I want to continue to believe in the best, the best that together we have continuously invented from the beginning, but always, always and again during the COVID crisis. While now we continue to forge our solidarity for our Ukrainian allies, then with Gramsci – yes, a liberal quotes a communist – these are things that happen – with Gramsci I continue, after 25 years and more than ever, to believe in the optimism of freedom, to believe in the optimism of will. And I give the floor to the Commissioner.

24

Apr

2024

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Iran’s unprecedented attack against Israel, the need for de-escalation and an EU response (debate)

Mr President, there is therefore this rhetoric that abstains and percolates, which is well understood here. On the night of April 13, for the first time, Tehran attacked Israel directly on its soil, without going through intermediaries, Hezbollah, Hamas, the Houthis. Six months after the fundamental trauma of 7 October, this night of horror would be a justified response and would somehow settle the dispute between Israel and the Islamic Republic, the very essence of which is its fundamental obsession with destroying the Jewish state; this regime at war with women, which oppresses, hangs opponents, journalists, demonstrators, homosexuals and minorities; this regime is a few months away, perhaps, from nuclear weapons. No, the case is not closed and the demands of our Parliament are clear: put the Revolutionary Guards on the European list of terrorist organisations, now impose real sanctions against all the individuals and entities concerned, demand the essential release of all our hostages, and finally have a real European policy of common admission of Iranians, which will perhaps prevent 14 officials and bassidjis from walking around Europe with impunity, as was the case last year in Brussels.

10

Apr

2024

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Union code relating to medicinal products for human use - Union procedures for the authorisation and supervision of medicinal products for human use and rules governing the European Medicines Agency (joint debate - Pharmaceutical package)

Madam President, Commissioner, eight months now of negotiations, some 100 meetings, burden-free procedures, to revisit this important pharmaceutical legislation. This is a veritable legislative marathon that needs to be summarised in one minute here. In the impossible, no one is bound, and our rapporteurs have already said the essentials. It is basically a matter of confronting the silent threat of antimicrobial resistance and endemic shortages of medicines, revitalising an ecosystem geared towards innovation and sustainability, and then bringing this European solidarity, the added value of our Union, to bear. This allows me to conclude this parliamentary term, as I started with Ms Kyriakides, on rare diseases: 70 000 patients in Belgium and 300 million Europeans are living with one of these neglected diseases and are calling for a European action plan. I have been relaying this to the Commissioner since the beginning of this mandate, without success. My question is simple: will she support the establishment of this plan, which we include in the regulation that will be voted on this evening? Will this European Action Plan for Rare Diseases be part of its legacy? I conclude with a remark to Mr Casarès, who is unfortunately no longer here. He kept talking about socialist legislation. I know that this is the campaign, but this legislation, it is oriented, it is centred, it must target patients and only patients. It is not a question here of affixing a colour to it.

18

Oct

2023

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The despicable terrorist attacks by Hamas against Israel, Israel’s right to defend itself in line with humanitarian and international law and the humanitarian situation in Gaza (debate)

Mr President, ‘Never again’, the promise made to the survivors of Auschwitz and Buchenwald, the ‘Never again’, also, of our founding fathers, who rebuilt hope on a field of ruins, that ‘Never again’ which shattered on Saturday 7 October at dawn, in a pogrom no doubt worse than the worst of the Holocaust, even if comparing the unspeakable to the unspeakable is meaningless – except, after all, that of naming and saying things. What has happened is a terrorist massacre perpetrated by dehumanised terrorists, who don’t care about the fate of the Palestinians and who are causing the tragic flare-up we are witnessing. There are more than 1 400 victims in Israel, Minister, no doubt 1 500, not 1 000, as you said. The difference is "just" 500 lives. Words have meaning, blurring and silence kill: over there, here, in Arras and in Brussels. The Hamas attack is a wound to humanity. I call here Tahar Ben Jelloun: “Who today to rebuild hope?” Hope, Hatikvah.

