Speeches

Mr President, Commissioner, harassment, sexual harassment can affect anyone, anywhere. Essentially, it is what happens afterwards. Is the victim taken seriously? Are the systems in place? And do people in power take responsibility? In the European Parliament we have been dealing with these questions for years, yet only managed to get some improvements. And why? Because especially the far right and also many from EPP deny already the existence of harassment as such, except when they can use it to slander political opponents. But when it comes down to actual improvements, they always find excuses. For example, we still do not have an external audit, which we need so much, or a professionalisation of the procedures within the European Parliament. So, taking responsibility also means to realise when the system is not working as well as expected. As socialists, we always take this responsibility, not just when forced to. Therefore, dear colleagues from PPE, only once you support the changes we need within this House, will we believe that victims of harassment actually matter to you.

Mr President, Madam Virkkunen! Tax fairness – this sounds technical, but at its core it is about something very human: for justice. That is why large corporations make a fair contribution, that small and medium-sized enterprises are not disadvantaged and that success in Europe is based on innovation, not on tax tricks. Let's face it – our current tax system is fragmented, complicated, unfair. Companies operating in several Member States have to fight their way through 27 different tax systems. A thicket of rules, exceptions and calculations. This creates bureaucracy, uncertainty, competitive disadvantages and above all costs a lot of money. Especially for those who are honest. With BEFIT, the framework for corporate taxation in Europe, we want to change that. BEFIT is our proposal for a common and modern tax base for the largest companies in the European Union. The objective: Less complexity, fewer loopholes, less tax avoidance, a fairer, easier playing field for everyone. Another central principle at BEFIT is the rule of significant economic presence. It ensures that profits are taxed where they actually arise, even when companies work digitally or service-based, i.e. without a physical presence, without offices, without factories, without people. In this way, we prevent corporations from simply shifting their profits to low-tax countries. This is how we adapt the tax system to the 21st century. We also enforced that after the transition period, large medium-sized groups of companies, as defined in the Accounting Directive, should also be covered by BEFIT. Tax fairness should not only apply to the largest corporations. Another important point is our inclusion of the rules to combat aggressive tax planning. We close loopholes in royalties and intra-group payments so profits are not artificially shifted. And we are strengthening the rules for controlled foreign companies, i.e. the controlled foreign companies, to prevent profit shifting into tax hulls. At the same time, we create incentives for investments that secure our common future in the areas of climate, social and security. Companies that invest in these projects should be able to write off these expenses more quickly, i.e. an incentive for future investments instead of tax avoidance. Finally, we have found a clear position in Parliament on the distribution of the tax base. After the transition period, a formula should apply that reflects real economic activity, i.e. wealth, labour and turnover. In this way, we ensure that taxes flow to where value is actually created. Ladies and gentlemen, ladies and gentlemen! With this agreement, the European Parliament has shown that a fair and common tax policy is possible. Here in the European Parliament, we have shown that we need to make progress on tax policy at European level. There is simply no other way to secure a genuine single market and compete in the global market. With our report, we are calling for structure for a system that has grown over years but has never really grown together. We see this clearly here in the House, and we also see clearly that there is a need for change here. Now it's the Council's turn, now it's the Member States' turn. We need progress towards a fair, simple and sustainable tax system. This is what BEFIT is all about. We can combine economic power and justice. I would therefore like to thank all the shadow rapporteurs for their constructive cooperation on this file.

Mr President, Commissioner! Thank you very much to the rapporteur for this report, Mr Hadjipantela. Taxes are our common contribution to a just and solidarity-based society. If corporations are always looking for new loopholes and unfortunately also find them, but small and medium-sized companies often fail at forms, then something is going enormously wrong. We need a tax system that is simple, fair and in solidarity – a tax system for people, not for corporations, for the nurse in a nursing home, for a craftsman, for the founder of a cool start-up. Innovation arises where opportunities are fairly distributed. Instead of tax loopholes for a few, we need to invest in what really matters: in education, in good work, in the protection of our planet, in digital equality. Let us not, therefore, allow tax policy to become a tool of inequality. Let's make it an instrument of justice. Let's make our tax system fair.

