unimelb-nlp/MultiEup-v2 huggingface dataset:
Debate: Long term commitment to animal welfare
Date: THURSDAY, 16 MARCH 2023
Speaker: Jiří Pospíšil
Political group: PPE
Country: Netherlands
Language: CS

Pane předsedající, jsem přesvědčen, že životní podmínky zvířat v Evropě nejsou dobré. To je realita. Můžeme hovořit o standardech, ale realita je taková, že mnoho zvířat v Evropě trpí v hospodářských chovech, a my bychom měli prosadit alespoň dvě základní věci, o kterých zde bylo hovořeno. Zákaz klecových chovů. Je to věc, která byla zmiňována a která by strašně pomohla. A pak omezení přepravy živých zvířat. To téma zde permanentně debatujeme. Já sám jsem svědkem devět let trvající debaty o omezení přepravy zvířat a stále nejsme schopni se dohodnout na tom, aby ta lhůta byla stanovena třeba na čtyři hodiny. To je velký problém. A pokud bychom prosadili alespoň tyto dva kroky, uděláme obrovský posun pro práva zvířat. Také podporuji zřízení komisaře, který bude mít tuto agendu. Paní komisařko, my jsme teď v Praze, v České republice, kde jsem komunálním politikem, zřídili radního, který má na starosti práva zvířat,
Debate: Long term commitment to animal welfare
Date: THURSDAY, 16 MARCH 2023
Speaker: Juozas Olekas
Political group: S-D
Country: Spain
Language: LT

Gerbiamas pirmininke, gerbiama Komisijos narė, iš tikrųjų sveikinu Jūsų pastangas pagerinti gyvūnų gerovę. Man teko pačiam dirbti specialiajame komitete dėl gyvūnų transportavimo. Nagrinėjant sąlygas, iš tikrųjų mes matėme visą eilę problemų, kurios egzistuoja, ir manau, kad Jūsų pasiūlytas subalansuotas teisių pasiūlymas tikrai galėtų prisidėti prie to, kad gyvūnų gerovė transportuojant gyvūnus būtų užtikrinta tiek sausumos keliais, tiek jūrų keliais. Jūs paminėjote, kad labai svarbu atsižvelgti į socialines, ekonomines realybes ir taip pat žaliojo kurso įgyvendinimą, kurį mes esame užsibrėžę. Tačiau aš noriu paklausti labai specifinį klausimą – mes turime gyvūnus, tai yra kailinius žvėrelius, kurių laikymo sąlygos taip pat yra labai svarbios ir rūpi. Ar šiame pakete tas pasiūlymas dėl kailinių žvėrelių jau bus? Ar jūs specialiai paruošite atskirą paketą dėl kailinių žvėrelių?
Debate: Long term commitment to animal welfare
Date: THURSDAY, 16 MARCH 2023
Speaker: Mick Wallace
Political group: The Left
Country: Germany
Language: EN

Mr President, animal welfare is an issue that cuts across many aspects of agriculture, sustainability and general public health. So, welfare standards are key to the ‘farm to fork’ strategy and ultimately the Green Deal.  Animal welfare contributes to the improvement of animal health and therefore food quality in Europe. The current legislation is simply not fit for purpose and is also not being implemented properly. I too believe that having a department of the Commission responsible for animal welfare would certainly elevate the importance of the issue.  Small farmers competing in highly competitive global markets against big agri industry, under pressure to decrease costs, need a better incentive to comply with better animal welfare practices. Better rural development programmes would improve farm animal welfare on this front. Any narrow-based policy won’t fix the implementation problems and will actually increase the vulnerability of farmers. We do need a much more holistic approach in general to the whole area.
Debate: Long term commitment to animal welfare
Date: THURSDAY, 16 MARCH 2023
Speaker: Mairead McGuinness
Language: EN

