What Victor spoke about.

To be clear, no one wants to have an impact on the companies in Malta. But companies present in Malta make their revenues on the Romanian market, on the German market, on the French market. So the single market is important. Do you support the single market for the betting industry? If you do that, then you support also European responsibility.

Dear colleague, first of all, again, Malta is losing money because of the illegal platforms. This is the first element. And what is your opinion on this point? The second element, which I think is relevant: Malta will remain competitive because we are not affecting the national regulations. Not at all. It's not about national regulations. And third and not least – and which I think is crucial – is that this initiative was co-signed by EPP members as well as Renew members, Greens members, from all political sides, and it was voted because it is included in the MFF report approved by this House. So it's a common initiative of the Parliament.

Colleague, you forgot something really important: the data presented by the industry – 71 % of the market is composed of illegal platforms. That means your citizens are going online right now, spending their money on illegal platforms, and those platforms are not taxed. Not taxed at national level. Not at all. So we need to approach this issue at European level. Do you agree with us fighting against those illegal platforms? Do you agree that together we can fight better against illegal platforms? In the MMF report of the European Parliament together with the co-rapporteurs on own resources we are coming with this proposal. So what is your opinion about illegal platforms?

Madam President, Commissioner, dear colleagues, Europe is entering a decisive debate about its future budget and its capacity to act. Every day in this House, we call for more investments, but also citizens expect us to answer another key question: how do we finance everything fairly and responsibly? This is why I initiated this proposal for a new European-owned resource designed to finance, in particular, education, youth, mental health, addiction prevention, and the protection of minors, by taxing online gambling, online betting and betting-like digital activities. Together with the S&D Group, we requested that this issue be placed on the plenary agenda after formally introducing a question for an answer in order to ensure that the European Parliament starts a serious political debate on this topic. The idea is simple – a fast growing, highly digitalised and increasingly cross-border industry using the added value of the single market should make a fair contribution to support Europe's social priorities and protect vulnerable people. This is not a tax on citizens, it is targeted contribution. Technically, the proposal is similar to national taxing formats. We can discuss a limited European levy – for example around 1 % – applied on the revenues or the turnover generated by major online gambling and betting operators active across the European market. This would not replace the national taxation systems, it would not interfere with the national licensing mechanisms, and it would fully respect Member States' competences in regulating gambling activities. But the potential revenues are significant. If betting-like digital platforms are also included, and if the market continues to grow as expected, the revenues could realistically reach between EUR 2 and 4 billion per year during the next EU long-term budget. This means potentially between EUR 14 and 28 billion between 2028 and 2034. This is equal to the Erasmus+ budget in the current MFF. Let us also be honest when we refer to this topic – according to recent estimates published by the industry, illegal online gambling alone already represents around 71 % of the market in Europe. This means billions lost in public revenue, weaker protection for consumers and minors, growing additional risks and major vulnerabilities linked to money laundering and criminal networks operating across borders. This means that even countries with a big online industry – like Malta, Cyprus and Estonia – are losing money for their national budgets. Europe cannot pretend this problem does not exist – we have to interfere, we have to fight illegal operators. But at the same time we are going to protect citizens. Europe must show that it is capable, not only of deciding together how we spend the money, but also how we can build common resources that will be available as soon as possible. Thank you again to everyone supporting this initiative.

Mr Vice-President, Commissioner, ladies and gentlemen, artificial intelligence is no longer just a technological issue, it is about economic power, competitiveness and global influence. The world is changing rapidly. The United States is investing heavily in digital infrastructure and advanced artificial intelligence models. China treats AI as a strategic state priority. In this context, Europe cannot afford to remain just the space that governs. Yes, through AI Act The European Union has demonstrated global leadership and shown that innovation can go hand in hand with the protection of fundamental rights and democratic values. But regulation is not enough if we do not also build real European capacity. We need massive investment in all components of the AI ecosystem: digital infrastructure, computing centres, European cloud, semiconductor, data, research, education, skills and especially support for European innovative companies. We need European quality standards for artificial intelligence systems, clear mechanisms for transparent governance, including at global level, and strengthening the ethical dimension of artificial intelligence so that technology remains at the service of people. Artificial intelligence must strengthen democracy and social cohesion, not deepen inequalities or fragment our societies. In this regard, we have actively supported the development of European artificial intelligence ecosystems and the strengthening of technological capacity in Central and Eastern Europe, including by promoting the initiative AI Factory in Romania to connect universities, research and industry. But there is one more key issue: access. Artificial intelligence should not become the privilege of a few states, companies or technological elites. Europe needs to build a model where AI is accessible to all. Europe, we must overcome technological dependence and invest in strategic autonomy, move from fragmentation to joint investment, from reaction to global leadership. So let's do all these things together!

Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, Romania risks losing over EUR 15 billion from the NRRP. Yes, we are talking about milestones, we are talking about projects, we are talking about reforms that have not been achieved, but I prefer to be constructive, to focus on solutions. Romania has the opportunity in the coming days to amend the national recovery and resilience plan. It's the last chance. In this sense, we need a national consensus and we need to come up with viable solutions, so that these resources are properly spent, but also to carry out the last outstanding reforms. For some of them, we need consensus, we need dialogue and, in this sense, I invite all political parties in Romania to stop complaining and to work together, if we really want to have government performance and show all Romanians that we manage to use efficiently all European opportunities. Moreover, there is also the possibility to create financial instruments and make essential changes, so that the NRRP is not about Brussels and is primarily about Romanians and Romania.

Mr President, Commissioner, ladies and gentlemen, I had originally prepared a different kind of speech, but I listened to the debate earlier and could only think about my own experience. I come from a family that frequently had to look for medicines that were not found in their own country. And I can tell you that it's an experience that's hard to describe. Unfortunately, we still have tens of thousands of Europeans who do not have access to simple medicines, medicines that are essential for their daily lives. So, dear friends, we need to move from theory to practice. Yeah, we're addicted. And what do we do? Yes, we need to develop European industry. And what do we do? Yes, we need to do more and allocate adequate funding. Where's the money from? And what do we do? So yes, we need to act now. It's a first step, but we need to move on, because I can tell you, from my personal experience, that patients can't wait as long as we can wait.

The next item is the debate on the report by Anna Strolenberg, on behalf of the Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs, on the situation of fundamental rights in the European Union in 2024 and 2025 (2025/2135(INI)) (A10‑0042/2026).

Thank you, Vice-President, for your concluding remarks on this debate on the oral question on the enforcement of the Digital Markets Act. I would also like to congratulate the authors. We have also received a motion for a resolution on the basis of the oral question. The debate is closed. The vote will take place on Thursday.

Mr President, dear rapporteurs and colleagues, Commissioner, EUR 890 million for justice. This is the amount I have included in this report as responsible for the Legal Committee in the European Parliament for the future budget of the Union. The allocations are €590 million higher than the current budget and the aim is to create new tools for European cooperation, protect the independence of the judiciary, digitalise processes, simplify European legislation, ensure that everyone has access to fair justice, including people with disabilities or those living in diaspora. As Vice-President of the European Parliament responsible for the fight against corruption, I have called for these funds to be used to fight cross-border crime, drug trafficking and corruption. I have also called for online gambling platforms to be regulated and taxed fairly, and I thank the rapporteurs for their support. With these funds and the recommendations made, European money will no longer be able to be stolen, and justice in the Member States will have the tools to act.