Leire PAJÍN

Policy topics Leire PAJÍN is active on

What Leire PAJÍN has said (62)

• 2026-07-14 “(17:22:36 - 17:24:42): First of all, I'd like to say that this was a necessary debate, and I also wanted to highlight the studies and the data that we've been given. It's only if we push forward a specific scientific analysis with data that is broken down, can we really spot the gender gaps here in the health sector? You talked about clinical trials, issues with diseases, the fact that we have less diagnoses and we really need to work in this direction. Women in Global Health is an organization that we need to work with because they're really putting this top of their agenda. Now we have data that reflect two important points. Climate change, climate emergency. We know that in heat waves, women are more likely to die than men if you look at it in absolute terms. And if there are natural disasters, women are 14 times more likely to perish than men. And then there is more inequality also when it comes to floods. Four times as many women as men die in floods. And we need to make sure that our plans are based on vulnerability maps. I'm thinking of civil protection. I'm thinking of the whole concept of One Health. But we need to have data that are broken down so that we can factor in a mainstream gender into all of this. It's extremely important to talk about the extreme vulnerability of women against the backdrop of climate change, but also the role that women have and the role that women play in the fight against climate change. Thank you very much for respecting your speaking time, missus Pahin.”
  Gender roles, equality and inclusion
• 2026-07-13 “(17:01:26 - 17:03:30): Thank you. I will also speak Spanish. I wanted to thank you for your presentation. This type of concrete information helps us focus our work on public policies. We spoke a few minutes ago of the emergency that mental health represents for young people, especially after the COVID epidemic. We've seen how a high percentage of mental health problems are stemmed from that. And when an entire generation is yelling for help, then we can't leave them behind. And that doesn't mean just strengthening public health systems where even today there isn't enough access to mental health systems. We can't fail them when it comes to the family. As has been mentioned, time spent with children and attention paid to them is vital. We should also give parents help in order to meet this challenge, especially when it comes to the digital arena. And we also need to focus on work life balance in order to guarantee that not only does this fall on the shoulders of women who are spending more time taking care of children? But we should also focus on society as a whole, taking responsibility. We also need to look at schools. We always have the idea of telling schools that they should fix all the problems, but that's not the case when it comes to mental health. They can definitely play their important role, but we're talking about a holistic social situation. We need to look at digital content, video games. They also need to take responsibility, so we need to bring all stakeholders together. We need prevention, enough financing, and, of course, we need regulation. So I wanted to ask you, what specific measures do you think we should promote in the European Parliament in order to meet these challenges? Thank you.”
  EU policy on mental health
• 2026-07-08 “(11:12:26 - 11:13:37): Well, over the last few days, we've seen, temperature records in Europe, and I'm afraid this is gonna be the coolest summer over the next few years because thousands of people have died and we have, more wildfires. Thermal stresses makes many people suffer and a 130,000 hectares have burnt in Castellon, Nezhoreja. In Catalonia, there's people fighting against fires. So new civil protection should strengthen the capacity of the union. We're working on this, but we need to promote the preparation prevention with local and rural actors. We need to understand the dimension and its danger. We need to protect carry out laws to protect the causes, climate change, depopulation. We need to take account of the rural areas. It's not a good debate on more air conditioning. Yes. We need to prevent. We need to avoid more fires and more deaths caused by the heat. Thank you.”
  EU policy on infrastructure for preventing climate-related disasters (floods, droughts, extreme weather etc.)
• 2026-07-07 “Thank you very much, president, commissioner. With our support, Europe and Mexico will not just move to a strategic agreement, but it is a shared way of understanding the world, an alliance between 2 democracies that can defend dialogue, cooperation, and clear rules to build peace, prosperity, and sustainable development. We support this because it is a strategic partner for us. It is important for education, health, research, disaster preparedness. With regards, to, natural resources, there's references, to human rights, labor rights, the Paris agreement, the environment. It opens new opportunities for our SMEs. It protects, products such as Turon or citrus fruits. It is also geopolitically important to have an agreement with a country such as, Mexico. It is based on mutual respect, shared history, and diversity and cooperation. Thank you very much.”
  Free trade agreements (FTAs)
• 2026-01-13 “E-000101/2026 Answer given by Mr Hoekstra on behalf of the European Commission The Emission Trading System (ETS) legislation provides for transitional free allocation to evolve and decline in time. The reduction rates are in line with the objective of economy-wide climate neutrality by 2050 and the interim reduction targets. The benchmark update exercise, including the applied methodology, is a legal obligation enshrined in the ETS Directive. All flexibilities available have been taken on board and the Commission had no discretion to deviate from the existing legal framework without creating uncertainty and imposing a significant delay to the process of determining and transferring the 2026 free allocation to industry 1 . Against this background, the Climate Change Committee gave a favourable opinion on the Benchmark Regulation 2 , including a commitment where the Commission will propose a separate amendment targeting the 2026-2030 allocation period and aiming at increasing the free allocation determined on the basis of the fall-back benchmarks, largely relevant for the ceramics sector, while at the same time avoiding the application of the cross-sectionalcorrection factor. 1 Article 10a(2) of Directive 2003/87/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council establishing a system for greenhouse gas emission allowance trading within the Union and amending Council Directive 96/61/EC, OJ L 275, 25.10.2003, p. 32, ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/dir/2003/87/oj. 2 Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2026/1412 of 26 June 2026 determining revised benchmark values for free allocation of emission allowances for the period from 2026 to 2030 pursuant to Article 10a(2) of Directive 2003/87/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council. ELI: http://data.europa.eu/eli/reg_impl/2026/1412/oj.”
  Carbon leakage support · Extension of the EU Emissions Trading Scheme
• 2025-11-17 “E-004578/2025 Answer given by Mr Kadis on behalf of the European Commission The western Mediterranean management plan 1 (MAP) aims to secure a sustainable and profitable future for the sector relying on healthy fish stocks. The Commission recognises the efforts made by the sector and has worked with all stakeholders to implement the MAP since its adoption. While the fishing opportunities regulations have gradually reduced trawling effort since 2020, flexibilities have alleviated the reduction, such as recovering fishing days granted by the compensation mechanism which was enhanced in 2025. Moreover, measures under this mechanism are eligible for financing with public funding, including from the European Maritime, Fisheries and Aquaculture Fund, to those fishers who opt in. For 2026, the scientific advice provided by the Scientific, Technical and Economic Committee for Fisheries shows, for many stocks, an increase in biomass and decrease in fishing mortality. However, the majority of stocks remains overfished, and several remain below healthy biological levels. The Commission cannot ignore the bad state of most stocks and only focus on the positive trend: improvement of biomass does not mean healthy stocks. The scientific advice did not revise its 2024 stock assessments for the MAP and confirmed the same stock assessment model and parameters used to set the 2025 fishing opportunities. In this context, the Commission has no ground to propose an in-year amendment of Regulation (EU) 2025/219 2 . 1 Regulation (EU) 2019/1022 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 20 June 2019 establishing a multiannual plan for the fisheries exploiting demersal stocks in the western Mediterranean Sea and amending Regulation (EU) No 508/2014. OJ L 172, 26.6.2019, p. 1–17. 2 https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/reg/2025/219/oj/eng.”
  Environmental regulation of fisheries
• 2025-10-24 “E-004191/2025 Answer given by Mr McGrath on behalf of the European Commission The Commission is committed to building a Union of Equality; to combating all forms of discrimination in line with Article 21 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights; and in action taken on the basis of Article 19 TFEU as regards the grounds of discrimination enumerated therein. According to Article 2 of the Treaty on European Union, ‘The Union is founded on the values of respect for human dignity, freedom, democracy, equality, the rule of law and respect for human rights, including the rights of persons belonging to minorities’. Equality data are crucial for monitoring the realisation of these values effectively. In the EU, the equality data collection and processing, as well as use of equality data is regulated by antidiscrimination and data protection legislation. Data protection legislation requires that when personal data is being processed, it is done so lawfully, fairly and in a transparent manner. It also requires that that the collection of such data is necessary and proportionate to the purpose pursued (aim). Those aims must also be valid and legitimate. Data collection should be conducted following the human rights principle of ‘doing no harm’, which means that no data collection activity should create or reinforce existing discrimination, bias or stereotypes and that the data collected should be used for the benefit of the groups they describe and society as a whole.”
  EU policy on integration and ethnic, racial and religious discrimination
• 2025-10-13 “E-004016/2025 Answer given by Executive Vice-President Mînzatu on behalf of the European Commission The Carcinogens, Mutagens and Reprotoxic Substances Directive (CMRD) protects workers from exposure to respirable crystalline silica (RCS) that potentially causes silicosis 1 . The CMRD includes a binding occupational exposure limit (BOEL) for RCS. The Commission also improves prevention of silicosis via awareness raising, good practice exchange and guidance through collaboration with the European Agency for Safety and Health at Work 2 . The Commission supports the collection of data on nationally recognised occupational diseases, including silicosis, via the voluntary European occupational diseases statistics pilot 3 . Commission Recommendation (EU) 2022/2337 4 , which is regularly updated, encourages countries to improve knowledge and diagnosis of occupational diseases, including silicosis. The Commission is studying the health and economic impact of a possible revision of the BOEL for RCS under the framework of CMRD. The current work is informed by scientific evidence, such as a European Chemical Agency Opinion, and subject to stakeholder input. The EU non-communicable diseases initiative 5 supports health promotion and prevention of non-communicable diseases, including silicosis. Over EUR 280 million from the EU4Health programme 6 were made available to support countries and stakeholders 7 . Support for research is available through EU funding programmes, including Horizon Europe, though no project on the topic is currently being funded. While social protection remains a national competence, the Commission provides related funding, guidance and exchange of best practices. 1 Directive 2004/37/EC https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=CELEX%3A02004L003720240408. 2 Examples available at https://oshwiki.osha.europa.eu/en/themes/respirable-crystalline-silica 3 https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/web/experimental-statistics/european-occupational-diseases-statistics (for all Member States except Germany, Greece and Portugal). 4 https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/reco/2022/2337/oj/eng. 5 https://health.ec.europa.eu/non-communicable-diseases/healthier-together-eu-non-communicable-diseasesinitiative_en. 6 https://health.ec.europa.eu/funding/eu4health-programme-2021-2027-vision-healthier-european-union_en. 7 E.g. the Joint Action on REspiratory Diseases aims to improve lung health across Europe https://europeanlung.org/jared/.”
  EU rules on hazardous working conditions
• 2025-10-06 “E-003906/2025 Answer given by Mr Várhelyi on behalf of the European Commission 1. The World Health Organization (WHO) is responsible for the International Classification of Diseases (ICD-11). The Commission does not have a role in this classification process. 2. In accordance with Article 168(7) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU) 1 , the responsibility for the organisation and delivery of health services and medical care lies with the Member States. The EU's role is to complement national policies by providing support in helping reaching policy objectives. The Commission supports Member States and stakeholders in promoting health and preventing non-communicable diseases under the ‘Healthier Together’ initiative 2 . With more than EUR 280 million from the EU4Health programme 3 , the initiative is being implemented through collaborative work between Member States, stakeholder-led projects and contribution agreements with international partners on non-communicable diseases, including on neurological diseases 4 . 1 https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/treaty/tfeu_2008/art_168/oj/eng. 2 Healthier together – EU non-communicable diseases initiative https://health.ec.europa.eu/non-communicablediseases/healthier-together-eu-non-communicable-diseases-initiative_en. 3 EU4Health programme 2021-2027 https://health.ec.europa.eu/funding/eu4health-programme-2021-2027vision-healthier-european-union_en. 4 https://jadementia.eu/index.php.”