In relation to who looks after animal welfare, I really want to assure Members that this issue of animal welfare is at the very heart of the work of my colleague Stella Kyriakides within this Commission. Because the issues before us on animal welfare are very varied. Colleagues alluded to a need for more enforcement of existing legislation, and indeed new legislation will also be required as the demands of society intensify. At the same time, as we move forward with new proposals, we know that upgrading EU animal welfare rules will require investment by farmers and others in the food supply chain. So, for that reason, we have to be balanced and have sufficient transition periods. We also need to provide assistance to farmers from existing EU financial instruments, and I want to assure the House that the Commission, across its different services, is working hard to make the upcoming legislative proposals as ambitious and realistic as possible. Because, as was mentioned, we do need holistic legislation implemented and supported by all stakeholders. As part of this, we are performing a thorough impact assessment of the policy options before any decision is made. Hopefully, this will also help the European Parliament and the Council reach a well-founded agreement. Once adopted, the new legislation will cement the European Union’s role as a world leader in animal welfare. When it is applied, the rules will improve the lives of billions of animals in the European Union and elsewhere. After that, it is up to us together to make sure that EU rules for animal welfare remain fit for the future. As I come from a farming background, I think it is also right that we acknowledge those farmers who do a really good job caring for their animals. Those farmers who would have been up during the night lambing and looking after calves. And I think this House acknowledges the role of those farmers who abide by and are committed to animal welfare. Mr President, if I am not breaking a rule, I join Seán Kelly in wishing all of you a happy Saint Patrick’s Day. I am wearing the green, as you can see. Very subtle. Please join in the Irish celebrations on what is always a most joyous day. And thank you for this excellent debate.
Debate: The EU Guidelines on Human Rights Defenders
Date: THURSDAY, 16 MARCH 2023
Speaker: Clare Daly
Political group: The Left
Country: France
Language: EN

Mr President, I abstained on this report because while there was much good in it, the Magnitsky Act and other measures, I do not agree with. If we want to defend human rights defenders, we have to be honest. And I want to give an example to back up my position.  Last night in here, we had a discussion on the reports of hundreds of girls suffering respiratory problems and temporary paralysis in schools across Iran, which of course is deeply concerning. Targeting children for any reason is unimaginable and inexcusable. I am very glad that the Government of Iran has initiated an investigation. I expect that to be transparent. But every time we take up these issues, we should be mindful of the impact on human rights defenders and the people we claim that we are defending, because by constantly seizing on every development in Iran to press for a regime change, we are hurting the people we say we stand by. We are trying to intervene in a negative way in that sense. I find it a bit of a cheek for people in here to feign concern about women and girls in Iran when they are dying as a result of the sanctions that we are imposing on them.
Debate: The EU Guidelines on Human Rights Defenders
Date: THURSDAY, 16 MARCH 2023
Speaker: Ivan Vilibor Sinčić
Political group: NI
Country: Czechia
Language: HR

Poštovani predsjedavajući, danas smo govorili o standardima za zaštitu ljudskih prava. Zašto i dan danas, u 2023. godini imamo tolike probleme s ljudskim pravima? To je zbog dvostrukih standarda. Pravila koja se primjenjuju na neke, ne primjenjuju se na neke druge. Može se čuti na pozive za promjenu režima, vidjeli smo slučajeve potkopavanja pojedinih vlada, subverzija, čak i invazije na te zemlje. I takve stvari, naravno, moraju biti kažnjene. Međutim, onda mora pravilo vrijediti za sve, onda svi moraju biti kažnjeni. Jako mnogo se govori u mom domu o Ukrajini, a evo ovih dana upravo obilježavamo 20 godina invazije na Irak. To je jedan primjer dvostrukih standarda i dok god postoje takvi standardi ne možemo se nadati da će se stanje ljudskih prava promijeniti.  Također, želim da se jednog dana govori o ljudskim pravima koja su ugrožena ne zato da bi se potkopao tamo neki režim u toj zemlji, nego zato što nam stvarno treba biti stalo da tih ljudi i do njihovih prava.
Debate: The EU Guidelines on Human Rights Defenders
Date: THURSDAY, 16 MARCH 2023
Speaker: Rainer Wieland
Country: Germany
Language: DE

Es wurde mir nun gesagt, dass der Kollege Wallace technische Schwierigkeiten hatte, sich für die Erklärungen zur Abstimmung anzumelden, was ich kaum glauben kann. Aber weil die Kommissarin so einen schönen
Debate: The EU Guidelines on Human Rights Defenders
Date: THURSDAY, 16 MARCH 2023
Speaker: Mick Wallace
Political group: The Left
Country: Germany
Language: EN

