Greens Co-Chair Rebecca Harms analyses the fallout from the Greek and French elections, and Charles Tannock weighs the risks and rewards of vaccination.

7 Days: Austerity v. growth, vaccination choice

https://api.multimedia.europarl.europa.eu/documents/20125/15977053/m004-0032-en_mf.srt

To many, the results prove that Europe  must find a different solution to the crisis.

The socialist François Hollande  moves into the Elysée Palace

and far left and far right parties  have won the elections in Greece.

than the Co-Chair of the Greens in  the European Parliament, Rebecca Harms.

But before we start, we'll have  our usual 'Yes or No' section.

Schleswig-Holstein went to the polls too.  The Greens got 13.2%.

Were you hoping for more?  -I'm always hoping for more.

It's a yes. The Pirate Party also did well.  Does this worry you?

The Green Eva Joly only got just over 2%  in the French presidential elections.

Was this disappointing  or was it to be expected?

Are you a football fan?  -Only on rare occasions.

The former Ukrainian Prime Minister  Tymoshenko has been imprisoned.

Many people are planning to boycott  the Euro 2012. Will you join them?

I will stick with this idea, but I won't  be sitting in the official stand.

You wanted a progressive solidarity levy  on EU officials' salaries, but failed to get it.

Are EU officials earning too much?  -Yes, in the higher ranks.

Before we discuss the events  of the week, or rather the weekend,

let's watch a short summary of the week  compiled by Julie Martin.

'France takes a turn to the left’,  ‘A fresh start for Europe’:

Monday's news headlines were about  the victory of socialist François Hollande.

In Greece, anti-austerity parties  from the radical left to neo-Nazis

The results worry the investors and sent  the euro to its lowest rate since early 2012.

On 9 May, Europe Day, EP President  Schulz opened the Brussels mini-plenary

Austerity or growth? The weekend’s  elections revived the debate.

More festive events to celebrate Europe  are in store on Saturday in Brussels

and on 20 May in Strasbourg  during the Parliament’s Open Days.

The EU’s expenditure in 2010 was  scrutinised in the plenary on Thursday.

Before the final vote, four sensitive points  remained unresolved.

The MEPs demand more transparency  about the expenditure of the EU Council

and three EU agencies,  particularly the Food Safety Authority.

Finally, good news for Europeans using  their smartphone in another EU country.

The MEPs were expected to vote  in favour of a maximum tariff for roaming

And the price caps for calls and SMSs  have once again been revised downwards.

Rebecca Harms, immediately after  the elections the Greens announced

that there is obviously a need for change.

We've also just had the question  in the report: growth or austerity?

Can the two be combined  or do we need to move away

from what Mrs Merkel and Mr Sarkozy  have been saying for months or years?

The Greens' approach remains the same  after the elections in Greece and France.

We believe that the course  imposed by Mrs Merkel and Mr Sarkozy

on the countries in crisis  and on Europe in general

and that it has made the crisis worse  for the countries in difficulty.

Austerity and budget cuts  cannot be the sole solution to the crisis,

just like public debt  is not the only cause of the crisis.

We are convinced that  a growth programme is required

and we want to combine it  with this Fiscal Compact.

Furthermore, and this has been  an important aspect in the elections,

we support a democratically controlled way  of establishing crisis policies.

The European Parliament has been  excluded by Merkel and Sarkozy

on all essential questions,  and we cannot tolerate this any longer.

But it's a question of  how the growth is financed.

Some suggest taking on new debt,  others support EU-funded programmes.

What do the Greens want?  -That is the question.

Because, in theory, the Commission  supports growth measures

as per their 'job-rich recovery' agenda  presented before the elections.

In Germany, Mrs Merkel stressed  the need to discuss growth measures,

but no-one has suggested  how to pay for it all.

We believe that the idea  of developing project bonds,

which has already been presented  to the Commission,

We don't think that the money  we have available at the moment

enables us to invest our way  out of the recession, as is necessary.

But the coffers are empty,  as we all have to admit is the case.

Well, it is interesting to note, when the  coffers are empty and when they are full,

what we have money for  and for what we do not.

Since the crisis began,  we have used enormous sums.

They have been made available  to stabilise the banks.

Via the ECB, we have pumped  into large European banks

an amount of money  that is almost too large to comprehend

so that the banks  could supply the real economy.

But this didn't happen on a scale  that would have matched the amount.

That we keep giving the banks  more money than the states,

that we trust the banks  more than the states,

that cannot continue, if we want  to successfully combat the crisis

and the political decline that we are  currently witnessing in Europe.

The results in Greece  seem to have woken everyone up,

rather than from Mr Hollande  who had it in his manifesto.

Many of your colleagues are suggesting  we stop talking about growth,

it's an old issue, we have  EU 2020 and various programmes.

What difference does it make?  That is one question.

And the other one is,  do you also feel like you're waking up

to suddenly find neo-Nazis, fascists,  making it into parliament in Athens?

Did you expect this, was this considered  during any of the talks?

This has been a constant issue  in debating the crisis.

Whoever claims to have been woken up  by the results in Greece