Madam President, Commissioner! A company without employees is nothing more than an empty factory hall, an open-plan office without people, a dead site, a standstill. It is the employees who make the difference – their ideas, their daily work. This is the engine of economic success. And works councils are the voice of employees. European works councils ensure that participation does not end at the border. With the revision of the European Works Councils Directive, we are ensuring that employees are fully and meaningfully involved in a timely manner and that companies face financial penalties if they fail to comply with their obligations if they ignore them. However, co-determination also means thinking along with the diversity of employees, thinking along with equality. And that is why I am particularly pleased that there is now also a quota of women on the European Works Councils. That is why I would like to thank Gabi Bischoff, who has worked very hard for this, but above all all all the shadow rapporteurs and Dennis Radtke, who has put a lot of effort into reaching agreement and compromises here.

Madam President, Commissioner! Congratulations to the rapporteur, Aurore Lalucq, who has managed to produce a balanced report on the Investment and Capital Markets Union, in a context that is certainly not very simple. The report clearly shows: If Europe wants to stay strong – and we all want that – then we need to put a tooth in it. We need investment; Investments that benefit everyone, a true Capital Markets Union. The private savings of the people, private money of the people in Europe should flow into productive investments. Start-ups and innovative companies need a much simpler, real access to capital. This requires clear rules, strong supervision and safe European investment products. But it will not succeed without public impulses. Europe needs to invest together – courageous, determined and strategic.

Where is the question? I mean, I'll try to figure out the question out of that, but as I get it, what we need is real equal treatment of everybody in medicine. Our situation is like this: we're living in patriarchy and, therefore, women's health is not taken seriously enough. That's what we have to work on and, of course, this has to be applied with everyone – every single person in society.

Mr President, Commissioner! Imagine you're in so much pain every month that they determine your life, and no one takes you seriously. This is how millions of women with endometriosis do it. 10% of all women of childbearing age are affected. However, many people don't even know the term. The path to endometriosis diagnosis takes an average of six years, accompanied by pain, misdiagnosis and the feeling of not being taken seriously. Severe pain during the period is often considered normal. As a society, we need to rethink. Pain is never normal. In addition, endometriosis can endanger a desire to have children. A lifelong dream that can burst like a soap bubble. All of this shows a structural problem. Women and their complaints are often not taken seriously in the health care system. This is the Gender health gap. It is time to close it – with research, awareness-raising campaigns and genuine equality in medicine.

Mr President, Commissioner, dear colleagues, we are once again witnessing a debate hijacked by national interests misusing the European Parliament for partisan gain. Frankly, it's irritating to watch the Spanish Partido Popular point fingers while refusing to confront their own records. From Gürtel to Bárcenas, Spain has seen institutional decay under conservative leadership. Allegedly, the PP even used the Interior Ministry to obstruct justice and block prosecutors. Meanwhile, the current Sánchez government is acting swiftly and taking responsibility. So let's be clear: transparency isn't optional, it's the oxygen of democracy. Without it, corruption festers and accountability withers. And that's why the current Socialist government has invested in judicial reform, strengthened oversight and joined the European Public Prosecutor's Office. This is what real commitment to transparency looks like. Independent prosecutors safeguard democracy – something the EPP, including the Spanish Members, has actually supported at European Union level. Yet the Spanish PPE blocks reforms at home. So endorsing EU oversight while blocking it domestically is like preaching fire safety while setting fires in your own backyard. It's simply hypocritical. Fighting corruption isn't about slogans, it is about strong institutions. Too many in the EPP forget that in their scramble for power. But history shows that when conservatives weaken institutions – and therefore democracy – for their short-term gain, the far right picks up the pieces. So let's end the charade and return to the table. Not with finger‑pointing, but with a shared commitment to defending democracy at home and across Europe.

Madam President, ladies and gentlemen, In times of great uncertainty, Europe has shown courage. With the Recovery and Resilience Fund, i.e. the RRF, we have not only responded to the pandemic and the energy crisis, we have invested with billions. Cohesion and the future were poured into figures, into an investment instrument. Where markets fail again, Europe has acted. Where people lost their jobs, the RRF helped. Where states have needed support, the RRF has invested in schools, hospitals, railways, wind turbines and much more. It has not only secured jobs, it has created the future, social justice, economic stability, ecological renewal – all in one investment instrument. A success that does not expire, but should be further developed, of course improved, of course well controlled. Because what bears in the crisis can also strengthen in the future. A role model for a true Investment Union – that is what it is all about. For a social and resilient Europe. Daring more Europe means investing more in the future, and therefore a thank you to the two rapporteurs.

