Debate contributions by Laurent CASTILLO

Madam President, Commissioner, ladies and gentlemen, a health alert has just been triggered in the Alpes-Maritimes, in Antibes, in Nice, my city. More than 300 cases of chikungunya have been recorded. A tropical virus that is no longer tropical. The tiger mosquito is now settling in Europe in a sustainable way. Chikungunya causes intense, often disabling joint pain, fever, rashes, headaches and sometimes sequelae that last for weeks or even months. It is not an innocuous disease: it is a disease that blocks, isolates, disrupts everyday life as well as the local economy. This is not an isolated episode: it is a symptom of a warming continent and a public health that too often reacts instead of anticipating. Mosquitoes and ticks are heading north. The climate has changed. Our prevention policies need to change. So yes, we have to act. Strengthen vector surveillance. Sharing data between Member States. Support vaccine research and pool resources – insecticides, repellents, laboratories – to prevent each country from fighting alone in its own corner. Although health remains and must remain a national competence, this topic shows that, on these health and climate issues, Europe must be united, concrete and useful. Chikungunya on the French Riviera is not a local fact: it is a continental alarm signal. It reminds us that health threats know no borders and that only coordinated action, based on science and prevention, can sustainably protect Europeans.

Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, mental health is one of the great challenges of our century. One in six people in Europe suffer, often in silence, sometimes in shame. But this suffering is not equal, it unfortunately follows the social gradient. Precariousness, loneliness, loss of meaning at work strike above all the most modest. Too often, this distress leads to addictions – alcohol, tobacco, screens, drugs – that lock up more than they relieve. Mental health is not only a medical issue, but also a matter of dignity and social justice. The European Union must act not as a substitute for States, but by training, sharing and supporting prevention. Investing in mental health means protecting our people, their balance, their future and their sovereignty.

Mr President, Commissioner, ladies and gentlemen, in France more than one million people suffer from Alzheimer's disease; In Europe, 9 million people are living with this horrible disease. Behind these numbers, there are lives turned upside down, families devastated, a future that worries us all. The rapid aging of our societies makes urgency evident. If we do not act, the burden will become unsustainable. Our duty is twofold: supporting research and innovation by simplifying rules, which all too often hinder testing and access to treatment, and acting on prevention, as almost one in two cases could be avoided. This means fighting hypertension, diabetes, tobacco, excess alcohol, promoting a healthy diet, physical activity, cognitive stimulation, social connection, but also managing hearing loss and depression. Finally, let us not forget the caregivers, these spouses, these children, these relatives who carry the weight of the disease. Let's give them clear status and rights. Colleagues, illness steals memories. Let us not add the forgetting of policies. Let's get involved today, here and now.

Madam President, Commissioner, ladies and gentlemen, everyone is talking about prevention, but too few are implementing it. Why? Because its effects take time and too many elected officials prefer immediate results. Yet this is where it all starts: living better, decongesting hospitals, reducing costs. 1 euro invested in prevention is up to 6 euros in savings. To warn is to see far. If some states lack courage, then let us be exemplary on a European scale. After the cancer plan, let's commit ourselves with the same ambition against cardiovascular diseases. Let us launch a real European plan to combat obesity. The health of Europeans is not a slogan, it is a struggle. And this fight begins with prevention.

Mr President, Commissioner, ladies and gentlemen, curing a rare disease is not enough. Too often, those who survived still face one final obstacle: that of the eyes of banks, insurers and society. I say it with emotion: as a surgeon, I accompanied children with rare cancers. I have seen their courage, their struggle, their resilience, but I have seen all too often that, even when they are cured, they remain prisoners of a past they did not choose. The right to be forgotten is not a luxury, it is a fundamental right. It is time for the European Union to finally enshrine it in its legislation, so that these children, who have become adults, can build their future without hindrance. Healing is not enough to be free. Being free means being able to forget.

