European Parliament

Plenary sessions : An EU-US trade deal must open up US market access for EU firms, but must not undermine EU standards, say MEPs in recommendations, voted Wednesday, to EU trade negotiators. To settle trade-related investor-state disputes, a new justice system, run by publicly-appointed judges and subject to scrutiny and transparency rules, should replace private arbitration under the Investor-State Dispute Settlement (ISDS) system, they add.

Source : © European Union, 2015 - EP

Plenary sessions : Large firms and listed companies should have to disclose information, country by country, on profits made, tax paid on profits and public subsidies received, said MEPs on Wednesday in amendments to draft rules intended to boost transparency and foster shareholders’ long-run commitment to companies. They also want to empower shareholders to vote at least every three years on directors' pay policy.

Source : © European Union, 2015 - EP

Plenary sessions : Greece and the best way to resolve the ongoing crisis were hotly debated in plenary on 8 July in the presence of Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras. While some MEPs criticised him for his lack of concrete proposals, others praised him while some urged him to take his country out of the eurozone. The debate also took into account the conclusions of the recent European Council on 25-26 June and the euro summit on 7 July.

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Plenary sessions : Political group speakers debated the priorities for the next six months under the incoming Luxembourg presidency of the Council with Prime Minister Xavier Bettel and Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker on Wednesday morning.

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General : From 1 July the rotating six-month presidency of the Council of the EU has been in the hands of one of the smallest, yet most experience member states. On 8 July MEPs hold a plenary debate on the challenges it will have to tackle, including the Greek debt crisis, an increase in irregular migration and the preparation for the climate change conference in Paris in December. Just before the start of the presidency, we asked all of the country's six MEPs for their views.

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Plenary sessions : The EU must do more to help farmers to earn a fair return from the food supply chain, introduce better tools for dealing with market disturbances and help farmers to find new outlets for produce shut out of the Russian market, MEPs say in two non-binding resolutions voted on Tuesday. Member states should help them join forces in producer organisations to boost their bargaining power, they add.

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Plenary sessions : Integrated ticketing for travel across EU borders using more than one mode of transport would increase the use of public transport, said MEPs on Tuesday. They call on EU countries to improve and connect timetables and on providers to develop multimodal cross-border "journey planners". If there is no progress by 2020 they will call for legislation.

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Plenary sessions : Three agencies managing migration flows into the EU and two EU funds for migration measures should get a €69.6 million budget boost for extra staff and other expenses for this year, after Parliament backed a European Commission proposal on Tuesday. Parliament has been calling for the bigger budgets in the wake of the April tragedies that cost the lives of around 1,200 migrants.

Source : © European Union, 2015 - EP

Source : © European Union, 2015 - EP

General : Members of the agriculture, energy and international trade committees are visiting on 18 and 19 June the Milan Expo, the world exhibition whose motto is "feeding the planet, energy for life". The aim of the visit is to promote efforts to increase global food security, fight food waste and encourage healthy lifestyles.

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The Syrian conflict could be the largest humanitarian crisis since World War II, leaving millions homeless and hundreds of thousands desperately seeking to find safety in neighbouring countries and Europe. "We can and should do much more for all of those forced to run to save their lives and their freedom," said Portuguese GUE/NGL member Marisa Matias, chair of the EP’s delegation to Syria. Ahead of World Refugee Day on Saturday June 20, our infographic shows you the extent of the crisis.

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Plenary session and committee meetings, Brussels

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General : EP President Martin Schulz discussed British plans to renegotiate EU membership during a meeting with UK Prime Minister David Cameron today. They also talked about the migration crisis in the Mediterranean and the ongoing talks on trade deals. Afterwards Schulz said: I came to London to listen and to learn and I think we had an excellent and open-minded exchange of views.”

Source : © European Union, 2015 - EP

Lydia Foy is among the 47 winners of the European Citizen's Prize 2015 of the European Parliament. Since 2008, the prize has been awarded to citizens or organisations having contributed to promoting better mutual understanding and closer integration between citizens or to facilitating cross-border or transnational cooperation within the EU. The winner will receive a medal of honour at an award ceremony in Ireland and will be invited to a joint event with all 47 winners in Brussels in October.

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General : The European Youth Event (EYE) will return next year and you could be a part of it! #EYE2016 organisers are looking for enthusiastic young people and organisations that want to help shape the event's programme. Check out the Facebook page for the latest news, including all the information about the previous edition in 2014 and its follow-up phase.

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An informal deal to remove the technical obstacles that differing national standards and procedures place in the way of rail operators and rolling stock manufacturers was struck by MEPs and EU and the Latvian Presidency of the Council of Ministers on Wednesday. This deal, on the “technical pillar” of the 4th railway package should cut the time and cost involved in certifying that operators, locomotives and carriages meet safety and technical standards.
Committee on Transport and Tourism

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Data forms an integral part of international trade as they are used to improve services and products, however it remains important that people's personal data are not abused. The international trade and civil liberties committees held a hearing on 16 June to discuss how to reconcile the need for data protection with trade agreements that boost business in the EU, an issue that has gained in importance due to the upcoming reform of EU data protection rules.
Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs

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A draft law to ban the cloning of all farm animals, their descendants and products derived from them, including imports, in the EU was voted by the Environment and Agriculture committees on Wednesday. MEPs beefed up the European Commission’s initial proposal, citing high mortality rates at all development stages of cloning and EU citizens’ animal welfare and ethical concerns.
Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety
Committee on Agriculture and Rural Development

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The question of how to resolve Europe's economic woes continues to divide the European Union. The economic committee approved on 16 June a report evaluating the EU's economic governance. French S&D MEP Pervenche Berès, who wrote the report, told us in an interview that there was a clear division between those who believe current rules are not working and those who say they not been correctly implemented.
Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs

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Binding waste-reduction targets, revamped ecodesign legislation and measures to break the link between growth and the use of natural resources are the chief demands set out in a resolution passed on Wednesday by environment MEPs,who call on the Commission to table new legislation by the end of 2015.
Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety

Source : © European Union, 2015 - EP