The work of the 3rd Plenary Session of the Conference on the Future of Europe started yesterday Friday and will be concluded today, which is being held in Strasbourg and the House of Representatives is represented by the Chairman of the Parliamentary Committee on Foreign and European Affairs Harris Georgiades (head) and the members of the Cypriot Parliamentary Delegation to the Conference on the Future of Europe Marina Nikolaou, Chrysis Pantelides and Alexandra Attalidou.
According to an announcement of the Parliament, yesterday the work of the thematic Working Groups (WGs) of the Conference took place, where Mr Georgiades participated in the WG on Migration, Ms. Nicolaou participated in the WG on Stronger Economy, Social Justice and Jobs, Mr Pantelidis in the WG on Digital Transformation and Ms Attalidou in the WG on Climate Change and Environment. The WGs dealt mainly with procedural issues and citizens' contributions as formulated by the European Citizens' Groups, as well as through the Multilingual Digital Platform.
Specifically, according to the announcement, in her intervention during the debate, Ms Nikolaou noted that the coronavirus pandemic is having an adverse impact on society, resulting in an increase in unemployment, especially among young people and women.
She stressed that there is a need to curb rising and long-term unemployment, noting in addition that rising prices have resulted in a significant part of the population being at risk of poverty, resulting in widening social inequalities.
It is important, she said, that all EU citizens have access to high quality public services, including in the areas of health, education, transport and energy, and stressed the need for an open dialogue at the Conference, aiming at the transition to a fairer society, but without particular expectations, given that the EU Treaties limit the possibility of substantial changes.
The elimination of inequalities, the minimum wage, housing, the climate crisis, as well as the effective implementation of the European Pillar of Social Rights, should be priority issues for the OE, she concluded.
According to the Parliament's announcement, during the OC meeting on Digital Transformation, views were exchanged on citizens' proposals, as recorded in the Third Interim Report of the Multilingual Digital Platform, concerning the empowerment of society.
In his intervention, Mr.Pantelidis stressed the importance of accessibility to digital technology, without geographical or socio-economic limitations and the need to develop digital skills of citizens through adequate training.
In this context, Mr. In this context, the empowerment of vulnerable internet users, such as children and young adults, is essential to protect them from potential risks. Pantelidis highlighted the need to reduce digital exclusion of citizens, due to various factors that hinder access to technology, as well as the need to develop a comprehensive policy for digital education in the EU, from the early stages of education up to university level.
Moreover, in her intervention during the debate, Attalidou stressed the importance of biodiversity conservation, which is essential for the protection of the ecosystem.
As she pointed out, the EU's natural environment is diverse and each Member State is affected differently by climate change and biodiversity degradation, depending on its ecosystem.
Therefore, Attalidou continued, it is important to give due importance to environmental issues, taking into account the different factors and specific characteristics of each affected region.
It is also mentioned that in relation to the formulation of EU transport policies, Ms. Attalidou mentioned that the geographically isolated countries of the Union should be duly taken into account and added that the climate and environmental actions of each Member State should not be to the detriment of vulnerable groups.
Through education, information and continuous learning, an environmental culture can be built to help achieve climate goals and a sustainable future for future generations.
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