European Union

The Brazilian Senate voted on Wednesday in favour of impeaching President Dilma Rousseff. After a power struggle that went on for months former vice president Michel Temer has now taken over as head of state. The political crisis is far from over, some fear, while others see a major opportunity opening up for the Brazilian left.

On 5 September, the Subcommittee will exchange views on the outcome and main decisions of the NATO Summit in Warsaw with representatives from NATO and the EEAS. The Alliance is faced with an evolving complex threat environment. NATO reaffirmed that its countries are united in protecting and defending their indivisible security and common values by fulfilling effectively all three core tasks: collective defence, crisis management and cooperative security.
At the same meeting the Presidents of the European Council and the European Commission, and the Secretary General of NATO have issued a joint declaration to give new impetus and new substance to the EU-NATO strategic partnership.
Further information
Draft agenda and meeting documents
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On 5 September, the Subcommittee will consider the draft report on the implementation of the Common Security and Defence Policy by Ioan Mircea PAŞCU, S&D. The draft report advocates a thorough revision of the CSDP to better equip Europe in an increasingly unstable and volatile internal and external security environment.
Further information
Draft agenda and meeting documents
Source : © European Union, 2016 - EP

On 5 September, the Subcommittee will consider the draft report on the European Defence Union by Urmas Paet, ALDE. This draft advocates the progressive framing of the European Defence Union, with a view to its establishment under the next multiannual political and financial framework of the EU. It also elaborates on the process and the contents of the EU White Book on security and defence and describes preparatory activities which should be launched immediately.
Further information
Draft agenda and meeting documents
Source : © European Union, 2016 - EP

Committee and political group meetings, Brussels

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Committee on Budgetary Control - meeting 05/09/2016 (PM)
Committee on Budgetary Control

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Committee on Budgetary Control - meeting 05/09/2016 (PM)
Committee on Budgetary Control

Source : © European Union, 2016 - EP

Source : © European Union, 2016 - EP

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One year after,  we look back on how the EU migration crisis unfolded through 2015, and how the EU developed its response. This is the "inside story", as told by key witnesses from the Council of the EU and the European Commission. It is an attempt to explain the complexities of one of the biggest crises the EU is experiencing. It covers 9 months of crisis in 2015, and is available in 24 EU languages.  

Download this video here.

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European Councl President Donald Tusk visits the leaders of 27 EU countries in preparation for the 16 September Bratislava informal summit. 

Download this video here.

Parliament’s Economic and Monetary Committee rejected as “misleading” and flawed, proposals aimed at providing greater protection to consumers buying packaged financial products, and unanimously voted to send the proposals back to the European Commission for revision.
Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs

Source : © European Union, 2016 - EP

Parliament’s Economic and Monetary Committee rejected as “misleading” and flawed, proposals aimed at providing greater protection to consumers buying packaged financial products, and unanimously voted to send the proposals back to the European Commission for revision.
Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs

Source : © European Union, 2016 - EP

General : The trade deal between Canada and the EU is the latest trade agreement to attract controversy. Negotiations for the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) have been concluded, but it willstill need to be approved by the European Parliament, the Council and the national parliaments. On 31 August the international trade committee discussed the agreement and afterwards we talked to Latvian EPP member Artis Pabriks, who is responsible for steering the agreement through Parliament.

Source : © European Union, 2016 - EP

General : The trade deal between Canada and the EU is the latest trade agreement to attract controversy. Negotiations for the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) have been concluded, but it willstill need to be approved by the European Parliament, the Council and the national parliaments. On 31 August the international trade committee discussed the agreement and afterwards we talked to Latvian EPP member Artis Pabriks, who is responsible for steering the agreement through Parliament.

Source : © European Union, 2016 - EP

Good afternoon.

Allow me first of all to thank Prime Minister Bettel for his hospitality here in Luxembourg today. I really appreciate our close and good cooperation; just like I did during the excellent Luxembourg EU presidency only one year ago. 

The agenda for our talks today is of course our meeting at 27 in Bratislava on the 16th of September. We need to discuss what Brexit means politically for the European Union. We need to talk about ourselves, the European Union, that sooner or later will be left by the UK. 

The only way to succeed in Bratislava is to be frank and not to avoid even the most controversial and difficult topics. It is my deep conviction that our priority should be to take back full control in the field of internal security, and on our external borders. It is not an accident that this issue, together with migration, was at the forefront of the referendum campaign in the UK. But the sense of insecurity and destabilisation, in many aspects, including the economic one, is present also on the European continent. 

I am now in the process of consulting all the leaders of the EU member states. I share with them my strong belief that the key issue is still irregular migration. Together, we have made much progress since the biggest migratory wave towards Europe started last year. Just to give an example: the total number of irregular migrants arriving to Greece from Turkey in the last four months is the same as in a single day in October last year, when the crisis reached its peak. This shows that our collective action is working. Obviously, we still have much work to do. But our aim must be clear: Never again should we allow the chaos of 2015 to repeat in Europe. 

Another key problem is terrorism. We must strengthen our co-operation in the areas of internal and external security, especially in light of the recent terrorist attacks on European soil. National security is and will remain a national responsibility. But there is more we can do at the European level to help member states fight terrorists. 

In the course of the consultations I have conducted so far, my interlocutors also paid attention to the big and growing fear of globalisation, and the feeling of uncertainty about our economic future. The feeling of people that globalisation only benefits the elites. We must help people to restore faith in the fact that the EU should serve them, guarantee their protection and share their emotions. All too often today, the European elites seem to be detached from reality. 

In Bratislava, we need to come up with a common diagnosis of the European Union after the vote in the UK. We will not solve all the EU's problems overnight, but what we need to do there is to establish common objectives. This will allow us to rebuild a sense of political unity in the months to come, also ahead of our meeting in Rome in March 2017, 60 years after the founding of our community. We need that sense of political unity much more today, with the world around Europe bringing more threats than opportunities, than we did in the sunny days. 

And one last point. It is not our intention to talk about the UK in Bratislava or our negotiation strategy vis-à-vis the UK. Our position is crystal clear: there will be no negotiations without notification. This principle is enshrined in our treaties. And it is there for a reason: to protect the interests of the members of the Union that want to stay together, not the one which decides to leave. Therefore, we shall not give up on this principle.

Thank you.

The priorities of the Slovak Presidency of the EU Council of Ministers are being outlined to parliamentary committees by Slovak ministers at a series of meetings taking place in July, August and September.
Committee on Development
Committee on International Trade
Committee on Foreign Affairs
Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs
Committee on Legal Affairs
Committee on Culture and Education
Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety
Committee on the Internal Market and Consumer Protection
Committee on Industry, Research and Energy
Committee on Regional Development
Committee on Transport and Tourism
Committee on Fisheries
Committee on Agriculture and Rural Development

Source : © European Union, 2016 - EP

The priorities of the Slovak Presidency of the EU Council of Ministers are being outlined to parliamentary committees by Slovak ministers at a series of meetings taking place in July, August and September.
Committee on Development
Committee on International Trade
Committee on Foreign Affairs
Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs
Committee on Legal Affairs
Committee on Culture and Education
Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety
Committee on the Internal Market and Consumer Protection
Committee on Industry, Research and Energy
Committee on Regional Development
Committee on Transport and Tourism
Committee on Fisheries
Committee on Agriculture and Rural Development

Source : © European Union, 2016 - EP