kfajdsl/voxpopuli huggingface dataset:
while as i said the situation is much more encouraging than a year ago it is also very essential to keep the reform momentum. there is clearly no room for complacency and therefore we very much look forward to the positive conclusion of the ongoing review mission which would further support
the greek authorities have announced that a new national broadcaster will be launched soon and this is positive news.
but the specific decision on how to rationalise the public administration rests with the greek government.
the samaras led coalition the capitalist class it represents will use any means at its disposal to pursue the class war which it is waging against the greek people regardless of whether that means tearing up the constitution.
i salute the working people in greece who occupy the buildings who organise mass protests who went on strike.
it comes after the government has declared every major strike in the last six months to be illegal and has tried to force workers to go to work.
madam president the dictatorial closure of the ert the shutting down of the broadcaster's tv and radio stations the sacking of two six hundred and fifty workers all represents a dictatorial attack on workers' rights and conditions and on basic democratic rights.
it is another sign of the arrogant and dictatorial nature of this government.
as i said at the outset it would not be appropriate for me as a representative of the council to respond to the various points that have been made in the course of the debate but what i can say is that we all have an interest in robust and free media. however decisions
it is a great honour for me to be nominated vice president of the european parliament with the support of the european people's party.
i am committed to furthering the european integration of former communist countries and nations in the eastern and central european region in particular that of the hungarian minority community in romania that i represent as a member of the european people's party.
it was a similar honour to receive the highest state decoration of romania the order of the star in december two thousand and nine at the commemoration of the twentieth anniversary of the fall of communist dictatorship in romania.
as you know this process started last november.
i understand that there may be many people who would have voted differently if they had known they had the choice of the three.
what i would like to ask is if indeed this is the correct way to do it to do it one last time.
mr president it is surely not beyond the wit of intelligent people to understand that we want to vote for against or abstain as we do normally.
he was able to rise silently with vacuous grace as he was plucked from the french establishment from among his merchant banking chums to save them temporarily may i say from madam le pen's french revolution.
we all benefit from having access to finance but some voices in the eu are determined to put barriers in the way of its flow.
the uk has all the attributes that could make it the eu's best friend but instead we are told by macron that voting for brexit is a crime that the uk must be made an example of so that no country considers leaving.
in terms of expenditure the financial sector is by far the largest it sector of our economy.
the commission is looking to promote a thriving and globally competitive european financial sector as part of the digital single market.
first fintech can be an important driver to expand access to financial services for both consumers and businesses.
it can also be an important tool for financial inclusion while we must not overlook those that are not digitally connected.
it can increase efficiency and reduce operating costs means of generation and distribution of services and also in terms of meeting regulatory and compliance requirements.
technological innovation can enhance the single market overcoming obstacles such as location or distance and enhancing competition by lowering barriers to entry.
data integrity and security are also essential to ensure market confidence.
and integrity in terms of transparency security or the use of data.
it will make finance safer and better for consumers and will help us to find cost efficiencies and improve the quality of our financial services.
this is an area that i have particular interest in as it is one that i see has huge potential for innovative solutions across the entire economy in terms of making payments financing investments and managing data.
there are obviously regulatory questions that come up in this discussion however and so i think that the support is timely.
the rapporteur has involved people in this process from the start. i also want to say that this is one of the most important debates this parliament will have because this is the first time when this report is adopted tomorrow that any institution of the european union has actually got a report on the table. i am aware that the commission is in a consultative phase right now in terms of the future regulatory environment and i would ask them to study carefully as the commissioner said what we have produced in this report.
we see this as an opportunity not just for businesses here within the european union but much more importantly for customers.
this is about getting the best deal possible for customers.
it is about moving into new space and also about transforming how we deliver financial services.
a key issue for our group the european people's party was the question of financial stability.
we want to make sure that as we go forward we do not lose the very important steps that have been taken in the last decade or so in terms of financial stability.
europe is lagging behind.
the great majority of the large fintech businesses have been established in the united states in china and israel not in europe.
we are behind other parts of the world notwithstanding the fact that in places like my own constituency of dublin in the netherlands in france and in germany and elsewhere and london especially we have seen fantastic hubs being developed.
we need the right regulatory environment and that is about the regulators working with innovators to make sure that we can do that.
