All Contributions (56)
The immediate risk of mass starvation in Gaza and the attacks on humanitarian aid deliveries
Date:
13.03.2024 19:19
| Language: IT
Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, 'I carry daily in my heart with sorrow the suffering of the peoples in Palestine and Israel, due to the ongoing hostilities. The thousands of dead, wounded, displaced, the immense destruction cause pain, and this with tremendous consequences for the little ones. I encourage the continuation of negotiations for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza and throughout the region, so that hostages are immediately released and the civilian population can have safe access to humanitarian aid. “I really wonder: Do you want to build a better world this way? Do you really want to achieve peace this way? Enough, please! Let's all say: Stop, please, stop! They are not my words, they are the words of the Pope.
Cohesion policy 2014-2020 – implementation and outcomes in the Member States (debate)
Date:
13.03.2024 18:14
| Language: IT
Madam President, ladies and gentlemen, if I were to give the report a title, I would say 'no one touches cohesion policy', and yet we have done so. It's not an ATM, remember, it's not an emergency fund. In addition, we have also used it for purposes other than cohesion between regions: We have financed war industries, we have financed multinationals such as Big Pharma. Finally, I would like to make an appeal to the European Commission: attention to the Member States. Cohesion policy is additive, not a substitute. Some national governments, like mine, not only do not guarantee the regions of the South the same administrative capacity, nor essential levels of performance, but undermine cohesion with a law, the so-called law on differentiated autonomy that will only worsen the gap between the South and the North of the country, contrary to what the cohesion policy itself says in Europe.
Energy performance of buildings (recast) (A9-0033/2023 - Ciarán Cuffe)
Date:
12.03.2024 21:27
| Language: IT
Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, no more fake news! The media campaign orchestrated by the brick lobbies and the right has painted it as a law aimed at removing homes from Europeans and Italians. The truth is that the so-called "green case directive", approved today by the European Parliament, will help the weakest families and groups. Yes, because making our homes more energy efficient means lowering the prices of bills, just for those who have more difficulty in getting to the end of the month, also reducing emissions harmful to the environment and our health. It applies to the owners, but it also applies to all those families who live in rent and who represent 20% of Italian families. Of course, restructuring costs money, but that is precisely why we European Greens, and certainly not the right, have fought to ensure a new ad hoc European fund, which will guarantee financial support to those who restructure and protect those who are renting from price speculation and evictions. The Meloni government stop promoting fake news and make the interests of large real estate groups, implement the law that voted in the European Council, moreover, really protecting those who today live in dilapidated and polluting homes and pay high rents and bills.
Council decision inviting Member States to ratify the Violence and Harassment Convention, 2019 (No. 190) of the International Labour Organization (debate)
Date:
12.03.2024 10:31
| Language: IT
Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, violence at work is not just an individual and organisational issue; This is an urgent political issue that requires our attention and action. It affects our communities, perpetuates social injustices, hinders economic growth and undermines the very fabric of our society. This is also a European issue: the objective of a world of work free from violence and harassment is enshrined in the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, the Charter of Fundamental Social Rights of Workers, the Council of Europe’s European Social Charter – and I say this to my colleague from the far right, which is a pity that she is also a woman – it makes me really strange not to be united on this point either. Today we take a small first step towards achieving this goal and together we can create a society where every individual can go to work without fear and where workplace violence is now a thing of the past.
