Debate contributions by Li ANDERSSON

Mr President, Executive Vice-President, dear colleagues, we are living in a time of uncertainty: geopolitical instability, the green and digital transitions, and deep demographic change are reshaping our societies and economies in unprecedented ways. This changing environment affects how we learn, how we work, how we live and, crucially, who benefits and who is left behind. Our labour markets, education and training, and social protection systems are under pressure. And while we can acknowledge that progress has been made towards the 2030 employment target, we must also be honest: progress on poverty reduction and training is far too slow. Inequalities between Member States, regions and social groups are widening, not narrowing, and this is a huge problem for people, societies and the economy as well. These challenges do not affect everyone in the same way: some groups are disproportionately exposed to job insecurity, low-quality work, skills mismatches and poverty. Young people not in education, employment or training, Roma communities, people with disabilities, older workers, single parents and many others still face structural barriers to accessing quality jobs and decent livelihoods. And this is happening at the very moment when employers in many countries across Europe report growing labour and skills shortages. Against this background, Parliament would like to ask the Commission how it intends to respond in a way that is ambitious enough, coherent and socially just. First, on access to labour markets and quality jobs: how will the Commission address the unequal social impact of the green and digital transitions in the new European Pillar of Social Rights Action Plan? How will it ensure that these transitions become a pathway to inclusion? Second, on working conditions and labour mobility: fair labour mobility and decent working conditions are essential for a functioning internal market and for social cohesion, yet too many workers still face exploitation, insecurity and unequal treatment. What measures does the Commission envisage to ensure fair labour mobility and decent working conditions for all? Third, on homelessness and housing: homelessness is one of the most extreme forms of social exclusion, and it is rising in many Member States. This is unacceptable in a Union that claims to put people at its centre. How will the Commission combat homelessness and intend to honour its political commitment to end homelessness by 2030 through the European Affordable Housing Plan and beyond. And fourth, on financing and governance: none of these objectives can be achieved without adequate, stable and predictable funding. How will the Commission ensure consistent and sufficient financial resources to deliver on the objectives of the European Pillar of Social Rights in the context of the next multiannual financial framework and its proposed new structure? Will social conditionalities for EU funding be strengthened and effectively enforced? And what methodology will the Commission use to track national social spending under the next MFF, so that commitments translate into real investment in people? I will close by saying that, in the committee's view, the new action plan to implement the European Pillar of Social Rights must not become a catalogue of good intentions: it must be a plan for concrete action, backed by legislation, by funding and by accountability. The European social model must continue to be at the heart of the European project, and Parliament expects clear answers, concrete measures and a credible timeline.

Madam President, Commissioner, the financialisation of the housing market has been one of the key drivers of the housing crisis, and therefore it is also one of the key problems that must be addressed. We must regulate short-term rentals and we also need more financing instruments for non-profit housing. For a long time, Finland ensured that a sufficient share of all new rental flats were not-for-profit, through state-guaranteed loans. However, this model is now threatened by lots of different causes, but one of them is that in 2022, Eurostat started counting state guarantees for these loans as public debt, even though they are not. This increased Finland's debt-to-GDP ratio by over six percentage points overnight, making support for non-profit housing less attractive to the government. This needs to change as soon as possible, as we should be removing barriers for affordable housing instead of creating them.

Mr President, 'it could have been worse' – this is a phrase that I hear more and more now every time we talk about climate and environmental policies. But let's be honest: even if – and it's a big 'if' – all countries complete their current pledges, we would still be heading for a planet that is 2.5 degrees warmer. That means we are failing, big time. The COP in Belém failed to deliver clear, sufficiently ambitious decisions on adaptation financing and emission cuts. Above all, countries failed to agree on a roadmap to phase out fossil fuels. What we are seeing and what we saw there is how the EU used to be the driver of international climate action. Now we are fighting internally. We are watering down our own legislation instead of preparing and building strong negotiating positions. As right‑wing forces push for less, we are seeing fewer and fewer results, and it's high time for Europe and the EU to step up our game.

Madam President, today’s debate is about human rights and the everyday lives of over 100 million people in the EU. One in four adults is estimated to have some kind of disability. Some disabilities are visible; some are not. Some people need daily assistance, while many need none. We are talking about a very diverse group with very different types of needs, but our task as decision-makers is to create circumstances, provide support and enact decisions that make equal rights a reality for everyone. We do know that there is a lot of work still to be done. The UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities is the first human rights treaty that the EU itself has ratified. Last spring, the CRPD Committee pointed out that EU budget funds are still used for institutionalisation. They pointed out how many children still go to segregated schools in the EU. So, we do need an ambitious disability rights strategy. We need new legal flagship initiatives. We need to make sure that the MFF aligns with our human rights obligations. And above all, we must truly respect the value and the rights of every citizen in the European Union equally.

