Speaker urges 'return to basic European pillars' to defend 'democratic values, rights and freedoms'

The Catalan Parliament president, Roger Torrent, urged citizens and politicians to start an "exercise of reflection" to recover Europe's foundational values. In a speech on Europe's Day, and in front of the consular corps in Barcelona, Torrent said that the EU should "return to basic European pillars" to defend "democratic values, rights, and freedoms".

The Speaker described Catalonia as a "strongly pro-European" country and although he did not explicitly mention the current political situation, he said that the EU has "a lot of economic, social and also political challenges." According to Torrent, some citizens have become more distant from the EU and the only tools to defend the project against "Euroscepticism, xenophobia, and populism" are "politics, democracy" as well as the strength of "words."

Torrent said the EU has always been based on a "cultural idea of peace and democracy" that today needs to be reinforced. And he quoted writer George Steiner, saying: "if Europe wants to be in the hearts and minds of Europeans, it should be much more than a monetary union. It should be a union of values."

Around 20 consuls from around the world took part in the reception at the Catalan Parliament. The vice-dean of the consular corps and Swiss Consul Bruno Ryff said that Europe is a project of "peace and cooperation."