In addition to list-heads (61) and Danielle Filbig (26), the LSAP is running (71), (52), Michaela Morrisova (28) and Liz Braz (27). “With an average age of 44,” said the party’s leadership when unveiling its candidates, “this is a young and dynamic list, with three committed women and three committed men who are working for a fair and social Europe, where the human being is at the centre of our concerns.”
Two convinced Europeans
Filbig studied political science and international law at the Université Libre de Bruxelles and the Université d’Aix-Marseille. After taking part in the local elections in June--becoming a local councillor in the commune of Rambrouch--she volunteered to take part in the European elections. “I’m a convinced European,” she says.
So is Angel, who entered politics in 1993 and spent 26 years on the opposition benches of the local council (“it was tough, but I learned to fight”) before being elected to the Chamber of Deputies in 2004. “I have always been a member of the Committee on Foreign and European Affairs,” he says. “I chaired this committee from 2013 to 2019. The European dimension of national policy has always interested me. I always went to inter-parliamentary meetings and tried to explain to people that it’s not just the European elections that shape Europe, but also every national election, because the ministers in the council in Brussels are our co-legislators.”
In 2019, Angel had the opportunity to succeed either the resigning economy minister or , who became European Commissioner after his election to the European Parliament. “I made up my mind for Europe and I’ve never regretted it.” In 2023, , only the second Luxembourger--after Nicolas Estgen in 1979--to reach this position of responsibility.
“I’m very passionate about Europe and I never forget that Europe is also a peace project. It is a model of reconciliation. I believe that if there were people like Robert Schuman in the middle east to say ‘now that’s enough: we’re going to reconcile and we’re going to build something together,’ that would be a good start. The European project must be defended, and this time even more than the others, because it is under threat.”
What threat is that? “Populist parties and the far right, who are likely to make inroads into the European parliament,” the two candidates reply in unison.
“These parties want to sell us a Europe of nations that is nothing more than a Europe where we take advantage of the internal market,” says Angel, “a Europe that benefits companies and not people. This must be avoided at all costs… [The far right] plays on fears to make people believe that the big issues are asylum, immigration and insecurity. But this is not true. The first insecurity is not being able to live on your salary. If you look at the Eurobarometers, what our fellow citizens are concerned about is climate change and widening social inequalities. The real challenge is to make a success of the digital and climate transitions without excluding people. That’s why we want to ensure that there are no pauses in our climate policy, and that it benefits everyone. The green pact must have a red heart.”
When asked if there are any parties in Luxembourg that could be described as populist, the answer is immediate: the ADR and the Pirates, “whose political line is still being questioned.”
Both candidates are campaigning for a deepening of the EU’s social dimension, particularly when it comes to housing. For Filbig, “Europe can do a lot more in the field of housing, in particular by giving member states more investment capacity to invest in social infrastructure. The next commission should create a real directorate-general for housing.”
Angel and Filbig are also aware that the Ukrainian crisis is worrying voters and could overshadow all the other campaign themes. “We’re going to have to invest in defence,” says Angel. “Not necessarily more, but better. Nato has been talking for years about Smart Defence, and Europe has been talking about pooling and sharing. We need to do it now. We need to create a more harmonised, integrated European defence industry along the lines of Airbus.” Angel is for the “necessary” collaboration between the EU and Nato, and in the face of roadblocks he advocates moving away from the principle of unanimity towards qualified majority voting on foreign policy.
The LSAP’s objectives for the elections on 9 June are clear, as Angel explains: “To build on the momentum we had in the local elections and the general elections, and to win as many votes as possible so that we can dream of a second seat. Throughout Europe, social democrats are the bulwark against all forms of extremism. The cordon sanitaire against the far right is disappearing. We can see this with the inclusion of post-fascist parties in government in many countries like Sweden, Italy and Finland. This whitening of the far right is frightening. We mustn’t start working with these people. They pretend to defend the little people, but when you analyse their votes in the European Parliament, they always vote with the representatives of big business, never for workers’ rights. In power, they cut social budgets and attack minorities and civil society. I hope that the European People’s Party (EPP) will not give in to these sirens and will instead join forces with the Social Democrats, Liberals and Greens to find a majority. A working majority, a deepening of a social and ecological Europe. For us, any alliance with the far right is out of the question.”
In the campaign, the LSAP is putting forward a key argument: “Voting LSAP means supporting Nicolas Schmit in the race for the presidency of the European Commission,” says Angel. “Everyone is predicting that the EPP will win, but if the Social Democrats were to win a seat or a seat and a half in every member state, we could overtake them. I’m proud that Luxembourg has never sent a far-right MEP to the European Parliament. This must continue. It will do our country’s reputation good too.”
Angel, himself an outgoing MEP, feels at home in the European Parliament. “It’s a parliament where you’re at the source of legislation. In Brussels--although the European Parliament is officially based in Strasbourg, where the plenary sessions are held, most of the work is done in Brussels, while the General Secretariat is based in Luxembourg--you get the impression that you can really make things happen. I felt more fulfilled there than here.” Asked where he could best defend Luxembourg’s interests, he says Brussels. “Defending Luxembourg’s interests is not about blocking projects; it’s about getting things done so that Europe can move forward. If we, as Luxembourgers, help to make Europe stronger, more resilient and more resilient, that also benefits Luxembourg. We must not be afraid to move forward.”
Angel following the Qatargate scandal, replacing Greek parliamentarian Eva Kaïlí, who was implicated in the scandal. “An isolated case, but a difficult moment,” says Angel. The scandal damaged the image of the institution, in Angel’s opinion, but it has also led to major advances in transparency. “At the last session in Strasbourg, we voted to set up an inter-institutional ethics committee. The European People’s Party was against it, on the grounds that too much transparency would prevent MEPs from seeing all the lobbyists. I think that if it is normal to meet lobbyists, the obligation to notify them does not hinder anything. I reject all secret meetings.”
This article in Paperjam. It has been translated and edited for Delano.