MEPs and MPs debate future of Christian democracy with Pablo Casado

“Never in the history of the European Union has the need for Christian democracy been felt more than today”, said Manfred Weber MEP, Chairman of the EPP Group, and François-Xavier Bellamy MEP, ahead of today's joint debate of national and European EPP Members of Parliament with Pablo Casado, the leader of the Spanish People's Party (PP).

The debate will focus on how Christian democracy can serve as a compass for the future. A recent Position Paper on the future of Christian democracy adopted and published by the EPP Group in March 2021 will serve as a discussion platform. It was François-Xavier Bellamy MEP who was entrusted with the task of drafting the Position Paper, with the input of all EPP Group MEPs.

"In an increasingly fragmented political landscape, our EPP Group decided to lead with a seminal work about our common political identity. The text we shared with our colleagues, 'A compass for future generations', is the starting point for a broader conversation, and this discussion with Members of national parliaments will be a first and fruitful occasion for this", Bellamy said.

Christian democracy has been the main driving force of European integration over the past decades.

“Just as great Christian Democrats like Konrad Adenauer, Robert Schuman and Alcide De Gasperi did when European integration took its first steps in the aftermath of World War II, we must have the same ambition. Christian democracy is not the past: it is the future of the centre-right, filled with steady values and forward-looking ideas. Europeans can rely on Christian democracy to deliver a strong, prosperous and fair Europe in the years to come”, Weber added.

"The Future of Europe is inextricably linked to the future of Christian democracy and we intend to remain the driving force of European politics. The European Union is now called upon to face one of the greatest crises of its history, which is the reconstruction of national societies and economies in the post-pandemic period. In this monumental challenge, the principles and values advocated by the EPP Group must be our compass. This is something that the European Union needs in order to safeguard our European way of life and give perspectives and opportunities to all European citizens, especially to the youth", concluded Vangelis Meimarakis MEP, Vice-Chairman of the EPP Group.

Spanish opposition leader Pablo Casado will make a special intervention during the debate which starts today at 16.00 hrs.