3

Oct

2023

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Medicine shortages and strategic healthcare autonomy in the EU (debate)

Mr President, Commissioner, a total of 3 000 medicines missed the call in Belgium last year, from the most mundane molecules, paracetamol, to those that save lives. We're approaching the health emergency here. Shortages are endemic and the trend is alarming in three out of four Member States. The communication you have just announced, Commissioner, on measures against shortages is obviously going in the right direction, particularly for group purchases. HERA must play its part, you know our position, we keep repeating it. But we must go further, of course also with a real industrial strategy. Europe is heavily dependent on active substances from Asia and one in two has fewer than five manufacturers worldwide. An industrial policy, therefore, which is necessary, is what you asked for last May and at the initiative of Belgium 21 Member States by calling for a European act for critical medicines. A genuine mechanism of solidarity between Member States as well. What I have just said here in a minute, almost word for word, we are very many here to repeat it for five years, for six years. So now, Commissioner, it is urgent to move from incantation to action.

12

Sep

2023

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Iran: one year after the murder of Jina Mahsa Amini (debate)

Mr President, Mr High Representative, it was on 16 September last year that Mahsa Amini was killed by the morality police. It was just a year ago. One year also that the Iranian women do not disarm; a year that, joined by young people, by students, by intellectuals, by traders, they challenge every day the regime of the mullahs of Tehran. A regime that imprisons, tortures, executes; a regime that swears the extermination of Israel, that finances the abuses of Hezbollah, a regime that abducts men and women and coines their freedom – this odious hostage diplomacy. Another year as Tehran gets even stiffer in the run-up to this anniversary: threats on relatives, cameras around the tomb of Mahsa Amini, new "chastity law" even more rigid. Terror is installed. So many reasons for us to continue to stand with these women, these Iranians. I also propose that they be awarded the 2023 Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought. Women, life, freedom. Because our imperative duty is to remain their voice, because our imperative duty is to remain their hope. (speaks in a non-official language)

19

Apr

2023

Speeches FR

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Universal decriminalization of homosexuality, in light of recent developments in Uganda (debate)

Mr President, Minister, Commissioner, ‘there is no place for homosexuals in this country’. These words shock us deeply. They are, however, from Ugandan Minister Musa Ecweru, who pronounced them last month in the Kampala Parliament, after the almost unanimous adoption of an anti-LGBT+ law. Fourteen years minimum prison, even the death penalty outright, for same-sex relationships. A duty of denunciation for all in the country, a perfect manual of discrimination and incitement to hatred, in the name of ‘morality, children, the fight against cultural colonialism’. The European Union must use all levers to prevent the enactment of this law, including sanctions against responsible political and religious leaders, and ensure the freedom of sexual rights in Uganda and beyond, all over the world. Commissioner, eleven countries around the world still sentence homosexuals to death. That's 11 countries too many. I would like to conclude by echoing and paraphrasing what my colleague Pierre Karleskind said: “Everyone in the world has the right to be. Everyone has the right to love. Everyone has the right to be loved, as they feel. This is not negotiable.” (Applause)

19

Apr

2023

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Children forcibly deported from Ukraine and the ICC arrest warrant for Vladimir Putin (debate)

Mr President, Commissioner, ‘I am so happy, so happy to be back home’. These are the first words to his mother from Bogdan, back in Kiev after six months of deportation. Because the scenario is almost always the same: On the eve of the holiday, young Ukrainians are sent "to settlement" in Crimea, and often they never return. The holiday camp has simply become a rehabilitation camp. Sixteen thousand children – officially – still in Russia or in the annexed territories, practically kidnapped by Moscow, some of them already officially adopted. The Commissioner for Children’s Rights – we dream of hearing that title – hastened to amend Russian law to that effect. It is a war crime, which justifies the arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court against Vladimir Putin and Maria Lvova-Belova. A first against a member of the UN Security Council. So, ridiculous, Mrs. Daly? I don't think so, no. Insufficient, certainly. But essential and necessary. These children are the spoils of Vladimir Putin's dirty war. It is our imperative duty as Europeans to find them and bring them home.

