Things are looking up again for offshore wind in Europe. 2023 saw a record 4.2 GW of new offshore wind farms come online, up 40% on 2022. And €30bn of new investments were confirmed – covering 9 GW that’ll be built over the coming years. The supply chain is also seeing a turnaround, with new factories announced in Poland, Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands and Spain.

The Socialists and Democrats applaud a ground-breaking deal on a new EU anti-money laundering law reached last night by the European Parliament and EU member states. Under S&D Group leadership, this new legislative package will significantly change the rules of the game and help prevent scandals that we have witnessed way too often in the past years.

Six years after its provisional entrance into force, the outcome of the EU-Canada economic and trade agreement (CETA) is clearly positive for both the Union and Canada, with a significant increase in trade of goods and services. For example, exports of goods from the Union to Canada increased by 47% between 2017 and 2022. Besides, the European Commission estimates that almost 75,000 jobs depending on trade have been created since CETA came into force.

During a plenary debate today, the leader of the Socialists and Democrats, Iratxe García Pérez, welcomed the new Belgian Presidency of the Council of the EU, and she put forward the priorities of the S&D Group for the months ahead.

Iratxe García Pérez said:

“The Belgian Presidency cannot just be a transitional Presidency. In the run-up to the next European elections, our citizens need further steps to guarantee progress.