  EU competences on health
• 2025-10-02 “E-003857/2025 Answer given by Executive Vice-President Virkkunen on behalf of the European Commission The Commission has conducted a study on ‘contractual practices affecting the transfer of copyright and related rights and the ability of creators and producers to exploit their rights’, which was published on 30 March 2025 1 . The study identified challenges linked to the use of buy-out contracts as well as possible avenues for improvement. It includes a mapping and analysis of the rules applicable at national, EU and international level – such as choice of law and jurisdiction clauses. The study confirmed the relevance of the rules on the remuneration introduced in the Directive on Copyright in the Digital Single Market 2 , as well as the importance of ensuring their effective application, for the benefit of authors and performers. Member States have various options to implement the principle of proportionate and appropriate remuneration (Article 18), including collective bargaining (see Recital 73). The contract adjustment mechanism (Article 20), which allows for the reconsideration of remuneration when the original agreement turns out to be disproportionately low compared to subsequent revenues, and the alternate dispute resolution mechanism (Article 21) contribute to improve the bargaining position of authors and performers. The review of the Directive, which is due no sooner than June 2026, will provide valuable insights into the effectiveness of these rules. Based on this analysis, the Commission will consider the need for further measures. 1 https://op.europa.eu/en/publication-detail/-/publication/0710200c-103a-11f0-b1a3-01aa75ed71a1. 2 Directive 2019/790 of the European Parliament and of the Council on copyright and related rights in the Digital Single Market.”
  EU restrictions on unfair commercial practices
• 2025-09-16 “E-003557/2025 Answer given by Mr Várhelyi on behalf of the European Commission As the President of the Commission outlined in the State of the Union speech of 10 September 2025 1 , the EU and the world is not immune to potential future global health crises, which can result in high human and economic costs, as witnessed with the COVID-19 pandemic. The Commission recalls that, since 2020, building on the lessons of the COVID-19 pandemic, it has already contributed to the putting in place of a robust European Health Union, including a new Regulation on Serious Cross-Border Health Threats 2 and strengthened mandates for the European health agencies 34 . The Commission has also established the Health Emergency Preparedness and Response Authority (HERA) and adopted the Global Health Strategy 5 as the external dimension of the European Health Union. The Global Health Resilience Initiative (GHRI) will aim to build on and enhance this solid health framework. With it, the Commission intends to ensure the EU is prepared and can respond quickly to emerging threats to avoid their social and economic impacts. The Commission is currently working on the details of the GHRI and intends to communicate them in due course. More generally, the EU has been, and will remain, a reliable and responsible partner in global health preparedness. The scale and complexity of the current global needs require a wider collective response. In line with its commitment to global health, the EU will continue to lead and play its role in global health, and it encourages all members of the international community to shoulder their responsibility. 1 https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/ov/SPEECH_25_2053. 2 http://data.europa.eu/eli/reg/2022/2371/oj. 3 https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/reg/2022/2370/oj/eng. 4 https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=OJ:L:2022:020:TOC. 5 https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=CELEX%3A52022DC0675&qid=1760519220471 COM/2022/675 final Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament, the Council, the European Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions EU Global Health Strategy Better Health for All in a Changing World.”
  Vaccination · EU competences on health
• 2025-09-05 “E-003459/2025 Answer given by Executive Vice-President Virkkunen on behalf of the European Commission Under the Digital Services Act (DSA) 1 , providers of intermediary services that receive an order to act against illegal content on their service sent by judicial or administrative national authorities on the basis of their national laws, must inform the relevant authorities of the effect given to it, provided the order conforms with the harmonised minimal requirements laid out in Article 9 DSA. Article 9(3) DSA requires the authorities issuing an order to transmit it, along with any information concerning the effect given to that order, to the Digital Services Coordinator (DSC) from the Member State of the issuing authority. Under Article 9(4), the DSC concerned is then required to transmit, without undue delay, a copy of the order to all other DSCs. This ensures coordination and exchange of information between them through the system established in accordance with Article 85 DSA. Furthermore, pursuant to Article 15 (1) (a), intermediary service providers must publish the numbers of orders received, at least once a year, categorised by the type of illegal content concerned. Under Article 42 (1), very large online platforms and search engines (VLOP/SEs) must report every six months at the least. The power to supervise and enforce the DSA is split between the Commission and the DSC in the Member State in which the main establishment of the provider of intermediary services is located (Article 56 DSA). In principle, the supervision and enforcement of Articles 9 and 15 DSA lies with the DSCs. 1 https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/reg/2022/2065/oj/eng.”
  Digital platforms liability for harmful and illegal content
• 2025-09-03 “E-003373/2025 Answer given by Mr Várhelyi on behalf of the European Commission The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) collects surveillance data on locally acquired West Nile virus (WNV) infections 1 , dengue 2 and chikungunya 3 cases. It publishes worldwide epidemiological overviews for chikungunya 4 and dengue 5 . With the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA), it funds ‘VectorNet’ to ensure surveillance of vectors carriers of zoonotic and human diseases 6 . The ECDC coordinates the Emerging and Vector-borne Diseases (VBD) network 7 . EU reference laboratories 8 were designated to provide support to national reference laboratories, including in the area of VBD 9 . Furthermore, it has published several documents on VBD 10,11,12,13,14,15,16. EU4Health Programme funds a project to eliminate Aedes aegypti in Cyprus 17 . It is also funding the development of new diagnostic tests for VBD to develop new rapid and sensitive diagnostic tests to enhance early detection of diseases 18 . It includes a EUR 20 million contribution agreement for supporting the development of dengue medical countermeasures, given growing needs due to climate change. It is also supporting Member States with EUR 10 million joint action for the scaling up of national systems for vector threat detection and control capacities, including planning and implementing countermeasures for the control of disease-transmitting vectors and promoting cross-border collaboration among epidemiologists, entomologists, public health officials, among others. 1 https://www.ecdc.europa.eu/en/west-nile-fever/surveillance-and-disease-data/disease-data-ecdc. 2 https://www.ecdc.europa.eu/en/dengue/surveillance-and-updates/seasonal-surveillance-dengue-eueea-weekly. 3 https://www.ecdc.europa.eu/en/chikungunya-virus-disease/surveillance-and-updates/seasonal-surveillance. 4 https://www.ecdc.europa.eu/en/chikungunya-monthly. 5 https://www.ecdc.europa.eu/en/dengue-monthly. 6 https://www.ecdc.europa.eu/en/about-us/partnerships-and-networks/disease-and-laboratory-networks/vectornet. 7 It primarily consists of public health epidemiologists from national public health institutes in EU/European Economic Area countries. 8 Article 15 of Regulation 2022/2371 http://data.europa.eu/eli/reg/2022/2371/oj. 9 EU reference laboratories are designed for a period of seven years. There are, amongst others, EU reference laboratories in Italy and in Sweden to lead quality control, including to contribute to the work on VBD. 10 https://www.ecdc.europa.eu/en/publications-data/surveillance-prevention-and-control-west-nile-virus-andusutu-virus-infections. 11 https://www.ecdc.europa.eu/en/publications-data/vector-control-practices-and-strategies-against-west-nilevirus. 12 https://www.ecdc.europa.eu/en/publications-data/west-nile-virus-risk-assessment-tool. 13 https://www.ecdc.europa.eu/en/publications-data/public-health-guidance-assessing-and-mitigating-risklocally-acquired-aedes-borne. 14 https://www.ecdc.europa.eu/en/publications-data/deferral-criteria-and-testing-strategies-dengue-virus-blooddonors-returning. 15 https://www.ecdc.europa.eu/en/chikungunya/surveillance-and-updates/risk-assessment. 16 https://www.ecdc.europa.eu/en/infectious-disease-topics/dengue/strategies-and-guidelines-dengue. 17 Through the Sterile Insect Technique: https://health.ec.europa.eu/publications/2024-eu4health-workprogramme_en. 18 Through the EU4Health Programme, EUR 10 million for Call for Proposals to cover diseases which include dengue, Zika, chikungunya and West Nile Virus.”
  Vaccination
• 2025-08-07 “E-003203/2025 Answer given by Mr Hoekstra on behalf of the European Commission 1. Monitoring, anticipating and educating Europe’s health community on climate-related health risks are amongst the key strategic objectives of the European Climate and Health Observatory 1 . Completed work under the Observatory includes the publication of a briefing on health surveillance and preparedness in Europe in November 2024 2 , the updating of the European Climate Data Explorer health apps related to heat waves 3 , and several education and capacity-building actions targeting the public health workforce 4 . 2. Alert systems are a primary responsibility of Member States, and the EU has a supporting role. The data of EU developed systems 5 can be used to support monitoring, forecasting, and early warning of climate-related hazards managed under the Copernicus Emergency Management Services (CEMS). The EU is also working on developing heat early warning systems to forecast heatwaves and their impacts at European and global levels. These services benefit directly from weather satellite data streams, such as Meteosat. 3. The EU is developing the Galileo Emergency Warning Satellite Service, which will provide an additional channel to Member States to send warning messages to the population via satellites. Improving early warning systems and enhancing their integration with monitoring and alerting systems is a key action of the Preparedness Union Strategy 6 . The Regulation on serious cross-border threats to health 7 strengthens coordination and cooperation in relation to serious cross-border health threats, including ones linked to climate. The Commission plans to adopt a framework for climate resilience in late 2026 8 . This framework is envisaged to establish a more ambitious and comprehensive approach to climate risks and impacts. 1 https://climate-adapt.eea.europa.eu/en/observatory/About. 2 https://www.eea.europa.eu/en/analysis/publications/the-impacts-of-heat-on-health. 3 https://climate-adapt.eea.europa.eu/en/knowledge/european-climate-data-explorer/health. 4 https://climate-adapt.eea.europa.eu/en/metadata/organisations/association-schools-public-health-in-europeanregion-aspher. 5 E.g. from Copernicus, Galileo and EGNOS (European Geostationary Navigation Overlay Service). 6 https://commission.europa.eu/topics/preparedness_en. 7 https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=CELEX:32022R2371. 8 https://ec.europa.eu/info/law/better-regulation/have-your-say/initiatives/14770-European-climate-resilienceand-risk-management-integrated-framework_en.”
  Air quality policy · Climate efforts
• 2025-08-07 “E-003204/2025 Answer given by High Representative/Vice-President Kallas on behalf of the European Commission The EU’s priorities remain addressing the catastrophic humanitarian situation in Gaza and ensure humanitarian aid at scale for the population in need, an immediate ceasefire and the release of all remaining hostages, reiterated by the High Representative/Vice President repeatedly at the informal Foreign Affairs Council (FAC) that took place on 11 August 2025 1 . The EU remains deeply alarmed by the catastrophic situation in Gaza with famine now declared by the Integrated Food Security Phased Classification in Gaza Governorate and projected to extend to other governorates 2 . Following the review of Israel’s obligations under Article 2 of the EU-Israel Association Agreement 3 , discussed at the June 2025 meeting of the FAC, the EU engaged in a frank dialogue with Israel, which committed to take significant steps to improve access for large scale humanitarian aid 4 . The understanding reached, following face-to-face negotiations, includes clear benchmarks allowing the EU to monitor closely the implementation. The EU continues to urge Israel to uphold the commitments. While some improvements can be seen, the humanitarian situation remains dire. Security and safety, including for humanitarian staff, remain a key challenge. It is essential that efforts to restore large-scale humanitarian aid to Gaza are carried out in full respect of International Humanitarian Law and humanitarian principles. The EU will determine further action in light of developments on the ground. The EU continues to deploy all available humanitarian tools to alleviate conditions for civilians. Since October 2023, the EU has allocated over EUR 500 million in humanitarian assistance for Palestine, has been operating a Humanitarian Air Bridge, and has supported the medical evacuation of patients and their family members through the Union Civil Protection Mechanism. 1 https://www.consilium.europa.eu/en/meetings/fac/2025/08/11/. 2 https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/statement_25_1981. 3 https://eeas.europa.eu/archives/delegations/israel/documents/eu_israel/asso_agree_en.pdf. 4 Like the increase aid trucks, open crossings; reopen Jordanian and Egyptian aid routes; allow sufficient access of fuel to sustain essential services and aid deliveries; allow the entry of humanitarian personnel into Gaza, including 2720 monitors; improve the security situation and ensure a safe operational environment, and repair key infrastructure.”