16

Mar

2023

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European Citizens’ Initiative "Save bees and farmers! Towards a bee-friendly agriculture for a healthy environment" (debate)

Madam President, Commissioner, when more than one million Europeans, citizens of Europe, ask us to save bees and farmers, we have to hear them. They actually ask us three things to change the model. The end of synthetic pesticides by 2035. In all honesty, I don't know if we'll make it. On the other hand, reducing our dependence on pesticides is a matter of course. And our previous resolutions, that of 2019 on pollinators, already demanded it. A Commission proposal is on the table to halve chemical pesticides by 2030. Parliament must stop its flibust and seize the subject. Second request: support farmers. Obviously, and more than ever, financially, but also precisely by a massive development of alternatives to chemical pesticides. Third, essential request: restoring pollinator populations. This is essential. And here, pesticides do not explain everything – land use change, loss of habitats, intensive agriculture, pollution, pests, climate change, etc. The fight to save our bees is global. It is therefore a change of course that the petitioners are asking us to do.

15

Mar

2023

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Cambodia: the case of opposition leader Kem Sokha

Mr President, releasing Kem Sokha, the leader of the Cambodian opposition, is the message that our Parliament is hammering out this evening. He was sentenced to 27 years in prison on March 3 in a parody of justice, and he is the latest political prisoner in a regime that is unable, more than ever, to tolerate any dissenting voice. Whether it is political, like that of Kem Sokha, dozens of opponents and activists that the government harasses and judges en masse, whether it is media, like that of VOD, , one of the last independent media in the country that was muzzled last month. While Pnom Penh must free Kem Sokha, Pnom Penh must guarantee his participation in free, fair and transparent elections in July. Pnom Penh must rehabilitate his Cambodian National Rescue Party. Commissioner, the European Union must support the democratic aspirations of Cambodians. We have the means. Let us punish those who censor democracy and use all means in our toolbox to free Kem Sokha.

17

Jan

2023

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EU response to the protests and executions in Iran (debate)

Madam President, Commissioner, in fact, and also in French: women, life, freedom. And it was here in Strasbourg yesterday that the cry of the women of Sanandaj, Zahedan and Tehran resonated. About 15,000 people gathered from all over Europe for women, for Iran and against the Pasdaran, the guardians of the revolution who are nothing but the armed arm of repression. Mohammad Karami, Seyed Hosseini and Ali Akbari were hanged this week because behind these women, a whole people is rising up and shuddering the regime. The revolution, as you said, Commissioner, is a step in the right direction and demands from us, now more than ever, unwavering solidarity on sanctions first and foremost, targeted at the highest level: the Supreme Leader, the President, the guardians of the revolution, whom we must place on the terrorist organization. And then there are our hostages, 25 Europeans, including the Belgian Olivier Vandecasteele, imprisoned for no reason and sentenced in a sham justice. I conclude. Madam President. The extreme difficulty here is to be at the same time at the rendezvous of women and history and the one that our hostages are staring at us. In a truly political Europe, it is united that countries must negotiate the weight of all, together, to obtain their liberation.

16

Jan

2023

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Shipments of waste (debate)

Mr President, Commissioner, I would like to start by thanking our rapporteur, Mrs Weiss, for this spirit of openness, this spirit of compromise, which has made it possible to achieve a collective result of which we can be proud. With this far-reaching reform of the European waste shipment rules, we have set our sights on the ambition: better protect the environment and health, avoid that some countries remain the trash can of the world. And the challenge is great: in 2020, our exports of waste to third countries exceeded 32 million tonnes. This is hardly imaginable. We have added several stones to the legislative text proposed to us by the Commission in November 2021, starting with what is one of my main political battles: the elimination of plastic pollution on the planet. The end of the export of plastic waste to third countries will be a reality three years after the entry into force of this Regulation, four years for OECD countries. The fight against plastic pollution, which takes between a hundred and a thousand years to degrade and kills our oceans, is global: It must become total. There are, of course, other advances in our text: I am thinking of the outright ban on the export of hazardous waste to third countries (China, India, some countries on the African continent) or of the urgent request made to the Commission for increased monitoring of waste exported to OECD countries (the United States, Japan, Israel, Turkey, in particular). I conclude with the paradigm shift that is taking place – and for the better – in the European Union. Faced with China’s closure of its recycling market two years ago now, which has led to a real upheaval in the global market, as well as the depletion of natural resources, Europe has understood that it must take its destiny into its own hands and protect its internal market. As far as waste is concerned, this means tightening the conditions for exports – which we do – and making better use of them at home, so that this waste becomes a usable and sustainable resource. This will also benefit many sectors of industry.