Council decision inviting Member States to ratify the Violence and Harassment Convention, 2019 (No. 190) of the International Labour Organization (debate)
Date:
12.03.2024 09:48
| Language: IT
Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, first of all I must thank Mrs Franssen and Mrs Peter-Hansen for the work they have done and which I am honoured to replace today. It is an honour to speak before you today because all the Member States of the European Union have supported the objectives and played a key role in the adoption of ILO Convention 190, the international labour organisation. In the tripartite body proposing ratification of the Convention, no Member State voted against or abstained, and this is not a small step. The Convention is the first international treaty to recognise everyone's right to a world of work free from violence and harassment, including gender-based violence and harassment. This is a great achievement, because in the world more than one in five people have suffered at least one form of violence and harassment at work during their working life, whether this is physical, psychological or sexual violence. But the step we are invited to take today as Europeans is minimal, it is a formality, it is the last step in a whole series of actions carried out by courageous people within the ILO. We honour their courage and action by speeding up this ratification process. However, it is a step that calls for further policy action: We political leaders must recognise that workplace violence is not just a private matter between individuals, it has a direct impact on the social fabric of our communities. I would like to mention some of the priorities of the Convention. First, it stresses the need for laws and regulations empowering organisations to prevent and combat violence in the workplace, so as to send a clear message: Such behavior will not be tolerated in our society! To achieve this we need laws that protect all workers, regardless of their sector and profession. We need to raise awareness and change attitudes; We need funding, resources for organisations and agencies that can help prevent and respond effectively and ensure that victims have access to the support we need. Given that violence and harassment at work are capable of affecting working conditions and, in particular, a healthy working environment as well as equality and non-discrimination, the European Union must take measures to define and prohibit such behaviour. Not allowing violence should not be a controversial claim. However, it is important to bear in mind that the risk is not evenly distributed, on the contrary: some population groups are disproportionately targeted. Young people, migrants and women are more likely to experience violence and harassment at work, and this may be particularly true among women. Young women are twice as likely as young men to experience violence and sexual harassment; Migrant women are almost twice as likely as non-migrant women to report sexual violence and harassment. The occurrence of multiple and interconnected forms of discrimination makes some individuals particularly vulnerable; For example, LGBTI workers report a significantly higher incidence of workplace violence than non-LGBTI workers. It is important that the Convention be ratified with a gender-responsible approach, addressing intersecting vulnerabilities. Finally, this type of violence goes far beyond physical harm: It extends to the very fabric of our workplaces, affecting not only individuals but also organizations as a whole. Therefore, it is essential to recognize that violence at work is not limited to physical confrontations but can manifest itself in various forms: sexual harassment, discrimination, intimidation or cyberbullying. In today's interconnected world, online harassment and bullying are increasingly common, blurring the line between personal and professional life. It is therefore important that the Convention responds to the reality that acts of violence and harassment do not necessarily have to occur exclusively in a physical or traditional workplace, above all, and I conclude, as the digital transition in the economy and in our labour market advances, it is crucial that we in the European Union continue to ensure the protection of workers in all contexts.
Preventing work-related deaths following the Florence tragedy (debate)
Date:
28.02.2024 17:44
| Language: IT
Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, 'Deaths at work are the fault of wild immigration'. It's not my words. It is the title in large letters that stood out in an Italian newspaper in the aftermath of the accident in Florence. That shameful title is the testimony of a political class that hides its responsibilities: This applies to Italy, but also to Europe. More than 3000 people die at work every year in the European Union. In Italy alone, there were more than 1000 victims in 2023. Not to mention the deaths that do not end up in the statistics, killed, for example, by the poisons of the fossil industry: I think of Taranto, my city. The solutions are there. In construction, subcontracting is limited, so as to guarantee joint and several liability throughout the chain. Instead, in Italy, the right-wing government amends the procurement code, yes, but cancels the ban on awarding contracts with the maximum reduction, rewarding cascading subcontracting. On the facts of Florence the criminal responsibilities will be ascertained. However, those policies are clear and also concern the European Commission. The new procurement code in Italy is part of the reforms of the NRRP. Let Brussels not be complicit and block this reform.
War in the Gaza Strip and the need to reach a ceasefire, including recent developments in the region (debate)
Date:
27.02.2024 15:24
| Language: IT
Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, what is happening in the Gaza Strip is unprecedented: almost 30,000 people have died since October, the vast majority of them civilians and above all thousands of children; more than 70,000 people were injured and then millions more were displaced; most of the hospitals and schools destroyed by the bombs. No recent conflict has come close to such a massacre. Israel's so-called right to defense has long since been overstepped. But Europe still struggles to understand this. Let's call it by the right name: There is a full-blown genocide in the Gaza Strip. Tel Aviv's planned attack on Rafah will be another bloodbath. This massacre must be stopped immediately. A truce is not enough: We need lasting peace. Netanyahu's post-conflict plan goes in the opposite direction. The idea of taking out UNRWA from Gaza is unacceptable. The only possible peace is with the recognition of the Palestinian state. Europe must make every effort to make this happen. History will not forgive the indifferent and we will not stand among them.
