EU’s Media Freedom Act to set ‘the cat amongst the pigeons’ – Roberta Metsola

On Tuesday morning, European Parliament President Roberta Metsola sat down with Michael Kaden for an interview in Strasbourg, to talk about the upcoming European Media Freedom Act, and the pressing issue of increasing consumer prices.

Asked about accessibility of government information and protection of journalists within the union’s member states, Metsola said European Parliament has been pushing to break the backsliding of protection of journalists across the union.

The EP president said journalists had been asking the parliament how they could feel more protected.

Roberta Metsola questioned how it is possible that countries are doing so much to enter the bloc, convincing EU institutions that everything is “okay”, when the reality looks different.

“The media freedom act is there to set a cat amongst the pigeons”, Metsola said, adding that “heavy systems” in some countries placed politicians much further away from those asking questions than in other member states.

The EP’s message throughout all negotiations of the media freedom act is “to make sure that all governments, all elected representatives, at all levels, have to be accountable to those persons who elected them”, she said.

Asked how to bring about change in certain governments’ attitudes towards journalists, the EP president recalled how she appealed for opening up “all systems” in order to be able to be transparent, when she spoke at the vigil for Daphne Caruana Galizia on Sunday.

Metsola said she will be urging member states to let journalists ask their questions and be ready to answer them.

Especially after the pandemic and during this war, there were no possibilities for the ‘traditional journalists’ to be able to push back against misinformation, propaganda and false narrative, the president said.

On the high increase in consumer prices and utility bills across the union, Metsola referred to Tuesday’s EP debate ‘Keep the bills down’, as EU citizens and businesses have been asking for measures against ‘stratospheric’ energy prices.

She said the EP was looking forward to have a proper discussion on these issue at the European Council which was set to start on Thursday afternoon.

The European Parliament was working towards the 2024 elections and was there to deliver quickly, pragmatically and tangibly, Roberta Metsola said.