13

Dec

2022

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Prospects for the two-State solution for Israel and Palestine (debate)

Mr President, I therefore have a minute to tell you why I consider this text unsatisfactory. Thirteen recitals and twenty-six paragraphs, often unbalanced, which basically list grievances but offer nothing. We have to wait five pages to finally talk about the future and solutions – this is the title of our resolution. Two essential paragraphs, however, on peace from below, on the importance of civil society and, above all, on rebuilding confidence through the economy and energy. This was the creed of Shimon Peres, and it is also the foundation of the European Union, the real ferment of a two-state solution. Otherwise, the real subjects are pushed under the carpet: the failure of the government of national unity in Israel, these negotiations at this very moment with the religious extreme right, there, with unbearable and unacceptable claims, and, above all, these precautions in our text with regard to Hamas, this timidity, the apology for violence, which constitutes its true DNA, or the suppression of the very notions of anti-Semitism and the export of incitement to hatred, or this kind of flat that was put to the hope aroused by the Abraham Accords. I have to stop here, but for all these reasons, I will not vote on this text as it stands.

22

Nov

2022

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EU response to the increasing crackdown on protests in Iran (debate)

Madam President, I would like to talk to you about Kian Pirfalak tonight. Kian was nine years old, a little boy who built pile cars, wooden boats, who dreamed of becoming an engineer when he grew up one day. But here it is, Kian will never be big. He was shot dead last week by police on his way back from school with his parents by car. And his father is still seriously injured. Kian is the youngest of 60 children - 60 children! – who have already been the victims of the terrible repression in Iran. Because Iran, today, is this: it means firing live ammunition at demonstrators, women and children. It is rape, it is torture and it is also sending its armour to suppress the revolt in Kurdistan. Today, Iran is a horror. And the honour for Europe would be to stop procrastinating, to stop shaking the stick and the carrot. Sanctions on the one hand, too, but this trade for example, which is constantly increasing, we owe it to all these women with unheard-of courage. Because what is happening right now in the land of the mullahs is not a revolt, to paraphrase the Duke of La Rochefoucauld, what is happening in Iran is a revolution. And I want to conclude with the favourite expression of little Kian, in the name of the ‘god of rainbows’, may this magnificent country, which has never ceased to dream of freedom, regain the scent of its freedoms.

21

Nov

2022

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Prevention, management and better care of diabetes in the EU on the occasion of World Diabetes Day (debate)

Madam President, diabetes is one of the greatest health challenges of our time. These were the words you said when you opened your remarks, Commissioner. And I would add to that: one of the most minimised challenges. One in ten Europeans – as has been said – live with diabetes and almost half of them are unable to control it. Diabetes is a multiplier of a range of other diseases, including but not limited to heart disease. Yet one in three diabetics in Europe does not know. Ten years after our Parliament’s first resolution on the subject, at the time we were talking about an ‘epidemic’, today’s resolution is a real wake-up call. The Commission published an initiative on non-communicable diseases in June. Among the paths studied, but left to the good will of the Member States, I am looking for the real concrete objectives for diabetes. What are these objectives? Where are the objectives of risk reduction – and yet, you mentioned the prevention of type 2 diabetes –, systematic diagnosis, blood sugar control, combating prejudices that are outdated and also against a certain stigma? It is therefore now imperative for us to set these ambitious targets in order to trigger a new wave of national plans and support patients, often left behind between two annual consultations, at best sometimes, of course also speed up research and the arrival of innovations. It has been said and repeated, particularly during the pandemic, that the Treaty is not very generous in terms of a health Europe. But even in this narrow reading, Europe still has an added value here. Real. It is up to us to impose it.

