The first debate on the State of the Union of the 10th legislative term comes at a crucial time, shaped by an increasingly unstable and demanding global scenario. The Socialists and Democrats see the months ahead as an opportunity for the Union to lead with urgency, unity and ambition.

During the debate in plenary, Iratxe García, president of the Socialists and Democrats in the European Parliament, criticised president Von der Leyen for leaving Europe and its citizens behind and called for a set of game-changing external and internal policy initiatives for 2026. In response to the ongoing genocide in Gaza, García asked for the suspension of the association agreement with Israel, an arms embargo, sanctions, and the creation of a real reconstruction plan – the Gaza Facility. On the EU-US trade agreement, García confirmed that the S&Ds will amend the agreement, and regarding Ukraine she calls for a stronger position and the confiscation of the €200 billion in Russian assets.

The Socialists and Democrats have called on president Von der Leyen to deliver concrete proposals such as an affordable Housing Plan with a dedicated budget to guarantee decent housing for all, measures to regulate short-term rentals and reform state aid rules to support affordable housing, an Anti-Poverty Strategy, a Just Transition Directive to protect worker’s rights and social dialogue, the full implementation of the Green Deal, and new own resources to support a strong and ambitious Multiannual Financial Framework.

Iratxe García, S&D Group leader, said:

“The urgency and unity we need cannot come at the expense of ambition or the interests of European citizens.

“President Von der Leyen, you went to Scotland to bury the Draghi and Letta reports, as well as our strategic autonomy, on a golf course. Investment is needed here in Europe. Accepting 15% tariffs without any retaliation is unacceptable and so is allowing American producers to be exempt from the standards that apply to Europeans. Farmers are the big losers in the deal with the US. And if Trump continues his trade war against our digital laws, we must activate the anti-coercion mechanism.

“The proposals announced today arrive too late and are insufficient. What is happening in Gaza is called genocide and we should respond to that with the full suspension of the agreement, sanctions, and a reconstruction plan for Gaza.

“Let’s strengthen our commitment to climate neutrality by 2050. Competitiveness cannot happen in a land devastated by fires. Defending the Green Deal is not ideology: it is survival, competitiveness, strategic autonomy, and climate justice.

“We need a European Affordable Housing Plan, paid grants for young people, quality jobs with fair wages, a Just Transition Directive, the right to disconnect, and advance in the Health for All Plan. And we need new achievements for women with the inclusion of the right to abortion in the Charter of Fundamental Rights.

“All this can only happen with an EU budget that is fit for purpose. The Multiannual Financial Framework presented by the Commission is unacceptable: small, austere, renationalised. We need new own resources, fair taxation of large corporations, and a permanent investment capacity.”