European Parliament

Plenary sessions : What will the UK’s future in Europe be like? The day after European Council President Donald Tusk proposed a settlement in response to UK demands for reforms, MEPs discussed the issue as part of a debate on the EU summit on 18-19 February, which will be dedicated to the talks as well as the migration crisis. Most MEPs stressed that the UK staying in the EU would be better for both the country itself as well as for the other member states, but questioned some of the requested reforms.

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Plenary sessions : Social benefits for migrant workers in the UK, honesty versus populism and how to ensure respect for different countries' views on EU integration were the key issues raised by Parliament's political group leaders in Wednesday’s debate, with a view to the UK’s forthcoming EU membership referendum. The debate is Parliament's input to the 18-19 February EU summit, which will also focus on migration.

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Plenary sessions : The EU needs to overcome its paralysing fears and divisions and to manage migration and refugee flows effectively, said many MEPs in Tuesday's plenary debate with the Dutch Presidency and the Commission. Protecting the EU's external borders effectively is vital to safeguard the Schengen passport-free area, they observed. Some also called for zero tolerance of racist and violent attacks against migrants and refugees.

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Plenary sessions : Undeclared work represents a major problem in Europe, which accounted for 18.4% of the EU's gross domestic product in 2012. Not only do governments miss out on revenue, but workers are also less protected. On 2 February MEPs approved a proposal to establish a European platform to tackle the issue. How will it work? Watch our interview with report author Georgi Pirinski, a Bulgarian member of the S&D group, to find out more.

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Plenary sessions : Estonian President Toomas Hendrik Ilves called on the European Union to act decisively regarding the migration crisis during a speech in plenary. "Let us now gather our wits and strengths," he told MEPs. "Leave behind the indecision, finger pointing and ducking of responsibility. We will handle this migration crisis if we show the resolve of our forebears."

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Plenary sessions : MEPs approved on 3 February Parliament's position on the Trade in Services International Agreement (TiSA), which is currently being negotiated by the EU and 22 World Trade Organisation partners. Read on for more on the agreement and check out our infographic explaining TiSA.

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Plenary sessions : Parliament endorsed draft EU legislation establishing a “European platform” to enhance cooperation in combatting undeclared work in a vote on Tuesday. The platform would enhance cooperation among EU member states' labour ministries, trade unions and employers' associations about how best to tackle a problem that is damaging the EU economy and distorting the labour market. The undeclared economy accounts for 18% of EU GDP.

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Plenary sessions : Corporate tax avoidance costs EU countries €50-70 billion in lost revenue a year, according to the European Commission. On 2 February it discussed with MEPs how it plans to make corporate taxation fairer and more efficient. The Lux Leaks scandal showed that EU countries sometimes court multinationals with advantageous tax schemes. Parliament has set up two special committees to investigate and called on the Commission to introduce legislation to restrain these practices.

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Plenary sessions : To deal with China’s recognition as a “market economy”, the EU must find a solution, in line with WTO rules, that retains its ability to shield its economy against unfair competition from dumped imports from China, whilst acknowledging it as a strategic trading partner. This view was broadly shared by MEPs and EU trade Commissioner Cecilia Malmström in a plenary debate on Monday night.

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Plenary sessions : European Central Bank President Mario Draghi defended the ECB's monetary policy decisions in a debate with MEPs on Monday evening, saying that the Bank will revise its monetary stance in March and acknowledging that the December 2015 inflation outlook was too rosy.

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Migration Commissioner Dimitris Avramopoulos will join the Civil Liberties Committee on Thursday to debate the border and coast guard package presented on 15 December 2015, the progress of measures to tackle the migration and refugee crisis, including relocation (only 272 asylum seekers have been relocated so far) and work in the reception “hotspots”.
Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs

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The priorities of the incoming Dutch presidency of the EU Council are being outlined to parliamentary committees by Dutch ministers at a series of meetings this week.
Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs
Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety
Committee on Legal Affairs
Committee on Employment and Social Affairs
Committee on Constitutional Affairs
Committee on Industry, Research and Energy
Committee on Regional Development
Committee on Fisheries
Committee on Agriculture and Rural Development

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General : Although 2016 has barely started, it is already proving to be a busy year for the European Parliament. MEPs are resuming work on a broad range of issues, from climate action to the refugee crisis. Also high on the agenda are giving law enforcement agencies more tools to counter the terrorist threat, making corporate taxation more fair and improving data protection rules. Read on for an overview of the main issues in 2016.

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2016 should be the year of corporate tax reform and fiscal transparency, tax Commissioner Pierre Moscovici told MEPs from the Special Committee on Tax Rulings and the Economic and Monetary Affairs Committee at a hearing on Monday evening. “We have a serious problem with tax avoidance and lack of transparency. Too many people have looked the other way”, Mr Moscovici said.
Special Committee on Tax Rulings and Other Measures Similar in Nature or Effect (TAXE 2)
Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs

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New measures to strengthen and boost funding for an EU scheme to provide fruit, vegetables and milk products in schools were backed by the agriculture committee on Monday. They put more emphasis on educating children in healthy eating, increase the budget and merge into one the current separate schemes for milk and fruit in schools.
Committee on Agriculture and Rural Development

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General : European Parliament President Martin Schulz was in Portugal on Friday 8 January, where he joined the event marking the 30th anniversary of the country's 1986 accession to the EU, then called the European Economic Community. “Thirty years later, we can honestly say that Portugal's EU membership has been an enormous success,” he said at the ceremony in Lisbon.

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General : Measures to tackle the migration and refugee crisis are to be discussed by the civil liberties committee on Thursday. MEPs also vote on the first EU-wide cybersecurity rules and on the protection of undisclosed business information against unlawful acquisition and use. MEPs are to discuss the programme of the new Council presidency with the relevant Dutch ministers while political groups prepare for next week's plenary session in Strasbourg.

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Political group and committee meetings, Brussels

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General : This month it has been 30 years since Spain and Portugal joined the EU. At the time the EU was still known as the European Economic Community and after the accession of Portugal and Spain consisted of 12 member states.

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General : The Netherlands will be at the helm of the Council of the EU for the first six months of this year. The country will focus on promoting economic growth and connecting with civil society. The priorities will be migration and international security; innovation and job creation; sound finances and a robust euro zone; a forward-looking climate and energy policy. We asked Dutch MEPs across the political spectrum about their expectations.

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