Speeches

Mr President, Commissioner, rapporteur, today, in the summer of 2022, which was the warmest in Europe's history, we are still irresponsibly cutting down forests. So don't think I'm talking about the Third World, I'm telling you that Europe has cut 842 000 hectares of forest this year, and the Amazon has lost 900 000 hectares, which is comparable. Not to mention the old-growth forests that, once lost, are lost forever. People, a well-protected forest is an investment in the future, it is an investment for my daughter, for your children, an investment that protects us from hot summers, when the air is unbreathable. We also have good news. At home in Sibiu, for example, the new King Charles launched the largest European project to restore European forest landscapes. I am also pleased to see in today's strategy initiatives such as forest monitoring, based on common indicators, and recommendations for nature-friendly forestry practices. People, the forest, the air does not stop at the border, they are our chance for life, they are the chance of future generations.

Mr President, Commissioner, dear colleagues, some people believe that money is the most important resource. But what happens when a resource like water disappears, like a river in Italy to Mr. Tajani in front of me, disappears from our planet? Water is an inexhaustible resource that cannot be quantified in its value. Europe is barely breathing. The forests, the lungs of Europe are burning before our eyes. The harvest burns in Timis, 16 fires in the last 24 hours. It hasn't rained in three months, really. Some guy drops 10 centimeters a day. In the city of Galati, sand islands have been formed for several weeks, in the Danube, islands. Do you realize that? The mayor of Dumbrăviţa commune urges his citizens to use the water with the portion at the least possible pressure and only for domestic purposes. Do you really think everyone's contribution, how small, doesn't matter? We need to stop pumping carbon into the atmosphere now. We must continue to provide the most important resource to our children.

Madam President, I’m looking around the room and there’s only five men, myself included. I’m not counting the Commission staff. And I think it is sad that only five men speak in favour of women’s rights because women’s rights are human rights. And it concerns us too. I grew up in Ceausescu’s Romania back in the eighties when abortion was banned, and I’ve heard terrifying stories, stories about women dying of complications of self-induced abortions or abortions performed somewhere on a ship or in some illegal place. And I think that striking down Roe versus Wade would lead to more than 20 US states banning abortion and perhaps to 36 million women having direct consequences from this on their right for their body, for their life. So colleagues, here in this House, let’s stop a war on women, men and women together. We have very clear values here in Europe. Let’s talk about them. Let’s speak to our American friends about them, and let’s fight so that banning abortion remains just a sad legacy of the past and not a miserable gift for the future.

Madam President, Mr Timmermans, Minister Zacharopoulou, I want to speak on behalf of millions of young people in Romania and across Europe today. It has already been three years since we spoke in this house, in the European Parliament, of the European Green Deal, three years in which, however, we have witnessed the hottest summer in Europe’s history – I mean 2021 – deadly floods and disastrous droughts. Three localities in southern Romania, where I come from – Călărași, Sărata and Dăbuleni, in Dolj County – receive spring water only in the morning and evening at the programme. People are given water with the portion because of the drought. Scientists are screaming desperately at us because we have the highest level of carbon dioxide in 4 million years. It's not a joke. Let's wake up to reality, because it's about the future of the young generation here. Yes, putting a price on carbon is not an easy task, but Europe has two decades of experience with it. It's not something new, it's something we're good at. We have experience. Commissioner, in theory we are ambitious, but the reality is that in recent years we have spent only 13% of the European Union budget on climate change. We can't afford this anymore. Let's really be climate leaders. Today, together, we give up borrowing from the days and lives of young people. I'm giving up borrowing from my 2-year-old daughter's life. That's what we're talking about today, we're talking about their future.

Mr. President, there are superheroes and there are heroes among us. During the pandemic, they were doctors, nurses, farmers, essential workers. Today, the heroes are the volunteers who help the refugees in Ukraine. They do what national authorities could never have done on their own. In Romania, however, the Government has not provided any financial support to the associations that do this work. We cannot wait for national politicians. The European Union must provide support managed directly by the Commission to NGOs and volunteers. We must do good together, more involved, closer to the citizen. "No one is useless in this world where we have to bear the burdens of others," said Charles Dickens. And in our world, with ever-increasing disasters, the heroes are you, and I thank you.