19

Oct

2022

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Political situation in Tunisia (debate)

Madam President, Commissioner, thousands of Tunisians were on the streets again this weekend to denounce poverty, to denounce unemployment, to denounce the incessant shortages they are experiencing on a daily basis, which, admittedly, were called upon and united by the opposition, by Ennahdha, of course, the Islamist party in power after the spring of Tunis. However, Tunisians have been facing a double penalty for too long months. The fight against corruption, the cardinal promise of candidate Saïed, remains a dead letter – so far, in any case – and cannot justify this stiffening of powers in the hands of the only president until the dissolution, last March, of the Tunisian Parliament. There is no governance without parliament and without checks and balances, without independent justice, without a free press. I would like to believe – I heard the first speaker talk about Dante – I would like to believe in the President’s good intentions, but his path is not the right one. Autocracy is never the right path. The European Union must of course maintain the essential dialogue, a vigilant dialogue, a demanding dialogue, with the Tunisian partner. No freeze, but no tacit support either, as there can be no question here of further increasing the burden on Tunisians. Tunisian democracy is fragile, we must help them rebuild it. "Side with the Tunisian people" were your first words, Commissioner, and they remain more relevant than ever.

19

Oct

2022

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Preparation of the European Council meeting of 20-21 October 2022 (debate)

Madam President, Commissioner, this is a crucial European Council starting tomorrow in Brussels. There is, of course, this escalation of Vladimir Putin's war of terror in Ukraine. But here I want to talk about this war on energy that it is waging at home, the prices of gas and electricity that are soaring, these families in Europe, these craftsmen, these butchers, these SMEs, these communities that are no longer able to do so, that are dying from it. This time, the proposals are on the table and I am thinking first of all of group purchases – the absolute obvious. Two points, however, Commissioner: 15%, really 15%? While we have succeeded in this massive purchase solidarity with vaccines? I do not compare one with the other, but it seems ridiculous. Above all, why postpone this measure until spring 2023? It was put on the table almost a year ago to the day, by Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez – 18 months is an eternity; in times of crisis, it is a mistake. The same applies to the new index adapted to the reality of our supply, i.e. 30% of liquefied natural gas. Why, here too, wait another six months? So, we want to reassure ourselves: for this winter, our tanks are full - 92%, said the President. But at what price? We do not have, we no longer have the luxury of time, Commissioner.

4

Oct

2022

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The death of Mahsa Amini and the repression of women's rights protesters in Iran (debate)

Mr President, (speaker uses slogan in non-official language) – Women, life, freedom’: These words have been echoing across Iran for 18 days now, since Mahsa ‘Zina’ Amini was beaten to death by Tehran’s morality police. She was young, she was Kurdish and, according to the law of the mullahs, she did not wear her headscarf quite correctly. It was not the first, nor will it be the last. Nearly 100 dead and thousands arrested in 18 days: These Iranian women are giving the world a lesson in incredible courage, and they are no longer alone, they are joined by men, young people, students, athletes. It is the star striker of the national football team, Sardar Azmoun, an icon, who today challenges the authorities on behalf of women. An anger that mobilizes everywhere in Iran and around the world. So what are we doing, Mr Borrell? Seven countries are calling for additional, targeted, personal, smart sanctions. I am delighted to hear you support this request because our imperative duty is to respond, and now our duty, with our liberties, is to say his name: Mahsa Amini.

