Matteo Salvini (EFD). – (IT) Mr President, ladies and gentlemen, as usual, I fear that someone is wasting your time and trying to hoodwink citizens, entrepreneurs and Internet users in Europe, in Italy and, as far as I am concerned, in Padania. We are debating an agreement involving just a handful of countries, one that excludes 95% of countries engaged in exporting counterfeit goods, so effectively it is much ado about nothing.

The Commissioner talks about defending businesses and jobs, and then goes and signs free trade agreements with Morocco, Korea, Pakistan and India. We remove tariffs, barriers and protections to help banks, insurance companies and multinationals from Northern Europe, and then try to muzzle the web by selling it as a way of defending our businesses.

No one is falling for it any more, Commissioner. Go and inspect the ports in northern Europe, the port of Rotterdam for example, if you want to fight counterfeiting; do not try and gag anyone. If you really want to do something tangible about it, take the first plane to China, India or Indonesia and bring home something tangible, or else resign.