Madam President, Eighty years ago, the Second World War ended. Europe was in ruins. Eighty years ago, the foundations were laid for a Europe of peace. Thanks to the European Union, we have been working together ever since. ‘United in diversity’ – our EU motto also goes back to the spirit of Lagerstraße in Austria. So that millions of us Europeans will never die again in camps, in our own homes, on battlefields. For this, many old contradictions must be set aside, and we must work together, find compromises, build democracy so that peace holds. This is not self-evident. Democracy can be destroyed. This is what the Second World War has shown us, and therefore we must defend this great achievement. Democracy needs us all. We must celebrate and uphold the end of this terrible war and the beginning of our European Union. Because right now it needs the "never again", it needs attitude, it needs Europe.

Mr President, Commissioner! What is the value of the EU passport? Is it a promise to the rule of law, to peace, to freedom? Or a dubious business model, a special right for oligarchs? When individual Member States sell EU passports, they are not just selling a document, they are selling the protection of our values and trust in Europe. As we impose sanctions on Russia, the very ones we want to sanction find their way into the heart of Europe – through loopholes, through so-called investor programmes, through bought golden passports. Therefore: No deals with despots, no passports for Putin's henchmen. And the European Court of Justice has now made it clear: The sale of EU passports is in breach of EU law. Citizenship must not be for sale – whoever makes Europe money loses Europe’s credibility. Bypassing sanctions strengthens the aggressor. Europe is not a business model.

Madam President, Madam Vice-President Mînzatu! The Union of Skills, the Union of Skills, this is a good start; We want to support you in this, but we want to continue. We need a European right to further training, a right that gives workers the opportunity to use their working time to increase their skills without losing their wages and costs. We are in the midst of a change in the labour market, there is a lack of skilled workers at the back and at the front. We need to put people first, and most importantly, we need to give everyone the same opportunities to benefit from this change. The economic success of a company stands and falls with qualified, well-trained employees, and in-house training binds the employees to the company. I repeat: In-house training is particularly important, so companies benefit from it. It is a win-win situation.

Madam President, ladies and gentlemen, ladies and gentlemen, The Supply Chain Act has introduced a paradigm shift. It clarifies: Companies must be liable if they cause damage, just as private individuals do. They must respect labour law, environmental law and fundamental human rights. The Commission's omnibus package is synonymous with evasion of responsibility. It is a knee-jerk of the President of the Commission in front of a few large corporations, on whose pressure passed laws are being reopened. What does this mean: Companies are no longer liable. It becomes almost impossible to hold the parent company accountable if problems have been identified with a subsidiary. Penalties are cancelled. Our competitive advantage in the European Union is that the European Union stands for quality, that investors, that consumers, that companies and states worldwide can count on us to meet high standards - and we must not give up.

Mr President! Dear Executive Vice-President! A great conviction, an excellent work ethic, a vocation to care for others – that is what I perceive in the health sector with female doctors, nurses, midwives, nurses for the elderly, and that must remain so. These caregivers like to work in the industry when they have enough time to do their job well. In Austria – and now the average is only for the country I know best – there are 76,000 missing nurses by 2030 and as many as 200,000 by 2050. What does this mean in everyday life for those who are in the front row? Many do the work for two. That is, they are psychosocially under stress and pressure. 30% of them are over 50 years old. Retirements are imminent. We need to take care of the young people, but above all the men we need to attract to the care sector. Whether man or woman: Anyone, anyone can learn care. Man, with two N, and thus one of the most important jobs, should of course do this job just as well.

Mr President! Dear President Lagarde, Dear Commissioner Albuquerque, The European Central Bank is much more than just a bank: It is the backbone of our economic policy, the pillar of the European Union. Their monetary policy determines our economic future, and those who tie their hands to it block progress, endanger social peace and oppose shared responsibility. Price stability is at the core, not to say the sacred cow of monetary policy. But monetary policy goes far beyond mere price stability. Therefore, the European Central Bank also has two mandates, and the second mandate includes responsibility for people's prosperity, for jobs, innovation and also for equal opportunities. At a time when climate change and social inequality are increasingly impacting people, the European Central Bank's second mandate is more urgent than ever. We S&Ds are firmly on the side of the ECB, as its role is essential, including in the fight against climate change. In fact: Price stability and climate protection are inextricably linked. Because the climate crisis threatens people, threatens our planet and the economy alike, and those who do not understand this live in an illusion. Unfortunately, there are still forces in this House that want to force the ECB onto a market-neutral line, as if this were an inviolable dogma. But we know: Market neutrality is not a law of nature, but at most a concept conceived by humans, which leaves us in the climate war in the lurch. This policy of market neutrality would exacerbate the problems of people and the planet, rather than bring solutions. The recognition that climate change, social justice and price stability are closely linked must give us the guide on how to shape monetary policy. Only a sustainable and just economy can ensure long-term stability for all of us.

