Live replay of the EP Plenary session on the Election of the President of the European Parliament, 9th parlimentary term, during the plenary week in Strasbourg (01-04/07/2019). Acceptance speech by David SASSOLI, the newly elected President of the European Parliament.

Strasbourg

vote

SASSOLI, David Maria (S&D, IT, S&D, IT)

election of the President of the European Parliament (T)

EP Plenary session - Election of the President of the European Parliament: acceptance speech by David SASSOLI, the newly elected President of the European Parliament

David-Maria SASSOLI: Citizens of the European Union. Honourable Members of Parliament. Colleagues friends. Representatives of the institutions, of governments, the women and men in the administration, you will all understand how moved I feel on taking over the presidency of the European Parliament and having been elected by you to represent the institution which more than any other has a direct link with our citizens.

David-Maria SASSOLI: It's my duty to represent it and defend it. It relies on the justice and solidarity we are able to develop. It has often been said allow me to compliment the outgoing president Antonio TAJANI for the work he's done and his great commitments, his dedication to this institution. I would like also to welcome the members who've been confirmed. With women making up 40 percent of the membership of the open parliament now that's a good result. But we want even more.

David-Maria SASSOLI: At this moment, following an intensive election campaign we're making a start to a parliamentary term where events place a great responsibility on our shoulders since no one can take the exact situation for granted. The voting has shown this and the makeup of this house too. We are seeing epoch making changes . Youth employment migration climate change digital developments, new balances on the world stage are some of the major issues before us.

David-Maria SASSOLI: If we are to manage all these processes we need new thinking. We need to be bold enough to bring together great wisdom with the ingenuity, we need to return to the spirit of the founding fathers those who put aside the hostility of warfare and the damage caused by nationalism in order to build up a project that could bring together peace democracy the rule of law and development and equality. Too many people in recent months have been stressing the way that this project has been in decline.

David-Maria SASSOLI: They've been fermenting development and conflict which we thought were just a memory in our past put our citizens on the country have shown that they still believe in this wonderful project. It's the only one which is in any position to rise to global challenges that we face. We need to be strong enough to relaunch our process of integration changing our union and making it able to come forward with a stronger response to the needs of our citizens.

David-Maria SASSOLI: We need to come up with real responses to their palpable problems defending and promoting our founding values of freedom. That's undoubtedly is a task we must pursue every day both within and beyond the European Union.

David-Maria SASSOLI: Colleagues. Let us think more often about the world. It's our duty to be part of it and the freedoms we enjoy. Looking to the east and the West and the south others seem to find it hard to recognize that there are many things that make us different not better or worse which is different and we in Europe are proud of our diversity.

David-Maria SASSOLI: Let's repeat that fact. Let it be clear to everyone that in Europe no government can rule the roost. The value of the human individual endeavour of human dignity are the benchmark against which we gauge our political efforts. No one in Europe can put down the opposition. Our institutions are the fruit of democracy of a free choice made in free elections.

David-Maria SASSOLI: Nobody can be condemned for holding a particular political or religious or philosophical persuasion. Young people are able to travel and study and fall in love without any restrictions. We mustn't allow any European to be humiliated or squeezed out of society because of their sexual orientation. Within Europe in one way or another.

David-Maria SASSOLI: Social cover is part of our identity our economic model our social market economy needs to have fresh life breathed into it. Our economic rules must bring together growth with social protection and respect to the environment. We need appropriate instruments to fight poverty and hold out prospects for our young people.

David-Maria SASSOLI: We need to to relaunch sustainable investments so as to strengthen the process of convergence amongst our regions and territories. The digital revolution is bringing about a sea change to our lifestyles the way we produce and consume. We need rules. They must reconcile technological progress to businesses protection of individuals.

David-Maria SASSOLI: Climate change expresses as too huge risks which are now clear. What we need to do is invest in clean technologies to respond to the thousands of young people who've been out on the streets demonstrating and have come here also to remind us that there is no planet B. We need to work on ever stronger gender equality too.

David-Maria SASSOLI: There has to be an ever more prominent role for women in politics and the economic and social spheres. Ladies and gentlemen this is obvious it can't. In a world without rules but which needs rules we can help establish those rules. But all this is no chance occurrence.

David-Maria SASSOLI: The European Union isn't just a blip in history. My father fought other Europeans.

David-Maria SASSOLI: My mother, twenty years ago. And to leave home and find refuge with others. And I know this is a story that so many of your families also share. I also know that if we were to share our history and sit around a table with a beer and and tell one of our stories we would find out that we're all children or grandchildren of people who've gone through historical events.

David-Maria SASSOLI: The blood of young Britons shared on the shores of Normandy and the desire for freedom, theroic Warsaw Ghetto, the Spring movement put down by tanks in eastern European countries, the desire for brotherhood at every juncture. We have a moral duty not to renounce our humanity obedience cannot be seen as a virtue.

