Plenary focus - July 2023

Despite a decrease in recent months, inflation remains very high in the EU and has a disastrous impact on real wages and the working class. We are witnessing an unprecedented fall in consumption, particularly food consumption, which proves that a growing proportion of the population is food deprived. This inflation is mainly driven by the windfall profits of companies and individuals who are making a killing off the backs of the poorest. This must stop immediately! We will not give up on the issues of taxation and wealth distribution - it’s time to tax the rich!

We are approaching the sixth mass extinction, according to scientists, so it cannot be overstated how important this piece of legislation is. The science is absolutely clear, the biggest threats to our food security and the future of agriculture are the climate and biodiversity crises, and the nature restoration regulation is crucial to address both.

This piece of legislation has the potential to radically strengthen climate resilience, ensuring a liveable future for the generations to come. The uniqueness of this law is that it benefits everyone: farmers, fishers, and all citizens. This cannot be reduced to political calculation and point scoring. It’s about the future of our planet.

The narrative of this report is problematic in its claims the EU successfully handled this crisis and helped the World. This is very far from reality. This report praises pharma companies, pushes for the protection of intellectual property, trade secrets and other tools Big Pharma uses against patients and countries. It doesn’t reflect the problems with transparency of both vaccine contracts and their negotiation. There’s no criticism of the Commission and its president for the shady deals with pharma companies.

The continuous Israeli military incursions into Palestinian territory, as in Jenin, and the construction of new illegal settlements violate the most basic human rights of the Palestinian people. Europe cannot ignore this massacre and must move from words to deeds. The report presented is positive, although insufficient. It is necessary to increase diplomatic pressure on Israel to end the blockade of Gaza, strengthen ties with the Palestinian state and support the role of UNRWA and the international community.

The Industrial Emission Directive regulation is of utmost importance as it deals with polluting emissions from industrial installations and takes an integrated approach to environmental protection as a whole, aiming to prevent pollution at source. Although the Parliament outcome is disappointing, it’s essential to tighten emissions controls and include agriculture as a means to reinforce the European Green Deal.

We are happy to have achieved a solid and satisfying result with all our positions from the CULT Committee being aligned with the outcome of JURI. Our aim was to broaden the scope of the Directive to include the online environment, apply it to ongoing cases, as well as re-enforce the cross-border aspects and set clear rules of legal representation and remuneration.

Parliament has laid an egg, the Commission has eaten the yolk, thrown the white to the lobbies, and all that’s left from the proposed EU ethics body is an empty shell. The Commission waited four years, witnessing the Qatargate scandal and several cases of conflicts of interest in the European Commission, to propose an Ethics body that is an unacceptable affront. According to the Commission, the ethics body will have no investigation power, no sanctioning power, will not concern the staff of the institutions and will have a ridiculously low budget. The Commission must revoke its proposal and must come forward, within three months, with a new proposal taking up the Parliament’s positions. It is essential to finalise the negotiations before the 2024 elections.

This climate-killing treaty grants fossil fuel producers exorbitant privileges, incompatible with our climate commitments and the Paris Agreement. Member states and the European Union must get out of it together as quickly as possible!