Plenary focus - January

I’m honoured that my political group, GUE/NGL, has put my name forward for the second time during this parliamentary term as their vice-presidential candidate. My goal as Vice-President of the European Parliament is to continue to serve this institution and the citizens of the European Union; and to respect and promote the ideas and principles of participation, transparency and democratic accountability. I have always tried to achieve this vision by supporting collective work, unifying efforts and respecting diversity. Since July 2014, the European Parliament has faced growing challenges that have put the future of the European project in doubt. The economic crisis has deepened; cohesion has weakened; unanimous solidarity over the refugee crisis remains unfulfilled. Such challenges have worsened over the past years – and we must do better to address them. I would like to count on the support of all the democratic, progressive and green voices in the European Parliament - together - in order to keep our work more efficient. At the end of the day, we can only succeed together and to achieve that, we must address the growing concerns of European citizens - constituents who have elected us and whom we represent.