kfajdsl/voxpopuli huggingface dataset:
i will repeat what i said in my opening remarks that the agreements with the vaccine developers do not change or derogate from eu legislation and rules on liability.
we need your support in the roll out of vaccines in your member states and in building trust in the solution that citizens expect from us.
but what i can assure you of is that we are leaving no stone unturned in order to be able to ensure that we have a result as quickly as possible.
we all understand that this way of working with and for twenty seven member states fully guarantees both accountability and compliance with the rules that protect the interests of those involved but in doing so we must also respect the rules on what information can be made public
well first of all let us be clear we are still not at the point when any company has submitted for market authorisation to the european medicines agency.
we've heard your concerns about transparency and what i can tell you is that within the contractual constraints we are ready to explore making information about the contracts available to nominated members of the parliament with specific arrangements once the sensitive ongoing negotiations are concluded.
we want them to have the vaccine as soon as possible and under the best possible conditions.
so a safe effective and affordable vaccine universally accessible is a crucial exit to the pandemic.
i want to assure you that we're following both eu law and the vaccine strategy and member states have been part of this constant negotiation process so that we would be as inclusive as possible from the very beginning. it is important that
first of all member states had to organise with the commission a new process.
now until we have found a sustainable solution we have all agreed at least that the coronavirus affects each and every day of our lives.
and until we have found a sustainable solution it will continue to impact on our societies on our economies and on the everyday way we live.
we will know that once we have a safe and effective vaccine.
and what has to remain protected.
he's absolutely correct in this and it's important that we know that transparency creates trust and trust is key.
so let us move forwards together.
we have spoken of best case scenarios for the end of this year or the beginning of the next but again i follow what vronique trillet lenoir also said that we have to be very cautious in our communication with citizens.
we haven't taken our eyes off therapeutics for the last eight months.
but of course all member states will be doing this according to their own situation on the ground.
there were questions on liability.
well we are in a time when the whole world is investing in this research but also there are now different technologies which allow us to move much more quickly for this.
there were questions on when a vaccine will be available how will citizens know about this.
where the vaccine will be produced;
and also the liability linked to possible damage caused by the vaccine.
it is crucial also to ensure that advance purchase agreements are fully transparent.
even though i hear stella what you say we must still take care and we need to know that we still need the measures but still this is promising. once again it shows the great potential of science. the commission has signed three advance purchase agreements with different companies.
we demand that the following provisions in the contract are made public the cost for the producers of the vaccine and the prices to be paid;
we agree with the assessment that we need a broad portfolio with vaccine producers.
the access to the vaccine;
just the other day we received very promising results on a potential vaccine which is still undergoing clinical trials in testing phase. three although it is still too early to say for certain the indicative results give some perspective for a return to life without fear of the virus.
covid nineteen impacts on fundamental rights of citizens and democracy.
women and girls are disproportionately at risk during this pandemic as during lockdowns they can be exposed to abusers for long periods of time with no availability of social or institutional support.
we must as politicians as governments as ngos be extremely alert and willing to interrupt and challenge any violations of these across the eu.
a pandemic such as this impacts disproportionately and differentially on women on gender issues on minorities and immigrants and those on the margins of society.
a crisis such as the scale of this pandemic brings unprecedented challenges in every area including the rule of law.
the risk of child sexual exploitation has sadly further increased as have the opportunities for online harassment and disinformation.
madam president covid nineteen has been and continues to be a stress test for democracies the resilience of national safeguards and importantly the rule of law.
democracy fundamental rights and the rule of law are at the core of our societies.
climate change crisis has not disappeared.
it will also be fundamental for the green recovery but public finance will not be enough. investor appetite for sustainable opportunities is on the rise.
nearly ten months ago the commission adopted the sustainable europe investment plan which is an investment plan for the european green deal.
we should be here and indeed we are not banned from coming here but we are banned from physically participating in meetings we are banned from meeting face to face at the coffee machine too because that's part of parliamentary work as well.
there are very few people who deny that and they are believing in conspiracies but measures have to be necessary proportionate and timelimited.
why is the european parliament the only parliament in europe and indeed the only parliament in brussels which is virtually shut down?
and as this crisis is lasting longer than just a few weeks we have to be very vigilant and we have to be very critical because as ms barley also indicated there are some governments who are very cynically exploiting this pandemic to expand their own authoritarian empires.