we have said many things when it comes to data security.
we believe that those issues need to be resolved.
we also believe it is important for the digital market economy the digital single economy that we make sure this transformation occurs right the way across all of the institutions here in the european union.
fintech is all about consumer benefits and empowerment.
in fact consumers are the driving force behind the rise of fintechs thanks to the increased accessibility cost reductions and transparency.
at the same time for businesses fin tech means the benefits of efficiency gains better data management and tailored services for each client.
in total this is good for everyone consumers citizens and businesses alike. but for all this to work consumers need confidence and trust in this digital revolution.
we need a solid cyber security system to be put in place along with safeguards and effective measures against potential risks and the complex challenges of the financial world.
it could be argued that many of these points concern future budgets rather than the two thousand and nine budget but i believe that when we consider any budget and any discharge we should also look to the future to ensure that we learn lessons from the past.
mr president for the sixteenth year the court of auditors has only given a qualified statement of assurance which means for the sixteenth year public confidence in the integrity of the management of our financial affairs has been undermined.
so until i see evidence of significant improvement i shall continue to vote against discharge of the budget.
the auditors report that far too many headings are materially affected by error and since eighty of our spending is under shared management with the member states it is perfectly clear that the member states must accept greater responsibility.
it is clear too that the commission must give greater urgency to achieving that outcome.
i recognise that the commission has made efforts to make improvements but in voting to grant discharge i can only vote outcomes not intent.
all the eu agencies should make available on their websites a list of all contracts awarded over the previous three years at least and the commission should undertake to integrate this information into its financial transparency system.
yet the british government never implemented these provisions concealing that fact under eu law.
last week the british home office ruled that post brexit irish citizens born in the north of ireland will not benefit from retaining eu rights.
a provision of the good friday agreement recognises the right of people born in the north of ireland to be irish british or both.
we will never ever go back to that.
we have a fraud epidemic already in the uk costing us gbp one hundred and ten billion.
we cannot tackle corruption on our own and that's why brexit would cause the uk more untold problems.
system providing information on the scale nature and root causes of fraud.
we have to continue to protect the people we represent and the values we hold.
this simply reinforces why each member state needs each other and how the eu can ensure that we work across borders to root out fraudulent activity.
the financial cost of fraud in two thousand and eighteen estimates that the uk economy could be boosted by gbp forty four billion annually if we tackled it fully. and as the olaf report states to achieve better results in tackling fraud against the eu's financial interests the auditors recommend that the commission should put in place a robust fraud reporting and measurement
we would be left at risk of becoming an offshore island for tax havens.
two days ago the uk department for transport started a month of works on the london bound carriageway with night closures between eight p. m.
we've also seen from the same department for transport the issue of a contract to a ferry company with no ships from a port with no appropriate landing facilities. now the dft has since changed its mind and cancelled that contract.
it seems that the dft is allowed to change its mind but the british people are not.
but no the purpose of the closures is to turn part of the motorway into a lorry park to cope with the disruption of a no deal brexit.
for mutually beneficial outcomes.
four hundred zero that's almost an increase of some thirty five to support local development and improved governance of fisheries. also the commission will keep the parliament regularly informed of the implementation of this agreement and will also provide reports both on the catches and on the use of the eu financial contributions. the conclusion of the new protocol to the fisheries partnership agreement will reinforce the stable relationship between the eu and cte d'ivoire
but what troubles me most is the report on european citizenship.
we've got more calls for taxpayers' money to be spent to attack any antieu dissenting voice. and when you define proeu as being good and antieu as being propaganda when the state dictates speech and opinion you erode democracy. and then to cap it all
and if there's one thing that we should realise by now that should be absolutely obvious by now it is that the state cannot impose identity on the people.
it seeks to impose an eu identity upon citizens in countries across europe.
there is the suggestion that europe day nine may should be made into a bank holiday across europe to bribe voters with a holiday to like the european union more.
mr president i won't try to speak on four different reports in ninety seconds but there are some rare moments of agreement between eurosceptics and federalists even when it comes to the european ombudsman and holding eu institutions to account.
we ask you to consider carefully the amendments that would deprive the future programme of these elements of flexibility in particular at a time when there are significant developments in the anti fraud area such as the creation of the european public prosecutor which might call for adaptation over time of the activities that the programme supports.
