kfajdsl/voxpopuli huggingface dataset:
the three countries are proud of their history and independence yet we also have much in common.
we are part of the same european family and it is only natural to seek an even closer partnership with them.
we appreciate their desire to seek full integration into the internal market.
andorra monaco and san marino have made considerable efforts in the past years towards financial and economic recovery and towards preparations for the future association agreement.
we fully share parliament's view and the union will not compromise on the main principles of the internal market.
this is also our guideline in the negotiations with the united kingdom and switzerland.
the european union seeks a comprehensive agreement with full access to the eu internal market therefore covering all the four freedoms movement of goods services persons and capital.
there is no such thing as partial integration. the four freedoms cannot be cherry picked and separated from one another.
for the same reason the eu court of justice should have exclusive competence for the uniform interpretation and application of the agreement including for last resort dispute settlement.
the commission as guardian of the eu treaties should be given competence to monitor the overall implementation of the agreement including in the area of state aid.
these requests should be duly justified and proportional.
and there are wellknown fans of putin in this chamber from time to time. i would like to very warmly thank all shadow rapporteurs.
their contribution was really excellent.
i'm aware of deep debates about this topic within each political group.
i think that the final outcome is a real contribution to further work by all eu institutions in countering hostile propaganda.
an important aspect of the report is the recognition of the territorial dimensions of these states and its implications. together with my colleagues i proposed measures to adopt an institutional framework that will help the three neighbouring countries to implement the future association agreements in an effective and efficient way.
yes by making information on visas more complete we can achieve better risk assessment but at the same time we are exposing sensitive data to major risks.
so shall we delegate this task to a chinese or an indian company?
i think the way in which the european union treats democratic deficits in the future is really decisive of how we're moving forward.
hungary might be the worst example in the whole picture but we also see a lot of problems in other member states.
so we should really look around and not close our eyes to what's happening in terms of media freedom freedom of association and freedom of speech all of those things which are very very important.
in slovakia you have the situation where a journalist was murdered because of his investigation into corruption and fraud and that is something which we need to deal with.
we need to make sure it never happens again anywhere in the european union.
so it's really time that we address this issue especially at the european union level because there are so many citizens out in the streets in budapest warsaw and bucharest who are asking the european union to step up and to help them because their own governments won't listen to them.
so we need to get active on that. they are european citizens like all of us.
but instead of helping at the european union level we see too much infighting between parties is it your bad guys or my bad guy?
' but we need to get beyond that so that we ensure the civil liberties and the rights of all european citizens.
for that my group is suggesting that we set up an independent commission of experts to look into the situation of the rule of law and democracy in every single member state all the time and is then able to give recommendations before it's too late.
indeed we also need to look at the european union funds because unfortunately some governments use them to implement their personal pet projects to favour certain people or to ensure favourable reporting.
but the eu funds also do a lot of good.
you've mentioned the cohesion funds which are very important for many citizens.
we have many citizens' initiative projects going on.
eu funds are important all over europe.
so we need to find a smart way to deal with that situation without cutting the support to our european citizens when we're actually trying to hit the government and a specific action of the government.
so for that we are suggesting that we ask the commission to take over the distributing element of that whole so that the money still arrives with the citizens and for the benefit of the citizens without being used at the discretion of national government. this is certainly not the easiest answer maybe cutting funds might be easier but it's one where we ensure that there remains a link between the eu institutions and citizens without allowing the governments to do whatever they want with that. mr prime minister you made a very interesting and comprehensive speech about all sorts of aspects but you also underlined the issue of unity and understanding.
i think that is very important indeed and we count on you to promote those ideas also in the council which is being difficult and blocking a lot of initiatives that also come from this house.
addressing fraud and corruption is not an easy task anywhere but it needs to be done.
but if these nations think that they're going to get some special treatment i would refer them to the words of the commissioner there is no such thing as partial integration he says;
there are a lot of laws and rules of the eu and the single market that have to be taken on board.
despite some of the earlier words about concessions and temporary opt outs i wonder just how long those will last.
i'm thinking specifically in terms of the banking regimes of these countries just how long they'll be tolerated once they get closer to the eu the single market and all of the other rules that go with it.
by securing sufficient funding for this policy area and by creating a funding instrument that can deliver on it.