Multiannual financial framework for the years 2021 to 2027 - Establishing the Ukraine Facility - Establishing the Strategic Technologies for Europe Platform (‘STEP’) (joint debate - multiannual financial framework revision)
Date:
27.02.2024 09:26
| Language: IT
Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, STEP: A regulation that should have given a vision of European industrial policy and financed it with fresh resources to invest in strategic technologies. STEP: step in Italian. But more than I step forward to me it seems like a leap backwards: investments in bulk, from fossil fuels to CO2 storage, from GMOs to pharmaceuticals. All this using the resources of cohesion policy, the same resources that must be used to restore health, education, sustainable public transport and support the resources invested for micro- and small enterprises in less developed regions. Instead, funds are once again being diverted from the most vulnerable to large industries, the same ones that make profits at the expense of citizens. You have not spared the Just Transition Fund either. European industrial policy is not done by taking money from the territories for multinationals. Little and bad is not enough because it is always better than nothing. We had proposed to you a real reform of economic governance and the abandonment of theausterity and instead you have preferred accounting games to the detriment of citizens.
Implementation report on the EU LGBTIQ Equality Strategy 2020-2025 (continuation of debate)
Date:
07.02.2024 19:42
| Language: IT
Madam President, ladies and gentlemen, stressing the importance of this strategy is important, voting on this report is important. But we must make the strategy operational with a timetable and sufficient resources across Europe. Above all, we must not let our guard down in the face of those who, like the right-wing governments, such as the Italian government, the Meloni government, normalize with their silence a climate of violence and rampant hatred. The reality is that assaults on the LGBTIQ+ community are commonplace across Europe. In Italy, for example, the Gay Center in Rome is the subject of vandalism. Rainbow families are victims of an ideological crusade that puts children's rights at risk. Trans people are attacked in their right to self-determination. A climate of daily intimidation to silence the voices of those who fight for the right to be themselves. And every time that happens, the right-wing government, the Italian government, turns the other way. But Europe is not, we are not. We will not be silent. Michela Murgia wrote: Fascist is who fascist does. A regurgitation of the past that you have to call by your own name and stop at all costs.
Empowering farmers and rural communities - a dialogue towards sustainable and fairly rewarded EU agriculture (debate)
Date:
07.02.2024 09:53
| Language: IT
Madam President, ladies and gentlemen, it seems that everyone in this House has become a champion of farmers' rights. I'm pleased with that. I wonder, though: Where were they in 2020, when we, the bad environmentalists, proposed to reject the trade agreement with the Mercosur countries? Or: Where were they in 2021, when we asked for more resources for farmers and less for large farms under the new CAP? I ask this of my colleagues on the right, who today are competing to take pictures alongside tractors. Too bad that at the time, instead of tractors, you chose the other part of the barricade, that of the lobby of the owners of the agribusiness. Do you want to give a strong signal of closeness to farmers today? Well, we have proposals: a tax on the non-profits of large companies and large retailers to support farmers' incomes; We reject Mercosur once and for all. reform the directive on unfair practices in agriculture throughout the supply chain; reform the CAP so that 80% of subsidies no longer go to only 20% of the largest farms. These are just a few proposals. What about yours?
Quality traineeships in the EU (debate)
Date:
06.02.2024 18:36
| Language: IT
Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, Commissioner, our young people can no longer do that. They grow up in a system that promises them great successes, provided, however, that they study hard and acquire more and more skills. Years of sacrifices made by themselves and their families. One traineeship after another, without a shred of perspective and, above all, without adequate compensation. Food, accommodation, transport: It's all for the trainees, it's all for our young people. We MEPs – in fact, the Greens, Socialists and Lefts – have written a directive in black and white to put an end to unpaid work. We listened to the Youth Forum, their voices, their needs, needs screamed from the tents where they camped because they can not pay their rent. A few months before the European elections, those young people's eyes are on you, Commissioner, and on the European Commission. Be assured that they will no longer believe your promises and turn their backs on those who do not invest in their present. Let us remember this, ladies and gentlemen: Social Europe means dignity for all, and not for a lucky few.
