European Pirates voted against the new European Commission

In today’s vote, Pirates MEPs voted against the new European Commission under the leadership of Ursula von der Leyen. Neither the digital policy, nor the personal composition, nor the process of Commission setup are satisfactory.

Pirates disagree on the program, which is often in direct contradiction with the principles of free internet and respect for fundamental human rights and freedoms, such as the right to privacy. “Ursula von der Leyen advocates upload filters, and even on such a simple matter as promising not to deepen the interference with the privacy of Europe’s citizens (surveillance moratorium), she failed to make a clear commitment,” said Marcel Kolaja, head of the Pirates’ delegation. “Freedom of the Internet and digital rights are key issues for our voters and us, which we have come to defend in the European Parliament, and this Commission does not have our confidence,” said Pirate MEP Patrick Breyer.

The newly elected Commission shall act as defender of the Treaties in the member states. “Commissioners nominated by Hungary, Poland or Czechia remain in close contact with the ruling nationalistic parties of the countries. Such a conflict of interests effectively prevents independent actions on behalf of Commission to protect the Rule of law in the countries,” comments Mikuláš Peksa, chairperson of the European Pirate party. “French commissioner Breton responsible for IT industry is close to the board of a major digital company thus establishing a danger for data protection of European citizens. ” adds Peksa.

The nomination of Ursula von der Leyen to the position of Commission President is a major problem. We support direct involvement of citizens in European affairs. The Councils decision to appoint a person who was not participating in the European election is not acceptable. “The citizens of Europe did not have enough opportunities to form and express their opinion on von der Leyen because she was not a Spitzenkandidat. It is an arrogance of the Council to withdraw your Spitzenkandidat and nominate someone else. That is why I say that Ursula von der Leyen’s nomination has a democratic deficit,” said Markéta Gregorová, vice-chairperson of the European Pirate Party.