Madam President, I say to my colleagues: we are excited to vote again, presently. It’s been something that have we missed in this Parliament. But I ask you, colleagues, to give me 30 seconds also in respect of the victims of the Ukraine war, because we are talking here about the budget and we’ve been talking for the past two hours about what we can do for these victims and for the people who cross the borders into another country. Mr Commissioner, you have the toughest job right now. You always need more money, but help us revise the MFF. Help us, in relation to the Member States, call for a revision of the MFF, because we are already bound, the belt is too narrow to the body. We need the Member States to widen the EU budget now. One final word, because I am Romanian ... (the speaker was interrupted for a few moments) My final remark for all of you who are Poles, who are Slovaks, who are Romanians, who are Hungarians, who bear the burden of millions of refugees right now. Commissioner, Europe needs to help these countries right now because they have a very high role in what is going on now. They do a service for world peace, now.

Mr MEP, first of all, are you ready to give up your salary yourself, as you ask the Commissioner to do so? And then, how do you feel when you see the images that come from Bucha, you who are defending a regime that, right now, is killing?

Madam President, Commissioner, 2022, 2023 are special years in the history of the European Union. When Winston Churchill was directed, for example, to cut the budget of culture in the middle of World War II, he said: But then, what are we fighting for? And I think we're at a similar exact moment today. On the one hand, we're fighting a war, yes, we're fighting a war. On the other hand, we must defend our lifestyle, our European values. We have moved, Commissioner, from the last year of the pandemic directly into the first year of the war. But European money does not grow on trees, the Union budget is limited by the amounts that Member States give to the Union. Our annual budget, what a coincidence, Commissioner, is the same as that of Austria, the country from which you come. But our needs are huge, they're much bigger. We have a financial crisis, energy bills, inflation, health problems. We have young people in depression, we have war! Moreover, Russia's invasion of Ukraine and the cruel war that this country is waging have made our countries' economies more difficult. That is why, Commissioner, the EU budget for this year is limited. We are limited. We are tied up by this multiannual budget, the MFF, for seven years. If we do not revise the MFF soon, we will always take money from other programmes, from cohesion, from other places. And so the needs for the economic recovery of the Member States will never be met. Here are the six major political priorities we are voting on today. First priority: Growth of the economy. We need to speed up access to and absorption of structural funds and NRRPs. Our citizens must once again feel proud to be part of this Union of prosperity, well-being. 2023 is also important for our farmers who put our food on the table. Second priority: Health for all citizens. Over the past year, the pandemic has turned our lives upside down. More than six million people have died in the world. Moreover, the chronically ill suffered greatly because they were neglected. There was no more prevention. That is why we must not forget that the EU budget is for hospitals to be built, to accelerate the pace at which our citizens can one day be treated the same in every Member State of the European Union. I dream that one day people in Sibiu, the city where I come from, will be treated as well as people in a hospital in Germany. Third priority: Accelerating the green and digital transition. Commissioner, every day, the countries of the European Union continue to send EUR 700 million to Russia. In total, more than 22 billion euros annually, money that goes to tanks and missiles, money that destroys human lives now. Therefore, to those colleagues who say that GreenDeal must be stopped because we need energy resources now, I say no, the opposite. We need to accelerate our green transition to renewable energies. We have to stay where it makes sense. We don't have to give in now, when it's most important. Fourth priority: Without the rule of law, there is no money. The European Union is not an ATM and we cannot accept that European money is sent where there are suspicions about the rule of law, to be left behind in the hands of corrupt people. That is why, Commissioner, I encourage you not to see the EPPO, the European Public Prosecutor's Office headed by Laura Codruta Kovesi, as a Union Cinderella. Every cent we give to this Public Prosecutor's Office brings back millions of euros to the European Union. A penultimate point: Commissioner, young people have suffered greatly in this pandemic: anxiety, depression, isolation. We need to restore the mechanisms by which they can see the world again. We need to help them go to Erasmus. With 400 euros, a young man cannot go to Erasmus if he does not have help from home from his mother and father. And, most importantly: Commissioner, we must have a stronger Union for its citizens and in the world because we have war. And we have four countries on the border: Romania, Hungary, Slovakia and Poland, which are currently suffering for the entire European Union, taking care of all the Union's refugees. That is why, Commissioner, we must help these countries and not just by transferring sums that have not been spent. We have to help them with everything we can. Commissioner, "true generosity towards the future is in giving everything to the present". That's what Albert Camus said. I want us, the present generations, to give everything to the present.