Mr President, the loss of confidence is one of the most dangerous developments for democracy. According to the latest UN data, less than half of the world's population trusts their own government, and less than a third think they trust other people. At the same time, the confrontation based on strong emotions is intensified. That is why we need action to strengthen trust, both in Europe and elsewhere. Platforms like Meta and X are shaping our worldview and society. For example, X is suspected of favouring far-right content. Elon Musk and the new US administration have, among other things, fully openly supported Europe's far-right. Therefore, opening up and weakening EU digital legislation under pressure from US tech giants and governments would be a completely wrong choice for the EU and would also run counter to the idea of the Democracy Shield. We need to create a fair and equitable digital world that supports a pluralistic, democratic and trust-building debate.

Mr President, who protects marine areas that are common to all? The seas cover more than 70% of the Earth, produce more than half of the oxygen we breathe, sequester vast amounts of carbon and produce food. Yet we have allowed them to decay. Therefore, the UN Convention for the Protection and Restoration of International Marine Regions is one of the most important environmental agreements in recent history. Protection requires cooperation and this is why an agreement is needed. This directive is necessary for the implementation of the agreement, because it transposes the obligations into EU law. I very much welcome this outcome of the negotiations, which will improve the Commission's text as a whole and ensure greater consistency with the UN agreement. The directive now needs to be fully and without delay. The EU must act and show leadership in protecting and restoring the seas.

Madam President, what were the main reasons Europeans voted in the last European parliamentary election? It was rising prices and the cost of living. And what are the issues that they think the European Parliament should address as the main priority? Inflation, rising prices and the cost of living. I think we have been given a pretty clear message, and a very clear mandate to act. That is why, last year, it was a shock to see zero legal initiatives in the work programme in the field of employment and social policy. This year, luckily, this has been corrected, with several legal and non-legal initiatives for employment and social policy. The quality jobs act will be especially important. We want to see restrictions on subcontracting and rules for using algorithms and AI in the workplace. We want to secure workers' right to training and address psychosocial risks. And we also want to ensure that while we take one step forward, we do not take two steps back. The 28th regime and the citizens' omnibus, whatever that will mean, can in no way mean lowering labour standards. The EU cannot afford to disregard the clear message and mandate from the people. I think this mandate should not be about deregulating for big business. This should be about the rights and the livelihood of the European people.

Mr President, dear colleagues, in a world plagued by growing contempt for international law and human dignity, by environmental crisis, and by the increasing concentration of wealth and inequality, the UN World Summit for Social Development is more important than ever. It offers a platform, a place to discuss how we can create stronger global action to turn the tide. Equally important is that we get a strong statement from the European Parliament, a strong statement focusing on the three main commitments of the first World Summit for Social Development from 1995. Those are: social justice, poverty eradication, employment and social cohesion, all guided by a commitment to human rights and sustainable development. And I hear many colleagues listing the problems that we see in many countries all over Europe, and social Europe is about finding solutions to those problems. Solutions both on national and on European level. The Europeans support a strong social Europe. So let's get to work both here in the EU and globally.

Mr President, the bigger and more international a company, the harder it is for an individual worker to make his or her voice heard. Legislation on European Works Councils responds precisely to this problem by safeguarding the right of workers to be heard and informed. The larger the size of the companies, the more employees this will affect. In Finland, the first works councils for social enterprises were created last spring, and they are currently being created for private early childhood education and care. Members on the right side of this room: This is a good simulation. Works councils already exist. This legislation already exists, i.e. this Directive only provides clarification improvements to existing legislation and also improves the legal protection of workers. I find it incomprehensible that such a small improvement in the position of workers is not acceptable on the right side of this Chamber.

Mr President, two years of genocide in Gaza and now peace is being debated on the basis of a plan that repeats historical injustices by completely bypassing the Palestinians and their right to self-determination. Peace and a two-state solution cannot be achieved without the Palestinians' right to self-determination. It cannot come about without the dismantling of the illegal occupation. 700,000 illegal settlers live in the occupied territories, but the EU has done nothing to stop this. Just as nothing has been done to stop the genocide, and nothing has been done when 500 activists were illegally intercepted and arrested in international waters. Almost 20,000 Finns signed our petition last weekend to support them, but the Finnish government did not say a word. This is a historic shame for the EU.