  EU Development & Humanitarian Aid
• 2025-07-09 “E-002782/2025 Answer given by Ms Lahbib on behalf of the European Commission Given the increasing violations of international humanitarian law (IHL) and impediments to humanitarian access, it is vital that the EU continues to safeguard principled humanitarian space, including through humanitarian diplomacy. In line with Commissioner for Equality, Preparedness and Crisis Management mission letter 1 , the Commission is preparing a possible policy initiative to reinforce the EU’s humanitarian diplomacy on IHL and the protection of civilians and humanitarian workers in armed conflicts, ensuring, in a Team Europe approach, that aid can reach people where it is most needed. This initiative would establish a common understanding of the key issues facing humanitarian diplomacy and shared objectives to be pursued by all relevant EU actors. Working together with the European External Action Service, the Commission would strive to make humanitarian diplomacy a key priority of EU external action and foreign policy, developing a structured, inter-institutional coordination mechanism, covering all stages of crises from prevention and preparedness onwards, closely involving EU delegations. The Commission provides funding to several IHL-related projects focused on strengthening the monitoring of IHL, for example linked to conflict-related hunger or children in conflict. The IHL in Focus initiative 2 , presented at the 2025 European Humanitarian Forum, aims to provide states, international organisations, civil society and academics with tools of IHL analysis to support advocacy and humanitarian diplomacy. Rather than setting up its own monitoring mechanism, the Commission remains committed to funding existing monitoring initiatives in support of humanitarian diplomacy. 1 https://commission.europa.eu/document/download/e0f32937-9ce9-40d7-880c416321d00dc9_en?filename=mission-letter-lahbib.pdf. 2 https://www.geneva-academy.ch/research/our-clusters/implementation-and-accountability/detail/106-ihl-infocus.”
  Support for international humanitarian organisations · International humanitarian alignment with UN
• 2025-07-02 “E-002688/2025 Answer given by Mr Síkela on behalf of the European Commission The EU remains dedicated to supporting Colombia in its pursuit of ‘total peace’ through comprehensive territorial strategies. In the department of Nariño, the EU's involvement has materialised through several targeted initiatives. Under the EU Trust Fund for Colombia, significant projects such as: Plan de Desarrollo Territorial Nariño, Rural Paz, Colombia PUEDE, and Rutas PDET – Programas de Desarrollo con Enfoque Territorial – have been operationalised. These initiatives focus on socio-economic reincorporation of former combatants, inclusion of vulnerable communities, and sustainable economic development with an emphasis on strengthening local value chains across sectors like cocoa, coffee, and tourism. Under the bilateral envelope, new initiatives have been put in place to reinforce this same logic, like the ‘Territorial Alliance for Peace and Nature” and the ‘Private sector and communities’ action for peace’ 1 . To ensure a lasting peace and inclusive socioeconomic development, the EU employs a variety of tools. This includes strategic partnerships with local actors to align with territorial priorities; facilitating dialogues; fostering leadership among youth, women, and ethnic communities; and investing in infrastructure that bolsters governance and access to basic services. Through the Global Gateway and its impact finance models, the EU is paving ways to transition from illicit economies, ultimately reinforcing peace through economic transformation and resilience. Article 8 (8) of the Neighbourhood, Development and International Cooperation Instrument – Global Europe Regulation 2 requires to ensure all actions are conflict-sensitive. The EU conducted a Conflict Analysis Screening in 2022 to ensure that conflict sensitivity is systematically applied in the Colombian context. 1 Both Action Documents can be found under the annual action plan 2024 for Colombia: https://internationalpartnerships.ec.europa.eu/document/download/2f2db8eb-492e-4e6a-a623-8b415b827127_en?filename=aap2024-c2024-5643-colombia_en.zip. 2 https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/reg/2021/947/oj.”
  Global priorities for international development · EU Development & Humanitarian Aid
• 2025-07-01 “E-002654/2025 Answer given by Mr Hoekstra on behalf of the European Commission The primary cause of climate change is the increase in greenhouse gases (like carbon dioxide and methane) in the atmosphere, which trap heat and raise global temperatures. As a result, many regions are experiencing more frequent and intense heat waves. The Commission’s proposal to reduce EU greenhouse gas emissions by 90% by 2040 will help prevent the worst global warming scenarios and reduce excess mortality from fossil fuel related air pollution. Moreover, the Commission is funding the updating of the heat-health action guidance of the World Health Organization (WHO) Regional Office for Europe, and its European Climate and Health Observatory provides knowledge and guidance on heat health 1 . The Preparedness Union Strategy 2 outlines all-hazard actions, including on the effects of climate change like heatwaves, which strengthen foresight, anticipation, and societal resilience and preparedness. The forthcoming new climate resilience and risk management framework will establish a more ambitious and comprehensive EU approach to tackling climate risks and impacts, covering individual Member States and the EU. The Commission adopted on 16 July 2025 its proposals for the next Multiannual Financial Framework. The next EU budget will continue to support climate and environmental objectives. An overall 35% green target will unlock over EUR 700 billion for climate action and environmental objectives, including climate adaptation and resilience. In parallel, Member States’ investments and reforms will also play an important role in limiting the greenhouse gases emissions and better preparing their economies and societies for the effects of climate change. 1 https://climate-adapt.eea.europa.eu/en/observatory/evidence/health-effects/heat-and-health. 2 https://commission.europa.eu/topics/preparedness_en.”
  EU policy on infrastructure for preventing climate-related disasters (floods, droughts, extreme weather etc.) · Climate efforts
• 2025-06-18 “E-002453/2025 Answer given by Mr Várhelyi on behalf of the European Commission The EU has a set of safety rules in animal and veterinary public health, including food, to manage a potential emerging risk due to the highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) virus strain circulating in dairy cows in the United States. The Commission issued guidance 1 to clarify EU measures in animals should HPAI occur in animals other than birds, including surveillance and control measures, notification and reporting. EU bodies 2 assess and report on the risks of HPAI 3 . Committees 4 and joint meetings 5 discuss the epidemiological situation and measures. The EU in cooperation with third countries 6 , helps implementing a Global strategy for HPAI 7 , emphasising the One Health approach. This approach integrates public health, wildlife and environmental sectors to safeguard poultry value chains against HPAI. In 2025, in accordance with Article 5 of Regulation 2022/2371 on serious cross border threats to health 8 , the Commission will adopt the Union prevention, preparedness and response plan to include provisions on joint arrangements for multi-sectoral collaboration for zoonotic, food and waterborne diseases and relevant other diseases and related special health issues. Some Member States use available HPAI animal vaccines in poultry and/or captive birds in line with specific EU legislation 9 , depending on the national sectors and epidemiological situation. In 2024 the Commission coordinated the joint procurement of 665,000 doses of the zoonotic influenza vaccine for human use Seqirus, securing an additional 40 million for the 15 participating countries 10 . If a pandemic is declared Member States have access to two joint procurement framework contracts 11 to reserve more than 110 million doses of pandemic influenza vaccines. 1 https://food.ec.europa.eu/document/download/c33ee1c7-df3e-44fe-8c5cf0c88d9540e4_en?filename=ad_cm_hpai_paff_preparedness.pdf. 2 European Food Safety Authority, European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control, and EU Reference Laboratory for Avian Influenza. 3 https://www.efsa.europa.eu/en/topics/topic/avian-influenza#published-on-this-topic; https://www.ecdc.europa.eu/en/avian-influenza. 4 Standing Committee on Plants, Animals, Food and Feed: https://food.ec.europa.eu/horizontaltopics/committees/paff-committees_en. 5 Health Security Committee: https://health.ec.europa.eu/health-security-and-infectious-diseases/crisismanagement_en#health-security-committee and Chief Veterinary Officers. 6 Global Framework for the Progressive Control of Transboundary Animal Diseases GF-TADs, as joint Food and Agricultural Organization/World Organisation for Animal Health initiative. 7 https://www.woah.org/app/uploads/2025/02/web-gf-tads-hpai-strategy-woah.pdf. 8 Regulation (EU) 2022/2371 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 November 2022 on serious cross-border threats to health and repealing Decision No 1082/2013/EU. 9 http://data.europa.eu/eli/reg/2016/429/oj; http://data.europa.eu/eli/reg_del/2023/361/oj; http://data.europa.eu/eli/reg/2019/6/oj. 10 https://health.ec.europa.eu/latest-updates/commission-secures-access-665000-doses-zoonotic-influenzavaccines-2024-06-11_en. 11 https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/ip_25_1096.”
  Vaccination
• 2025-06-02 “E-002186/2025 Answer given by High Representative/Vice-President Kallas on behalf of the European Commission The EU regrets the Foreign Agents Law adopted by the Salvadorian Legislative Assembly on 20 May 2025 and has made this clear both publicly 1 and directly with the Salvadoran authorities, in close coordination with Member States and other international partners. This legislation runs counter to El Salvador’s obligations under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, to which it is a state party. Moreover, it risks restricting civil society actors’ access to funding, which is essential for their functioning and vital to any healthy democracy. In this context, the EU is also concerned over the recent detentions of human rights defenders, and expects the Salvadoran authorities to uphold their fundamental rights to freedom of expression and due process, as well as to ensure their safety and physical integrity. While the EU remains committed to supporting inclusive and sustainable economic and social development in El Salvador, the new legislation on foreign agents and the shrinking space for civil society risks undermining development and could negatively impact cooperation. 1 El Salvador: Statement by the Spokesperson on the Foreign Agents Law and recent developments, 7 June 2025, https://www.eeas.europa.eu/eeas/el-salvador-statement-spokesperson-foreign-agents-law-and-recentdevelopments_en.”
