Quote of the week by president Iratxe García on social democratic values:
“For the Social-Democratic family, the European Union is first and foremost a community of values. This community of values today is questioned even by some Conservatives who have thrown themselves into the arms of the extreme right to attack the rights of women, minorities, immigrants and also the environment. We Social Democrats will keep saying loud and clear: We are not going to allow it. We will keep working for a Europe of solidarity, human dignity, freedom, equality and diversity.”
Upcoming activities & missions
Our members in the Delegation for relations with Belarus will be on mission to Vilnius from 15-17 May. They will meet with Belarusian opposition, democratic forces and civil society currently exiled to Lithuania, and they will express our strong support for their work and solidarity. Our Group is represented by Chair Juozas Olekas and Matthias Ecke. Meetings are scheduled with Belarusian civil society and independent media, with the Rector and discussion with students of European Humanities University (EHU, Belarusian university exiled to Vilnius since 2004), with representatives of the Lithuanian government working on relations with Belarus and more.
On 16 and 17 May, our MEPs Andreas Schieder and Thijs Reuten will be in Skopje to attend the meeting of the Joint Parliamentary Committee of the EU and North Macedonia. Looking forward to a fruitful exchange, the S&Ds wish to highlight their appreciation of a steady EU integration course for the country. We encourage North Macedonia to continue with the accession process despite the challenges, as this would be an important signal confirming its strong commitment to fully-fledged EU membership.
Next week, from 15-18 May, MEPs from the committee on civil liberties will meet with counterparts in the United States working on EU-US cooperation on justice and home affairs. The delegation to Washington D.C, which includes LIBE Chair Juan Fernando López Aguilar and S&D spokesperson for justice and home affairs Birgit Sippel, is an opportunity for our Group to explore US policy and raise different concerns with counterparts about the protection of personal data, women’s rights and visa reciprocity.
Next Wednesday, the European Commission is expected to put forward a proposal to reduce microplastics unintentionally released into the environment. Usually smaller than 5mm, massive amounts can be found in the environment, including the sea, and in food and drinking water. They cause long-lasting pollution as they do not biodegrade and potentially damage our health. The European Commission must therefore come up with an ambitious proposal that can drastically reduce their presence in all sources. Clean alternatives must be deployed.
Elections in Turkey are fundamental for the country and for us too. This is why we will be keeping a close eye on the election process this Sunday. There is now an alliance of political forces that can guarantee a much-needed alternative, challenging the autocratic shift of Erdoğan, which is eroding the state of law and the economic conditions in the country. This alliance, led by Kemal Kılıçdaroğlu, can represent a force for change which is necessary for Turkey. “We're going to really depend on these elections, especially when looking at such a strategic partner”, as stated by president Iratxe García during her press conference in Strasbourg.
Upcoming events
Tomorrow, from 10.00 to 18.00, we invite everyone in Strasbourg to join us for Europe Day – the European Institutions Open Day. As usual, admission is free and we look forward to meeting everyone at our stand.
At the end of the month, we are heading to Berlin and Porto to campaign with our new roadmap towards a social Europe, urging that social rights get the same priority as economic and environmental goals.
The first stop is the congress of the European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC) taking place in Berlin from 23 to 26 May. We will join forces with our trade union partners to raise awareness of the importance of the European Pillar of Social Rights as a shield against austerity. Another key topic will be the strengthening of collective bargaining in the process of transposing the new European law on adequate minimum wages into national legislations.
On 26 May, we will move to Porto, where we will attend the PES Social Summit, followed the next day by the Social Forum organised by the Portuguese government. Two years after the Porto Social Summit where we set key commitments and targets, we will return there to further strengthen our fight for a social future.
In both Berlin and Porto, the S&D delegation will be led by our employment spokesperson Agnes Jongerius. The future of Europe will be social or there will be no more Europe as we know it and as we want it.
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