commission has chosen to table light touch basic acts for its proposals for spending programmes in the next mff cycle in order to achieve a high degree of flexibility thus allowing the programmes to adapt better to new and unforeseen needs during the seven years of the next mff.
the commission takes note of the report's proposal significantly to increase the financial envelope for the programme and we interpret that as recognition of the success of the current programme.
the eu institutions have deployed significant efforts to fight against fraud in recent years for example with the adoption of the new directive on the protection of the eu financial interests through criminal law and the establishment of the european public prosecutor's office.
and irregularities.
the main novelty of the eu anti fraud programme is to combine these three strands of work on a single legal basis in order to provide for synergies and flexibility among them.
the first is the anti fraud information system a set of it tools supporting member states' customs authorities in mutual administrative assistance between national authorities and the commission.
the proposed eu anti fraud programme despite its relatively small size fits perfectly into this picture. it combines the longstanding hercule programme which has successfully supported the fight against fraud since two thousand and four with two long established operational activities performed by the commission
these must be effectively and efficiently prevented detected and tackled at eu and member state level.
the amount for the programme will need to be discussed further in the context of the general negotiations on the multiannual financial framework the.
this applies also to the adoption of the work programmes which will become the main tool for programme delivery. these are mere acts of implementation which do not amend or supplement the legal framework and therefore do not need to be adopted by means of delegated acts.
this is why the commission has chosen for instance not to set up co financing rates for grants in the proposal itself or to fix only indicative amounts for each of the three pillars of the programme.
so let's not turn things around.
crisis after crisis and every time this parliament has responded with great responsibility to those crises working together closely with the commission sometimes not so closely with the council but all three of us trying to find solutions. these reports reflect the wish of the majority of this parliament to do an ever better job and the commission will be on your side to try to improve its activities to work together to improve our performance for european citizens. i would invite you to join me in trying to convince the council to take similar steps forward.
mr president i have listened to the different perspectives in this parliament on what it is to be a citizen and on the issue of an ever closer union and i want to start by adding my own perspective after thirty three years now first as a soldier then as a diplomat then as a member of parliament then a minister and now as a member of the commission. it would be impossible for me not to acknowledge
who could say today that any citizen in any member state has lost her or his identity because of the european union?
who could say today that a polish citizen living in the european union is less free than a polish citizen before poland joined the european union?
i want to add that the reports we're discussing today are part of an ongoing process of institutions trying to work within the legal order that we have the treaties to try to improve the situation not just creating more power for themselves but doing something about
it is not anybody's dream to impose a superstate' or something of that nature. it is about citizens sharing more and more the same values and coming closer together on what they think is important for them and their children.
nobody could say that!
that in those thirty three years european citizens from east and west north and south have grown closer together.
i honestly believe identities are more protected thanks to the european union thanks to the charter of fundamental rights and thanks to all the legal norms that the european union and its member states have adhered to.
let's see them in the right historical perspective. i wanted at least to share with you my perspective. i respect all the other perspectives but this is mine from my experience.
and boy has the european union been challenged in the past ten years!
at the same time in a democratic society these freedoms must be exercised whilst also respecting other freedoms and rights and therefore may be subject to certain limitations if that is justified by objectives in the public interest such as the maintenance of law and order.
on that basis and within its competence the commission closely follows any relevant developments that could affect this right and it stands fully ready to take action if needed.
they are essential to the common constitutional traditions of member states and thus of the european union as a whole.
it is also important to remember that as explicitly specified in the charter the fundamental freedom enshrined in article twelve refers to peaceful assembly.
i have taken due note of the various points raised during this debate.
mr president i would like to thank all of you for your interventions and valuable views and also for the broad support for this multiannual plan.
so with thousands of families in limbo the uk government should immediately honour their rights.
it has allowed us to travel work study trade and fall in love across twenty eight borders.
i like having multiple identities.
but if brexit happens and the uk is no longer a member state i will no longer be a citizen of the union and nor will sixty eight million others.
it's one of the finest achievements of the european union and it should be celebrated.
mr president i am a proud european and i am happy to say that that does not devalue my british citizenship for me it only enhances it.