Plants obtained by certain new genomic techniques and their food and feed (debate)
Date:
06.02.2024 13:29
| Language: IT
Madam President, ladies and gentlemen, the proposal on genomic techniques in agriculture does not respect the precautionary principle, because it exempts most of these techniques from the risk assessment procedure. It also violates the principle of transparency and thus the right of citizens to know what they find on their plate. We will have huge problems in terms of contamination of organic farming: organic farmers would no longer be able to claim uncontaminated crops. The possibility of patenting these technologies still remains – let us tell farmers the truth – and would lead to further market centralisation in the hands of large industrial companies.agribusinessThis has very negative consequences for farmers. Here, dear colleagues of the right, with what face do you go out, now, to talk to the farmers? You'll keep lying to them. Instead, tell them the truth. You say that agrochemical multinationals could transform our agricultural landscapes into a vast experimental field, with unknown consequences for our food and our ecosystems.
EU Action Plan: protecting and restoring marine ecosystems for sustainable and resilient fisheries (debate)
Date:
18.01.2024 10:36
| Language: IT
Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, the numbers are clear: 58 % of Mediterranean stocks are overfished; 25% of Europe's coastline has lost habitat. Yet here there are those who deny the problem and make the false champion of fishermen. That's enough! It is enough to say this to the right, which, on the one hand, tells fishermen that they are not responsible for the depletion of our seas, but on the other hand, in Parliament and in the Council, votes against the abandonment of fossil fuels, against the directives on polluting emissions, against the directives on plastics. And when it is in government it supports new drills and regasifiers and kills fishing and mussel farming allowing polluting industries, such as the former Ilva of Taranto, the Brindisi coal plant and the Gela refinery, to continue to kill citizenship and coastal artisanal fishing. I repeat: to kill! I'm not exaggerating. Of course, fishermen feel betrayed. So where are the EU funds for remediation? Where's the money for the fishing stops? Where are the social shock absorbers they've been asking for for decades?
Fight against the resurgence of neo-fascism in Europe, also based on the parade that took place in Rome on 7 January (debate)
Date:
16.01.2024 19:35
| Language: IT
Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, every year in Rome hundreds of post-fascists gather to commemorate the deaths of Acca Larentia, also victims of the ideological delirium that marked a generation of red and black extremists in the 1970s. So hundreds of fascist posts renew their status as comrades in the street: It happens every year, it's true. Now, however, in Italy there is a party that comes from that tradition, and there are high offices of the State that with that tradition do not want to completely cut the bridges. In front of those images there are those who minimize, those who are pleased, those who are silent. Giorgia Meloni is silent. You, the head of the government of the Italian Republic, born on the values of the anti-fascist resistance, are silent. Unfortunately, Italy has never come to terms with fascism, let's face it, and with it in part also Europe. This silence, this silence-assent!, legitimizes the instances that underfoot have never ceased to affect the social fabric. That's enough! No to silence assent: Fascism, and everything that floats in and around Italy, is unconstitutional. Commemorating the dead is legitimate. Renewing an idea swept away by the Resistance and, even worse, endorsing rallies and slogans is not acceptable. Europe must not remain silent in the face of Italy's cultural attempt to reread history and recirculate the lethal virus of a reactionary and intolerant culture.
Children first - strengthening the Child Guarantee, two years on from its adoption - Reducing inequalities and promoting social inclusion in times of crisis for children and their families (joint debate – International Day of the Rights of the Child)
Date:
20.11.2023 16:43
| Language: IT
Madam President, Commissioner, ladies and gentlemen, the plan for implementing the Child Guarantee, published in the spring of this year, highlights in black and white the serious situation in Europe and also in my country with regard to child poverty and social exclusion. The numbers cringe: 34% of children in the South do not have access to so-called key rights, inability to attend nurseries, early school leaving rates among the highest in Europe, psychological distress, dilapidated classrooms, lack of full-time canteens. Housing inconvenience and lack of access to quality medical care are the tragic reality of a growing number of children and their families, who at the same time face an ever-increasing cost of living. Cuts in health, education, as well as delays in the implementation of the NRRP, are policy choices that are creating the conditions for a social disaster. What does Meloni's right do? The right that is obsessed with birth and the children to come. Perhaps it would be more useful to focus on children who already exist and who simply ask for a dignified life.