yes it's again at the expense of women's rights and lgbti people's rights.
so finally i think we need more harmonisation also in the exit strategy from this situation because even if the countries are hit in different ways by the pandemic all eu citizens are entitled to democracy the rule of law and fundamental rights in the entire european union.
we see huge differences across the member states and that's actually very strange because even if the measures are national fundamental rights are european and they should apply equally to all european citizens.
yes it's the usual suspects it's hungary and it's poland.
on democracy and the functioning of parliament because democratic scrutiny is more important than ever when governments get exceptional powers or the executives get exceptional powers and we all realise that there are practical and legal restrictions on our work i very much concur with what has just been said.
i think we give completely the wrong signal to the citizen.
and it has been done by a unilateral decision of the president of this house there has not been a political decision it's not timelimited.
but vaccinations once we have a safe and effective vaccine will play a crucial role.
it will provide our citizens with a sense of hope and predictability.
i will never stop saying that.
to maximise our chances of success we have been working very intensively to have a diverse common eu portfolio of vaccines against covid nineteen as soon as possible and developed using different technologies.
this has been ongoing before covid nineteen with vaccination hesitancy to do with children's diseases with measles and we cannot afford to encourage this.
but these are rules that also protect the tendering process and we fully abide by them not for the reasons linked to contractors' commercial interests but also because we do not want to weaken the position of the commission in the negotiations.
so let me conclude by addressing some of the worries that i'm sure i will hear about today and i have heard over the past weeks.
due to the highly competitive nature of this global market the commission is legally not able to disclose the information contained in the contracts.
the companies require that such sensitive business information remains confidential between the signatories of the contract.
the safety of our citizens is a top priority and it is not negotiable for us.
i have often been asked over the last few days and i want to reassure you that once a vaccine becomes available all member states will have equal access to the available doses at the same time according to the agreements we have concluded.
i look forward to hearing this debate. i'm sure it is going to be a very lively one.
but i also saw something else i saw the element of hope that european union citizens felt with this news.
let me stress this we all need to have the same messaging because we see a lot of vaccination hesitancy.
now i fully recognise the importance of transparency in this process.
i can assure you that over the last five to six months we have been working twenty four seven on this and we need to continue to do this because it is possibly the only way we have out of this pandemic but not at the cost of reducing safety concerns for citizens.
we are therefore doing everything we can to ensure that vaccines are produced as quickly and as safely as possible.
finally we are acting in full compliance with all the applicable rules regarding financial management and are confident that the process will stand any future review or audit.
the european medicines agency will be doing everything possible once any vaccine submits for authorisation to ensure that the safety dimension is covered.
nondisclosure clauses are a standard feature of these agreements that vaccine developers have also concluded with other countries.
this is necessary to protect these sensitive negotiations and businessrelated information such as financial information development and production plans.
the commission therefore cannot really decide to unilaterally disclose them without the consent of all involved parties.
we need to be extremely careful during these negotiations so that we do not have companies leading to cherrypicking on the best conditions.
our negotiations are also advanced with another two companies and exploratory talks are ongoing with a number of producers.
thank you for your patience.
the negotiations with companies have been intensive and inclusive carried out with and for member states.
so what we want to do is have common communication and assure citizens that we will not lower the bar in terms of safety at any cost.
mr president honourable members i'm not going to repeat what i have already been saying that we have been witnessing with great concern
it will play a crucial role in saving lives in containing the pandemic in protecting our health systems and of course in restoring our economy.
predictability is something that we often take for granted but what we have been living with in the last ten months is the uncertainty of not knowing what the next day will hold.
every day when we listen to the news and we hear in all our countries the number of people who have been admitted to hospitals to intensive care the number of people who lose their lives we understand that we need to do everything possible and this is what we have been doing as a commission from the very beginning.
unfortunately for covid nineteen there is really no silver bullet and it is important that when we communicate to citizens we are open and frank about this.
madam president executive vice president in order to truly deliver on the ambitious objectives of the european green deal it must be sustainable not only environmentally but also socioeconomically.
to achieve this goal we need to mobilise an unprecedented level of investment.
in terms of public funds we will have many instruments in our toolbox under the umbrella of the next mff and recovery plan.
