Debate contributions by Moritz KÖRNER

Mr President! Freedom of speech is the foundation of our democracy. The exchange of different opinions and arguments, the competition about it, which ensures compromises in a society. But this competition has to be fair. That's what makes our open democracy, that's what makes liberal democracies. But if there is an outside attempt to influence this – as Anne Applebaum calls it in her new book “Autocracy, Inc.”, the autocrats of this world who work together and consciously try to influence our liberal democracies – then this is no longer fair competition of opinions, it is not freedom of expression, but the free and open society is used to influence our opinions in the interests of the autocrats of this world. We must take action against this, not by massively curtailing freedom of expression. It is also not part of the DSA. Instead, we create maximum transparency about the algorithms and the influence that is there from the outside. Because the speaker of the AfD asked me earlier which influence, which gentlemen I would serve, I can only say: I serve my constituents. In contrast to the AfD, I did not receive any money from Russia.

So you didn't get a blue card until now and now you get two at the same time. It's about social media and I think you do it well, you know, you convince people. And nothing is wrong about that. But the problem here, and that's what we're discussing, is if there's a foreign actor putting lots of money to influence the whole discussion – that is what is happening there. And there's also a difference to the past. And there are new developments here. So can we agree together that we want to protect free speech, that we want to have transparency on what's happening on the platform and fair rules? That is what we are talking about.

Madam, thank you very much for taking my Blue card accept. You have just mentioned that the election in Thuringia has been reversed. Did not Mr Kemmerich resign there, an FDP member, and why should he listen to Angela Merkel? That's my first question. And my second question is: What kind of sulfur stench do you mean in the hallways? I haven't been in your hallway lately. I don't know what it smells like. I didn't notice any sulfur stench in this house. Maybe you can clarify that.

Madam President, The right here complains that we have to have this debate at all. We only have to have this debate because it exists and its policies in the countries attack the rights of homosexuals in the first place. We could just leave this debate here, we'd all like it if they just came to their senses. There is talk of sexual propaganda in schools. It sounds like you're just saying a little bit, you can be gay, and then automatically the kids would all become gay in class. If there is a gay character in the Netflix series – ups, all of a sudden everyone becomes gay. It really doesn't work that way. The only thing that happens when a school class teaches that, for example, two men or two women can love each other, the only thing that happens is that students may become a little more tolerant. But for the students who are actually queer, who struggle with themselves, who think: Am I different? Will my parents accept me that way? It is important for these students, because they still have a much higher risk of suicide in Europe. As long as we don't change that, I ask you never to talk about the safety of children again. You're doing the opposite.

Madam President, dear colleagues, today we remember Daphne Caruana Galizia, a brave and tireless journalist whose voice was silenced because she dared to expose the truth. Daphne wasn't just reporting stories. She was fighting for justice, for accountability, for the very soul of our democracy. And for that, she paid the ultimate price. Her brutal assassination is a chilling reminder for Europe. When Daphne was murdered, that blow wasn't just against her. It was a blow to media freedom across our continent. It was a message meant to instill fear, to silence those who hold power to account. But we cannot allow that. Media freedom is not just another value. It is a cornerstone of our democracies. Without free and independent media, the foundations of justice and transparency begin to crumble, corruption thrives, and the powerful can act unchecked in darkness. We must unite to protect media freedom, not just for the sake of journalists, but for the sake of democracy itself. Let us honour Daphne's legacy by safeguarding what she fought for: truth, justice and the unyielding right to speak freely.

Mr President, ladies and gentlemen! The Rule of Law Report is now an established mechanism. And we also see that the indications from the reports are increasingly being taken up in the Member States. It is good that the Commission plans to include the internal market component more in the Rule of Law Report, because with competition policy, the EU Commission also has a strong sword in its hand to use it to ensure rule of law policy. This is because concentration of power, including in the area of competition, can limit the rule of law. I very much support the fact that the Commission is setting out there. However, it must also be mentioned in this Rule of Law Report that the EU Commission has postponed it for the first time. It should be published much earlier. We were able to Politico read that Ms von der Leyen did not like it so much that in the time when she still had to get through to the heads of state and government, she did not want to write anything about the rule of law in the family tree of the Member States. This political shift, this is wrong and this should not happen again. That is why I would like to take this opportunity to thank Věra Jourová, who has worked incredibly in recent years on the issue of the rule of law, for this Rule of Law Report. For your commitment, dear Věra, thank you very much.

Thank you, colleague, for this question because it's really good, because it is connected. It should not be differentiated. If you are destroying the rule of law and European values in your country, if there is an Article 7 procedure in place and the rule of law conditionality applied to your country, that should make a difference. You should not make the school bully the school director – and that is what we did in the European Union! That is why this House called for the Council to change that. It could easily be done. We did it already. The Brits, they changed their Council Presidency. There should not be a Council Presidency when a Member State is violating our fundamental principles. That is what it is about.

Madam President, what a speech Mr Orbán gave. What a speech. Mr Orbán, you say you want democracy and you brag about your majorities in the Hungarian Parliament. Yet for years, you have only ruled by emergency decree. Are you so afraid of democracy, Mr Orbán? You say you are for national sovereignty, yet you invite Chinese policemen to surveil the people in your country. You say you want to stop migration, yet you let Russian spies into our Schengen system and call it the 'National Guard'. That is what you're doing. Mr Orbán, you are not a patriot. You are just a useful idiot of Russia and China. That's the reality. You say you want to fight for more economic competitiveness, yet you keep introducing new company laws and taxes to drive European competitors out of your country. You've turned Hungary into a banana republic. You've robbed your population and enriched your family and friends. Under your rule, Hungary has become one of the poorest and officially the most corrupt country in the EU. What a fraud! What a burden for your people. Mr Orbán, please step down to make Hungary great again.

Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, Commissioner! We are still discussing a lot about X, or Twitter, and Elon Musk. The commission even constantly writes letters, which it then posts on X, and argues with Elon Musk. I think we should write a little less letters with Elon Musk and look more at what's actually happening with our teens with TikTok. We know that TikTok is a China app and there is influence from China on this app. A study by Rutgers University shows that content that does not correspond to the Chinese government, such as criticism of China or support for Ukraine, is massively reduced compared to Instagram. This is an influence on our debate and especially on young people and therefore also a threat to our democracy. Islamists are increasingly using TikTok to radicalize young people. I therefore call on the Commission to: Proceed with all severity now! Take advantage of the DSA's ability to bring transparency to the algorithms and actually be tougher on TikTok – the Americans are already a bit further along.