Syed Kamall, on behalf of the ECR Group. – Mr President, I would like to welcome the Prime Minister. Dobre doshli. Whilst the Bulgarian Presidency begins the last full year of this parliamentary term, it will be six months which could set the parameters for the future EU—UK relationship.

Mr Juncker, you should not take responsibility for the UK voting to leave. If responsibility lies anywhere, it is with the political class in Britain who, for the last 40 years, have not been honest about the political dimension of the EU, pretending that the EU was only about trade. Whilst Brexit has dominated the agenda of late, the ECR Group believes that the urgent must not crowd out what is important: the need for reform, fiscal responsibility and doing less, but doing it better. The ECR Group hopes that the Brexit negotiations will not just lead to a new EU-UK relationship, but act as a catalyst for a reformed EU. We hope the Bulgarian Presidency will be vocal and resolute in the face of continued Russian aggression in Ukraine. We hope that you will help Western Balkan countries on their journey of reform and, on the migration crisis, that you will ask EU countries what they can do to help – whether giving resources or taking people – rather than telling them what to do. I look forward to working with you and your team and we wish you every success in the six months ahead. Blagodarya.