  EU relations with left-wing Latin America
• 2025-05-19 “E-001996/2025 Answer given by Ms Roswall on behalf of the European Commission As stated in its reply to written question E-000780/2025, Natura 2000 sites or parts of them can only be de-designated under very strict conditions 1 , and are protected under the regime set out in Article 6 of the Habitats Directive 2 . The Commission has issued guidance documents to support Member States in the management of Natura 2000 sites 3 . In addition, any project, plan or programme likely to have significant effects on the environment will have to comply with the relevant requirements of the Environmental Impact Assessment Directive 4 or the Strategic Environmental Assessment Directive 5 , which require that proposed developments assess their potential impacts on the environment and on cultural heritage among other factors. Without prejudice to the Commission’s role as guardian of the Treaties, Member States are primarily responsible for ensuring compliance with EU law. In line with its strategic approach on enforcement action 6 , which focuses on cases of systemic non-compliance, the Commission considers that the means of redress available under national legislation would be the most appropriate mechanism to address individual cases of possible non-compliance. The safeguarding of cultural heritage is also primarily a national responsibility. Article 167 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union stipulates that action by the EU is limited to encouraging cooperation between Member States and supporting and supplementing their action, with a view to conserving and safeguarding cultural heritage of European significance. 1 https://circabc.europa.eu/ui/group/fcb355ee-7434-4448-a53d-5dc5d1dac678/library/8555aa28-9fb6-411f-8228f8c99b296564/details. 2 Council Directive 92/43/EEC of 21 May 1992 on the conservation of natural habitats and of wild fauna and flora - OJ L 206, 22.7.1992, p. 7-50. 3 https://environment.ec.europa.eu/topics/nature-and-biodiversity/natura-2000/managing-and-protecting-natura2000-sites_en. 4 Directive 2011/92/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 13 December 2011 on the assessment of the effects of certain public and private projects on the environment. - OJ L 26, 28.1.2012, p. 1–21, as amended by Directive 2014/52/EU of 16 April 2014 - OJ L 124, 25.4.2014, p. 1–18. 5 Directive 2001/42/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 27 June 2001 on the assessment of the effects of certain plans and programmes on the environment - OJ L 197, 21.7.2001, p. 30–37. 6 As set out in the Communication of 19 January 2017 (EU law: Better results through better application C/2016/8600, OJ C 18, 19.1.2017, p. 10–20) and in the Communication of 13 October 2022 COM(2022) 518 final - Enforcing EU law for a Europe that delivers.”
  Nature protection and restoration in the EU · EU policy on urban development
• 2025-04-04 “E-001385/2025 Answer given by Ms Lahbib on behalf of the European Commission The EU increased its 2025 humanitarian budget for Myanmar by EUR 13 million, bringing the total to EUR 46 million 1 . This helped humanitarian organisations to launch life-saving assistance, including food, cash, shelter and emergency supplies. The EU also set up Humanitarian Air Bridges, with 10 flights, delivering 609.7 metric tonnes of assistance, including pre-positioned stocks from ReliefEU. The Union Civil Protection Mechanism (UCPM) 2 was activated; in-kind donations from several Member States further supported relief efforts. The Emergency Response Coordination Centre (ERCC) 3 assisted the overall coordination effort activating amongst others the Copernicus Emergency Management Service for impact and need assessment. Following a need-based and principled approach, the EU delivers life-saving emergency assistance including shelter, clean water and sanitation, physical and mental health care, comprehensive protection services, food and cash assistance, while preparing to engage in early rehabilitation in coordination with development actors. Long-term development assistance is planned through EU programmes and will continue to support most vulnerable populations in line with the 2021 Council Conclusions 4 . This support is delivered in a humanitarian-development-peace nexus approach, focusing on identified development priority areas 5 . Life-saving humanitarian assistance continues to be severely needed and not sufficiently covered. To ensure an effective delivery of both humanitarian and development assistance in a protracted crisis like Myanmar, the international community must continue advocating for a cessation of all hostilities, in the interest of the Myanmar population. 1 https://civil-protection-humanitarian-aid.ec.europa.eu/where/asia-and-pacific/myanmarburma_en#facts-figures. 2 https://civil-protection-humanitarian-aid.ec.europa.eu/what/civil-protection/eu-civil-protection-mechanism_en. 3 https://civil-protection-humanitarian-aid.ec.europa.eu/what/civil-protection/emergency-response-coordinationcentre-ercc_en. 4 https://data.consilium.europa.eu/doc/document/ST-6287-2021-INIT/en/pdf. 5 Notably on peace, governance, education, livelihoods and green growth.”
  EU Development & Humanitarian Aid · International humanitarian alignment with UN
• 2025-02-21 “E-000815/2025 Answer given by Ms Albuquerque on behalf of the European Commission The Commission is committed to adopting an updated EU Anti-money laundering and countering the financing of terrorism (AML/CFT) list of high-risk third countries as soon as possible. The Commission welcomes the constructive dialogue with the European Parliament in late January 2025 and is committed to continue this dialogue with Members of the European Parliament on the EU AML list. The Commission is dedicated to improving the efficiency of the AML list update process. Following the entry into force of the new Regulation (EU) 2024/1624 1 , the Commission will review its methodology for identifying third countries that present risks for the EU’s financial system. The current focus remains on optimising the existing process to ensure it remains robust and responsive to evolving global risks. The Commission values ongoing dialogue with the co-legislators to achieve this objective effectively. 1 Regulation (EU) 2024/1624 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 31 May 2024 on the prevention of the use of the financial system for the purposes of money laundering or terrorist financing, OJ L, 2024/1624, 19.6.2024.”
  Anti-money laundering regulation
• 2025-01-09 “E-000064/2025 Answer given by Ms Lahbib on behalf of the European Commission The Commission welcomes the ceasefire and urges all parties to ensure its full implementation, hoping that it will lead to a substantial and sustained increase in the delivery of humanitarian aid into Gaza. The humanitarian situation remains dire, and the Commission is mobilising all available humanitarian instruments, providing EUR 450 million in aid through trusted humanitarian partners on the ground, including United Nations agencies and international non-governmental organisations, to address life-saving needs such as shelter, including the distribution of nonfood items, food, health, water and sanitation. The Commission has also deployed ReliefEU 1 to operate humanitarian air bridge flights, transporting for example over 4 000 tonnes of humanitarian supplies on behalf of Member States and humanitarian partners to meet the urgent needs of displaced families in Gaza. In addition, the European Union Civil Protection Mechanism 2 (UCPM) supported seven EU Member States in the delivery of shelter items to Gaza and continues to support the World Health Organization in the evacuation of critically ill patients requiring specialised medical care outside the region. Working closely with its trusted humanitarian partners, the Commission continues to monitor the situation on the ground to respond to the enormous needs of the population of Gaza. 1 ReliefEU Capacities: The objective of ReliefEU Capacities is to support humanitarian partners with services and operational capabilities, facilitating the quick delivery of humanitarian assistance, while ensuring greater effectiveness. New capacities will be developed throughout the year, with specific allocation rounds to be announced, calling on partners and Member States to submit proposals. 2 In October 2001, the European Commission established the EU Civil Protection Mechanism. The Mechanism aims to strengthen civil protection cooperation between the EU countries and 10 additional participating states to improve prevention, preparedness, and response to disasters. Any country hit by a disaster, in Europe and beyond, can request emergency assistance through the Mechanism. The Commission plays a key role in coordinating the disaster response and contributing to the transport and/or operational costs of deployments.”
  Support for international humanitarian organisations · EU Development & Humanitarian Aid
• 2024-12-19 “E-003050/2024 Answer given by Ms Šuica on behalf of the European Commission The New Pact for the Mediterranean is one of the priorities for the Commission. The Pact is expected to offer a common political commitment across the Mediterranean with a focused and integrated approach on joint priorities. It will allow to deepen EU partnership with the Mediterranean through practical cooperation and have a stronger impact on areas of mutual interest such as trade, investment, economic stability, environment, energy, clean technology, climate mitigation and adaptation, digital and transport connectivity, security, migration and more. The Commission intends to conduct thorough consultations with all relevant actors during the first half of 2025. Visits to the region will be organised to consult partner countries and engage with stakeholders, in particular the private sector and civil society, on how best to address shared challenges, invest in a common future and enable sustainable development and enhanced security. Discussions will also take place with Member States, the European Parliament, civil society organisations, academic and research and business sectors, local and regional authorities. The outcome of these consultations will be reflected in the New Pact for the Mediterranean. The consultations will determine the thematic orientations of the Pact that may include exploring further avenues for cooperation on environment protection. The EU, represented by the Commission, already takes active action in the protection of the marine environment, notably through the Barcelona Convention 1 , of which it is a contracting party. 1 https://www.unep.org/unepmap/who-we-are/contracting-parties/barcelona-convention-and-amendments”
  Climate efforts
• 2024-12-19 “E-003051/2024 Answer given by Mr Kadis on behalf of the European Commission The Western Mediterranean management plan 1 (MAP) aims to secure a sustainable and profitable future for the sector relying on healthy fish stocks. The Commission has worked with all stakeholders to implement gradually the MAP since its adoption by the co-legislators in 2019. While the fishing opportunities regulations have gradually reduced trawling effort since 2020, numerous flexibilities alleviated the reduction, such as additional days granted by the compensation mechanism. Compared to previous years, this compensation mechanism has been further expanded already in the Commission proposal for the 2025 fishing opportunities and has been endorsed by the Council. Moreover, European financial assistance can be available to those fishers who opt in. Measures to help the fisheries sector transition swiftly to more sustainable practices can be co-financed through the European Maritime, Fisheries and Aquaculture Fund (EMFAF). This includes innovation projects that improve the selectivity of fishing gears as well as temporary or permanent cessation of fishing activities. While it is up to the concerned Member States to design the details of this financial support under their national EMFAF programmes, the Commission stands ready to support Member States in this process. The Commission recognises the significant efforts made by the fisheries sector to protect marine resources and is committed to ensuring the sector's viability while maintaining sustainability. The Commission will continue to work closely with Member States and stakeholders to implement these measures effectively. 1 Regulation (EU) 2019/1022 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 20 June 2019 establishing a multiannual plan for the fisheries exploiting demersal stocks in the western Mediterranean Sea and amending Regulation (EU) No 508/2014. OJ L 172, 26.6.2019, p. 1–17.”
