kfajdsl/voxpopuli huggingface dataset:
from a human rights perspective these activists are subject to aggressive actions by syrian security services including spamming and hacking into their social media.
it is always appreciated to have a proper follow up and exchange based on the debates we have here in the plenary.
madam president first of all i want to thank the high representative for her work in the arab world as we describe it but in particular for her interventions in bahrain on behalf of those whose human rights have been violated and who have been subjected to inhumane treatment and torture.
i welcome her statement today on the disgraceful treatment of doctors and medics in bahrain.
i think the total disregard for medical neutrality is just staggering.
so many ngos such as human rights watch doctors without borders or physicians for human rights have documented numerous cases of torture in hospitals and medical centres in bahrain.
it is unacceptable anywhere but i think it is doubly so in a medical facility.
but the recent initiative by king hamad on the independent and investigative commission might offer some possibilities.
it is one hundred years since women won the vote;
she's holding a sign that reads courage calls to courage everywhere'. well we need that courage more than ever now so i call on women across the uk and europe to step up the fight to defend european values.
madam president we are celebrating forty years of labour party representation in the european parliament. labour women have played a huge role in the life of this parliament not just on the women's rights committee but leading in other areas such as economy internal market international trade health and environment foreign affairs development culture and education.
now we have a statue of millicent fawcett in parliament square commemorating the suffragette movement.
remain such an important player in defining our future energy policy fit for the twenty first century.
but i would say that in the majority of cases we are able to find very strong common ground.
i am proud to be a part of finding this agreement.
i would like to reiterate that once again.
again my thanks to the rapporteur.
indeed dieselgate was one of the impulses which gave us the strength to come with the proposal because we had a very good reason also to explain to the opponents that we need the possibility for european consumers to go and collectively defend their rights. i could name every member state where there is some case of mass harm situation. for instance in spain
the market will deliver better signals to prompt and enable more investment in particular in clean and flexible solutions.
household bills will become clearer so that consumers can better understand what they are paying for.
one is a recommendation to the european commission inviting the european commission to start a rule of law dialogue with malta.
nevertheless some concerns remain concerning the so called system of revolving doors.
i would also call on the commission to reinstate its annual corruption report because we don't feel that the current formula in the european semester is strong enough.
we are discussing today the oral question and the draft resolution that we will vote on later this year.
and we would also urge the slovak government to end the deadlock in the nominations to the constitutional court and to refrain from adopting the new media law.
if one of the member states undermines the rule of law if one of the member states doesn't apply our common rules and standards then basically the whole european system is broken.
it is on the one hand highlighting concerns and criticisms and shortcomings but i'm happy to say that it is also welcoming and noting some very positive developments and i think the lesson that we can draw from this is that europe works.
the resolution makes a couple of recommendations which are also summarised in the questions to the commission.
and we also have a general call to end the scheme of golden visas and golden passports not just in malta but in all member states.
not just the people who committed the murder but also the brain behind it.
with regard to slovakia we note that the probable brain behind the murder has not only been caught but also charged with amongst other things the murder of jan and martina and i'm happy to say that further inquiries into corruption and connections with organised crime are being conducted.
because we are a system all together.
it is clear that the intervention of the european union helps the member states come back on track where they risked running off the tracks when it comes to the rule of law and fundamental rights.
but we also see that when public authorities themselves are engaging in wrongdoing we should have the means as the european union to come in.
i think that if we look at the text of the resolution as it is today it focuses on malta and slovakia but not exclusively.
so i think we have every reason to strengthen that system and strengthen europol.
it has been drafted together with all the main political groups by the rule of law monitoring committee and it is the result of almost a year ten months of hearings on site visits meetings correspondence video conferences with governments with the police public prosecutors journalists ngos experts
and finally there are some general recommendations to all of us.
first of all it has become clear to me in the course of the work of the rule of law monitoring group that we need to strengthen europol because now europol can now basically only do its job when it is invited by the member states.
we think that that would be justified. at the same time i also intend to put forward amendments recognising the fact that the maltese government has now announced that they will implement the recommendations of the venice commission but nevertheless i think a dialogue would be appropriate.
