Live replay of the statement by Jean-Claude JUNCKER, President of the EC during the State of the Union 2017 during the plenary session in Satrsbourg (11-14/09/2017)

JUNCKER, Jean-Claude (LU)

state of the Union 2017 (T)

state of the Union

(03) State of the Union 2017: statement by Jean-Claude JUNCKER, President of the EC (9:26 - 9:41)

SOUNDBITE (French), Jean-Claude JUNCKER, President of the EC, We now need to redouble our efforts. Before the end of the month, the Commission will present a new set of proposals with an emphasis on returns, solidarity with Africa and opening legal pathways. When it comes to returns: people who have no right to stay in Europe must be returned to their countries of origin. When only 36% of irregular migrants are returned, it is clear we need to significantly step up our work. This is the only way Europe will be able to show solidarity with refugees in real need of protection.

SOUNDBITE (French), Jean-Claude JUNCKER, President of the EC, Solidarity cannot be exclusively intra-European. We must also showsolidarity with Africa. Africa is a noble and young continent, the cradle of humanity. Our &euro;2.7 billion EU-Africa Trust Fund is creating employment opportunities across the continent. The EU budget fronted the bulk of the money, but all our Member States combined have still only contributed &euro;150 million. The Fund is currently reaching its limits. We know the dangers of a lack of funding &ndash; in 2015 many migrants headed towards Europe when the UN's World Food Programme ran out of funds. I call on all Member States to now match their actions with their words and ensure the Africa Trust Fund does not meet the same fate.

SOUNDBITE (French), Jean-Claude JUNCKER, President of the EC, We will also work on opening up legal pathways. Irregular migration will only stop if there is a real alternative to perilous journeys. We are close to having resettled 22,000 refugees from Turkey, Jordan and Lebanon and I support UN High Commissioner Grandi's call to resettle a further 40,000 refugees from Libya and the surrounding countries. At the same time, legal migration is a necessity for Europe as an ageing continent. This is why the Commission made proposals to make it easier for skilled migrants to reach Europe with a Blue Card. I would like to thank the Parliament for your support and I call for an ambitious and swift agreement on this important issue.

SOUNDBITE (German), Jean-Claude JUNCKER, President of the EC, Honourable Members, I have mentioned just a few of the initiatives we should deliver over the next 16 months. But this alone will not be enough to regain the hearts and minds of Europeans. Now is the time to chart the direction for the future. In March, the Commission presented our White Paper on the future of Europe, with five scenarios for what Europe could look like by 2025. These scenarios have been discussed, scrutinised and partly ripped apart. That is good &ndash; they were conceived for exactly this purpose. I wanted to launch a process in which Europeans determined their own path and their own future. The future of Europe cannot be decided by decree. It has to be the result of democratic debate and, ultimately, broad consensus. This House contributed actively, through the three ambitious resolutions on Europe's future and your participation in many of the more than 2,000 public events that the Commission organised since March. Now is the time to draw first conclusions from this debate. Time to move from reflection to action. From debate to decision.

SOUNDBITE (German), Jean-Claude JUNCKER, President of the EC, Today I would like to present you my view: my own 'scenario six', if you will.  This scenario is rooted in decades of first-hand experience. I have lived and worked for the European project my entire life. I have seen good times and bad. I have sat on many different sides of the table: as a Minister, as Prime Minister, as President of the Eurogroup, and now as President of the Commission. I was there in Maastricht, Amsterdam, Nice and Lisbon as our Union evolved and enlarged. I have always fought for Europe. At times I have suffered with and because of Europe and even despaired for it. Through thick and thin, I have never lost my love of Europe. But there is rarely love without pain. Love for Europe because Europe and the European Union have achieved something unique in this fraying world: peace within and outside of Europe. Prosperity for many if not yet for all. This is something we have to remember during the European Year of Cultural Heritage. 2018 must be a celebration of cultural diversity.

SOUNDBITE (German), Jean-Claude JUNCKER, President of the EC,  Our values are our compass. For me, Europe is more than just a single market. More than money, more than the euro. It was always about values.  In my scenario six, there are three principles that must always anchor our Union: freedom, equality and the rule of law.  Europe is first of all a Union of freedom. Freedom from the kind of oppression and dictatorship our continent knows all too well &ndash; sadly none more than central and Eastern Europe. Freedom to voice your opinion, as a citizen and as a journalist &ndash; a freedom we too often take for granted. It was on these freedoms that our Union was built. But freedom does not fall from the sky. It must be fought for. In Europe and throughout world.  Second, Europe must be a Union of equality. Equality between its Members, big and small, East and West, North and South. Make no mistake, Europe extends from Vigo to Varna. From Spain to Bulgaria. East to West: Europe must breathe with both lungs. Otherwise our continent will struggle for air. In a Union of equals, there can be no second class citizens. It is unacceptable that in 2017 there are still children dying of diseases that should long have been eradicated in Europe. Children in Romania or Italy must have the same access to measles vaccines as other children right across Europe. No ifs, no buts. This is why we are working with all Member States to support national vaccination efforts. Avoidable deaths must not occur in Europe.

In a Union of equals, there can be no second class workers. Workers should earn the same pay for the same work in the same place. This is why the Commission proposed new rules on posting of workers. We should make sure that all EU rules on labour mobility are enforced in a fair, simple and effective way by a new European inspection and enforcement body. It seems absurd to have a Banking Authority to police banking standards, but no common Labour Authority for ensuring fairness in our single market. We will create one. In a Union of equals, there can be no second class consumers. I will not accept that in some parts of Europe, people are sold food of lower quality than in other countries, despite the packaging and branding being identical. Slovaks do not deserve less fish in their fish fingers. Hungarians less meat in their meals. Czechs less cacao in their chocolate. EU law outlaws such practices already. We must now equip national authorities with stronger powers to cut out any illegal practices wherever they exist. Third, in Europe the strength of the law replaced the law of the strong.  The rule of law means that law and justice are upheld by an independent judiciary. Accepting and respecting a final judgement is what it means to be part of a Union based on the rule of law. Member States gave final jurisdiction to the European Court of Justice. The judgements of the Court have to be respected by all. To undermine them, or to undermine the independence of national courts, is to strip citizens of their fundamental rights. The rule of law is not optional in the European Union. It is a must.  Our Union is not a State but it is a community of law.