  GMOs
• 2024-12-17 “E-002987/2024 Answer given by High Representative/Vice-President Kallas on behalf of the European Commission The EU is a key partner of Honduras for the promotion of human rights. The Municipal Committee in Defense of Common and Public Goods of Tocoa (CMDBCPT), of which Juan López was a member, received the Europa award for human rights in December 2024. The award granted by the EU and some of its Member States, namely Spain, Germany and France, through a Team Europe approach, in Honduras, is a clear recognition of the important work of the CMDBCPT and signal of support in the face of the increasing attacks the community is confronted with. The EU Special Representative for Human Rights, Olof Skoog 1 , has publicly addressed Juan López’s murder and called for a thorough and impartial investigation of his case 2 . The EU will continue to monitor this case as well as the precarious situation of the Guapinol activists. Despite challenging conditions, the EU actively supports human rights in Honduras, as part of its broader human rights agenda in Latin America. Efforts have primarily focused on advocacy and financial support for civil society organisations as well as dedicated programmes such as ‘ProDerechos’ 3 . In parallel, the European External Action Service regularly receives human rights defenders in Brussels, including environmental defenders, to support them and make their voices heard. The EU remains committed to support human rights defenders, including in Honduras, in order to ensure their safety and amplify their voices for the causes they are defending. 1 https://www.eeas.europa.eu/eeas/eu-special-representatives_en 2 Olof Skoog on X, 19 December 2024, https://x.com/OlofBSkoog/status/1869700581994176710 3 ProDerechos website, https://www.proderechos.hn/”
  EU relations with left-wing Latin America
• 2024-12-09 “E-002832/2024 Answer given by Mr Várhelyi on behalf of the European Commission The Commission and the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) have been monitoring the disease outbreak in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) via epidemic intelligence and regular contacts with the World Health Organization (WHO) and the African CDC (Af-CDC). The Health Security Committee held an ad-hoc meeting on the topic on 12 December 2024 1 . The WHO Regional Office for Africa provided an overview of the epidemiological situation and informed on mortality, severity, and etiological agents. The ECDC explained that the risk posed to EU/European Economic Area countries is low. On 27 December 2024, the WHO informed that the undiagnosed disease reported in the DRC’s Kwango province is due to the combination of malaria and common respiratory infections in groups facing food insecurity 2 . The Af-CDC receives support via the EU4Health and the Neighbourhood, Development and International Cooperation Instrument – Global Europe (NDICI-GE) 3 Programmes to strengthen its prevention, preparedness and response capacities (PPRC) for emerging epidemics. The Commission works to strengthen third countries’ health systems, including in the DRC, to support their PPRC through Global, regional and bilateral programmes 4 . The Commission acts against serious cross-border threats to health (SCBTH) with a variety of tools and mechanisms defined in Regulations 851/2004 5 , 2022/2371 6 and 2022/2372 7 and Decision No 1313/2013/EU 8 . It is developing a Union PPR plan to promote a coordinated response to SCBTH. It will consider provisions on joint arrangements for governance, capacities and resources, and cross-border interregional preparedness elements 9 . 1 https://health.ec.europa.eu/document/download/5c977252-7aa8-4219-a57bb853bb2531d1_en?filename=security_20241212_sr_en.pdf 2 As published in WHO’s Disease Outbreak News Item https://www.who.int/emergencies/disease-outbreaknews/item/2024-DON547 3 https://enlargement.ec.europa.eu/funding-technical-assistance/neighbourhood-development-and-internationalcooperation-instrument-global-europe-ndici-global-europe_en 4 E.g.: the Pandemic Fund, Global Fund, Gavi Alliance, etc. 5 https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=CELEX%3A02004R0851-20221226 6 http://data.europa.eu/eli/reg/2022/2371/oj 7 https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=OJ:L:2022:314:FULL&from=EN 8 https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=CELEX%3A02013D1313-20231218 9 As included in Regulation (EU) 2022/2371 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 November 2022 on serious cross-border threats to health and repealing Decision No 1082/2013/EU http://data.europa.eu/eli/reg/2022/2371/oj”
  Vaccination · EU competences on health
• 2024-11-29 “P-002704/2024 Answer given by High Representative/Vice-President Kallas on behalf of the European Commission The EU Delegations play an essential role in the EU’s representation on the global stage. They are at the frontline of the EU relationships and outreach with partners globally and a key asset for the EU, its institutions and Member States. In the context of reduced budgetary resources for the European External Action Service (EEAS) and the new priorities and policies of the EU, it is necessary to ensure that the Delegations network is able to effectively deliver, including with proper expertise in the field. This work is ongoing. There is a need for further analysis and to explore different options, to ensure the highest effectiveness of the EU’s presence in the world in the current complex geopolitical context. No option has been endorsed yet. In her appearance before the Committee on Budgetary Control (2023 EEAS discharge), the High Representative/Vice President stated that, in principle, no EU Delegations would close, while underlining that the EEAS effectiveness and efficiency could be further improved. The 145 EU Delegations are key for the implementation of EU policies. The current multi-annual financial framework was built on stable staffing and no more than a 2% annual increase for non-salary expenditure. This is very challenging in the recent economic climate, and the EEAS has argued that the MFF parameters are not taking into consideration inflation outside the EU (close to 20%) which is a unique position and costs are linked to maintain a worldwide presence through the network of Delegations. Thanks to the strong and much welcome support from the European Parliament, the Budgetary Authority agreed to grant more than the 2% standard increase to the EEAS in the 2025 budget procedure. This will allow for some critical infrastructure work to be carried out in 2025. However, continued austerity measures and search for efficiencies and redeployments will continue in 2025, which may also require adaptations of the EU’s diplomatic network.”
  EU foreign policy approach · EU diplomatic representation
• 2024-11-27 “E-002695/2024 Answer given by Mr Várhelyi on behalf of the European Commission The availability of COVID-19 protein-based vaccines is primarily determined by clinical development priorities of vaccine developers. Neither the Commission nor the European Medicines Agency (EMA) have control over this aspect. EU regulators, including EMA, assess the scientific evidence submitted by developers in the context of a marketing authorisation application. While they can provide guidance on vaccines development, the actual production of such products ultimately depends on the companies developing them. As regards COVID-19 vaccines, Comirnaty and Spikevax (mRNA-based) and Nuvaxovid and Bimervax (protein-based) are authorised in the EU. For the autumn 2024 COVID-19 vaccination campaigns, EMA issued a statement 1 and the Commission authorised adapted mRNA vaccines (Comirnaty JN.1, Comirnaty KP.2 and Spikevax JN.1) and an adapted protein-based vaccine (Nuvaxovid JN.1). EMA is currently assessing an adapted Bimervax vaccine (JN.1). Overall, these vaccines are expected to also cover the emerging XEC variant. In principle, the Commission supports the availability of any type of COVID-19 vaccine following EMA’s recommendation on approval 2 . Vaccination policy is a national competence, and the Commission supports EU countries in coordinating their policies and programmes. In July 2024, the Commission and 15 countries launched a call for tender for the supply of protein-based COVID-19 vaccines under the Joint Procurement Agreement 3 , offering an alternative option to citizens who cannot or do not want to receive a mRNA COVID-19 vaccine. This call for tender targets producers of protein-based COVID-19 vaccines authorised for use in the EU. More information will be available after the closure of the procedure. 1 https://www.ema.europa.eu/en/documents/other/ema-confirms-its-recommendation-update-antigeniccomposition-authorised-covid-19-vaccines-2024-2025_en.pdf 2 https://www.ema.europa.eu/en/human-regulatory-overview/public-health-threats/coronavirus-disease-covid19/covid-19-medicines 3 https://health.ec.europa.eu/health-security-and-infectious-diseases/preparedness-and-responseplanning_en#joint-procurement-of-medical-countermeasures-ensuring-proper-preparedness”
  GMOs
• 2024-10-30 “E-002316/2024 Answer given by Ms Lahbib on behalf of the European Commission The EU works at bilateral, regional and global levels. Since 2023, the Commission 1 supports the World Health Organisation (WHO) with EUR 7.42 million in developing clinical trial protocols to advance candidate vaccines, monoclonals and antiviral treatments specifically targeting these viruses, with a strong focus on the African context. In the case of the current Marburg virus outbreak in Rwanda, these protocols have been used for therapeutics. Since October 2024, the Commission further supports the WHO and the non-governmental organisation ALIMA in Rwanda with EUR 850,000 to address immediate and critical needs related to coordination, surveillance, advanced case management, training of healthcare workers and provision of supplies. The Commission is also supporting the European and Developing Countries Clinical Trials Partnership (EDCTP). Since 2003 it has provided EUR 1.3 billion for clinical research on poverty-related and emerging infectious diseases with a focus on Sub-Saharan Africa. In 2024, EDCTP set up mpox trials through an emergency call in 2024. The Commission engages with partner countries, which have chosen to prioritise health in their bilateral cooperation agreements with the EU, to expand access to key health services covering prevention and care with particular focus on poor and marginalised populations, and to strengthen health systems. 1 with funding from the https://health.ec.europa.eu/funding/eu4health-programme-2021-2027-vision-healthiereuropean-union_en”
  EU Development & Humanitarian Aid · Support for international humanitarian organisations
• 2024-10-30 “E-002348/2024 Answer given by Executive Vice-President Séjourné on behalf of the European Commission Trade is essential for the EU’s long-term competitiveness. European ceramics, with a positive balance of EUR 5.8 billion, are important to the EU’s trade balance. The energy crisis and third countries’ fast growth and, at times, unfair competition, have resulted in market share losses. Supporting the ceramic sector is of great importance for the EU to fight against deindustrialisation and for its resilience and sovereignty. The Commission put in place anti-dumping measures on imports of ceramic tableware from China and ceramic tiles from China 1 , India and Türkiye 2 . Improving the functioning of the Single Market also provides an important lever to ensure fair competition for EU companies and support internal trade. The Commission has already put in place a number of tools, such as the Single Market Enforcement Taskforce 3 , to improve its functioning. The Commission will adopt in the coming weeks the 2025 Annual Single Market and Competitiveness Report and will further adopt a horizontal Single Market Strategy. Together, these different documents will help identify and address remaining barriers. The recent Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation 4 and Construction Products Regulation 5 are examples of the Commission's work to help ensure sufficient offtake to create lead markets for resilient and sustainable products. Besides, as announced in the Political Guidelines 6 , the Commission will propose an Industrial Decarbonisation Accelerator Act to support industries and companies through the transition. 1 Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2024/493, https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legalcontent/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=OJ:L_202400493&qid=1733935331907 2 Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2023/265, https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legalcontent/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=CELEX:32023R0265 3 https://single-market-economy.ec.europa.eu/single-market/single-market-enforcement-taskforce_en 4 Regulation (EU) 2024/1781, https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/HTML/?uri=OJ:L_202401781 5 Regulation (EU) No 305/2011, https://single-market-economy.ec.europa.eu/sectors/construction/constructionproducts-regulation-cpr_en 6 https://commission.europa.eu/document/e6cd4328-673c-4e7a-8683-f63ffb2cf648_en”
  Trade relations with Turkey
• 2024-10-30 “E-002347/2024 Answer given by Ms Roswall on behalf of the European Commission 1. The Commission established an Ad Hoc Joint Task Force with Indonesia and Malaysia to discuss aspects of the implementation of the EU Deforestation Regulation (EUDR) 1 with these countries. The last meeting of the Ad Hoc Joint Task Force was held in Brussels on 12 September 2024 2 . Amazon countries, including Brazil, have not expressed interest in the establishment of a similar formal mechanism to discuss the implementation of the EUDR until now. However, the Commission has carried out missions and held numerous meetings and dialogues with public and private stakeholders from these countries to discuss the implementation of the EUDR. 2. The Commission has stepped-up its engagement with partner countries, including Amazon countries such as Brazil, to explain the EUDR and its requirements. This engagement is also aimed at supporting partner countries in their transition to deforestation-free supply chains, for example by establishing traceability schemes, including through EU cooperation programmes and projects. On 2 October 2024, the Commission released a Communication on a ‘Strategic Framework for EUDR international cooperation’ 3 which outlines examples of projects supporting the EUDR implementation in the Amazon region and aimed at supporting the transition of the region towards deforestation-free value chains. Finally, representatives of Amazon countries regularly attend the ‘Deforestation Multistakeholder platform’ 4 , which is dedicated to the implementation of the EUDR. 1 Regulation (EU) 2023/1115 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 31 May 2023 on the making available on the Union market and the export from the Union of certain commodities and products associated with deforestation and forest degradation and repealing Regulation (EU) No 995/2010, OJ L 150, 9.6.2023, p. 206–247. 2 https://www.eeas.europa.eu/delegations/malaysia/joint-press-release-3rd-meeting-ad-hoc-joint-task-forceeudr_en?s=170 3 Communication from the Commission on the Strategic Framework for International Cooperation Engagement in the context of Regulation (EU) 2023/1115 on the making available on the Union market and the export from the Union of certain commodities and products associated with deforestation and forest degradation, OJ C, C/2024/6604, 7.11.2024. 4 https://ec.europa.eu/transparency/expert-groupsregister/screen/meetings/consult?lang=en&meetingId=55862&fromExpertGroups=3282”
  Energy (green transition)
• 2024-10-30 “E-002317/2024 Answer given by Ms Lahbib on behalf of the European Commission The Commission has closely followed the impacts of recent hurricanes in Cuba, including Hurricane Oscar as of 20 October 2024 and Hurricane Rafael as of 11 November 2024, compounding an already dire situation in the country that was also hit by earthquakes on 10 November 2024. The Commission deployed a humanitarian expert to the affected areas to assess the needs and responded immediately when the disasters stroke. In total, the Commission has allocated EUR 3.3 million in humanitarian assistance for the affected population in Cuba. These funds will contribute, inter alia, to the United Nations (UN) Action Plan for Hurricane Oscar Response in the sectors of food and health and will support the Cuban Red Cross in their emergency response in Eastern Cuba. Furthermore, the EU has deployed a humanitarian airbridge to transport more than 100 tons of humanitarian supplies from UN partners, EU, and Spanish stocks in 5 flights from its Panama hub to Cuba, which have provided relief to people affected by Hurricane Oscar. This emergency response complements an allocation of EUR 500 000 awarded in June 2024 to respond to urgent health and medical needs in the country. The Commission also continues to support disaster preparedness efforts in Cuba.”