Mr President, first of all, thank you very much for your kindness and generosity for the time of the year that’s in it. Let me actually confirm that technologically, I am absolutely a disaster. I can barely turn the computer on. But anyway, I voted for this human rights issue because I think it is really important. But I also think it is really important that we have a balanced approach to it. During the debate yesterday, as my colleague said, there was an awful lot of focus on Iran. Listen, if I was in Iran today, I too would be on the streets protesting, looking for separation of church and State. But I would also be on the streets of Iran protesting about foreign interference. I mean, the Iranians, there is a huge issue over this poisoning thing. And this is a very serious issue. But I mean, from what we can see, the authorities are dealing with it in a professional manner and they are concerned about the human rights of their own citizens, too. And definitely, if we were more concerned about the human rights of the Iranians, we would stop sanctioning them because we are killing women and children with our sanctions in Iran. And the human rights of the Iranians should count for more to us.
Debate: The EU Guidelines on Human Rights Defenders
Date: THURSDAY, 16 MARCH 2023
Speaker: Rainer Wieland
Country: Germany
Language: DE

Vielen Dank, Herr Kollege Wallace. Ich glaube, selbst der Heilige Patrick würde jetzt sagen, dass Sie ihr Goodwill-Konto jetzt ziemlich strapaziert haben. Es war ein Statement und keine Stimmerklärung. Auch das wollen wir Ihnen heute nachsehen. Die Erklärungen zur Abstimmung sind damit geschlossen.
Debate: Formal sitting - Ceremony on the th anniversary of the Good Friday Agreement
Date: WEDNESDAY, 29 MARCH 2023
Speaker: Charles Michel
Language: EN

Ladies and gentlemen, 25 years ago, the Good Friday Agreement was signed: a remarkable achievement that took real political leadership and visionary leaders that did not fear compromise. It broke the cycle of decades of violence and ushered in peace, stability and reconciliation. This agreement took 700 days of negotiations by men and women of courage, along with the determination of our American friends. The UK and Ireland’s membership in the EU – and later in the single market – provided common ground on which to build a lasting peace, by bringing people together and by removing the physical, economic and psychological barriers between people. The EU was crucial to reaching the Good Friday Agreement and has been essential to ensure its survival throughout all these years. In fact, the Good Friday Agreement also echoes back to another major moment in history, 41 years earlier: the Treaty of Rome; this founding treaty of our European Union that aspired, after the tragedy of World War II, to build up a spirit that unites and to draw down borders that divide. Peace in Ireland and European integration are staked in the same ideal, exploiting the richness of diversity rather than sowing division. The Good Friday Agreement is also an important reminder that we are all capable of feeling strong emotion and connection to more than one nation. This is not something to fear: multiple identities are part of human nature and we should keep this in mind across our regions that are on their own journeys of peace, reconciliation and cooperation within our European family. Ladies and gentlemen, the ‘peace wall’ in Alexandra Park still stands today, but this symbol of division now has a gate, with families crossing between the two sides. What was once a symbol of fear and separation is now, today, a sign of peace, progress and common future. It is an open door to greater tolerance, respect and diversity. This was the spirit and energy that forged the Good Friday Agreement 25 years ago, and this is the spirit and energy we still need today to protect these hard-won gains and to build a lasting peace for the children on the island of Ireland and everywhere in Europe.
Debate: Formal sitting - Ceremony on the th anniversary of the Good Friday Agreement
Date: WEDNESDAY, 29 MARCH 2023
Speaker: David McAllister
Political group: PPE
Country: Netherlands
Language: EN

For the longest time, deep historic rifts between unionists and nationalists made any negotiations for lasting peace seemingly impossible. With the 25th anniversary of the Good Friday (Belfast) Agreement, we are celebrating a historic development that remains essential to peace and indeed reconciliation in Northern Ireland. Dear colleagues, the true test of political leadership comes when it takes courage to lead against popular belief, and the peace process on the island of Ireland has known more than one courageous political leader. The Good Friday (Belfast) Agreement demonstrates it is possible to achieve great good in politics. Ever since 1998, we, as the European Union, we have worked alongside our UK and Irish partners to implement exactly this agreement. It was exactly in this spirit that we conducted the Brexit negotiations amid the rise of old questions of sovereignty and national identity. Preventing a hard border on the island of Ireland was and is an essential priority for the European Union. Particularly in times of serious geopolitical challenges, a stable cooperation with the United Kingdom is so crucial. Much more unites us than divides us. As just mentioned by the Commission President, the Windsor Framework: with this Windsor Framework, we have found practical solutions to the challenges in the implementation of the Protocol on Ireland and Northern Ireland while maintaining the integrity of our EU single market. Indeed, the Windsor Framework offers a united way forward, but it also honours the historic achievements we are commemorating today. Together with our UK partners, let us use this momentum to walk the talk and to implement the solutions reached on paper.
Debate: Formal sitting - Ceremony on the th anniversary of the Good Friday Agreement
Date: WEDNESDAY, 29 MARCH 2023
Speaker: Pedro Silva Pereira
Political group: S-D
Country: Bulgaria
Language: EN