on the other hand though it's an illusion to think that other countries are going to solve our problems that we create closed centres somewhere in egypt or i don't know where and that we put the problem away.
this would violate human rights and it would also go totally against european union values.
what this union was founded on.
i also hope that i have been able to clarify the council's role in these processes.
thank you very much once again for your attention.
from ancient greece's peloponnesian war to modern day belarus iran myanmar north korea and russia evidence suggests that sanctions targeted at entire countries rarely achieve the intended foreign policy objectives.
innocent citizens in sanctioned countries become even more dependent on their domestic oppressors for the straight provision of basic goods in return for further encroachment on their political and social freedoms.
as a free marketeer i have always believed in individual responsibility.
we should therefore promote a smarter sanctions policy to ensure that sanctions are both legally robust and effective against those individuals committing abuses around the world.
but just a question as you're about to hold the presidency of the visegrd group what is its nature?
or do you disagree with that crap?
because we didn't hear a word from you.
the commission remains fully committed to continue working with you and the council to start the negotiations on the important files as soon as possible.
mr president we have before us one of the starkest examples that we've seen of the impact of lobbying on the council that is harming the people of the eu.
the new process for compiling the anti money laundering blacklist is far from perfect.
it ignores the fact that the majority of international money laundering scandals in recent years have actually involved european banks.
i'm particularly concerned that the defence of saudi arabia and the us by eu governments is a direct result of their close financial and trading ties and of lobbying by the us and saudi arabia.
we don't just urgently need an anti money laundering blacklist;
we urgently need mechanisms to prevent the lobbying by corporations and countries from harming the public interest and to ensure that we have full transparency over the lobbying process.
i don't believe that future proofing is actually possible.
in fact i think it may have been an idea invented by king canute when he was trying to stop the tide.
i don't think it can be done.
if you set out to future proof rather than being flexible and rather than allowing businesses to react to the market you are actually having a negative effect when you want a positive one.
it would be a way to support the victims of those abuses as well as human rights defenders and a step towards fighting against impunity.
i take this opportunity to reaffirm the importance which the presidency attaches to the fight against money laundering and terrorist financing.
as mentioned the council felt that there were problems with the process as it was conducted by the commission. i am encouraged by the fact that commissioner jourov already said that the commission was aware that many considered that the time for consultation was too short
as well as by her recognition that the process could be improved in the future. we stand ready to continue engaging with the commission in this respect.
the council has no position on the listing of any particular country on the list.
the reasons for the council's objection to the list are very well known and were the ones presented in my initial intervention.
they relate to the process employed by the commission to arrive at the list and are clarified in the council statement.
i can assure you that we are committed to promoting gender balance.
this is an important issue and the gender balance among the top staff of eu official financial bodies is also a key issue for the council. at the same time the selection procedures are based on rules that we have to respect.
the council has always acted and will continue to act in line with all the relevant provisions of eu law as regards its role in appointments.
i would also expect all the other institutions involved to act within the legal framework and to do their utmost to promote gender balance.
against this background i was surprised that parliament is raising this issue specifically with the council.
president tajani's letter refers to legal acts that regulate appointments to three eu legal organs.
these three bodies are the single supervisory board the banking stakeholder group within the european banking authority and the single resolution board.
please allow me to clarify that the council is not involved in drawing up shortlists nor in selecting successful candidates for any of these three bodies.
the shortlists for appointments to the single resolution board are provided by the commission.
candidates for the single supervisory board are the responsibility of the european central bank.
subsequently for both of these boards the european parliament decides on the successful contenders.
as regards appointments to the european banking authority the council has no role to play at all.
regarding the selection of members of the ecb executive board the council does indeed have a role in the selection procedure.
i can assure you that we reiterate the importance of gender balance in each selection procedure and call on member states to propose female candidates.
i trust that all eu institutions involved in preparing shortlists and selecting candidates observe and respect the principle of gender balance and that they will continue to do so in the future.
important progress in this area of action has already been achieved through the consistent efforts of both the council and parliament in relation to the work life balance directive on which we have been able to finalise negotiations.
eu migration policies have essentially authorised the death of thousands of refugees at sea.
refugees are still being starved beaten deprived of water forced to live in abhorrent squalor and some are even murdered.