and finally we would urge the commission in particular mr timmermans who is not here today to finally respond to the call the repeated calls of the european parliament for a comprehensive mechanism the so called drf pact the democracy rule of law and fundamental rights pact.
we see some of the people who stepped down actually coming back in other jobs.
as you rightly said there will also be european elections shortly which would mean that we cannot say anything about any country anymore.
by leaving it on the agenda and voting on thursday as foreseen we show that the rule of law is not partisan it doesn't belong to any particular member state and it is universal.
so i really don't think that there is a risk and we should not politicise these matters by taking it off the agenda.
i think that's what we should express.
the resolution is extremely balanced and factual and i fail to see how that would be unduly influencing the elections.
the resolution is partly critical but it also establishes that progress is being made in particular in the two countries that you mentioned so i really don't think that there is a risk. this is a nonpolitical issue.
but i would really like you to clarify the last statement about how this resolution indicates that there is a rift between eastern and western europe.
look i've heard your criticisms.
i think they're unfounded and i wasn't going to react.
i have always maintained that there is no eastern europe or western europe or central europe or northern europe or southern europe.
dirty russian money a lot of money is coming into our single market without proper detection or prevention but also without proper law enforcement and also without proper sanctions of the institutions and banks that let us down when we see big money laundering scandals.
i have to say that it's a big step forward that this parliament and commission and council has taken to make a list of third countries' non cooperative jurisdictions.
we need transparency so we need country by country reporting when it comes to corporate taxes so we can also see whether they behave in a socially responsible way.
therefore in this work we have a lot of good recommendations.
that's the first thing and we will fight for that.
on money laundering we need a centralised process where we cooperate between european countries because today it's too easy to bring your dirty money and make it clean and use it all over europe.
therefore i think before us we have a very good and comprehensive report but i have to say that a lot has to be done in the future as well.
it's a threat to our justice system in europe and we need to do something about it.
we need to also call on them to pay fair taxes and we need legislation to ensure that that happens.
but if you applied some of the same criteria that we use on third countries on european member states will see that some of them fall short. they also facilitate aggressive tax planning and that had to stop our own government has to stop this practice that is harming their neighbour even in the european union.
we also see that when the biggest corporations on this earth the tech giants are doing good business here creating a lot of value in their interaction with european users they do not pay fair taxes on the value they create.
we have to detect it and stop it much better.
therefore i also call for a more permanent structure in this parliament to deal with taxation and financial crimes.
this is a threat to our financial and economic stability.
first of all having an effective minimum corporate taxation in europe is really what we need now in our single market to stop the race to the bottom on corporate taxation.
and we need our countries our member states to ensure that they follow the standards they should.
we need a common consolidated corporate tax base.
we conclude many years of work of this parliament fighting against tax evasion tax avoidance and financial crimes.
we are attracting a lot of money and business but at the same time we are not effective in stopping financial crimes and money laundering.
so therefore this fight is so important.
this being said i would like to reassure you that i know from my discussions with member states so far that all of them see as clearly as we do the need for a coordinated approach.
however the choice of standard time is a member state prerogative. there is no change here.
to conclude let me thank you once more for all your constructive work.
such an empowerment should in principle only relate to nonessential elements while the entry into force is clearly an essential element of the proposal.
the member state in question would have the obligation to defend its choice and explain how it will address its negative impact.
as you know the commission has been deliberately very ambitious and proposed to see the last seasonal time change already this year.
as you are aware the commission decided last year to propose the discontinuation of the seasonal time change.
available evidence suggested that the justification for the time change arrangement currently applicable has become irrelevant. it is equally clear that a discontinuation would help to make people's lives easier and deal with some health issues that have been related to the current system.
the results of the commission's public consultation are very straightforward.
however given that the council has not yet established its own position we recognise that it becomes impossible to meet such a deadline. i therefore take good note of your report's position in favour of stopping seasonal time changes in.
i am confident that they will choose their respective standard time in a responsible and coordinated manner.
first you have proposed to introduce a new coordination network involving member states and the commission to discuss jointly and assess member states' decisions on standard time and their impact on the internal market and if the commission considers that the choice of a member state would significantly affect the proper functioning of the internal market
secondly the commission has legal concerns with the proposed empowerment to postpone the application of the new arrangements via a delegated act.
