Debate: State of the Union
Date: WEDNESDAY, 15 SEPTEMBER 2021
Speaker: Anže Logar
Language: EN

During our presidency, we will focus in particular on building up health and cyber resilience, and also highlighting the need to ensure resilience to any type of crisis. COVID-19 showed that in a time of crisis, the internal market and full freedoms become very fragile. Therefore, I believe that further strengthening of the single market must stay in our focus, and an unhindered functioning of the internal market is of key importance for the European economy.  Regarding the Health Union, intensive work between the Council and the European Parliament is ongoing. The Council is working towards achieving final agreement on the three proposals in the package by the end of the year. We certainly need to use this political momentum and to show our citizens that together we are building a more resilient Union that will be better prepared to cope with future health crises.  We welcome the European Health Emergency Preparedness and Response Authority (HERA) proposal published yesterday. I can assure you that the Slovenian Presidency will make every effort to advance negotiations. We see the HERA proposal as complementing the Health Union package.  Ladies and gentlemen, allow me to use this opportunity to thank the European Commission for its strong leadership in the past year that brought us to a point where a successful vaccine rollout has helped stabilise the epidemiological situation. Nonetheless, due to vaccine hesitancy in many countries, as well as the threat of variants, we will need to remain cautious. Measures to curb the spread of the virus will be with us for some time to come, as will the need to coordinate COVID—related measures. We intend to continue to ensure a coordinated approach. Vaccine-sharing with countries most in need is an important gesture of solidarity. As the Presidency, we will therefore also do our best to accelerate efforts on EU vaccine donation to third countries.  Prime Minister Janez Janša addressed this Hemicycle in July and stated that, and I quote, ‘The most important thing for our short-term future is to stop the pandemic and recover economically as soon as possible.’ The virus put a halt on social life and the economy for the greater part of 2020 and 2021. It is estimated that COVID-19 took away more than five million jobs in the first half of 2020. The EU economy has shrunk by 6% yet, in the second quarter of 2021, we see a remarkable recovery across the EU.  This recovery must include the green and digital transition. Allow me to highlight the proposal on digital services and digital markets. The Council is working on both acts intensively and we aim to agree on a Council position by the end of the year.  As Ms von der Leyen stated today, digital is a make or break issue. The Presidency can only applaud the announcement about the building of a new EU chip ecosystem and the new Cybersecurity Act. I would like to thank the Commission for the tremendous work on the ‘Fit for 55’ package. In a very short time, you presented a huge legislative agenda across EU policies that will have a far-reaching impact on our economy, industry and our way of life. All of this is also very important in the light of our preparation for the COP26 in Glasgow.  It is never easy to change our social and economic patterns, especially if this implies higher costs for our citizens. Therefore, the social consequences of this transition have to be properly addressed. That is why we applaud the announcement of the New Climate Social Fund. We will work together with the Commission to ensure that the Council swiftly endorses the necessary acts for the adoption of the national recovery plans for the remaining Member States and the disbursement of funds. These are essential for recovery. Since the beginning of the Slovenian Presidency, we have managed to approve 18 national plans. I’m convinced that this will provide an additional boost for the European recovery.  Ladies and gentlemen, all of these topics – plus rule of law, strategic autonomy, global action, migration and asylum acts, European Defence Union – will determine our future and the future of next generations for decades to come. That is why they are part of the Conference on the Future of Europe discussions managed jointly by the European Parliament, European Commission and Council. We should ensure that we engage with and listen to our citizens in the quest to answer the question of what kind of Europe they wish to live in. These discussions should go far beyond the Brussels bubble and far beyond our capitals. I am glad that the first citizens’ panel will kick off at the end of this week.  It is also important that when debating the future of the EU, we look beyond current borders. The process of enlargement is taking place. The region of the Western Balkans has an EU perspective. As the Presidency, Slovenia pays special attention to the Western Balkans. The EU-Western Balkans Summit will take place in Slovenia in October. Enlargement should be one of the EU’s strategic priorities. Accession of the Western Balkan countries should be part of our common vision. Finally, we welcome the Commission’s letter of intent, which the Council will discuss next week, together with the annual foresight report. We are convinced that the report will be a useful tool not only for political deliberation, but also for finding proper expert solutions to the issues that the world of today and tomorrow face.  We look forward to continuing the fruitful dialogue among the three institutions on our common priorities for the coming year. In November, the Council will discuss the new Commission work programme with a view to the joint declaration on legislative priorities for 2022. Our joint programme can help us, and our three institutions, achieve results in a focused and targeted way. Let me reaffirm the Council’s commitment to this process and assure you that the Presidency will continue to be a determined partner.  Let me once again reassure that the Presidency possesses a strong soul, a European soul. And if you ask me to summarise today’s State of the Union speech in only three words, I would say: ‘Together. Resilient. Europe’. The exact motto of the Slovenian EU Council Presidency.