Carefully negotiated and successfully concluded in 1988 under a Labour government led by Tony Blair, with the full engagement of remarkable Irish political leaders, the Good Friday Agreement made all the difference for the people in Northern Ireland. Instead of violence, peace; instead of confrontation, dialogue, compromise and co-operation; instead of struggles for domination and power, cross-community power sharing. Challenging resentment and disbelief, the Good Friday Agreement has worked for the last 25 years and still sets the framework for new ambitions for the future of the island of Ireland. The European Union is not just a mere spectator of the Good Friday Agreement; it is an engaged party in this international agreement, fully committed to delivering its promises in all its parts. That is why it was always clear for the European Union that, despite Brexit, and while safeguarding the integrity of the European Union’s single market, we had to keep the promise of not having a hard border again between the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland. This has been, since the beginning, the goal of the commonly agreed Northern Ireland Protocol, just as it is now the goal of the recently agreed Windsor framework. For us it is clear that the time has come to turn the page of this absurd confrontation against the EU. More than that, we need immediately to see power-sharing coming back to Northern Ireland so that after 25 years of peace, we can build 25 years of prosperity for the people in Northern Ireland.
Debate: Formal sitting - Ceremony on the th anniversary of the Good Friday Agreement
Date: WEDNESDAY, 29 MARCH 2023
Speaker: Barry Andrews
Political group: Renew
Country: Ireland
Language: EN

The peace in Northern Ireland is, in my view, one of the European Union’s greatest achievements. It was the EU that provided the financial support through structural funds and the PEACE programme. It was the EU and its single market that made borders less relevant. It was the EU that provided the context and arena for closer relations that otherwise would have been impossible.  In May 2007, Ian Paisley, a former MEP, contacted the Irish Government to request that José Manuel Barroso would come to Belfast to be in attendance at Paisley’s first official meeting with Martin McGuinness. The presence of the EU was visually important to what otherwise would have been an awkward moment for Paisley.  And it was the EU that provided the symbolism of peace-building. As the 1952 Coal and Steel Treaty aimed at ‘building a broader and deeper community among peoples long divided by bloody conflict’, SDLP MEP and Nobel Prize-winner, John Hume, used this language as a framework to ensure that the EU would play a role – much to the irritation of the UK Government.  However, ultimately the greatest credit goes to the people of Northern Ireland. Now, after an era of peace, 25 years later, the tantalising prize of prosperity awaits. For the next generation, the EU must continue to play a role and, in my view, support reform of the Good Friday Agreement. Presently, the cost of staying out of the Northern Ireland Executive is too low, and for too long bad behaviour has been rewarded. While the Brexit negotiations have been agonising – and in this respect, I’d like to pay tribute to both Michel Barnier and Maroš Šefčovič for all of their perseverance – the Good Friday Agreement and the EU’s role in it can only be properly honoured by staying the course and maintaining support for a speedy return of the Northern Ireland Executive and the dawn of a new era in Northern Ireland.
Debate: Formal sitting - Ceremony on the th anniversary of the Good Friday Agreement
Date: WEDNESDAY, 29 MARCH 2023
Speaker: Terry Reintke
Political group: Verts/ALE
Country: Italy
Language: EN

Colleagues, we all know that Brexit has shaken the political situation in Northern Ireland and made many of the questions that still need resolving more difficult, and this is not going to go away for a while. But, with the Windsor Framework, the European Union and the UK have recently shown that constructive negotiations based on trust and understanding have a good outcome even in difficult situations. We will continue to do everything in our power to secure peace in Northern Ireland and to support the Good Friday Agreement.  Let’s also never forget, peace is not only the absence of armed conflict. Safeguarding fundamental rights of all citizens is a crucial part of a sustainable peace, and that is why the European Convention on Human Rights has played such an important role for peace—building in Northern Ireland and the Good Friday Agreement. That is why defending the European Convention on Human Rights is absolutely crucial, especially now that we see it being put under attack.  Colleagues, the European Union was built on promoting peace. On the ruins of violent conflict, millions of people came together. So let us not only remember the great effort it took to achieve peace and the Good Friday Agreement, but let’s build on this spirit for the future – for a peaceful, a just and a democratic Ireland, United Kingdom and Europe built on understanding, on trust and on human rights.
Debate: Formal sitting - Ceremony on the th anniversary of the Good Friday Agreement
Date: WEDNESDAY, 29 MARCH 2023
Speaker: Geert Bourgeois
Political group: ECR
Country: Germany
Language: NL