the decision on standard time has always been taken at national level. the commission cannot support new legal provisions in the directive that would not be in line with this division of responsibilities between the eu and member states and would not respect the principle of subsidiarity.
the commission sees very well the intention behind such amendments and shares the view that an adequate coordination between member states is necessary.
member states. let me also finish on a more
to east. some of the new rules put in place by the commission have been challenged before the general
two thousand and seventeen in line with the emergency and restoration network code we worked on structured multilevel frameworks that oblige member states to define and coordinate their strategies ex ante.
it provides for greater transparency and incentives for data sharing with safeguards for confidentiality and it minimises collective costs arising from supply disruption and market distortion by allowing non market based solutions only as a last resort.
as shadow rapporteur for the regulation of risk preparedness in the electricity sector i strongly welcomed the commission's proposal which is very much needed as was sadly shown by the uncoordinated cross border response to the cold spell that affected southern europe in january.
the future implementation of this regulation will successfully lower the risk of black outs and it will also lower the electricity bills for consumers while decreasing our member states' dependence on third countries' energy supply.
it delivers a truly union approach thanks to a unique risk assessment methodology approved but acer and the strong involvement of the regional coordination centres in all phases of the planning procedure.
this is a political decision which should be left to the house. therefore i urge you to recall your decision in calling this amendment inadmissible and let the house vote on it tomorrow.
i think europe has to show the way for a twenty first century corporate tax system that is fair to citizens fair to member states and of course fair to businesses.
issues and also financial crimes and money laundering.
so colleagues i want to say thank you.
the issue at hand mr president is the growing inequality magnified by tax avoidance which allows the one of the rich and the big to shift the bills of schools and healthcare and other things onto the;
it is time that we took our own political responsibility in the european union.
second there is ample evidence that at least five eu member states are tax havens in everything but name damaging other members in the union depriving them of essential tax revenues. it is time to call a spade a spade to call luxembourg ireland the netherlands cyprus and malta eu tax havens.
it has been put forward by the commission and it has been supported by the european parliament and now we have to bring it into the international discussion in the oecd.
therefore let's take our responsibility and vote for amendment ninety.
we are already listing tax havens outside the european union;
in two ways first of all we need a structural reform of the corporate taxation system.
so this is still about the position of the secretary general and as you just said that is a political decision and should be left to the house. one part you leave to the house;
so once again as i stand here i say to you to all the people who are listening in on the screens that even though this is the last opportunity that i might get here on a monday night to represent them perhaps if the solution to brexit which is irish unity is something that is embraced by all then there may be an irish republican back here representing the people of the north of ireland in the future.
madam president this just might be the last monday night that i get an opportunity to stand here and represent the people of the north of ireland who voted to remain within the eu because brexit is dragging us out of the eu against the democratically expressed wishes of the people who voted to remain.
nationalism and republicanism have turned their backs on westminster rejecting all of the candidates who were willing to take their seats in that parliament and this is because the majority of the people in the north of ireland who voted to remain within the eu are seeing what the british government is doing as a consequence of brexit and the majority of the people in the nationalist republican community are rejecting the fact that the british government is dragging us out of here against our wishes.
it's knocking down its pillars bit by bit and the british government is no longer even pretending to act with rigorous impartiality or political neutrality.
the commission raised concerns about the accountability of the police and the low number of criminal prosecutions as well as the insufficient protection offered to whistle blowers.
since two thousand and fifteen slovakia has received recommendations on fighting corruption on a regular basis.
the commission has taken action by initiating for the first time the procedure set out in article seven of the treaty in relation to the actions of the polish government.
the commission will take due account of the resolution on an eu pact on democracy the rule of law and fundamental rights.
the european semester assessment also increasingly prioritises the fight against corruption.
they also have positive obligations to create favourable conditions so that freedom of expression can be effectively exercised.
the commission has used its role of guardian of the treaties by launching a number of infringement proceedings related to the rule of law.
to prepare this the commission intends to adopt a communication on the state of play and the possible next steps for further strengthening the rule of law in the union with the objective of consulting all institutions and interested parties.
in two thousand and nineteen the country report on slovakia stresses in particular that long standing concerns regarding the independence of the judiciary remain largely unchanged and do not appear to have been addressed. the two thousand and nineteen country report on malta
this group will develop by the end of this year a common set of security checks for investor citizenship schemes.