Madam President, I might be the only non—Spanish—speaking author of this resolution, but that’s important because this is a European issue, defending the rule of law and defending journalists across the world. Exposing high—level corruption led to the death of Mexican journalist Roberto Toledo. Criticising local authorities for their relationship with Mexican organised crime got media worker José Luis Gamboa killed. Over the last two months, we’ve seen what’s very likely the deadliest time for the Mexican press in over a decade. Toledo and Gamboa are two of seven journalists who have lost their lives in Mexico since the beginning of the year, while others were threatened or went missing. There are two outstanding actors in these tragic stories. One is the violence unleashed by the war against the drug cartels. The other is the near total impunity. As the country’s justice system has eroded, corruption has proliferated at all levels. While 99% of all crimes are not prosecuted, Mexico is launching a war on truth, killing journalists and human rights defenders. Dear colleagues, here in this House, we defend freedom of speech as it is an essential part of our functioning democracy. It’s high time we called on Mexico to do the same, not to let murder go uninvestigated, to strengthen the protection mechanism, and to refrain from stigmatising media workers and let them do their job. Let’s remind those involved in such brutal murders of a simple truth: even if you kill the messenger, you will never kill the message. The people of Mexico are angry at censorship and they don’t want to be complicit in the murder of freedom of expression in their country. We also call on these people, who are very dear to us and who are very close to us, to fight for their right to speak freely and to stand for the journalists in their country. They don’t carry weapons: they only carry a notebook and a pen to defend themselves. One last message, perhaps, to the Mexican Government: you are an essential partner for the European Union, but we won’t close our eyes when your democracy, when your freedoms, are eroded.

Madam President, Commissioner, I wonder why we should think that one crisis eliminates another and why not two crises at once are worse. I believe that we have several crises at once and that in a world invaded by tragedies we must focus on how we can save ourselves from the rubble. We cannot delay the management of the crises we face, we cannot stop efforts to reduce emissions, pollution, protect biodiversity and human health. At this point, the scientific community's warnings about the climate crisis are becoming increasingly appalling. The effects of climate change will wreak even greater havoc, plunge the world into food insecurity, storms, fires, heatwaves, floods. The new IPCC report reminds us that we still have a short window to implement important measures and avoid the scenario where action is already too little and too late. We cannot continue to finance Putin’s army and war – you heard right, yes, we did – through energy dependence on imports. And the solution is by no means to increase Europe's long-term dependence on fossil energy sources. It will not be easy, nor will it be popular, for many Member States, but failure to implement climate measures will come at a cost, after all. The most important question is how much it will cost us if we do not act now, if we remain passive. Respecting and implementing your programme, the 2030 Action Programme, is an essential step. The climate is changing as a result of human activity and change is accelerating because we are doing nothing. Gentlemen, this is our fate, to save the planet from multiple hands at once.

Today, on their birthday, women in Ukraine do not receive flowers. I'm getting blood, suffering and tears. Today, they also receive separation from their husbands, husbands, sons, children. This is the greatest human tragedy since World War II, an exodus of women and children. What can we do for them? They need to go to hospital, they need to have papers, they need to go to school and they even need a job here in Europe. We, Europe, must treat them as our own because they are ours, they are our European brothers. Out of their poverty, Commissioner, the Romanians gave everything, they did not hesitate to open their house, to put on the table the polenta, the sarmale, to lay half a bed. They gave everything and what they didn't have. But the help of people, of these angels, is not enough when we talk about 5 million, 7 million people. Union, listen: Let us give as we have never given before, because the suffering now is nothing compared to anything else. What Putin destroys with one hand, let's hit with two.