Type-approval of motor vehicles and engines with respect to their emissions and battery durability (Euro 7) (A9-0298/2023 - Alexandr Vondra)
Date:
09.11.2023 10:46
| Language: IT
Madam President, ladies and gentlemen, I voted against the Euro 7 regulation, which should have been an opportunity to reduce the impact of road transport emissions on air pollution and our health. Every year in the European Union 70 000 people die prematurely from nitrogen dioxide emitted by cars, 140 per day in Italy. But instead of following public health experts, Parliament preferred to listen to the disinformation campaign orchestrated by industry lobbies. The text voted today is in fact a Euro 6 bis, we look to 2050 with a ten-year-old technology. Industry and most of this Parliament have tried to make us believe that car manufacturers do not have the resources to invest in reducing the pollution caused by their combustion engine vehicles and that the investments will result in unsustainable price increases for buyers. These are lies! The profits of major automakers have never been higher and car profits in recent years have increased mainly due to the choice of automakers to replace small models with heavy and expensive models. On the contrary, with less polluting cars we could save over 100 billion public resources in damage to the environment and health and above all we could save thousands of lives.
Establishing the Strategic Technologies for Europe Platform (‘STEP’) (debate)
Date:
16.10.2023 17:46
| Language: IT
Madam President, ladies and gentlemen, too little and too late: STEP is not the answer to the American recovery plan, it is not a sovereignty fund, but it is certainly a theft of funds for less developed regions, such as the Mezzogiorno of Italy. The proposal inflicts an unprecedented blow on cohesion policy, giving governments the power to reprogramme the resources of regional funds at will, in defiance of the partnership principle, by taking away the few and precious resources of the European Union. Just Transition Fund to the territories that need it most and by diverting funds to large companies, instead of focusing on micro, small and medium-sized enterprises. A policy born to heal the growing territorial divide and emptied like a piggy bank. This is not strategy: It's myopia. Top-down decisions and investments à la carte For large companies, we Greens oppose the full involvement of the regions and only environmentally sustainable investments for small and medium-sized enterprises. This is our idea of transition, while yours is just the usual gift to multinationals.
Need for a speedy adoption of the asylum and migration package (debate)
Date:
04.10.2023 08:59
| Language: IT
Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, ten years ago, the then President of the Commission, Mr Barroso, after observing the endless row of coffins in Lampedusa, said: Europe cannot look the other way. Ten years later, Europe did not create a European search and rescue system. Rescuers are criminalized. To authoritarian regimes, such as the Tunisian one, we give money to kill migrants in the desert. We have come to tolerate pushbacks at sea, an inhuman and illegal action. The New Covenant is not perfect, it is true, but it enshrines an important principle: in the event of a crisis, there is a compulsory redistribution of immigrants. Italy has been asking for this for a long time, yet, if today the reform is stalled, the Italian government is to blame. A paradox? It's not. This is the true face of populists. mainstream: They don't have solutions, they don't want to find them. Very good at fomenting hatred to earn votes and seats. Because without migrants and NGOs to attack, they would have no arguments to hide the void of their political action. Finally, what is illegal immigration, colleagues? Who is fleeing wars? Who is not fleeing from the hunger and misery that we have caused? Capitalism and the exploitation of natural wealth and cheap labour are the basis of immigration. The way forward is the redistribution of wealth within a market that is green and social.