David-Maria SASSOLI: We are not a blip in history. We are the children and grandchildren of those who manage to find the antidote to this nationalist degeneration of Europe which poisoned our history. We are Europeans and because we all love our own countries. That also makes us European. But nationalism turns into an ideology and adultery leads us inevitably into destructive conflict colleagues. Politics must overcome division.

David-Maria SASSOLI: We need European political parties who will increasingly be able to provide a structure for our work together. We need to strengthen our capacity in this parliamentary term. We need stronger procedures to make sure that the European Parliament can play a leading role in a fully fledged European democracy. But we're not starting from square one. We're not building anything up from the ground.

David-Maria SASSOLI: Europe is based on its institutions imperfect though they are even though they require reform. They have upheld our freedoms and independence. Our institutions will allow us to respond to all those who are determined to divide us and we'll say to them today at the beginning of this parliamentary term that the European Parliament will guarantee the independence of European citizens only they are entitled to determine their own history.

David-Maria SASSOLI: No one can take their place. No one can use up our position. In this house together with all our colleagues with our great wealth of experience. There was a very large number of new members here. I'd like to welcome them into our midst. I've read many of their CVs and I feel certain that we have a very positive representation here.

David-Maria SASSOLI: 63 percent of the membership of this Parliament is made up of first members many of them are committed to social work. They have great skills and professionalism very many of them are also involved in protecting people and that's an area that Europe needs to improve its performance on because there are a new phenomenon that we will have to be able to manage on migration.

David-Maria SASSOLI: Increasingly whenever something goes wrong when governments are unprepared and we start again from scratch.

David-Maria SASSOLI: I would say to the members of the European Council this Parliament feels that the time has come to discuss the reform of the Dublin Convention. The vast majority of this House proposed this in the previous parliamentary term. The vast majority endorsed that proposal. This is something we owe to European citizens who are calling for more solidarity amongst the member states. We also owe this to the poor people.

David-Maria SASSOLI: And the way we've dealt with them has made us big in the eyes of the world. And say to the members of the council this lies in your hands. You can't continue to kick this down the road. We need to show there's not somebody to and restore faith in our institution. We don't want the citizens asking where's Europe. Every time an emergency happens there's a test bench here where we can shake people out of their indolence and move away from selfish reflexes.

David-Maria SASSOLI: Council and the commission must feel this needs to respond more bravely to the requests of our young people. Who tell us we need to wake up. Open our eyes and save the planet and I turned to them and say regards this parliament which is starting work today as your reference point.

David-Maria SASSOLI: Help us. Help us. To to be bolder in rising the challenge of climate change. I want to assure the council and it's a text message of officers that we will cooperate with it fully and the same applies to the commission and its president. The European institutions need to take a fresh look at the way they are structured.

David-Maria SASSOLI: They must not pose any obstacle to the building of a united Europe one the president of the council. I want to pay homage to chance of taking government 28 countries make the European Union great. We're talking about 28 states from the largest to the smallest they have a unique heritage in the world to protect. They've all come a long way.

David-Maria SASSOLI: The cultures languages art landscapes and poetry are all unique. These are a great heritage which deserves everyone's respect. That's why when I visit them on your behalf. I will always be focussed when I hear the hymns and look at their flags. I will not forget those who don't do the same in this house.

David-Maria SASSOLI: Lastly I wants to pay homage to British MEP whatever their views on Brexit may be for us imagining Paris Madrid Berlin and Rome being far from London is something painful. Yes be aware of that. With all due respect for the choices made by British citizens as far as we Europeans are concerned this is a political transition which has to be pursued in a regional in a reasonable way in the spirit of dialogue but with constant respect of the rules and the properties on both sides.

David-Maria SASSOLI: I'd also like to welcome the representatives of governments who have applied for membership of the European Union. The European path reflects their free choice. We all know how desirable it is to be a member of the European Union. The accession process continues. The European Parliament has expressed its satisfaction on a number of occasions regarding the results that have been achieved and good luck.

David-Maria SASSOLI: Lastly to the whole administration and everybody who works in this Parliament we've set an objective for ourselves in the last parliament term. We stated that we wanted the European Parliament to be the home of European democracy. That's why we need reform transparency innovation. A lot has already been achieved particularly in the budget. But in this new parliamentary term we need to redouble our efforts in pursuit of that. We need greater dialogue between members and administration and it will be my job to oversee that.

David-Maria SASSOLI: Colleagues, Europe still has a lot to say. If we speak out together, if we explain the reasons for our political struggle to serve our citizens. If we listen to their fears even their anger but above all their needs. I feel certain that all of you will prove in a position to make your fullest contribution to improving Europe. So that together if we apply ourselves to this week we can make a success of this and be ambitious. Thank you. Applause.