Wat volgde was stabiliteit met machtsdeling tussen ooit gezworen vijanden. De Brexit bracht echter weer onrust en spanningen met zich mee. Tot elke prijs moest worden voorkomen dat het Goede Vrijdagakkoord onderuitgehaald werd. Na lange en aanslepende discussies is uiteindelijk met het Windsor-akkoord een goede regeling getroffen over het protocol voor Noord-Ierland. Dank aan alle betrokken partijen, ook aan onze onderhandelaars, die 25 jaar later – opnieuw – over de eigen schaduw konden springen. Politieke wil en verantwoordelijk leiderschap van de onderhandelaars bij het Goede Vrijdagakkoord gaven een hele generatie de kans om op te groeien in vrede en welvaart, de essentie van wat de EU nu al 75 jaar voor óns betekent. Mijn fractie hoopt oprecht dat, in de geest van het Goede Vrijdagakkoord, als kostbare erfenis van verzoening, alle betrokken partijen het nieuwe Windsor-akkoord aangrijpen: als een startpunt dat opnieuw kansen biedt aan burgers en bedrijven om een welvarende toekomst uit te bouwen in Noord-Ierland, als de aanzet om de democratische instellingen in Noord-Ierland opnieuw te laten functioneren, en als het scharniermoment voor een hernieuwde positieve samenwerking tussen het VK en de EU, en dat op –hopelijk – veel meer domeinen dan nu het geval is.
Debate: Formal sitting - Ceremony on the th anniversary of the Good Friday Agreement
Date: WEDNESDAY, 29 MARCH 2023
Speaker: Marco Campomenosi
Political group: ID
Country: Portugal
Language: IT

È per questo infatti che, tra gli appelli che sono già arrivati nei giorni scorsi, sottolineo quello delle Chiese cristiane, proprio perché la religione è stata usata da ambo le parti in alcune fasi del conflitto per renderlo più aspro. Quindi il loro appello, secondo me, è uno dei più importanti. Ricordo bene come in questi venticinque anni l'accordo si sia dimostrato in parte anche fragile, ma una fragilità che è sempre stata nell'ambito di una discussione o, perché no, di un conflitto politico che non ha mai più visto parlare le armi, di un dibattito politico come nelle democrazie si dovrebbe fare, un dibattito che deve restare solo politico. L'anniversario dei venticinque anni oggi giunge in maniera opportuna perché, come ha ricordato la Presidente della Commissione, il Regno Unito è giunto a un accordo con Bruxelles che, credo, favorirà commercio e sviluppo e, in questo senso, spero che quest'Aula, nei prossimi mesi e nei prossimi anni, possa cessare di avere nei confronti di Londra quell'atteggiamento spesso ostile che deriva ancora dal non aver accettato il risultato della Brexit. Credo che in quest'anno la crisi geopolitica che stiamo vivendo, non solo in Ucraina e in altre parti del mondo, ci abbia insegnato che il rapporto che le nostre capitali hanno con Londra è basato su valori, sull'adesione a organismi internazionali e sulla lotta al terrorismo internazionale, che superano ogni possibile divisione e lontananza. Però è chiaro che i nostri dibattiti spesso qui sono retorici, ma gli eventi sono il risultato di ogni periodo storico. Ogni epoca ha i suoi protagonisti. Il lavoro di donne e di uomini è ciò che determina, poi, il raggiungimento di obiettivi politici. Per questo credo che nelle nostre attività di politici sia importante prendere anche esempio da chi venticinque anni fa ha saputo, in Irlanda e nel Regno Unito, lavorare per la pace, ponendo fine a decenni di conflitto. Ecco, se posso fare un appello, cerchiamo tutti noi di essere all'altezza di chi ci ha preceduto, degli uomini che hanno fatto grande il nostro continente, per conseguire obiettivi di pace, di benessere e di libertà in tutti gli scenari.