Madam President, I was expecting this debate to be speech after speech about the successes of the Single Market, and that's why I think it's important to point out that there is also another side to this story. That is the story about all of the Europeans who have not benefited or gotten their share of this success. It is the story of workers who have had to leave their homes to work elsewhere, because there are not enough jobs and no services. It is the story of both EU and non-EU workers who are working here within the European Union, who are not being paid according to collective agreements and our national laws, who are given the most dangerous tasks, the most dangerous jobs, who are subjected to exploitation, to extortion and in many cases also violence. So yes, we would really need a stronger social dimension to the Single Market, but this must mean tougher measures to address labour exploitation. This must mean limiting subcontracting and excluding companies from procurement that do not respect collective agreements. It must mean strengthening our labour inspectorate and also addressing problems such as bogus self-employment. Most importantly, we need a strategy to strengthen trade unions, because the best way to secure workers rights is to strengthen the unions that fight for these rights and for a socially-just single market every single day.

Mr President, Putin's drones in Poland and his escalating aggression in Ukraine show what we have already known: Putin is not interested in peace; he is now increasing pressure to the maximum to test how NATO reacts and is trying to improve his position on the front in Ukraine. In addition to the need for close but peaceful coordination between the EU and NATO countries and the creation of a common drone defence, continued support for Ukraine and the strengthening of sanctions remain of paramount importance for Europe as a whole. Putin's illegal attacks will only stop when he has an interest in stopping, and that is what we can contribute with a strong sanctions policy and strong support from Ukraine.

Mr President, would you spend more than EUR 2 trillion annually to buy from companies that disrespect workers? I certainly hope not. The rules on public procurement affect the wages, the working conditions and the working life of millions of European workers. The EMPL Committee adopted an opinion to this report with a broad political majority, including possibilities to exclude companies that do not respect workers' rights and also to strengthen collective bargaining. I was very disappointed to notice that the EMPL opinion was not included in the IMCO report to the extent that we would have expected, even though the amendments were clearly under EMPL competence. The revision of the rules on public procurement cannot turn into yet another missed opportunity to strengthen workers' rights in Europe. To prevent this, we need a clear message from this Parliament, and to get that we need to vote for the EMPL amendments.

Madam President, dear colleagues, Viktor Orbán is at risk of losing political power, and I think he is showing his desperation and his weakness by attacking the Pride and by trying to push through legislation that would shut down many NGOs and many independent media outlets in Hungary. But at the Pride in Budapest in June, the people really showed their strength and power. And I have to say to the extreme right that, yes, many of us were there, but that is not the story. The real story is the fact that hundreds of thousands of Hungarians were there at the Pride, many of them participating and marching in a Pride for the first time ever to oppose this ban and to show that they protest against Viktor Orbán. Our job here now is to make sure that this does not go to waste and I think the Commission really needs to step up and use all of the tools it has. Interim measures must be requested by the Court and new legal proceedings initiated regarding the Pride ban and the 'starve and strangle' laws that have been proposed, and Hungary must be stripped of its voting rights in the Council.

Mr President, right-wing forces are currently doing their best to transform the EU into what it can be at its worst: Only a union of markets and big business. But in Eastern Europe and the Balkans, many people are looking at us for another reason. They seek security through political cooperation. They want strong protection for the rule of law, human rights and adequate environmental requirements. As Putin's authoritarianism intensifies, people are ready to take to the streets to defend their right to choose, their freedom and European values, and that is why enlargement is now such an important issue. It is also about Ukraine. If and when Ukrainians want to join the EU, we must be ready to welcome them. At the same time, we must ensure that the membership criteria are met. We need an open debate on the changes brought about by enlargement to the Union's decision-making and budget. But we also need to learn from the mistakes of previous enlargement processes. We need better tools and common digital systems to combat cross-border labour exploitation. Given how long there has been free movement in the internal market, it is incomprehensible that we have not made any further progress in resolving this problem.

Mr President, right-wing forces are currently doing their best to transform the EU into what it can be at its worst: Only a union of markets and big business. But in Eastern Europe and the Balkans, many people are looking at us for another reason. They seek security through political cooperation. They want strong protection for the rule of law, human rights and adequate environmental standards. As Putin's authoritarianism intensifies, people are ready to take to the streets to defend their right to choose their freedom and also to defend European values. (The President interrupted the speaker.)

Mr President, Viktor Orbán has been attacking freedoms and fundamental rights by restricting freedom of opinion and by weakening the rights of minorities and workers for years. And now he is doing exactly what authoritarian leaders always do when they are not stopped – he is going further, by giving authorities broad powers to monitor, sanction or even ban activities of civil society, trade unions and media by withdrawing Hungary from the ICC and by attacking diversity and democracy through banning the Pride event. Enough is enough. The EU must be able to act to protect fundamental rights and freedoms of all Europeans, and this is a legitimacy question for the whole Union. As parliamentarians, our most important, job is to support the people in Hungary who are protesting against this, who are organising the Pride march despite the repression, and I, for one, am proud to be joining them.