we have to create favourable business environments adequate regulatory frameworks relevant and accessible financial instruments and above all incentives for companies to invest in sustainable technologies.
we have now an agreement with the mff and all of this is very important that it is completely aligned with the objectives of the green deal.
there are some issues in the report that i would like to stress today that are particularly important for us.
to speed up the own resources debate as we agreed on the mff but also to continue our fight against tax fraud tax evasion tax avoidance aggressive tax planning and also commissioner the enforcement of our anti money laundering legislation which is of extreme importance.
but we also need to make sure that the companies that are benefiting from public support in these difficult times commit to strictly respect the objectives of the green deal and also we need to make sure that the big technological companies that are benefiting from the situation that we are living through pay also their fair share to our society.
we as greens together with other colleagues have tabled additional amendments to the plenary to enrich the text which i hope can have the support of our colleagues.
one of them calls on the commission to disclose the exposure of eu funds to the eu taxonomy objectives and categories and the other one very important will call on the member states to act against tax avoidance and also to put their public expenditure in line with the goals of the green deal.
it is directly responsible for huge swathes of destruction to natural habitats flora and fauna. it is also completely out of control with corporates using it in everyday items such as shampoo and doughnuts and it is now even being proposed for use in united kingdom banknotes.
to take global action on the production of palm oil and mitigate the environmental consequences it is vital that international commitments are honoured in particular the united nations forum on forests the united nations convention on biological biodiversity the new york declaration on forests and the sustainable development goal to halt deforestation by.
the lack of ownership and control over land affects women negatively in terms of economic dependence.
that is why it is important to support equal opportunities better access to education vocational training and new skills to develop entrepreneurial initiatives.
the people i represent are horrified that car manufacturers have been cheating on emissions tests and they demand strong action from the european parliament to stand up to this corporate abuse of power.
while this report represents a step in the right direction we need to put citizens and their health first and demand that car manufacturers do not cheat the tests and cheat people of their health and their future.
such a body is essential to safeguard the health of the people in south west england.
air pollution is responsible for forty zero deaths a year in the uk and three hundred every year in the city of bristol and the issue has not been taken seriously enough. during this process we have witnessed the power of the car industry lobby and sadly we have seen conservative forces in this parliament working with them to water down the protections that citizens need.
i am disappointed that the green proposal for an independent agency to regulate and monitor emissions was not passed.
however our internal impact on nature is no less important than the one which our consumption habits and policies have externally.
and moreover we are endangering the lives of indigenous people. i welcome the call in the report for the establishment of strong standards for sustainable palm oil production.
a range of discrepancies as well as their negative impact on the attainment of our air quality objectives were duly identified.
however i believe that the findings of this report provide us with an opportunity to re evaluate and improve upon the existing eu framework on emission measurements. enhanced regulation and discipline will therefore provide the keystone for future procedures.
i believe that it is completely unacceptable that a private company acting from a boardroom somewhere in the united states would decide how european elections are being run.
facebook has been enforcing since the beginning of this week a new advertising policy that is hampering the possibilities and the capabilities of the european parliament as well as european political parties to do
the president of this house and sections of the parliament and the commission and the council have written letters to mr nick clegg protesting against this new practice but so far facebook is not reacting.
it's arrogant and completely unacceptable i repeat that facebook tries to dictate the democratic organisations and institutions like the ep and the european political parties that have legitimate grounds for eu wide campaigning and eu wide advertising rules that make this impossible.
this funding is vital just like the european funding programmes over the years that have underpinned regeneration and economic development and which have supported important programmes across social priorities like adult learning. the british government must now commit to replacing these funding programmes pound for pound.
anything less will not be acceptable. if billions can be found for a no deal brexit then money can be found to replace these eu funding programmes on a poundforpound basis. anything less will not be acceptable.
we have got eleven billion we've got ten zero border guards and yet quite simply the people traffickers haven't given up. spain's got its problems and the united kingdom's got its problems across the channel.
you mentioned the european values and actually if you read article two the first value that is mentioned there is human dignity. human dignity cannot be divided it is for all present and to come.
this is not just a justification for the past century.
if we can't make them fit within the boundaries that nature sets us it's the survival of humankind that is at stake.
