Home Karen MELCHIOR

. – This resolution is the most important one of our mandate in the European Parliament. Showing that we manage to find the general European interest even in this terrible crisis. We need a common European approach to combat the crisis. Solidarity not in words but in deeds.
The fight against this crisis will not be won without a solid economic response. Therefore, I voted for the Joint Resolution including recovery bonds, allowing us to invest by raising debt together without pooling past debts.
It is of paramount importance keeping the European Green Deal at the core of the recovery efforts aligning them with the objective of climate neutrality and fulfilling the goals of the Paris Agreement. Our post-crisis investment packages must be green and build the recovery and transformation plans, which enshrine the fight against climate change and biodiversity as a key pillar of the economic strategy. Our recovery should not be a return to the world of yesterday. We must propel our economies into the world of tomorrow; building a greener and better tomorrow.
Passenger rights is one of the key areas where citizens know that they are protected thanks to the EU. We should not suspend legislation precisely when people need it most. I believe it is our duty to defend the rights of passengers by upholding already adopted EU law. This resolution calls for this.
Especially airline companies are in a difficult position and they should be helped. It is the responsibility of Member States. Not the responsibility of the passengers. To this end, the Commission has given flexibilities to Member States to provide state aids. For instance, the Danish State loan facility in support of the Travel Guarantee Fund, which the European Commission approved on 3 April 2020 under state aid rules, ensures that liquidity remains available to travel organizers while allowing them to settle quickly and efficiently travelers’ refund claims.
Finally, our resolution correctly insists on an ambitious MFF, in line with the Union’s objectives. We should also frontload the funding in the MFF to kick start the recovery.
This resolution represents the aspirations of the European peoples. This text is neither Nordic, nor Latin, nor Eastern, nor Western. It is not the property of any political family. It is a text for all of Europe.