Mr President, workers have a fundamental right not to fall ill because of their work, and it is often even a matter of life and death. Few people are aware of the importance of the EU in the development of OSH. In 1989, a framework directive was adopted which, in addition to setting minimum standards, sets limits on, inter alia, exposure to dangerous substances, protective equipment and the protection of, for example, young people or pregnant workers. Yet in 2022, there were around 3 million accidents and more than 3 000 deaths related to work in the EU. But as the world changes, so does the law. In Finland, mental health problems have outpaced musculoskeletal disorders as the most common, i.e. the most common, cause of sick leave and disability pensions. We lose up to seven million working days a year. That is why we need a directive on psychosocial risks and to address them during this period. We need to take mental health much more seriously.

Mr President, the US is ruled by an authoritarian president who is using trade policies as a means of coercion and political extortion. While it is clear that European workers will only lose in a full-fledged trade war, the EU should be much bolder and much more imaginative in its own response to Trump's actions. The EU should target the oligarchs that are close to Trump, through action directed at Tesla and Musk, and by digital tax aimed at the huge digital platforms. The EU should also signal its readiness to use the Anti-Coercion Instrument. But most importantly, we need to make the European economy less dependent on US exports. That means supporting internal demand in the European markets, and that means supporting real wage growth and also increasing investments. More than ever, we need to put people and workers first in our economic policymaking.

Mr President, only about a year ago, in this Chamber, new EU fiscal rules were adopted and are already being amended. It tells us all about how badly these rules fit in times of multiple crises. Changing the rules to allow only defence investments is obviously not enough, neither for competitiveness nor for a social Europe. We need investments in the climate and energy transition, research, education, lifelong learning, welfare services and affordable housing. The latest Eurobarometer survey shows once again how citizens want the EU to tackle inflation and rising prices. But what do EU leaders do? They are stuck in deregulation and think that lowering human rights and environmental standards should be a winning concept. It has never been and never will be. We need a strong social Europe and, in order to achieve this, we need investment in people and workers.

Madam President, last week we in The Left Group gathered young Ukrainian leftists and trade unionists in Brussels to discuss how Ukrainian civil society can be supported during the fight against Russian imperialism. The message was crystal clear: in addition to arms support, Ukrainian society needs to address acute problems such as the severe lack of affordable housing, the lack of care services, and also proposed reforms to weaken workers' rights and trade unions. We need to find the legal basis to use frozen Russian assets and to direct these funds into a large investment programme for social housing in Ukraine. Now is also the time to finally put an end to Viktor Orbán trying to stop support to Ukraine and blocking Ukraine's EU accession process. We must remove Hungary's voting rights in the Council under Article 7. Enough is enough.

Mr President, Executive Vice‑President, who is at the centre of all of the transformations that are ongoing in Europe? It is the workers. They are the first to face the emergence of new technologies, and every day they feel the rising costs of living. As a response, we need action to secure good working conditions and quality jobs and an ambitious skills agenda. At the moment, EU Member States are far behind when it comes to participation in adult education. By 2030, the number should be 60%, yet at the moment it's only 34%. The common starting point should be: how do we find the right tools to change this? Member States need new incentives to invest in high‑quality vocational education and training, but increasing the supply of training for individuals is not enough. We also need new proposals to secure the right of workers to training. Investing in people and investing in skills is essential to reduce poverty and to deliver quality jobs in all sectors.

Madam President, as a leftist, I think that Putin and Trump form one of the most dangerous ideological alliances that the world has seen in a long time. Therefore, it is essential that the EU strengthens its support for Ukraine. In addition, the EU should set a strategic goal of reducing our dependencies on the US. This means: creating a European security architecture, redirecting all financing currently going to the US arms industry to Europe; reducing energy dependencies; and limiting the powers of the digital oligarchs. Changes to the fiscal rules must enable all of these investments. I do understand that the goal might also require more investment in European defence. But it would be a historic mistake to finance this by cutting welfare, because that would only cement the rise to power of Putin's and Trump's allies in Europe: the extreme right. And for once, the EU needs to be smarter than this.

Mr President, 'it is not a matter of deregulation, it is a matter of simplification. We just want to do things better." We have heard these messages from the Commission on several occasions, but now, at the latest, this omnibus package shows that these claims are not true. The whole of this so-called preparatory process has shown whose interests are being defended by deregulation – big companies and even those who are currently being accused of human rights violations and environmental problems. The changes proposed by the Commission undermine, for example, the CSR Directive by excluding smaller subcontractors from its scope and by weakening the position of victims of human rights violations. If care is required only at the first stage of production, as the Commission is now proposing, the human rights impact of the production of pineapple juice, for example, will in future be monitored only in Kuopio, Finland, and not in Thailand, where subcontracting will take place. Such regulation makes no sense and destroys the very idea of this directive.