Position on Mr. Bettel’s plagiarism case
Position on Mr. Bettel’s plagiarism case
Photo © European Union 2015 - European Parliament
Our Statement
Trust is one if not the core essences of politics. When a political leader such as Xavier Bettel transgresses the moral norms and values, the outcome is damage towards his persona, but more importantly towards the reputation of all of those invested in politics.
The most direct consequences are wariness towards political actors and distrust in their actions. This particular case undermines values that are essential to Volt, such as transparency and accountability and subsequently nourishes the narratives of populists.
We also want to emphasise once again that education and research are for us core areas of any government policy for a sustainable society. That is why we also condemn any form of unscientific research and do not consider scientific fraud a trivial offence.
Nonetheless, we foster to provide the same opportunity to succeed to every citizen and distance ourselves from the discussions that implicitly claim that politics should exclusively be a stage for those with an academic background. Only by connecting and enabling communities will we act and stand against nationalism and populism and foster a united and federal Europe.
Volt trusts the responsible instances will fulfil their role and that when their conclusions are drawn or at latest during the next elections, Mr. Bettel will yield the political consequences of his actions.