Ursula von der Leyen has been reelected for a second term as European Commission president this Thursday.

Green MEPs agreed to back von der Leyen after she pledged to continue to commit to Europe’s green transition.

Von der Leyen was reelected with 401 votes in favour, 284 against and 15 abstentions.

Speech

Addressing the European Parliament this Thursday morning, von der Leyen said Europeans are in a “period of deep anxiety and uncertainty”.

Among the groups she mentioned in this regard were “companies and farmers”, who feel “squeezed”.

Von der Leyen outlined in her vision for Europe that the Green Deal will be stuck to “with pragmatism, technology-neutrality and innovation”.

“Because Europe is decarbonising and industrialising at the same time, our companies need predictability, for their investments and innovation.

Enshrine target

“And yes, they can rely on us. In this logic, we will enshrine our 90% target for 2040 in our European climate law,” she said.

Furthermore, von der Leyen said she will put forward a new clean industrial deal, which will channel investment in infrastructure and industry, in particular for energy-intensive sectors.

The Commission president added that Europe needs more investment, which will be facilitated by finalising the capital markets union.

“Europe needs more investment from farming to industry, from digital to strategic technologies, but also more investment in people and their skills. This mandate has to be the time of investment.

“This starts with completing our capital markets union and mobilising more private financing. Every year, €30bn of European families' savings go from Europe to foreign markets, because our capital market is too fragmented,” she said.

Accession

Von der Leyen also addressed the possibility of expanding the European Union (EU).

She said “in today's world, a larger union will be a stronger union” and that increasing member states is “a moral, a historical and a political responsibility”.

“History is calling once again. The western Balkans, Ukraine, Moldova and Georgia have made their free choice. They have chosen freedom over oppression. They have chosen democracy over dependency.

“And some of them are paying a high price for this choice. So we must make our choice and show steadfast commitment. Their future will be free and prosperous, inside our union,” she added.

ICMSA calls out strategy

Meanwhile, von der Leyen’s reference to a new European strategy for the agricultural and food sector cannot be taken seriously, Irish Creamery Milk Suppliers’ Association (ICMSA) president Denis Drennan has said.

Drennan added that this could only be taken seriously when the Commission chooses to either reform margins in the food supply chain or increase direct supports to farmers, without attaching expensive environmental conditions.

“Until and unless the Commission decides - and directs - member states to actively support their farming communities, then she can go on mouthing these useless platitudes and nothing will change.

“Her [von der Leyen’s] choice remains what it always has been - either legislate and regulate for fair margins from the retail corporations and face down their intimidation and threats of consumer inflation or increase direct supports to the farmers and decouple those payments from the environmental regulations that have effectively devalued the payments to the point of irrelevance.

“Those are her choices now - and they have been the choices facing the Commission for a decade. If the EU wants sustainable food, then it’s going to have to pay a sustainable price,” he added.