Madam President, I want to speak tonight for some friends – for Maria, for Sasha, for Veronika, for Katia and for their mother. This is a family of refugees from Ukraine, whom I met yesterday and with whom I told a lot. These Ukrainians, these people left on February 24th, in the morning, hearing the bombs, thinking it was an earthquake, and they said: I wish it was an earthquake. Well, these people have arrived in Europe and are waiting for us to be able to work. They expect us to be able to communicate. I can't accept roaming charges. I can't accept not having papers as soon as possible. They can't accept not being able to speak in their own language. And I believe that – dear friends, dear colleagues – with 1.5 million Ukrainians all over Europe and a much larger number coming over us, we must be prepared to break down all the barriers that still exist, because these people are brothers. These people are Europeans, they are our sisters, and our girls, and our boys, and our children. I encourage all of you, dear ones, to make their lives as beautiful as possible in Europe.

Madam President, roads of humility. This is how a cancer patient feels at the hardest time of his life: unworthy, humiliated. You got money, get in the front. You don't have the money, you wait and maybe you're not when it's finally your turn to schedule. I come from Romania, the country where when the doctor says: ‘You have cancer’, a serious clock starts ticking quickly, swallowing minutes and swallowing days, because in our country, cancer does not offer much hope to a patient. Prevention is insufficient. Treatments are expensive, diagnosis late. Why die of breast cancer in the 21st century, when so many European women survive? Just because you're Bulgarian, because you're Romanian or because you're Polish? Unfortunately, there are too many patients defeated by the medical system: They don't have any medicines, even the simplest ones. The sick are taken for walks to buy their own pumps, to buy their own cytostatics. To their torment is added the humiliation of running after something that is not found. We can't have some of us, and some of us can die by days. Europe is investing €4 billion today to help its Member States beat cancer. It's money for prevention, diagnosis, treatment and recovery. I want to bow to two Romanian women, Carmen Uscatu and Oana Gheorghiu, from the ‘Give Life’ Association, who built an oncology hospital themselves, using society and its resources. And I also want to bow to two European women, one who is a survivor herself and is in front of us and is Health Commissioner Stella Kyriakides, and another who is an oncologist, she is called Véronique Trillet-Lenoir and she wrote today's report. Cancer patients are not just dry statistics: They are mothers, they are fathers, they are children and friends, they are my grandparents. But they are mostly European citizens. We've been able, in a year, to find a vaccine for an epidemic we've never seen before. I believe we can find a cure for this relentless disease. One day we're gonna beat all the cancer, I promise you that. Why shouldn't that day be today? Because the sick only have ‘today’!

Madam President, I want to send you a message from 400 ethnic Hungarian citizens in Transylvania. I am Romanian MP, but I am also Transylvanian, I am also European. They say: "We want fair elections in the Hungarian elections, in which more Hungarians in Romania can vote. We oppose all forms of influencing the voting process and against electoral fraud. Hate campaigns over the last decade have affected our social relationships. There's no reason to be afraid. We refuse to fear Brussels, George Soros, migrants or sexual minorities. We do not need politicians to protect us from them.” Ladies and gentlemen, Hungarians are not anti-Europeans, as Mr Orban wants you to believe. They are our European brothers, my brothers from Romania or from outside. Ahogyan élek, az a hazám. said Balla Zsófia. “As I live, so is my homeland.”