13

Sep

2022

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EU response to the increase in energy prices in Europe (debate)

Madam President, Commissioner, Minister, ladies and gentlemen, Europeans, our businesses and our citizens are being hit hard by an unprecedented spike in energy prices. You said urgency, you hammered urgency, Minister. And of course, it is imperative to react. The suggestions made by the Commission last week go in the right direction, of course. It will be a question of seeing tomorrow the ambition of the concrete measures that will be set out by the President. Obviously, smoothing the peaks of demand, Mr Bek, of course. Yes also to the fixing of a ceiling price for producers of low-cost energy, nuclear energy and renewable energy. Yes, of course, also to a solidarity contribution paid by the oil and gas companies, which have been making huge profits for months now, billions of euros in profits with, it is obvious, a reallocation to small and medium-sized enterprises, to the most vulnerable households, to the self-employed. And then we expect the Commission to swiftly propose a sustainable solution, that of decoupling gas and electricity prices and prices. I conclude, Madam President, because the second immediate step will be to turn this crisis into an opportunity not to repeat the mistakes of the past in order to ensure that Europeans, consumers and businesses have the right energy at the right price.

7

Jul

2022

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Sustainable aviation fuels (ReFuelEU Aviation Initiative) (debate)

Mr President, the aviation sector accounts for 4% of global carbon emissions. Above all, it is rapid growth by 2050 – which clearly means that it must also be part of our goal of carbon neutrality. And that means lighter planes, that means better calculated amounts of onboard fuel, and that means mostly new energies. The excellent report by my colleague Søren Gade goes in that direction. Electricity, hydrogen, synthetic fuels: of course – but that will be for tomorrow. For biofuels, the technology is more advanced. Here, it is the volumes that we need to increase, and especially not by taking on board PFADs, this co-product of crude palm oil. The result is the same: deforestation, biodiversity destruction and a disastrous climate impact. We do not want it, citizens do not want it and the airline industry itself does not want it. Only one useful and effective vote for the future is possible this noon: support the Søren Gade report and amendments 112 and 134 to make the aviation fuels of tomorrow truly sustainable.

7

Jun

2022

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Binding annual greenhouse gas emission reductions by Member States (Effort Sharing Regulation) - Land use, land use change and forestry (LULUCF) - CO2 emission standards for cars and vans (joint debate – Fit for 55 (part 2))

Mr President, Madam President-in-Office of the Council – dear Chrysoula, what a pleasure! Commissioner, dear Frans, Europe therefore has this chance, this unique opportunity to become the first global player to take concrete action for a decarbonised economy in 2050. And this requires a clear vote tomorrow, an unambiguous vote for the end of combustion engines for new vehicles as early as 2035. Technologically, it's playable. We invest 61 billion euros each year in automotive development and research. It is from an economic and social point of view that there are certainly questions to ensure that every European household will have the opportunity to buy this electric car. Only 13% of new purchases last year, we are far from the account. It is therefore a question here of convincing, as a matter of priority, with a battery of targeted advantages, the purchase premiums, the incentives for the secondary market, the reduction on VAT, free parking, what do I know, we can ask the Norwegians, they have been able to do in this matter. The other nerve of war. Obviously, this is the issue of batteries. We get there on manufacturing. Remain the charging stations. In short, the challenge is daunting. So to conclude with Birgitte Nyborg, from Borgen, what are our options? I would say that there, the answer is easy. We alone have the choice of ambition. Except for betraying us, betraying our children and denying all our commitments.

23

Mar

2022

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Debriefing of the European Council meeting in Paris on 10 March 2022 - Preparation of the European Council meeting 24-25 March 2022 (debate)

Madam President, Commissioner, we owe immense respect to the Ukrainian people, to those men and women who, for 27 days, in the face of Russia's brutal aggression, have been fighting to defend their land, fighting to defend their homeland and also fighting to defend our fundamental values. So our message to the European Council is simple, finally: dignified welcome to the millions of refugees who are knocking on our door and guarantee the right to education for their children and the right to social assistance and dignified employment for their parents. Beyond the sanctions to be controlled or added against the regime of Vladimir Putin, the European Union must apply the same method, in substance, as the one that worked well for the management of the pandemic: I am referring to group purchasing, this good Spanish idea presented to the Council in October, if I remember correctly, and to which I have referred several times in this forum. Yes also to an agreement on the energy price cap in anticipation of next winter. This is the only way to help European households keep their heads above water. In Europe, since last January, the price of gas has not more or less than tripled. This is untenable. I conclude, Madam President: Europe must stand in solidarity both with Ukrainians, who pay the price for blood, and with all those European households that are now on the verge of precariousness.

