Today the president of the Socialists and Democrats in the European Parliament, Iratxe García, attended the Party of the European Socialists’ meeting with heads of governments and Commissioners of the S&D political family.

Ahead of the European Council that will start later today, Iratxe García expressed the Group’s position regarding the pressing issues that must be resolved before the end of the year.

Iratxe García said: 

“It looks like the Hungarian and Polish governments understood that being part of the EU means both benefits and responsibilities. I hope that the Council today will unblock the approval of the next 7-year budget and the Recovery Fund while not changing a single comma of the agreement reached by the Parliament and the Council on the rule of law regulation.

“Having the Court of Justice as an arbiter to ensure impartiality only reinforces the rule of law in the EU. In any case, the European Parliament will be vigilant that any interpretation from the Council does not alter the effectiveness of the legal instrument.

“We have all worked very hard over the past months so that the EU can deliver the financial support that citizens and businesses need to face the Covid-19 crisis, as of January 1st. I hope the Council will decide so that the Parliament can vote on the package next week.

“Regarding Brexit, we are still hopeful that a deal can be reached, and also that the Parliament has enough time to analyse the text before voting on its consent. We have very hectic days before the end of the year, but we must do our utmost to avoid the negative consequences of a no-deal scenario.”