Mr President, these are not ‘far away places about which we know nothing’, as Chamberlain once said. They are family; they are part of our destiny; their security is our security. Look at what is happening near Ukraine’s border. A build—up of fighting vehicles and armoured units is taking place as we speak. So by bringing the Western Balkans – our nearest and most diverse neighbour – closer, we actually protect the EU against the very cold winds coming from the East. We have Albania sliding towards conflict and now the repercussions could be more far—reaching even than the state collapse we witnessed 20 years ago. Kosovo is struggling too to gain international recognition. We cannot leave these countries behind. We need to show them that the EU offers its neighbours a privileged relationship, and we need to prove to them that we are reliable, we are committed and a forward—looking partner. Secondly, let’s admit that the lack of cooperation and data sharing does generate trans—border organised crime activities. We know it’s joint work and we are here to help, but the Western Balkan countries need to play their part too by keeping a solid track of corruption and money laundering, as well as weapons and human trafficking, and by working closely with the EU so that together we can monitor and counter any existing links between terrorism and illicit finance. Thirdly, there is no vacuum in international relations. One wrong move and Russia will exploit it. One misstep and China will give billions away and seek influence in the region, and demand it too. Let’s unblock the Western Balkans’ path towards EU accession and not let others open a new front right here in our wing. Let’s not give the green light to criminal groups to benefit from emergency situations such as COVID and not let them counterfeit vaccines and vaccination cards. Let’s establish stronger links with civil society. I started with Chamberlain, but I will finish with Churchill: ‘One always measures friends by how they show up in bad weather.’ So let’s show up for our friends!

Madam President, Commissioner, long illness is certain death, say the Romanians. But sometimes the disease of some Europeans is far too long. That's because we have different rules for new medical technologies and new drugs. How is it that in Romania patients' access to the latest medicines can be longer and by 240 days (i.e. by 8 months)? Thousands of people die in 8 months and it is not allowed for them to die with the cure on the table, hidden in the drawers of some bureaucrat. Many take the road abroad, have to pay out of their own pockets, or even making extremely expensive loans. Europe-wide coordinated health technology assessment will allow us to considerably reduce waiting times for our patients and thus save European lives. "For every evil there are two cures, time and silence," said Alexandre Dumas. Reduce the time of suffering, break the silence!

Madam President, Commissioner, long illness is certain death, as the Romanians say. The long illness now is not only the virus, it is also disinformation. High vaccination overturns mortality, that's the ratio. Unfortunately, the countries with the highest mortality are also the countries with the highest disinformation. We see it here too, in our European home, that it is intolerable how politicians from EU countries circus and try to prevent vaccination in Europe. Here we fight and lose important battles and they send people to death with their own will. They are apostles of hatred, they shout with hatred, they do not show love at all, because if they showed love for people, they would be interested in what is happening in the least developed countries, that they have only 10% or 15% vaccination and they need us very much, because it is a global crisis from which we do not come out alone, only the wealthy. We, here in the budget of the European Union, have obtained for you 1.5 billion, Commissioner, additionally for the vaccination of the world, because there are very, very great needs. But we need even more for distribution, you know that very well. That is why we have to fight for this project, because we do not get out of the crisis alone. This boat will take water and the principle is simple and relentless: "There's no one safe until we're all safe," said Jens Spahn in Germany. By spring, in Germany, either everyone is vaccinated and cured, or, if not, they will have more and more deaths. Yes, gentlemen, it's very serious. Let's fight the pandemic together! We need courage, because we don't have a way back. So help us God!

Mr President, Commissioner, an extra half a billion euros to the budget of the European Union – that is all we achieved, as Parliament, in 2022. The European Parliament was united, which made us stronger, so I want to thank Karlo, Johan, Henrike, Damian, everyone who made a strong team this year. In fact, these are investments, not money falling from the sky. Every euro, for example, going to the EPPO means millions of euros that are recovered to the budget of the European Union. I give a very clear message to those who have illicit ideas with European money. Hands off our children's funds, because here's their money, because I borrowed it through the NextGeneration program and no one takes my child's money. Every euro that goes to Erasmus goes back a hundredfold to Europe, because an educated man is an extremely valuable man for our future and we have a huge debt for the young people hard-pressed by the COVID-19 crisis. Renew got into a fight over something else: for health and pandemic relief for the poorest countries. Almost a billion and a half more brought these negotiations for international vaccination. Because we have the courage to talk about the end of the pandemic and the end of the pandemic cannot only pass through the world of the rich, but must also pass through the world of the poor. Commissioner, the budget is not just the money in it, the budget is the reality behind words, the expression in figures of our European morality. And next time I would like to see the Commission even closer to Parliament because we have the same goals.