17

Feb

2022

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The death penalty in Iran

Mr President, Iran executed 275 people last year, and here I quote a UN report. Don’t displease the left, it is therefore the highest execution rate in the world: an open death row. Among the victims, women, minors, ethnic and religious minorities, scapegoats, journalists and lawyers, guilty of doing their job, men, too, whose love makes the Islamic Republic tremble. The years follow one another and are similar to the land of the mullahs: Human rights are being flouted the most fundamental international treaties, such as the Convention on the Rights of the Child, freedom of expression is being trampled on, and President Ebrahim Raisi’s rise to power last July has only speeded things up. This Parliament denounces – I counted: 15 resolutions in 10 years, including six to defend our Sakharov Prize, Nasrin Sotoudeh, and Professor Ahmadreza Djalali of the Free University of Brussels. Enough speeches! Europe needs to raise its voice: sanctions, as has been said, which – as has also been said – can be doubted as to their effectiveness; support, again and again, for Iranian civil society. While we have little hope that our texts will bend Tehran – that is just an understatement – we will continue to push for this moratorium on executions and for the release of political prisoners.

16

Feb

2022

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EU-Russia relations, European security and Russia’s military threat against Ukraine (debate)

Madam President, Vladimir Putin is definitely blowing hot and cold. There was fear of an invasion for this morning, for today; the opposite seems to be the case: The Kremlin is now announcing the withdrawal of part of its troops. Caution. The future will tell us if there is really de-escalation. Meanwhile, Vladimir Putin has been master of clocks, agendas and tempo for weeks, while the Ukrainian economy has a knee to the ground. I only have one minute. The European Union must embrace its geopolitical ambitions beyond slogans: to stand firm on behalf of all, to tie up its package of sanctions and to move forward on this common defence. We also owe, of course and above all, this infallible solidarity to the Ukrainian people, who are paying dearly for their freedom. I remember, Mr High Representative, as if it were yesterday, President Viktor Yushchenko in our hemicycle in Strasbourg, an orange hemicycle from the bottom up. You chaired the session, you were President of the European Parliament at the time. This was in 2005. I will quote him: “The borders of Europe and freedom go as far as Odessa and Kiev.” I quote, it was eighteen years ago, and Europe is stammering, but how much longer? I conclude, Madam President. Make no mistake, it is our Union, our DNA, our values and our peace that are at stake here.

15

Feb

2022

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Strengthening Europe in the fight against cancer(debate)

Madam President, Commissioner, I agree with Peter Liese: For all of us, our words resonate this morning in memory of those who left too early, someone who is no longer here or someone who is fighting cancer on foot, and there are more and more of them. At issue, of course, is our ever-expanding life expectancy and the cocktail of external factors to which we are exposed: tobacco, alcohol, sedentary lifestyle and then, of course, all pollution. Every day in Belgium, 200 people are diagnosed. Europe has a duty to react. Prevention is the key issue, this has been emphasised. Screening, treatments, quality of life of cured patients and their families: Europe's cancer plan is counter-attacking on all fronts. Vulnerable among the vulnerable, I want, in my short minute this morning, to highlight patients with rare – not so rare in reality – cancers: one in four diagnoses in Europe, especially of children – which we think very strongly of. Our report – I would like to thank our rapporteur Renew, Véronique Trillet-Lenoir – is a mine of proposals so that they are not forgotten. Take it, Commissioner, because - and I conclude - to paraphrase Amanda, a Belgian patient, only the European scale can make visible those whom the rarity of their disease isolates. The fight of those who fight cancer is our fight at all.