while we understand that the wounds of the past cannot be ignored we believe that as a member of the eu latvia is strong enough not to keep more than ten of its population stateless.
the single market is the ultimate free trade agreement.
you and i know that it is not legally binding and that it is grounded in values of state sovereignty responsibility sharing non discrimination and human rights and it recognise that only a cooperative approach will allow us to meet this challenge.
however recently your government opposed any binding relocation scheme which is actually the only way to organise european solidarity.
and actually you are quite typical of that commitment that you find in the baltic republics.
arguably the cap predominantly promotes a productivist model that goes against these goals and your government supports it and actually you find it already too green for your taste.
we are convinced though that the best chance of achieving that target is actually to fight for a greener cap that moves away from the productivist model and to industrial farming.
i believe that the three baltics and the benelux countries should cooperate much more deeply because if they can find agreement between them i think they could be bridge builders and foster unity in europe maybe better than the franco german duo which seems to be a bit at odds at the moment.
i understand that your country and i agree with that wants its fair share of the cap.
i liked you reminding us that the european union is a peace project solving differences through dialogue rather than sheer force.
i liked also very much the fact that you were upfront about money laundering and i think that you found the right words and we like to hear them because i know that your commitment on that is very strong.
count on us to relentlessly defend the first ever attempt at building a transnational democracy. but equally count on us to make it work for everyone by putting human dignity rather than short term economic profits at the front and in the centre. a more just more sustainable more free and democratic europe is what our citizens want.
but it is very specific because unlike all other free trade agreements it is governed by democratic institutions the european parliament the european council.
thirdly we have welcomed and again today you managed to avoid this the fact that all three baltic republics have avoided the toxic grandstanding that we have seen on the topic of asylum and migration. i really appreciated your words on that.
first for us greens the european project must resolutely choose to be a leader the engine of the ecological transition of our societies.
similarly we believe that your country could and should do more to promote minority rights and fight discrimination especially when it comes to age disability or sexual orientation.
it has also refused to sign the un global migration compact which contrary to the allegations of the national populists is simply providing guidelines as to how to handle this challenge.
it's also a matter of leadership if we europeans don't lead in that transition others will and we will be left with buying their solutions rather than providing ours to the rest of the world.
we've not always been of one mind on economic affairs but i have always been very impressed by the strength of your commitment to our common european project and again today was a testament to that.
latvia's history as an unwilling part of the soviet union has resulted in a significant part of your citizenship originating from former soviet republics.
it is today's justification for the european project.
i liked very much your statement on the beauty of the single market and really describe it and i'm enthusiastic myself to work for that europe where we are brave enough to take advantage of the fact that we present together and only together more than twenty of the gross national product of the world.
we cannot simply sit back and hope that things will somehow evolve over time and that we will get there in the end.
to the poor quality air that we see in far too many of our cities and that is affecting far too many of our citizens. public procurement alone accounts for some fourteen of the gdp of the union and seventy five of new bus registrations.
we are seeing protests not just in some member states but in all member states by young people by concerned citizens.
but i must also say it is parliament and it is the cities that always want the more ambition and it is the member states that always push back.
this is the lesson of my five years in this parliament i very much hope i will return to this parliament being a brit that's a slightly precarious situation.
but let me just say thank you to everyone that i've worked with here.
we have to take that action now and that's why i'm very proud that we have done so.
it is a great and noble thing at that we will be coming together here to provide money for clean vehicles that will deliver public goods and help member states achieve the climate and energy targets. by two thousand and thirty sixty five of buses will have to be clean as defined under the directive.
this file is a really good example of the kind of things that we were elected here to do to up the ambition when it comes to tackling climate change to increase the action that we take when it comes to cleaning up the vehicles that are on our roads which are the single leading contributor not only to co two emissions but
but i have to say in response to my colleagues in the epp we need this ambition.
we have to take the tough decisions now.
if only we could replace fear with hope.
because i have time and i am in poetic mood i will repeat again the lines of a very famous irish poet seamus heaney so hope for a great sea change on the far side of revenge.
it contains an open list of exemptions which allow to sell products of different quality in seemingly identical packaging and it obliges the consumer to prove every time that he or she was treated unfairly.
so in the name of over one hundred members from twenty five member states who signed the amendment which prohibits this unfair practice i ask you all to vote on the submitted amendments individually.