  International humanitarian alignment with UN
• 2024-08-26 “E-001549/2024 Answer given by Executive Vice-President Dombrovskis on behalf of the European Commission Several EU measures set out requirements to minimise the risk that companies place on the EU market products linked to human rights violations, such as the use of child labour in the manufacturing of cobalt-based products. The corporate sustainability due diligence Directive 1 requires companies in the scope to identify and address adverse human rights impacts (including child labour and forced labour) with respect to their own operations, the operations of their subsidiaries, and the operations carried out by their business partners in the chains of activities of those companies. In line with the Directive, the future Commission guidelines will help companies to conduct due diligence (in particular with the identification and prioritisation of impacts, adaptation of purchasing practices, responsible disengagement, remediation and stakeholder engagement) and other relevant aspects (such as identifying data and information sources and assessing risk factors) 2 . The forthcoming Regulation on forced labour products 3 prohibits the placing on the EU market of any product made with forced labour, including with forced child labour, irrespective of its origin in the EU or third countries. The Batteries Regulation 4 requires operators placing batteries on the EU market to establish a due diligence policy to identify and mitigate sustainability (including human rights) risks associated with the sourcing of certain raw materials such as cobalt. Furthermore, the EU and the Democratic Republic of the Congo signed a strategic partnership on sustainable critical raw materials value chains 5 to strengthen cooperation in sustainable and responsible production of raw materials such as cobalt. 1 Directive (EU) 2024/1760 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 13 June 2024 on corporate sustainability due diligence and amending Directive (EU) 2019/1937 and Regulation (EU) 2023/2859 (Text with EEA relevance) PE/9/2024/REV/1 (OJ L, 2024/1760, 5.7.2024) (https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/dir/2024/1760/oj). 2 See Article 19 of Directive (EU) 2024/1760. 3 https://single-market-economy.ec.europa.eu/news/commission-welcomes-political-agreement-ban-productsmade-forced-labour-union-market-2024-03-05_en 4 Regulation (EU) 2023/1542 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 12 July 2023 concerning batteries and waste batteries, amending Directive 2008/98/EC and Regulation (EU) 2019/1020 and repealing Directive 2006/66/EC (Text with EEA relevance) PE/2/2023/REV/1 (OJ L 191, 28.7.2023, p. 1–117) (https://eur-lex.europa.eu/eli/reg/2023/1542/oj). 5 https://ec.europa.eu/commission/presscorner/detail/en/ip_23_5303”
  EU policy on labour exploitation in global supply chains · Due diligence in supply chains (environmental and human rights)
• 2024-08-26 “E-001550/2024 Answer given by Ms Kyriakides on behalf of the European Commission 1. Following the donation to Africa Centres for Disease Control (AfCDC) of 215 420 vaccine doses, the Commission is preparing a EUR 9.4 million action with the AfCDC to strengthen diagnostic/sequencing capacities against mpox. It has mobilised EUR 1 million to support the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) from the Epidemics tool and EUR 200 000 from humanitarian assistance to Burundi. The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) has deployed staff to the DRC to support surveillance through the AfCDC-ECDC Partnership. 2. The Commission is contributing EUR 462 million to the Pandemic Fund, to support surveillance and early warning projects in ten countries impacted by mpox. The Commission is also supporting the African Vaccine Manufacturing Accelerator launched by the Vaccine Alliance ‘GAVI’ 1 in June 2024, and the Team Europe Initiative on manufacturing and access to vaccines, medicines and health technologies in Africa. The latter aims to increase vaccine manufacturing in Africa and has mobilised EUR 1.3 billion for that purpose. 3. The Commission and the Member States coordinate the response to mpox through the Health Security Committee. The ECDC monitors the epidemiological situation through its global epidemic intelligence activities and published a Rapid Risk Assessment on 16 August 2024 2 . The ‘Health Emergency Preparedness and Response Authority’ (HERA) is funding DURABLE 3 , which has contributed to the biological characterisation of clade Ib 4 and developed a polymerase chain reaction (PCR) assay able to detect this clade. HERA and ECDC performed a joint survey to ensure that the EU has the diagnostic capacities to detect the potential introduction of clade Ib in the EU. 1 https://www.gavi.org/ 2 The ECDC updated its Rapid Risk Assessment on mpox on 9 September 2024: https://www.ecdc.europa.eu/en/publications-data/risk-assessment-mpox-epidemic-monkeypox-virus-clade-iafrica 3 DURABLE, the HERA lab network, aims to provide high-quality scientific information in record time to support HERA’s decision-making in preparing for and responding to cross-border health threats and assessing the impact of countermeasures: https://durableproject.org/ 4 Clade Ib emerged in DRC.”
  Global priorities for international development · EU Development & Humanitarian Aid
• 2024-08-15 “E-001513/2024 Answer given by Ms Kyriakides on behalf of the European Commission In line with the objectives of the European Climate Law 1 and the EU Adaptation Strategy 2 , the Commission has undertaken significant steps to strengthen resilience against climateinduced risks, including heatwaves. Published in March 2024, the European Climate Risk Assessment 3 identified heat stress as the most severe and urgent of all climate risks to public health. Responding to this, in its Communication ‘Managing Climate Risks – Protecting People and Prosperity’ 4 the Commission sets out how to strengthen surveillance response mechanisms, coordination of civil protection assistance for climate-related health threats and enhance the European Climate and Health Observatory 5 ,which helps prepare local and national health systems for climate change. The Observatory provides essential real-time data that underpins coordinated responses to extreme weather events, including heatwaves, and it published the European Environment Agency’s 2023 Report on Heat 6 , which summarises the available evidence. Depending on the nature of the health threats that are caused by heat, they can fall within the scope of Regulation (EU) 2022/2371 on serious cross-border threats to health 7 . The Health Security Committee 8 (HSC), chaired by the Commission, coordinates public health strategies across the EU and countries of the European Economic Area to respond to serious crossborder health threats, such as extreme heat. On 19 June 2024 the HSC held a specific meeting on climate change and health security 9 . The Commission together with the World Health Organisation has published a factsheet ‘Stay safe in the Heat’ 10 . The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control publishes current threats from extreme heat in its weekly Communicable disease threats reports 11 . 1 https://climate.ec.europa.eu/eu-action/european-climate-law_en 2 https://climate.ec.europa.eu/eu-action/adaptation-climate-change/eu-adaptation-strategy_en 3 https://www.eea.europa.eu/publications/european-climate-risk-assessment 4 https://climate.ec.europa.eu/eu-action/adaptation-climate-change/managing-climate-risks-protecting-peopleand-prosperity_en 5 https://climate-adapt.eea.europa.eu/en/observatory 6 https://climate-adapt.eea.europa.eu/en/observatory/++aq++metadata/publications/eea-report-2018climatechange-impacts-on-health-in-europe-heat-and-infectious-diseases2019/ 7 https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=CELEX%3A32022R2371&qid=1725543259223 8 https://health.ec.europa.eu/health-security-and-infectious-diseases/crisis-management/list-authoritiesrepresented-health-security-committee_en 9 https://health.ec.europa.eu/document/download/7c0fa5ca-51bf-4751-9586457fb14f3542_en?filename=security_ev_20240619_sr_en.pdf 10 https://health.ec.europa.eu/document/download/ee1527a5-70fe-4404-89af-d3bd181f41e2_en?filename=ecwho_heatwave_factsheet_en.pdf 11 https://www.ecdc.europa.eu/en/publications-data/communicable-disease-threats-report-24-30-august-2024week-35”
  Climate efforts
• 2024-08-15 “E-001512/2024 Answer given by Executive Vice-President Šefčovič on behalf of the European Commission 1. In her recently published 2024-2029 Political Guidelines 1 , the President of the Commission has announced that the next Commission intends to adopt a European Water Resilience Strategy to ensure that water is properly managed, scarcity reduced, and the competitive edge of Europe’s water industry strengthened also using a circular economy approach. The adoption date of the Strategy will be determined once the new Commission is in place. 2. It is very important for Member States to close their investment gaps by using existing European funds to the fullest extent. The current Multiannual Financial Framework 20212027 2 already provides for various possibilities to financially support improvements of water management and innovation in the water sector (through the European Regional Development Fund 3 , the Recovery and Resilience Fund 4 , Horizon Europe 5 , the EU programme for the environment and climate action 6 etc). Moreover, the Common Agricultural Policy for 20232027 7 funds more efficient irrigation, supports nature-based solutions and organic farming. In case of natural disasters or health emergencies, Member States may also seek support from the EU Solidarity Fund 8 . 1 https://commission.europa.eu/about-european-commission/president-elect-ursula-von-der-leyen_en 2 https://commission.europa.eu/strategy-and-policy/eu-budget/long-term-eu-budget/2021-2027_en 3 https://ec.europa.eu/regional_policy/funding/erdf_en 4 https://commission.europa.eu/business-economy-euro/economic-recovery/recovery-and-resilience-facility_en 5 For instance, ongoing Horizon Europe programmes regarding water resilience include ‘the Water4All Partnership (https://www.water4all-partnership.eu/), the Partnership on Research and Innovation in the Mediterranean Area – PRIMA (https://prima-med.org/) , the EU missions ‘A Soil Deal for Europe’ (https://research-and-innovation.ec.europa.eu/funding/funding-opportunities/funding-programmes-and-opencalls/horizon-europe/eu-missions-horizon-europe/soil-deal-europe_en), ‘Restore our Ocean and Waters’ (https://research-and-innovation.ec.europa.eu/funding/funding-opportunities/funding-programmes-and-opencalls/horizon-europe/eu-missions-horizon-europe/restore-our-ocean-and-waters_en) and ‘Adaptation to Climate Change’ (https://research-and-innovation.ec.europa.eu/funding/funding-opportunities/funding-programmes-andopen-calls/horizon-europe/eu-missions-horizon-europe/adaptation-climate-change_en ). 6 https://cinea.ec.europa.eu/life_en 7 https://agriculture.ec.europa.eu/common-agricultural-policy/cap-overview/cap-2023-27_en 8 https://ec.europa.eu/regional_policy/funding/solidarity-fund_en”
  Energy (green transition)
• “Thank you very much indeed, Madam President. In recent days, there has been a heat wave throughout Europe, from north to south, posing a threat to all our regions, not only in the south and not only in the Mediterranean. We've seen fires in Greece, Germany, France and in Scotland, and we are now contending with the consequences in Tarragona. The repercussions of climate change pose a threat to our health, our economies and our lives. And that is why, very painfully, we have to learn from what happened in Valencia, what happened in Texas. And we have therefore to intervene in a timely fashion and make good use of public resources and human resources in facing up to the consequences of climate change. Commissioner, we need to have a European strategy with the necessary wherewithal resources. That is certainly something we would support, and we therefore call on our governments and people, as well as science, to put in place systems and make sure that they are properly coordinated. This really is a golden opportunity for us. We've got the MFF coming up. Let's see if we can rise to the challenge and we will hopefully act in time in order to save lives.”