Protection of workers from asbestos (debate)
Date:
02.10.2023 17:04
| Language: IT
Madam President, ladies and gentlemen, Commissioner, almost 20 years ago asbestos was banned in the European Union, yet it continues to be an emergency across the continent. In Italy alone there are 40 million tons that have not yet been reclaimed. This lack of remediation poses very serious risks for citizens and workers who come into contact with asbestos. I think of our firefighters in the first place. The IARC has recently confirmed among firefighters an alarming level of incidence of malignant mesothelioma, caused precisely by exposure to asbestos fibers. It is estimated that 78% of cancers recognised as occupational across the Union are asbestos-related and the death rate has even increased in recent years, leading to as many as 90 000 deaths per year. Thanks to Parliament's work, with the new directive we have succeeded in lowering the occupational exposure limit value by ten times compared to the current limit. Removal of asbestos should take priority over other forms of handling, such as encapsulating or sealing. It acts at the root. There will be an obligation to screening buildings before work begins, so as to reduce risks. The levels of protection for workers and the obligations for employers will be the same across the Union. And last but not least, the Commission will have to develop specific guidelines for firefighters and emergency services, given their high potential for exposure to asbestos. It is now up to the Member States: transpose it as soon as possible, do not wait two years. Finally, ladies and gentlemen, approving this directive is the best way of remembering our rapporteur, Mrs Véronique. So let us all vote in favour.
Improving firefighters’ working conditions (debate)
Date:
14.09.2023 09:17
| Language: IT
Madam President, Commissioner, ladies and gentlemen, our firefighters are exhausted and I am not exaggerating. We listened to their cry of alarm, I would say of pain, a few months ago in the Work Committee. Today, in this plenary session, Parliament is asking the European Commission why these workers must be recognised as being at high daily risk in the face of measures that are essential for the safety of all of us. Firefighters play an indispensable role in protecting human lives, infrastructure, the environment and will increasingly do so in the future due to the increasing severity and frequency of natural disasters. Firefighters operate in extreme working conditions, are exposed daily to highly carcinogenic chemicals and fuels and to situations of intense stress, with repercussions on their health and psychophysical safety. But not only theirs, even that of their families. Firefighters are 300% more likely to get cancer than the general population. But European and national occupational health and safety legislation is not suitable to protect them. And, mockingly, in some of the European states, like mine, like Italy, firefighters don't even have adequate insurance coverage. They need to take out private insurance. It is time for the European Commission to act: there is an urgent need for a European strategy on firefighters and emergency services. We need a package with a comprehensive approach that provides concrete responses to staff shortages, equipment shortages, working conditions, and the health and safety of their work. And you need one screening health care. Harmonised procedures are needed for joint operations in the European Union.
COVID-19 pandemic: lessons learned and recommendations for the future (A9-0217/2023 - Dolors Montserrat)
Date:
12.07.2023 19:45
| Language: IT
Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, the report is weak and watered down and I voted against it. We talk about approach One Health, but austerity policies that impose cuts on public health are not condemned. The EU has given billions of public money to big pharmaceutical companies for research, but it has not revoked their patents. We do not demand the publication of contracts on vaccines, yet it is a question of democracy and appropriate reporting of a health and humanitarian affair of extraordinary scope, which has undermined to the foundations the rights that were thought to be inalienable, such as the right to free movement and work. The right to work and income has been indelibly marked by the abuse of a cunningly defined limit. green pass. There is no clear condemnation of disparities in access to treatment and other medical countermeasures other than vaccines; is weak on adverse effects, pharmacovigilance, and liability and guarantees for reparations. On a positive note, however, there is the proposal to create an autonomous European public infrastructure, without profit-making purposes for the development of new drugs. In the face of the right that instead declares that you can not socialize science. You are shameful!
Protection of workers from extreme heat and other extreme weather phenomena resulting from the climate crisis (debate)
Date:
10.07.2023 19:05
| Language: IT
Madam President, ladies and gentlemen, we regularly find ourselves here calling for the activation of the Solidarity Fund following fires, floods affecting the North, the South and the centre of Europe. Colleagues, do we all agree that prevention is better than cure? Yes, yes. I ask you this because in this Parliament there are those who, with the help of a certain press, not all of them, deny the guilty action of man, deny climate change and, moreover, accuse us Greens of all the evils of the world. The truth is in everyone's eyes: these increasingly frequent events have a disproportionate impact on even the most vulnerable professions. I am referring, in particular, to firefighters, one of the most exposed categories. What about the implementation of Framework Directive 89/331 and its successors, Commissioner? How do we protect them from exposure to chemical, physical, biological agents? Are decontamination procedures, personal protective equipment implemented? What about health surveillance? And most importantly, do they have accident insurance coverage? A state body that protects the lives of citizens every day, putting its own life at risk, in many states, like mine, does not even enjoy national insurance coverage. Our young people in civilized Europe are thrown into disarray. It's a scandal! To the citizens I say: Don't take the lies of the right. They will be the first to turn the other way when you need them, they are already doing it. They navigate on sight, without a clear vision and without real solutions. Today, concrete measures are needed here to secure our territories and make them resilient. Not acting now will have an incalculable cost tomorrow and our children and grandchildren will pay for it.