we need a sustainable solution based on the principles of dignity safety and fundamental rights.
madam president britain is the eu's largest importer of tropical timber by a significant margin. i support the voluntary partnership agreement with vietnam as an important contribution in the fight against illegal logging with governments civil society and businesses working together.
my view is that the uk and the eu need to go further with legislation banning all imports of illegal and destructively logged timber coupled with more support to improve governance and stamp out corruption in timber producing countries.
illegal logging robs governments and communities of resources.
it damages ecosystems accelerates climate change and fuels conflict.
we cannot afford to rest until the market for illegal timber in europe is closed forever.
and i went to slovakia with some critical questions but it also made me feel that we have a special bond as europeans. i have a special place in my heart for slovakia and the slovaks now.
in the world of today we need a fully fledged political union to give an answer to all the political challenges that we have because that is the only way to remain a global leader.
your speech was excellent but as we all know true leadership is not in words it is in actions.
like many countries in europe and in the wider world your country is witnessing deep divisions and forces are pulling it in different directions.
i just referred to my visit as the chair of the rule of law monitoring group and i have seen that there are many positive developments in slovakia. i have seen that the institutions are strong and that civic engagement is extremely strong in slovakia and i commend the slovak people for that.
i would urge you to show the same leadership in tackling these concerns because in a sense you hold the key. you hold the key to the future of the european union and the choices that you make will determine not only the future of your country but also that of the european union as a whole.
you can show which forces will prevail in the european union.
you have a choice and this will be a burden on your shoulders i warn you.
do you want to join and strengthen the ranks of those who are wrecking the european union those who put short term electoral gains or even material gains before the general interest or worse the ranks of those who are corrupt even connected to organised crime?
or do you want to go down in history as a statesman somebody courageous and wise in difficult times who led his country forward making it a role model for others a leader in the europe of the future.
so do you choose the old europe or the new europe?
i hope and trust that you will choose leadership for the future and i shall be very specific. i would strongly recommend that you break ranks with mr fico because he is the old slovakia you are the new slovakia and show the world that there is truly a new hand at the helm in slovakia.
you can also show them that the visegrd four is staunchly pro european and not the vehicle of reactionary nationalist autocrats. it is very important that those guilty of the murder of jn and martina are brought to trial not just those who actually carried out the murder and were arrested but the brains behind
i would also urge you to reverse the changes to the media law because in practice it means severe restrictions on freedom of speech.
finally i would call on you next month to decide to extend to cooperation with europol and not just for the investigation into the murder of jn and martina but also the other parts of the investigation that have been split off by the ministry of justice into corruption and fraud and all the other things.
in other words i have just put a burden on your shoulder and i am asking you to choose.
i am counting on your wisdom.
mr president i have always stood for human rights and democracy in turkey since the beginning of my mandate and it's very sad to see how much the situation has deteriorated over the past five years.
calling for the suspension of accession talks is painful because i'm convinced that turkey's future lies in europe.
my regular contact with turkish civil society has convinced me that turkish citizens long for human rights and democracy.
however the government's crackdown against human rights defenders academics civil servants trade unionists journalists women ethnic minorities and lgbtiq people makes it impossible to continue a fruitful dialogue. zehra doan a kurdish feminist journalist and artist who i have been twinned with as part of a project led by human rights watch and the committee to protect journalists was recently released but her case shows just how turkish authorities target any critical voices.
if one thing has become clear in recent years it is that we need to strengthen our european response and the new asylum and migration fund will play an important role in that.
however to deliver real results we don't only need sufficient resources;
we also need flexibility to adjust to the challenges in front of us and we need balance between the objectives served by this fund.
i understand a little bit the frustration of the commissioner in his speech because the flexibility and the balance that was there in the original proposal seems to have become a bit lost along the way in this house.
the text in front of us focuses on legal migration and integration while minimising any attention on returns and fighting illegal migration for instance by introducing mandatory spending requirements for all the fund objectives except for fighting illegal migration and ensuring returns.
moreover and the commissioner said this if we want to have a real effective and holistic approach to migration we need to cooperate with countries outside the eu countries of origin and countries of transit.
yet the amendments in front of us in the european parliament will make it nearly impossible to cooperate with third countries on these issues.
