site.btaBulgarian MEP Vitanov: Big Challenge for Next EP Is for Green Transition Price Not to Be Paid by Poor

The big challenge for the next European Parliament (EP) is to make it so that the poor do not pay the price of the green transition, MEP Petar Vitanov of the Socialists and Democrats Group said on Wednesday in a BTA interview during the plenary session of the European Parliament in Strasbourg.

Vitanov noted that the price of the economic transition must be paid by the companies that pollute the environment.

He acknowledged as a necessity the economic and energy transformation of the EU. In his words, Europe cannot ignore climate change which is deteriorating the quality of life, not yet on the European continent itself but very close to it. The climate is warming up, and resources are running out, he added.

The Bulgarian MEP also noted the geopolitical challenges the EU faces, first of all the wars in Ukraine and the Middle East. Perhaps the European Union has failed to maintain its global strategic role and relies too much on Russian resources, the Chinese market, and the United States for its security, he said.

Vitanov expressed satisfaction with the good cooperation with the remaining 16 Bulgarian MEPs, which is in contrast to the Bulgarian domestic political scene. MEPs achieved success on issues of national interest, such as the country's admission to the Schengen area. The joint initiatives of 17 people in the 705-seat Parliament have an advantage over individual ones, he stressed.

As one of the greatest achievements of the Socialists and Democrats Group during the last mandate of the European Parliament, Vitanov pointed to the solidarity that was shown during the COVID crisis, materialized first in the provision of vaccines and then in recovery and resilience plans.

This is Vitanov's last plenary session, as he will not run in the EP elections in June. In his words, he drafted forty-some laws, amended dozens of others and was ranked 37th or 38th of the most influential MEPs (out of 705).