Madam President, ladies and gentlemen, men, women and children shot dead at close range because they are Christians or Alawites: barbarism once again marks Syria with its imprint. The European Union must not be naive. Let us not forget that President al-Charaa fought in the ranks of the Islamic State and Al-Qaeda. Wearing a tie does not wash the blood of innocent people. The EU must have no difficulty naming the evil of Islamic totalitarianism. He is the one who struck the Syrian coast, he is the one who spilled the blood of our peoples on European soil, he is the enemy. We must make the lifting of sanctions and the disbursement of millions of euros of aid conditional on proof of the non-involvement of the transitional government and its full commitment to restoring order, when it is today unable to detain war dogs in the face of civilians. Let's demand security guarantees for Syria's minorities! Let us not repeat the same mistakes as in Iraq and Libya!

Mr President, Commissioner, ladies and gentlemen, eight million people die in the world every year, 75 000 in France, the equivalent of cities like La Rochelle or Cannes, which are wiped off the map every year. This is the tragic death toll of smoking, the leading cause of preventable cancers. Yes, it is our duty to fight tobacco by helping those who smoke to get out and preventing new consumers from entering. Creating smoke-free environments is a decisive step in this fight, but let's be clear: Member States are free in their anti-smoking policies. We should not give the impression that the European Union bans smoking in places such as café and restaurant terraces. The European Union has set itself the goal of achieving a tobacco-free generation by 2040. To achieve this, we must support the creation of smoke-free environments around schools and hospitals to protect our youth and patients. There is a question of how we should approach new tobacco-related products, such as e-cigarettes. As a surgeon and a professor of medicine, scientific studies are at the heart of my thinking. That is why I want us to rely on real, rather than supposed, evidence before any regulation. E-cigarettes must be able to help those who smoke to quit smoking without becoming an attractive gadget for young people and non-smokers.

Madam President, Madam Vice-President of the European Commission, ladies and gentlemen, the regulation on medical devices, known as MDR, although aimed at increasing safety, imposes disproportionate burdens on small and medium-sized enterprises, so disproportionate that almost 50% of manufacturers would consider moving to other markets, in particular the US market. The result is sometimes dramatic for patients, who lose access to essential, sometimes irreplaceable treatments. Despite changes, too many obstacles persist, such as increased costs, delays and clinical studies. Instead of innovating, our companies have mobilized 70% to 100% of their teams over the past five years for a regulatory update. We need to respond by easing some of the requirements of the MDR, especially for SMEs, to ensure that safety does not become a barrier to innovative care.

Mr President, Commissioner, ladies and gentlemen, it has been said that the risk of an mpox epidemic in the European Union is low. While vigilance and preparedness for the virus are paramount, let us not worry our populations unnecessarily. For its most dangerous variant, all cases have been reported in African countries, with the exception of one in Thailand and another in Sweden more than a month ago. Let us not make every virus an epidemic that comes to the European Union. The COVID crisis has martyred our public opinion, it has martyred our fellow citizens, it has martyred our health system, and here it is the professor of medicine, still in office, who speaks to you. But here, with mpox, I repeat, the risk is low. Since the risk is low, what can the European Union do about mpox? Look from afar at this virus that touches the other side of the Mediterranean, surely not. Acting in prevention is the first role we have in preventing at-risk populations and informing travellers from at-risk areas. But another role for us Europeans is to help the African continent fight mpox. Provide financial support, e.g. through the European Commission's support to the Burundi Red Cross, technical support through the dispatch of qualified personnel on site, increased collaboration between the European and African health authorities, or support through the planned dispatch of more than 55,000 doses of vaccines by the European Commission via HERA and the Member States. Finally, I want to emphasize one important thing is that in the face of mpox, we have an effective vaccine that has two weapons: above all a preventive role in vaccinating those at risk, but also a major role in the reactive effect, i.e. post-exposure vaccination after eight days. Ladies and gentlemen, our role as Europeans is to help Africa in the face of mpox without worrying our people, the risk being low on our continent.