the commission addresses these recommendations on a yearly basis with both countries.
as regards safety of journalists the commission stands firm on the protection of freedom of expression and media freedom.
let me now turn to the safety of journalists and media freedom.
the european parliament initiated the procedure in relation to the actions of the hungarian government.
the commission intends to present in june an initiative on further strengthening the rule of law within the union.
all eu member states are monitored by the commission in the context of the european semester.
the work of the european parliament is particularly relevant to feed the reflection on the future initiative.
underlines that recent reforms have not fully ensured the independence of the judiciary as also confirmed by the venice commission of the council of europe and i agree that we have to continue the dialogue with malta and we will do so.
now let me turn to the investor citizens schemes and investor resident schemes.
i have to repeat again exactly what i offered both to malta and slovakia that our agencies europol and eurojust are fully available to support the investigation into those horrible case.
in this context it will also consider proposals including those relating to the use of possible peer review mechanisms on the rule of law.
as for malta the commission is concerned about the lack of efficiency in handling high profile corruption cases at both the level of investigation and prosecution.
this is important for our economy and society.
law enforcement and police investigations into individual crimes remain an individual member state competence but member states have a number of obligations when investigating such crimes.
the people that work that just have a wage income.
so i was very pleased when commission president juncker suggested that it would end this year he wanted two thousand and nineteen based on the consultation which the commission had undertaken which showed that eighty four wanted it ended and that was the biggest response ever. four six million people responded.
we've made progress when it comes to clear obligations of tax authorities.
that's the way to make progress.
is the reality that we face.
mr president it was said in this debate already that we are a community of law and the law of the treaties is clear in respect of the requirement of unanimity when it comes to taxation matters. that's deliberately put into the treaties to ensure that smaller member states are not disadvantaged as a consequence of bigger member states who have bigger domestic populations and a bigger capacity to get tax in.
i think another tactic has to be employed a new tactic by the commission where they would benchmark the best practices that are available through the country specific recommendations that they would benchmark the best practices and measure those practices and do it in an annual report.
on the second point i reject the idea that no progress has been made.
made progress on country by country reporting.
i think that this should also be mentioned here.
as i said before we use the whole toolbox and all the instruments available.
we didn't speak so much about the necessary space for civil society which is also part of the same thing.
benchmarking exercise and shows among other things how the people the citizens and the businesses in all the countries grasp and perceive the independence and quality of the judiciary system.
i am not calling for demonstrations i'm not calling for riots i just say we should trust more the people living in our member states because they are democrats and they know what to do among other things to go to the elections and vote for democratic powers.
i feel a similar thing to some of you namely that we should trust more the people living in our countries and our member states that there are democrats and that they have enhanced a way to solve the problems.
the commission has been largely responsive throughout and has come up with a number of important initiatives.
the council has consistently dragged its heels on tax issues and it is clear that from the perspective of the eu institutions the council is the weakest link.
throughout the work of the taxe two and pana committees we have consistently highlighted the issues and our recommendations for dealing with them in an effective manner.
it is essential that the european council discusses these issues and finds a way forward.
without this we will be stuck on groundhog day.
without political will there can be no quick progress.
however member states are not doing enough.
we have once again outlined our recommendations for action at eu level.
meanwhile financial services professionals are considered like criminals in waiting.
obviously the report had to take political considerations into account.
i repeat this report is fundamentally flawed.
throughout a one size fits all approach is adopted.
but the obligation on national governments to combat corporate tax avoidance and provide for maximum tax transparency should also not be shirked.
it appears that apple is breaking irish tax law but that it has not been challenged for doing so by the irish government. we believe that this amounts to selective treatment and we ask the commission to examine whether this is illegal state aid.
mr president the right of national parliaments to defend their country's taxation systems and decide on their country's taxation systems must be protected.
two thousand and fifteen apple has done this by using a one hundred capital allowance for intangible assets as well as other means.
this report shows that parliament is listening to the concerns of citizens regarding corporate messing on their tax obligations but the question remains as to whether governments are listening?
tax avoidance the limiting of tax exposure for companies and individuals is perfectly legitimate.
no one wants to pay more taxes than required.