Madam President, Commissioner Hahn, the future European rules must increase citizens' confidence in the Union that money is well-thought out, that it is not given to anyone anyway, that relations and policies do not matter. I hope that translators know what a "pill" is because in some countries it is practiced a lot. Firstly, it is necessary to simplify the rules in order for more companies and citizens to obtain European funds. Second, governments attacking the rule of law must know that the European Union will suspend their European funds. Thirdly, we need to speed up implementation. It is now important for states to make projects for hospitals, highways, schools and the environment. In Romania, where I come from, 80 billion euros will be accessed, I hope, in the next seven years. But the citizens tell me: “but we do not see this money; application for European funds is complicated". Therefore, countries where there are problems absorbing European money, as in the case of Romania, must be helped, but they must also come to the support of the private environment with technical assistance. I'm counting on you for that. If we want to get out of the crisis, the states of this bloc of the European Union must make a strong team with the European Union. Only then will we be winners. Commissioner, the people who spoke today are largely also the people involved in the budget. We would very much like the Commission to stop being intimidated by the Council, to play more alongside Parliament, because we and you have the same goal in mind. Let's make a partnership!

Mr President, today is 11 November, it’s Remembrance Day, the day that weapons stood still in Europe. I think it is time to remember that, because working together on trade and technology is also about peace, not only about the economy. It will help us win an international competition with China and neutralise its ever-expanding power on the world stage. It is time we fought together unfair trade practices such as theft of intellectual property. It is time we established clear and strategic standards for the use of artificial intelligence so that we have to fight human rights violations through mass surveillance. The COVID-19 pandemic has shown us how fragile the global production systems are, and we need to build resilient and sustainable supply chains for tomorrow. I’d like to paraphrase the 1992 US elections by saying ‘it’s not only the economy, stupid, it’s also peace’.

Mr President, I know that external affairs is not the Commissioner’s topic but then the Western Balkans is not a matter of strictly external affairs. I think it concerns us almost internally. We have stated numerous times that the future of the Western Balkan countries lies in the European Union, but stating it, including at the EU-Western Balkans Summit is not enough. Words are not enough. We need to take action. We need to put action into those words. And I believe that a prosperous and peaceful Western Balkans requires all six countries join hands, that they use the EUR 30 billion in the economic and investment plan and they build back better and speed up crucial reforms and strengthen the rule of law and fight corruption and organised crime. On the other hand, we, as the European Union, have homework to do as well and we need to work for reconciliation and regional cooperation. As we know, a deal between Kosovo and Serbia to end border tensions seemed almost impossible a while ago, but then we took important steps and the European Union contributed a lot to those important steps. Yes, the situation might still be unstable. Yes, tensions might not have stopped to rise and the progress might be slow. But even with these baby steps, we have proved that, if there is political will and if there is leadership, solutions will follow. So let’s keep up using all our tools to unblock bilateral disputes, to reach a comprehensive deal between Belgrade and Pristina, to speed up the accession of Albania and North Macedonia. The sooner we start the better for the security of Europe in general. I remind everyone that failure to do so will only open the room wider for Russia and China to destabilise the region. There is no such thing as a vacuum possible in politics. We know that. And that vacuum that is perceived right now is filling up fast and it is not with us. Colleagues, if our neighbourhood is not stable, we, in the European Union, are not stable. We act in our interests if we act in the interests of the Balkan people.