Quality traineeships in the EU (debate)
Date:
13.06.2023 19:57
| Language: IT
Madam President, ladies and gentlemen, Commissioner, the eyes of young Europeans are on us. They want concrete answers. It is intolerable that our children should study for years, making sacrifices after sacrifices to enter the world of work prepared, only to discover that there is a price to pay: one traineeship after another, without protections, without clear prospects and, what is worse, unpaid. Training is the name that too many times is given to the exploitation of young graduates. That is why we Greens, together with all the progressive forces, have written a European directive, together with youth organisations, to establish criteria of quality, social protection, job security and remuneration in line with the minimum wage. What does the right do? He boycotts committee work, puts down months of hard work and demands that the directive become a mere recommendation. In Italy there are young people in tents in front of universities for months. They protest against the cost of living and the impossibility of studying, training and maintaining themselves at the same time. You say you want to defend the future of young people when their present is already unlivable. You say you are doing the interests of our country and Europe, but you do nothing to stop thousands of brains from escaping. Our idea, the idea of the Greens, is very clear: Opportunities for everyone, not just those who can afford them, and decent work. This is our idea of Europe.
Strengthening social dialogue (debate)
Date:
31.05.2023 20:02
| Language: IT
Mr President, Commissioner, ladies and gentlemen, the Porto Social Forum has just ended, where we discussed the state of social rights in Europe. Governments like Portugal demonstrate political will and leadership in responding to the social crisis with concrete measures. I am thinking of the tax incentives that led to an increase in the rate of workers covered by collective bargaining by 117 percent. But this is not the case in all Member States. Exactly the opposite of this virtuous model, the Italian far-right government did not even come to the Porto Social Forum. Fortunately, one of the few governments absent on this great occasion, when the social agenda of the European Union was discussed. The response of these governments, like the Italian one, to the crisis, is to cut social inclusion measures, to leave precarious workers out of collective bargaining. One in four workers earn less than their basic income. Our democracies are not just any democracies, they arise from the inclusion of citizens in the management of public affairs and from the full participation of the most vulnerable. Hungering the majority, excluding the vulnerable for the benefit of the few is a betrayal of democratic values.
Social and economic costs of climate change in light of the floods in Emilia Romagna, Marche and Toscana and the urgent need for European solidarity (debate)
Date:
31.05.2023 18:03
| Language: IT
Madam President, we are mourning the victims of the flood that hit my country. Climate change deniers have missed an opportunity not to be silent, but at least to learn from the recent disaster. In this House there are colleagues who are sceptical about the connection between floods and the climate crisis. In Italy a minister not only expresses doubts, but argues that already in the past our country has been the victim of floods. We are still at the ABC of science, dear colleagues, but when these solons understand that climate change does not mean that extreme events have appeared from nowhere on the planet, it means that these events are increasingly frequent, and with increasingly dramatic consequences. In Italy, a period of extreme and unusual drought was followed by a period of rainfall, even these extreme and unusual. Of course, to explain the tragedy there is also a territory perhaps not prepared, either for the cementification, or for the lack of prevention. Italy requests the European Solidarity Fund as soon as possible – in 2020 I was rapporteur for the European Greens – we changed it so that the keyword was ‘prevention’. Our flooded territories must be rebuilt, yes, but made resilient to disasters. Emilia-Romagna is a model in the fight against global warming. Work is being done on a transition network for the industrial and agri-food sector, one of the most developed in Europe, yes, but also one of the most polluting. Finally, I denounce the irresponsibility of the whole right, which has withdrawn from the negotiations on the law for the restoration of nature. A fundamental law to make territories an instrument of prevention against natural disasters. For the right there is always a reason to say "no" to the ecological transition. The problem is that then there are those who mourn the death of their loved ones and those who even have to mourn the closure of their company. That's because of these "no's."