On May 5, as part of Europe Day (May 9), the plenary session of the Flemish Parliament hosted Dubravka Šuica, Vice-President of the European Commission and European Commissioner for Democracy and Demography. The European Commissioner gave a speech on the Conference on the Future of Europe. This Conference will formally start on May 9 with the aim of involving citizens in the debate on Europe's challenges and priorities. Through a digital platform, citizen panels and all kinds of events, European citizens can give their opinion on what they expect from the European Union. Minister-president Jambon also underlined the importance of the Conference and the great involvement of Flanders during his speech in the Flemish Parliament.
After the plenary meeting, a bilateral meeting took place between Minister-president Jambon and European Commissioner Šuica. During the conversation, the Minister-president emphasized once again the great interest of the Flemish Parliament in European themes and the willingness of Flanders to support a better functioning EU. An EU that is built from the bottom up and thus fully takes Flemish interests into account. The Government of Flanders therefore welcomes the bottom-up, inclusive and participatory approach of the Conference on the Future of Europe and would like to contribute to the Conference.
Minister-president Jambon also seized the opportunity to refer to the unanimous adoption by the Flemish Parliament of a resolution on the imprisonment of Catalan politicians. Jailing politicians for the opinions they spread is contrary to the fundamental values and norms that the EU stands for.
© Flemish Parliament