  Climate efforts
• “Thank you very much. I would like to thank you very much for being here and for sharing your vision of this complex challenges that we are dealing with. You've described all of these challenges very well. I would like to speak specifically about one of them. You mentioned about the different epidemic outbreaks that are happening right now that we've been seeing happening since the summer in Africa, as well as in other places. You've also spoken about that, that vaccines are the best guarantee to prevent and respond to these outbreaks. But we also know that since the cuts in USAID that held up a large amount of the vaccinations that were going off on a global level, that, moreover, was responsible for hundreds of laboratories that are exist in Africa, where they analyze and respond to some of these outbreaks. And we've also seen in wars such as in Gaza, where illnesses such as polio that had been wiped out are coming back. So in a situation where USAID was offering a great deal of aid, which had a very important impact on global health, I want to ask, what is the analysis that you offer of the consequences thereof? What is therefore going to be the plan that the EU will put in place or develop to deal with this impact, and whether or not you and your colleagues from Dpko and partnerships are working, or from the EPA as well, to try to come up with an adequate response to the impact of that situation. And then lastly, this morning, we spoke about Hera and their mission. You spoke about the importance of coordination together with, um, different Institutions. I'd like to know what you think about the revision that's going on. Of here, right now.”
  EU Development & Humanitarian Aid
• “Thank you. I would like to thank the rapporteur for his work and also the shadow rapporteurs striving to find a solution. Strike that balance between generative AI and copyright. Once again, let me underscore that the creative and cultural sectors in Europe are key for cultural diversity in the European Union, democracy, and also key to innovation and jobs. We saw that in recent statistics. If you look at import figures and job numbers. These are areas with a lot of jobs and high calibre jobs. Eu, IPO and other exports have warned us about the risk of generative AI using copyright protected content without appropriate consent or remuneration. No transparency, no remuneration. As I said, Mr. Voss report talks about striking a balance. We feel that's very important. The report talks about the need for transparency, the data used for training, and the results of generative AI. But we don't think that goes far enough. Transparency is important, but we also need to ensure fair, proportionate pay for authors or rights holders. We feel that the report goes in the right direction, but we want to ensure that we can facilitate transparency. Greater responsibility on AI providers. We need to safeguard mechanisms, ensure that rights holders can negotiate appropriately. We want to look at a licensing market and how small, uh, SMEs and authors can negotiate there. And I agree that we need to look at communication and media. I should not decide on the news stories we read because we want to protect our democratic values.”
  Artificial Intelligence
• “Thank you. Chair. I'd like to thank you for the testimonies and your commitment, which are an example on how to better complete these instruments. I want to highlight three points that have been mentioned. I think that are very important. First of all, how to better ensure the exercise of human rights in an increasingly deteriorating situation, especially the rights of women. We are seeing gender attacks in Afghanistan and Iran. These are very serious situations. And. In addition to the instruments that we have to fight against sexual violence, I would like to see how we can better protect the rights of women in contexts such as those that we are seeing in Afghanistan, in Iran. Secondly, I also want to highlight the importance of protecting humanitarian workers. We are seeing a deliberate attacks violating not only civilians but also humanitarian workers. And we need to ensure that this doesn't happen again. Um, in terms of health, we are obviously concerned by the collapse of health systems. And the question is how we can work to ensure that this doesn't happen again in the future. Thank you.”
  Gender roles, equality and inclusion
• “Commissioner, this debate is about our principles and our standards. It relates to our painful past after two world wars and a genocide. We made a promise we would never go back to a devastated world where atrocities were not punished. And so we had the Statute of Rome and the International Criminal Court. Without international law, there are no human rights and courts who apply it and judges who prosecute these criminals. We've seen impunity in Cuba, in Libya, in Iran, in Ukraine and so many other places. So that is why we need to defend the ICC and international law. The executive order against the ICC and, uh, against Nicaragua is, uh, an attack against European citizens who are just doing their work. It is important that the European Commission protects European citizens. It has the tools to do it and has no excuse not to do it. Defending European autonomy is defending international law, peace, stability and security of its citizens. Thank you.”
  Support for International Criminal Court
• “Thank you very much. I'd like to start, commissioner chairman, by apologizing. Unfortunately, I had the eurolat and it wasn't. It's not very easy to deal with all of the committees at the same time. So sorry for getting here a little bit late. I'd like to just highlight the effort made by the Commission commissioner at a very delicate moment. And our thoughts are with those in Sri Lanka and the emergency humanitarian situation that we are seeing there. And once again, the European Union has offered aid. But I would like to highlight the global context that we find ourselves in. Humanitarian needs are increasing and it's a very delicate has been so for a few years now. And there's a clear reduction in the amount of aid available. And there's also a dehumanisation in debates around humanitarian issues. And these are concerning. And we as a result, need to have much clearer leadership than we've seen in the past. But it's very important to bolster a strategy that ensures the commitment of the EU with humanitarian law and humanitarian Diplomacy. Several actors are clearly breaching international humanitarian law, and we can also see that there's a clear absence of humanitarian diplomacy, which allows conflicts to be resolved, guarantee peace and resolve conflicts.”
  EU Development & Humanitarian Aid
• “Commissioner, as you said on the May 6, the WHO launched an emergency warning for the hantavirus on the cruise ship. It also called for a response evacuating the people. 4 days later, a 148 people, including members of the crew, disembarked, were sent back to their countries of origin with very strict health protocols and placed in entirely safe quarantine. This was a major success and very effective. I think the rapid and effective response of the Spanish authorities in cooperation with health authorities using tools developed to the European level in coordination with WHO and, of course, 60 different countries. This demonstrates that the European mechanism does work. So this goes to show that when we act together united, we're much more effective. It's important that we're talking about this to today because we need to learn from this when it comes to civil protection mechanisms. Clearly, it's important that we improve coordination, simplify red type between the member states, the European authorities, the various different authorities at the local, regional, national level. It's also very important to understand that we have to ensure that global health is included in the mechanism so that global South countries can also participate. That's the only way to guarantee security for all of us. We also have to focus on the fight against misinformation, and that's particularly important with the authorities. So, this it's very important to understand the role of politicians responsible for health policy. We shouldn't allow national politicians to use the European parliament as a forum to fight out domestic battles. Spain has showed that it has the capacity to act effectively to protect both its citizens and those of the rest of the world.”
  EU competences on health (internal-competence axis, sharpened)
• “Please. Thank you very much, Madam Chair. Now, as has already been said, air pollution is not only an environmental issue, it has a real impact in financial terms and also in terms of health and well-being. And when we debated public health strategies in relation to smoking. We showed that policies do work and can reduce mortality from illnesses related to, to to that. And we have seen in the report in relation to pollution, there are some positive developments, but there's also an economic impact because these illnesses. Are a cost for our health care systems. I therefore agree with the analysis and the positive analysis of the progress. But there is also concern about what we what is left to do. And this requires more commitment to implement The directive by member states, but it also requires commitment for implementation by other players. Cities, for example, cities have taken measures on urban mobility and they can have an impact in this regard. So there are I would. And what about how the city policies have worked? How have they reduced emissions in cities. And I would like to also highlight ammonia. Now dealing with this is one of the key challenges that we face. I would like to ask what we should focus on, what we should focus on to reduce the emissions of ammonia. Thank you.”
  Air quality policy
• “Thank you. Chairman. I'd like to welcome our commissioner yet again to this committee. We've had the opportunity to recently discuss these issues with this in the run up to the upcoming communications that you referred to. We think this communication is very essential. Now, with Mr. Fletcher, this morning, we discussed the horrible humanitarian context in which we find ourselves. It started first and foremost with a cut to the humanitarian aid, which was unprecedented by the United States. But other member states followed. And then this has continued with the development of a narrative, which indicates that there were doubts about humanitarian aid's players. And this also called into question the impact of humanitarian aid. Now, the follow up on this, and this is not new. Then When we had the attacks on humanitarian, uh, uh, workers in a number of different areas, then this has come hand in hand with the undermining of the human rights system and the humanitarian aid system. So this is the context. This is where we are. And again, I appreciate you being so clear when you discussed the need to defend humanitarian aid that we need to have humanitarian diplomacy. We've got to ensure that there is access to humanitarian aid that is sent by the European Union, and that we need to strengthen the system within the United Nations, which some would like to undermine. So I thank you. These are not always the types of things we hear from other commissioners. We think what you said is essential, and I want to put a question on the upcoming on the Agile Infrastructures Commission. You know, that's a priority for us. Now, if we could mention some of the key points of that upcoming communication, we'd appreciate that. Perhaps you could say a few things about how we're going to guarantee that we do establish this nexus between humanitarian aid and peace and development, those those three together, that's going to be an ever more important link. Thank you.”
  International humanitarian alignment with UN
• “Madam Commissioner colleagues. Well, this summer was particularly painful in Europe, Portugal, Greece, Italy, Spain. And we've heard mountains and valleys and Asturias. Valencia seen the worst fires in 30 31in one single month and huge amounts of hectares went up in flames. So we saw our cultural and natural heritage burn with pain and and anger. We, our villages, our museums, we've heard from neighbors who have been affected by the flames. So we have to commit further against these wildfires. In particular, we have to be aware of the fact that we are living a climate emergency, as the commissioner just said, which multiplies by 40% the probability of these fires being repeated again. Um, and what's happened in Valencia? But it's important that we understand once again that it's not enough just to respond. We have to plan and prepare. We need to prepare the forests over the year. We need structures at the latest generation, particularly human resources, which are well paid and well equipped, and we have to also put an end to the population, because people moving away from the land is very much linked in with this. And we call obviously for a political commitment as called for by the president of Spain throughout the world. We have to understand once and for all that investing is not wasting. As you've heard some leaders, it's better preparing for the response. We have to comply with legislation. We've passed certain things here. Um, the Green Deal, all of these laws that should have armed us better to prevent these wildfires. But, um, there is negationism there is negligence, people denying climate change, people using disinformation, uh, and driving the catastrophes. That's creating much more pain. And it delays the response.”
  Management of EU forests
• “We need more ambitious funding as well in EU humanitarian action. This communication on humanitarian aid comes at a very important time for millions of people, and it's a time when we need to really be up to the challenge more than ever today. The EU needs to meet its commitments with funding for the future. For us, the strategy needs to tackle fragilities in a more effective manner. And we talk about fragilities and not just fragility, because we know that there are many different forms of fragility in the report that we presented. We want to capture this diversity. We don't just talk about one type of fragility. We talk about security, environment, political, political aspects, for example, among others. And in this context, we need specific tools in addition to the global gateway, which allow for better coordination for those who work in the humanitarian sector, development and peace. We believe that the instruments will allow us to improve this coordination. Humanitarian aid needs to be distributed with guaranteed and in line with humanitarian law. Thank you very much for your commitment. We fully support that. Thanks.”
  EU Development & Humanitarian Aid
• “Thank you very much, chairman. Thank you very much to the representatives of civil society. For us, it's essential to be able to work with you. And we want model of cooperation and to build partnerships with civil society. It's a very important role to play. I'd like to share with you some of the concerns that I have. First of all, on governance and the powers of the new commission. Once they are known, I think it's important to ensure consistency and coherence and the relevance of these areas within the Commission. I am also concerned about some of the messages that I've been hearing, because development policy needs to be focused on promoting development and not other interests. We need to have policy to ensure that that is respected. And then on funding, we need much more political ambition, much more economic ambition as well. We also need more transparent tools which allow us to see what kind of impact these tools are having. And the summit on the future set out a very clear message we have the EU has a clear commitment there. We need to implement that commitment and we need to be consistent in it as well. Thank you.”