Mr President, Mr Sinkevičius, today I am a simple postman, because I bring the voice of young people in Romania. Two weeks ago, this Parliament was holding an event called ‘The European Youth Event’ with the motto ‘The future belongs to them’. But does it really belong to them? What do these young people really want? They want a healthy planet, they want forests, they want a clean, fair, environmentally friendly economy. They really don't want to be the generation that has tickets first and foremost to the drama entitled ‘Global Warming’. Who do we really decide for this purpose? For them, for those who will stay and feel climate change on their skin. We may not be here in 2050, but they will continue. It's just like Elena Ferrante said in her novel: It is a struggle between those who stay and those who leave. Our children no longer have to die of pollution in Europe, they must not be caught in natural disasters, in floods, in forest fires, in toxic discharges. When the water kills the fish. That’s how you know how ill it is. This is a raper, not a philosopher. But what it expresses very well is the anxiety of an entire generation. So listen to them!

Madam President, Commissioner, "never have so many owed so much, so few", said Winston Churchill in the midst of the war. We must live with this spirit again today, because Europe is, in fact, at war, and Europeans must see in what we are doing here, a shield. While many are preparing to emerge from the pandemic, my country, Romania, unfortunately, is entering a wave four, which is not a wave, is a tsunami. 574 people died today. It's a national tragedy, and our doctors can't do it anymore, the ICUs are busy. Therefore, the number one priority of this Parliament can only be health. This Parliament has already put a brick in that healthcare system through which, one day, a Romanian patient will be able to be treated in hospital, as in Austria, for example. Moreover, my group, Renew Europe, has put one billion euros aside for vaccination, for COVAX, because it is useless for us to get better, if not for the whole world to get better. This budget must also be the cleanest in history. That is why I proposed and supported that Laura Codruta Kövesi should have the money for the staff she needs, to control that this money should not be stolen, should not be taken by corrupt people. Why? Because this money is partly borrowed, and we have to guard it, keep an eye on it, like a bottle. Europe is nothing if it's not the young people in it. Young people deserve as many opportunities as possible. That is why we are increasing the budget today by 40,000 Erasmus scholarships, precisely for those young people who, instead of travelling, had to sit in front of the screen, instead of in front of the Louvre. To talk about 2022 today is, I imagine, as others talked about 1942 in the First War, so it certainly wasn't easy. But our ultimate role here in this European house is this: we can, when Europeans can no longer.

Mr President, isn’t it regrettable that I am the first man today to speak in favour of this resolution on this floor? I was only a child when Ceaușescu was ruling Romania and I remember how thousands of people would rat on their neighbours and family for choosing to terminate a pregnancy. The new state law might turn Texas too into a snitch state because it might seem unbelievable, but any citizen, even those not involved, men, it doesn’t matter, might stand to win USD 10 000 for noticing anybody who doesn’t respect this law or abets or aids abortion. Unfortunately, the recent ban is not about protecting the unborn. It is about male dominance. It is an attack on female agency. It is about exposing women to a deadly risk. Even federal judges called it today an offensive deprivation, and it is an offensive deprivation. Do we know what a pregnancy is? It is one of the most determinative aspects of a woman’s life. Do we know that it disrupts not just the body but the education, the employment, the right to achieve a full potential? Because if we do, we must take action now and we must stand firm with the women of Texas because they might be the women of Europe as well. If we do and if we vote for this resolution – and I encourage all men to vote for this resolution in this hall – I remind you of the words of Ruth Bader Ginsburg , who once said ‘Abortion is an essential part of sexual equality, thus ending all ethical debate.’ A vote for this resolution is the right thing.

Madam President, Commissioner, please do something! It's getting worse, a doctor from my home in Sibiu told me today. The Romanian government, which fell through a no-confidence motion, has asked for emergency help from the European Union, because today we have 15,000 new cases and 254 deaths, an absolute record. Unfortunately, the authorities only ask for help when it's too late, because they don't want to appear weak and incompetent in front of people. We had already asked for this help here in the European Parliament a week ago. I hope with all my heart that European solidarity will work again. I hope that all of you, all of you Europeans, will help Romania, just as doctors in Romania helped Italy in the first wave of the crisis in 2020. We can only rejoice for the HERA agency and support it wholeheartedly, but for Romania it is late now. We need the European institutions to be present at home, in the hospitals at home, in Constanta, in Sibiu, because Romania is losing air at this moment and we need great, great help.