losing our eu citizenship will be an enormous loss to the british people to its businesses and the services that we provide with our closest neighbours.
i need just to finish with this with less than fifty days to go the rights of zambrano carers are still not resolved.
we're not opposed in principle but to our knowledge the current two year period does not seem to have raised any practical problems.
these are preliminary remarks and the commission will of course issue its opinion on the review at a later stage in the procedure in line with article two hundred and twenty eight of the treaty.
i would also like to recall that the ombudsman's role is to deal with cases of maladministration.
extending the possibilities for the ombudsman to appear before the european parliament would also be welcome as in principle is the possibility for the ombudsman to refer issues to olaf and the european public prosecutor's office.
we would agree in principle to amendments that consolidate current practice which in our experience has worked well.
i would like to commend the ombudsman's work in fighting maladministration which has been highly effective.
this is illustrated for example by the high compliance rate of eu institutions and bodies with her recommendations which is around.
it is of course essential that the outcome of this review fully respects the respective roles of the eu institutions and bodies as established by the treaty. i'd like to make a few preliminary remarks without prejudice to the formal opinion that the commission will issue at a later stage as foreseen in the treaty.
the european ombudsman is a key part of the institutional system of the european union and an essential aid at the disposal of european citizens who are entitled to good administration from the eu institutions and bodies.
this includes the possibility for the ombudsman to propose solutions and for the deadline for the commission to reply to recommendations to be able to be extended by two months.
as regards the proposed extension to three years of the deadline for lodging a complaint we'd like to better understand the reasons for such an extension.
cooperation between the ombudsman and the fundamental rights agency on national fundamental rights institutions and bodies should remain within that remit.
in addition the more time that has elapsed the more difficult it is for the administration to effectively address the issue raised by the complainant.
the main reason is the exclusion of opposition and minority parties from the mainstream national media in some eu countries.
they weren't given sufficient time to consider their position.
the deadline for amendments is currently seven o'clock tonight.
i wish to record my thanks to my assistant lavan for his hard work.
if there is one lesson i have learned from this process it is that parliament should rethink how we deal with these situations.
mr president i was pleased to see this report adopted in committee last month and i thank my shadow rapporteurs for working with me to produce a good result.
this then left us only four months to write the report and bring it to plenary.
an example that i have used throughout discussions on this file is that it took the best part of two hundred years for humanity to reach the full potential of the steam engine.
this will be one of the most important aspects of ensuring competitiveness on a global scale.
it will operate between and across the different jurisdictions of the world.
it is sometimes forgotten that when ai and human abilities are combined they are more powerful than when used in isolation.
as ai progresses it will destroy some jobs and create others.
we are at the beginning of seeing the adoption of ai and it will take many years before we see its full potential and reap the full benefits of it.
we must ensure that the eu and our member states discuss this at an international level and as far as possible develop global standards.
we believe that ai should have a human centred approach.
it can make us more prosperous healthier and create jobs that currently don't exist.
we should therefore approach its governance with a global mindset.
what is meant by this is that the use of ai should augment human capabilities rather than just replace them.
one final point i wish to make is that artificial intelligence does not have borders.
this has been demonstrated particularly well in the medical field.
it is important that we prepare society for the changes ahead through developing education and training.
we should recognise that most of the investment in this field will come from the private sector not the state or the eu.
we need to ensure that we have a skilled workforce to take advantage of the new opportunities.
this should encourage the good actors and deter the bad ones. working under such a code and ensuring transparency will ensure greater acceptance of this technology.
we spent the next six months arguing over who should be the lead committee so work only started in october.
we've had to work at great speed and i'm glad that we've been able to get a substantial report through within such a short time frame.
my main objective has been to ensure that this is a positive report that signals our willingness to adopt this technology and provide the correct conditions for it to thrive.
the uk is sadly attempting to leave just when it needs to be a part of the european project leading not leaving.
we must make sure that collectively and collaboratively we work for the interests of the people we represent whether that be by ensuring that the loopholes for tax evasion are closed strengthening human and workers' rights continuing the peace project that is europe or ensuring balanced trade deals with countries with whom the eu has the same values and not undermining human rights while we do it.
people are feeling that the systems and institutions no longer serve their interests.