Tilly Metz (born 26 May 1967) is a Luxemburgish politician and member of the Green Party (déi Gréng). After teaching humanities and social sciences, she was appointed as deputy director of the Lycée Technique pour Professions Educatives et Sociales (LTPES) in Mersch. She was the mayor of the municipality of Weiler-la-Tour (Luxembourg) and has been a Member of the European Parliament since June 2018, as part of the Greens/EFA political group. She is particularly known for her stance on animal welfare, health-related issues and human rights.
Political career
During her studies in psychology and pedagogy, Tilly Metz became involved in politics within the Luxembourg Socialist Party, via the Michel Welter Circle, which is mainly dedicated to health, education and disability issues. In 2001, she joined déi Gréng and became spokesperson from 2004 to 2009.
In 2005, Tilly Metz was elected as mayor of the municipality of Weiler-la-Tour (Luxembourg), from 2005 to 2011. She was the first female mayor of the municipality and the first elected member of Déi Gréng. In October 2017, she was elected to the municipal council of the city of Luxembourg.
In 2018, she succeeded Claude Turmes in the European Parliament, who had to leave his duties to replace Camille Gira, who died on 16 May 2018. She became a member of the European Parliament with The Greens/EFA political group.
In the European Parliament, she chairs the Delegation for relations with Central American countries (DCAM). She is also a permanent member of the Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety (ENVI), the Committee on Transport and Tourism (TRAN), and the Delegation to the Euro-Latin American Parliamentary Assembly (DLAT). She is an alternate member of the Committee on Agriculture and Sustainable Development (AGRI).
Tilly Metz chaired the special ANIT committee, which was created in June 2020, for a period of twelve months, and was responsible for examining allegations of infringements in the application of Union law on the protection of animals during transport and related operations inside and outside the Union.
In 2023, Tilly Metz assumed the role of vice-president for the Subcommittee on Public Health (SANT).
Advocacy
Environment
Having participated in the drafting of the report "From Farm to Fork", she denounces the increasingly intensive agricultural policy oriented towards exports and the consequences of which are harmful to the environment. Legislation aiming to reduce the use of pesticides comes up against the powerful lobbies of the agro-industry.
Concerning the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP), which represents almost a third of the European Union's budget, Tilly Metz regrets the lack of ambition and says that: "For the reform of the Common Agricultural Policy (2021-2027), I would have liked to see clear political objectives that would contribute to achieving the EU's climate objectives, to curb the disappearance of species and to encourage small farms rather than multinationals. Unfortunately, neither the current nor the future CAP has achieved these goals".
As a member of the Transport and Tourism Committee in the European Parliament, Tilly Metz is the voice of the Greens/EFA for a more sustainable tourism industry. She has also contributed to the legislation aiming at setting up a social climate fund to compensate for the increase in energy prices that weighs on the most economically and socially disadvantaged households.
Health
Tilly Metz is very involved in the cause of rare diseases and disabilities. For 11 years, she was president of the association "Multiple sclerosis Lëtzebuerg" which aims to improve and facilitate the daily life of people with multiple sclerosis and their integration into society. It emphasizes the importance of access to rapid diagnosis and assistance to patients and their families during treatment.
In the European Parliament and in particular in the ENVI Committee, Tilly Metz is actively working on health issues. She has been a shadow negotiator for the Greens/EFA Group on several occasions, including the vote on the report on a pharmaceutical strategy and the proposal for a regulation of the European Parliament and of the council on a stronger role for the European Medicines Agency in crisis preparedness and management as regards medicinal products and medical devices.
Tilly Metz was an alternate member of the Special Commission for Cancer Control in Europe (BECA), which was created in response to the growing prevalence of cancer in Europe. Indeed, it is estimated that 2.7 million new cases of cancer are diagnosed and 1.3 million people will have died of cancer in the EU by 2020.