Madam President, Dear Commissioner, United in diversity – that is the motto of our Union. Only half of people with disabilities in the European Union are employed – often part-time or in low-wage jobs. United in diversity – but for me that also means that we have to appreciate this diversity. We need to look at people's potential, not just their disability or illness. People with disabilities can contribute so much to our community. But we also need to let them contribute and create the right framework conditions – and they start early. People with disabilities must have equal access to education and training, equal access to the labour market. Above all, they do not want to pass the time with work that is completely below their competences. Inclusion and appreciation in the labour market – we need to look closely at this over the next five years.

Mr President, Vice-President of the Commission! Housing is not a financial product. Living, that's being at home. Living, that's feeling safe, living near work and school. This makes housing a basic need and a fundamental right. The real estate industry, hedge funds, speculators, cashing out more and more every year. In the last five years, rents have risen by almost a quarter. Do people earn a quarter more? Do pensioners therefore have a quarter more money available, students, families, single parents? Of course not. The housing crisis is not an individual problem, it is a structural one, everywhere in the European Union. Vienna shows how it works. Vienna continuously invests in providing affordable and quality housing for all people. But we need new framework conditions across the EU. We need to revise EU state aid rules to simplify public housing. We must curb vacancy and speculation at the expense of all of us. Vienna presents the solution for the European Union. We need to make it a reality across the EU.

Mr President, Vice-President of the Commission! Without wealth taxes, there could not have been a middle class. It could not have arisen at all. Franklin D. Roosevelt did this in 1935. Revenue Act recognized. But where are we today? Taxes on large private assets continue to decline and, at the same time, wealth is more unequally distributed than ever. Eight men – you mentioned – own more than the poorer half of the world’s population. Anyone who sees a connection here is correct. Because slowly there are only a few very, very few rich and a lot of poor. And no middle. But we can counter this if the nationalist and conservative parties and governments finally stop doing clientele politics for the rich. With a wealth tax, a super-rich tax, we are finally doing politics for the many, for a real middle class. That is why, of course, we can only vociferously support the initiative of the Brazilian G20 presidency, support it as a European Union, when a globally necessary super-rich tax is now called for. Let’s tackle it – together.

Mr President, Commissioner, 13 billion – an almost unimaginable sum. And this 13 billion euros is now at stake, because the European Court of Justice has ruled that Apple must pay back this incredible sum to Ireland. This ruling is groundbreaking in the fight against tax avoidance, because it is clear: Tax tricks are not only morally reprehensible, but now also illegal. This is drying up Europe's tax swamps more and more. That's right, because we can use the 13 billion euros more than well in times of the climate crisis, the social crisis. Floods and droughts, i.e. the damage caused by climate change, amount to 5 to 7 billion euros per year in Austria alone. That's where the $13 billion comes in. I think Ireland can use it very well. So let's get the money we are entitled to as a society back from the corporations!

Mr President! The images of recent floods in Austria, Poland, Hungary, Romania and fires in Portugal speak for themselves: Our habitat is in danger. However, the Commission's new mantra seems to be: Competitiveness at all costs. But what good is it for us if we are competitive, but in the end have exploited our natural resources in such a way that we can no longer live on and off our earth? Then we can say that we have prevailed economically against China and against the USA, but half of Europe has either sunk or burned down. This can happen, but it doesn't have to. If we Green New Deal, who has given us so much hope, consistently pursue and implement, then we create the turn, the turn that saves all of our lives. For this reason, the Commission may Green Deal We cannot go into the background, because we can only operate on a planet that also lives.

Madam President, Innovation, investment, production – these are the three magic words in the Draghi report. I think we all agree here that we want to put these three magic words into action. The spirits are divided on the ‘how’. There is talk of cutting red tape, but if we consider that industrial policy is nothing more than state support for companies to promote certain economic activities, then the industry must also play by certain clear rules of the game. These rules of the game are often sold as bureaucracy. The key lies in the harmonisation of rules within the European Union and not in the national patchwork. Because only if we really act together can we be competitive. That is why I would like to add two other magic words that Mr Draghi did not address so clearly or not at all in his report, namely redistribution and social inclusion. Because we as a society, we as a community must ensure that everyone benefits from growth and not just those who are close to the lever.