i am disappointed that a majority in this house seems to think that fighting illegal migration ensuring the return of illegally staying third country nationals and cooperating with other countries is not important.
all the objectives of the fund are important that's why we have tabled amendments for the vote tomorrow to make this a more realistic fund and we would like to call on all colleagues who share that realistic view to support us in the vote tomorrow.
mr president i note the agreement between the eu and afghanistan and do believe that it would have been better had parliament been informed earlier about the negotiations particularly covering trade and investments.
however being mindful of the fact that washington is no longer pressing for a military advantage means there is an opening up of space for diplomacy and the eu needs to support political resolution for the conflict in afghanistan.
the us and taliban negotiators have reached a draft peace framework in qatar but it has not been disclosed if it contains assurances about the rights of afghan women or minorities.
how do we ensure sustained interest by regional powers and neighbours like pakistan china india and iran in a stable state?
we will continue working with countries in the region and other international stakeholders notably through the international contact group and will use all our instruments to accompany the country towards a peaceful and negotiated solution. of course venezuelans both in venezuela and abroad
will continue to be our key concern and we will continue our efforts to help address their needs.
mr president eu member states continue to consider afghanistan a safe country. this allows them to return to the country people who have come to europe to seek asylum often through very dangerous routes.
however the security situation on the ground has severely deteriorated and the taliban now control a significant part of the territory.
it is hypocritical and irresponsible for our member states to be sending these people back to a land where they will inevitably face persecution especially those who came to seek shelter in europe after being targeted for their cooperation with western forces.
another worrying issue is the current exclusion of women and young people from talks that could lead to a peace deal between the us and the taliban.
my colleague ana gomes brought an important initiative to our attention last week whereby a group of afghan women have launched an appeal regarding those who are currently excluded from the talks.
it's essential that their voice is heard in order to build sustainable peace and to safeguard women's hardwon rights in the country.
it is now a report on regress.
a lot has happened over the past year and while it's absolutely legitimate to hold the perpetrators of the failed coup and the attack on the grand national assembly to account nothing justifies the overreaction that continues to haunt turkey hundreds of thousands fired from their jobs or arrested;
a fear of what could get worse still seems to paralyse the commission and the council too.
or is it the cynical outsourcing of the sheltering of refugees for which turkey deserves our support that risks overshadowing everything else?
i believe that our credibility is at stake and i insist that our words and principles must have meaning.
as we warned in previous years with the adoption of the constitutional reform package a presidential system is now in place one that lacks checks and balances not so much according to us but according to the venice commission.
so we need to be honest and principled.
when we continue our relations on trade defence foreign policy or asylum we must always work with turkey on the basis of the rule of law and respect for human rights.
i know we need to be able to see into people's bank accounts we need more power for the financial authorities and we need to be able to blacklist people if they don't play along'.
strongman arguments.
i'm a little concerned a little suspicious.
mr president this is a new hugely ambitious hugely expensive system for controlling people entering the eu a visa scheme which will be in common use across the eu disregarding the fact that different countries may have different requirements as to who enters their country
one of the things that has been pointed out was that this is about combating terrorism yet most terrorism appears now to be carried out by so called home grown terrorists of the second or third generation of people who've been here.
the system is intended to control the number of people coming in yet already we've had millions of people coming to the eu many of them actually invited in. they're already here.
this appears to be a high tech high cost exercise in shutting the stable door after the horse has bolted.
mr president so we're discussing afghanistan the historically ungovernable impossible state and the eu and again really really with the right intentions we're looking at billions of euros offers to help with state building social programmes but there's the word state building' to try and get to democracy and so on.
now russia the united states and the british empire have all failed to try and impose themselves upon afghanistan and i don't think there's any change to make us suggest that anything will be any different if this place through its soft power tries to impose itself on afghanistan.
i would suggest the best way to improve the lot of the people of afghanistan is to agree to have tariff free trade to open the border to trade completely with them and allow their economy to grow and people there to get better off and better educated through trade and the economic growth that will come with free trade.
for that reason we would not have a track record and if the tacs were to come in it could actually discriminate against a country like ireland which has done so much in this area when things are beginning to come right.
the case in ireland recently where in excess of ninety zero net new jobs have been created over a three year period is an example of how the restructuring of our economy has helped to create more jobs reducing unemployment from fifteen to.