  EU engagement with civil society
• “Thank you very much, chair. And thank you, Commissioner. We're very pleased to see this proposed strengthening of the Ucpmb from a holistic perspective and covering all of the different connected types of crises. I've been looking into this with my colleague Aurelius and with our shadow rapporteurs, and I do believe that very good work is going to be done here. But let me say something briefly about our initial approach to this debate. As you are aware, I am from a region that suffered the most devastating floods of recent years and a country that also experienced massively destructive fires that led to many deaths, and that raised three fundamental issues for this debate. First of all, we would like to hear from public authorities when there is a crisis, we need them to be objective, empathetic, and. To show responsibility because. Very often we see those in power disappear when there's this type of crisis. Secondly, the centralized European response to crises, both citizens um, when it when it comes to both fires and floods. The European Union was present and that response was effective. And this showed that these mechanisms can provide a clear response to this type of crisis, be it through the Copernicus mechanism, reconstruction and solidarity mechanisms between different countries. Those were fundamental. But there's also an important point to be made about awareness when it comes to, uh, climate change denialism is a very devastating phenomenon. The Ucpmb also needs extraordinary funding, and we're very concerned Cerned about the new MF, which eliminates and reduces tools. Like the territorial cohesion tools, because that dimension and local authorities have an important role to play. So I would like to know what you think about the funding issue for this type of activity. Thank you Miss.”
  Cohesion and rural funding
• “Thank you. Chair. The report that we're voting on today is the first result of a joint and shared effort that I want to recognize. I just want to thank the Secretariat's work, and especially from my office, David. And I want to thank all of the organizations and humanitarian actors that we spoke to and listened to and took on board their opinions. I also want to recognize, um, the attitude of those involved and the constructive tone of our conversations. And even when we had our differences. Um, we have a consistent, Insistent and consensual text. I also want to thank the Femm committee because of course, they helped improve the text. And I hope that today and we get a solid majority in the vote. I want to say that this gives us a solid, coherent and consistent text when the humanitarian context is very fragile. We need EU leadership more than ever now for humanitarian and strategic reasons. Reasons we need to have a clear, differentiated humanitarian strategy. And we also have the HTP nexus. And it's important to work for fragile Contexts, and we need to recognize the vital role of women in humanitarian contexts. On the 25th anniversary of the 1325 resolution. There are threats that we need to respond to and anticipate. And of course, um, we have large scale humanitarian issues such as Sudan and Gaza, Haiti, Congo, and many situations that we have the moral obligation to respond to in a clear way. We have a drop in resources, USAID, for example, but also, um, certain member states. So we need to act in a clearer way than ever. And this report sends a strong message in that, um, sense. So I hope that we can reach an agreement. Thank you.”
  EU Development & Humanitarian Aid
• “Commissioner. Intellectual property rights are key for Europe's development. It contributes €7 billion to our GDP and it generates more than 81 million jobs. But the flip side of that are the enormous losses caused by online piracy. It's growing using more complex, more sophisticated instruments, and it undermines investment capacity, jobs and European creativity. So it's time to act. Voluntary measures which attempted to halt illegal transmissions of live events have not worked, and therefore we need binding measures that are tailored to live digital events, particular immediate take down because their value resides in them being live. And of course, we need to look at the digital intermediaries. And I would like to thank Ypo for its work. We collaborate with them because piracy robs us of our sports and our creativity. Thank you.”
  Broadcasting of sports events
• “Thank you chair. This debate requires clarity. Because the sanctions imposed by the US against the ICC and its judges. Francesco Albanese The judges hear NGOs are clearly an attempt at political intimidation, blocking visas, credit cards. The impact on families and children being included on lists is unacceptable. These are the ways in which the US is defending the government's actions of Israel in Gaza. So it's absolutely essential that we stand firm and defend our institutions, defend the guarantees of democracy that those institutions represent and defend European citizens. Frankly speaking, the European Commission has not been doing enough. It hasn't really been up to the challenge of this situation. It's a question of respect, dignity and finding and using the tools that we have. Just like the blocking statute, which has been designed to protect European citizens and allow us to act practically and urgently, once and for all.”
  Support for International Criminal Court
• “Thank you, Mr. President. The Mercosur agreement is very important in trade terms. But above all, it's also important geopolitical terms. For months we've been talking about the need for strategic autonomy in the EU. But who are we going to link up with? We need to link up with South America because they have so many, um, shared bonds. And therefore it's absolutely important to talk about what is in this agreement. Yes, because we are as sensitive to environmental standards. That's why we have to say that there are binding commitments to protection of forests and nature. We also need to be aware of the social issues. That's why we need to say quite clearly that protects labor rights, gender equality are the rights of indigenous persons and also small scale farmers. And also there's the citrus. Citrus fruits are quite important. And so clauses and certain other instruments, for example, safeguard clauses that we're going to use to defend a good agreement for the interests of our farmers on both sides.”
  Trade relations with Mercosur
• “Thank you. Thank you. Madam. Uh, as we've seen in Gaza, Lebanon, Iran, the crisis in the whole of the Middle East, this is a crisis because of historic economic, complex reasons, but also political reasons, which are decisions taken, policy decisions taken, those who have decided to violate international law. And we see the devastating consequences of that for human beings, for victims, but also for supplies for millions of citizens throughout the world. We've seen different consequences already direct consequences, consequences, hunger being used as a weapon of war in Gaza with impartial. Uh. Impartial, neutral humanitarian aid being essential to combat that. But we've also seen the consequences of violations of human of international law on our own security. Security in terms of food, energy and instability for the future for us. So we need to put Europe in the equation. The fight for peace, the fight for clean energy, and of course, supporting international humanitarian law. Apart from all of that, we need to be very much aware of the fight against climate change, as there are people in this House denying climate change. And we've seen that it's already having devastating consequences, uh, in different areas of in particular, food security. So once again, I'd like to make use of this opportunity to clarify our position. We believe that Europe has been lukewarm in its response, and we need to be much firmer on the implementation of international law in the region. We should be fighting for peace and stability in the region. We need to adopt short, medium and long term measures to guarantee sufficient food supply for the present and the future. So what concrete measures do you think we should be requiring?”
  Relations with Israel - Palestine
• “Thank you very much, president. We're talking about heat. We've had many thousands of people who die as a result of heat waves. Year in, year out, particularly in the Mediterranean and cities such as Alicante. But studies show us that we've had increases in temperatures in 2023, and we've seen an increase in deaths. And we need therefore to implement our plans. But to do so we require political will, and we need funding from our cohesion programmes in our cities and to favour urban planning and public health. We also need to have, um, cool islands, green spaces. Otherwise, all of this has a devastating impact on public health, whereas we should be protecting the most vulnerable in our societies. So you need to tell us about your plans. You need to tell us about exchanging best practice. And that's what we're doing in Spain. We've got, um, various climate refuges in Barcelona. We've also got to counter disinformation and denial. Both cost lives.”
  EU climate adaptation and disaster preparedness
• “Thank you very much. Thank you. Commissioner. We share your ambition, mission and roadmap. There's not going to be a EU strategic vision or a competitive economy if we are not able to move forward. We need to spend less. Less energy, less resources, critical materials. We need to be more efficient with our energy, cleaner energy recycling and reusing essential raw materials. And of course, we have to be better prepared for the future. But some of the discourse that we've heard today is constantly trying to sully this debate. And the reason that I come from just yesterday with the far right that is asking for breaks on the Green Deal that our climate deniers who sideline civil society and that's basically playing into the hands of Putin. So all I can say is forge ahead with this road map, with this comprehensive vision, we're going to need all the tools we have, like the global gateway. And we also need to support SMEs in industrial sectors like ceramics and many others. They will need support, they will need funding to adapt and to really bank on green and clean energy. Thank you.”
  Energy (green transition)
• “Thank you very much. President. Denying climate change something that we've heard repeatedly here. Apparently it's ideological fanaticism is not going to prevent us from having to face up to the consequences of heat waves and floods. Rather, we are going to have to deal with the damage to our citizens, to our economies, to our livelihoods, and to our lives. So it's time to take this seriously. So, you know, let's look at the positive results of a summit which certain people tried to derail, to blow up and fortunately, however, was maintained. It's important that we take seriously our commitment to combating climate change, and certainly that's what civil society and indigenous groups do. But we have to take matters far more seriously. The EU can't simply confirm these agreements. We have to be consistent here at home because we see week in, week out efforts to dismantle the climate agreements we've already signed up to. And so that's what we're calling for from the commission. We want consistency and deeds too”
  Climate efforts
• “Thank you. All the commissioners mentioned simplicity, consistency, even awareness. Now I'd like to talk about transparency. I think it's very important that flexibility and the capability for innovation is not blocked by the lack of transparency, especially when we're looking at humanitarian principles. I think the commissioner mentioned the regulation as saying that it is based on humanitarian principles, and this is something that can concerned us. And it was very important. When we talk about consistency, when we're looking at the interests of the EU by the other commissioners, but it must be consistent also with sustainable Development agenda 2030 and so forth, and then impact. We've got to do something, look at impact with specific measurements. And then I would like to ask you how you're going to respond to the needs for civil society who are demanding participation in the follow up of programs such as Global Lingua? Thank you.”
  EU engagement with civil society
• “Thank you very much, chairman. I'll speak in Spanish. I do agree with what you've said on the need to answer the question as to what we learnt from the pandemic, and how can we make sure that we are better prepared in the face of future outbreaks of epidemics? You've talked about some of the latent threats and risks that we're facing, and I would like to add the hantavirus, because I'd like to take the opportunity that you are here, because we do need to strengthen our vigilance. But I would like to ask you about three issues that I'm the rapporteur for the civil protection mechanism, and you have said that we need to have an appropriate budgetary reserve for health, but also for the integrated knowledge networks. So I would like to know what kind of elements we do have to guarantee through the financing. Secondly, we know that in order to be able to better prepare and respond to future global health risks, that we do have to focus on the southern hemisphere countries focus on prevention mechanisms, epidemiological surveillance and vigilance, increase knowledge. So I would like to know what kind of coordination exists between DG Inpa and the Commissioner for development to guarantee that this work is going to be done. Finally, I would like to ask about the need for guaranteeing synergies, the necessary synergies within the Commission to ensure that the strategic reserves are effective. I would like to know what kind of specific work you're doing in that area. Thank you.”
  Government stockpiling of critical medicines
• “Thank you very much, chair. Thank you very much. Thank you very much for these two reports. That of course, chart out an important elements for our future. Firstly, I'd like to highlight two points. We need to be clear that the worst enemy, an enemy to good water management and protecting against floods and natural disasters is negating that climate change occurs and delaying implementation of mitigation strategies. In the Valencia region, for example, where we've had the devastating effects of a natural disaster that really ask for action under the Green Deal, you have people who still deny climate change. I mean, I think that has to stop. Secondly, scientific response. The European Union needs to strengthen its capacity to issue early warnings and to respond. I think that's absolutely key. I think in Valencia there were two floods. Firstly, you had unexpected rainfall and then you had the devastating consequences on, um, human life. I mean, I think the response is what was missing. I think there was an event where it was possible to respond adequately to save lives and ensure that a warning was issued. And then you had a second set of floods where clearly none of this worked, and that led to massive loss of life. So we need to be able to anticipate, act responsibly, and that's the best way to prevent the worst effects of such natural disasters.”
  EU policy on infrastructure for preventing climate-related disasters (floods, droughts, extreme weather etc.)