Our cover interview this issue is with Swedish S&D deputy Evin Incir. With the death of George Floyd and the Black Lives Matter protests thrusting racism into the spotlight, Incir, who is of Kurdish descent, tells Lorna Hutchinson that it’s time for policymakers to move from words to action and make full use of the momentum behind this crucial rights issue.
Also in this issue, German MEP Pierrette Herzberger-Fofana shares her own recent experience of police harassment and tells us why there is an urgent need to address police brutality, accountability and over policing.
Our main feature this issue is the European Defence Union, featuring an interview with the new head of the European Defence Agency, Jiří Šedivý. He tells Rajnish Singh that previous security threats have not gone away and therefore defence funding should remain a key EU priority. We also hear from a selection of MEPs as well as Wolfgang Roehrig, head of the Information Superiority Unit at the European Defence Agency, and Mario Beccia, Cyber Defence Officer at the European Defence Agency, who look at how the EU can tackle cyber threats.
We also have MEP contributions from Tomislav Sokol, who looks at how the Pharmaceutical Strategy can restore European leadership in the field, and from Victor Negrescu, who calls for European citizens to be included in the budget negotiation process.
Elsewhere, Ismail Ertug explains how Europe can accelerate the rollout of green mobility and Carlo Fidanza outlines how LNG can help drive the decarbonisation of the energy sector. Plus, Norbert Neuser tells us why development policy cannot leave anyone behind and David Casa discusses the impact of the Coronavirus on people’s work-life balance.
We also bring you a round-up of MEP comments ahead of the German Presidency of the Council of the European Union.
Finally, answering our five questions this issue is Finish EPP deputy Henna Virkkunen.