Speeches

The next meeting will take place tomorrow, Tuesday 14 February 2023 at 9 a.m. The agenda has been published and is available on the European Parliament's website.

The next item on the agenda is the one-minute presentation (Rule 172), i.e. the colourful range of topics that can be dealt with in one minute. I would like to remind everyone to really use this minute, but not to overuse it.

I just repeat it also in English for those not using headphones. Stick to one minute, please. I just say that to everybody because, as you see, it's already quite late in the evening and we have really a lot of speakers.

The next item on the agenda is the debate on the report by Christophe Grudler, on behalf of the Committee on Industry, Research and Energy, on the proposal for a regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council establishing the Union Secure Connectivity Programme for the period 2023-2027 (COM(2022)0057 – C9-0045/2022 – 2022/0039(COD)) (A9-0249/2022).

The next item on the agenda is the debate on the Commission statement on the follow-up to the measures requested by Parliament to strengthen the integrity of the Union institutions, bodies, offices and agencies (2023/2571(RSP).

The next item on the agenda is the debate on the Commission statement on EU funding for NGOs accused of recent corruption cases and on the protection of the EU’s financial interests (2023/2563(RSP)).

The EPP Group has sent the President a decision to change appointments to a delegation. This Decision shall be entered in the minutes of today's meeting and shall enter into force on the date of this announcement.

There were no objections to yesterday's announced three-month extension of the term of office of the Special Committee on the lessons learned from the COVID-19 pandemic and recommendations for the future, the Special Committee on Foreign Interference in all democratic processes in the European Union, including disinformation, and the Committee of Inquiry into the use of Pegasus and similar surveillance and spyware. These extensions are therefore deemed to have been accepted. (The meeting adjourned at 12.21)

– The next item on the agenda is the debate on the report by Sabrina Pignedoli, on behalf of the Committee on Budgetary Control, on the protection of the European Union’s financial interests – Fight against fraud – Annual Report 2021 (2022/2152(INI)) (A9-0299/2022).

Thank you very much, Commissioner, and also express special thanks for your touching words on the death of Denys Monastyrskyj, the children and all other victims.

Madam President, Commissioner! Let's talk plainly: This is an attack on women's rights. A woman is only free when she can decide about her body. Free to decide about the body, that is, any woman can decide for herself to voluntarily terminate a pregnancy. Free, that is, free from any compulsion, from any psychological pressure, from any pressure from the outside. If pictures of fetuses are attached to a woman on the way to the abortion clinic, if a woman has to listen to the heart sounds before the abortion, then this woman is not free. When this happens in Castile and León, it affects us all. This is reminiscent of Orbán's Hungary, it is unacceptable. They are manipulative and patronizing measures with drastic effects on women's lives, and they cause fear and coercion, but not that there are fewer abortions, only more dangerous ones. The extreme right-wing Vox plays with the lives of women and their political supporters of the Conservatives as well. Spain's government has achieved so much good for women. A genuine voluntary choice – we must defend that. France shows us the direction in which the debate must go. The right to voluntary abortion is part of the constitution. In so many European countries, voluntary abortion is regulated in the Criminal Code. Thus, every single woman is told and given: You do something forbidden, but we are gracious and free you from your guilt. I want every woman in Spain, as in every European country, to know: You and only you can control your body on your own, and we have to support you.

Before we come to the list of the group speakers, I just would like to ask colleagues the following: we need to be very disciplined concerning speaking time; the next point on our agenda is the Sakharov Prize ceremony and everybody should speak in this round, otherwise we have some problems with the catch-the-eye, so really stick to your speaking time, please.

The next item on the agenda is the debate on the Council and Commission statements on the EU response to the US Inflation Reduction Act (2022/2997(RSP)).