A speech by British Prime Minister Gordon Brown on Tuesday ahead of the G20 summit followed by a debate with MEPs will be one of the key moments of the March plenary session of the European Parliament which opens Monday.
A speech by British Prime Minister Gordon Brown on Tuesday ahead of the G20 summit followed by a debate with MEPs will be one of the key moments of the March plenary session of the European Parliament which opens Monday. Also on the agenda will be outcome of last week's summit of EU leaders, steps to make cosmetics safer and a recommendation to keep phone masts away from schools and hospitals. Plans to raise taxes on cigarettes to at least €1.50 per packet from 2014 will also be discussed.
Debate with UK PM Gordon Brown on preparations for the G20 Summit
At 3pm (Strasbourg time) on Tuesday 24 March, UK PM Gordon Brown will deliver a speech to the European Parliament on the preparation of the G20 Summit on 2 April. Political group leaders will participate in the debate with Prime Minister Brown responding at the end. The UK currently holds the rotating presidency of the G20. On 2 April 2009, world leaders from the G20 countries – representing 85% of the world’s output – will meet in London. They will meet against the backdrop of the worst international banking crisis in generations.
London April G20 Summit - MEPs to quiz Council and Commission
The November 2008 Washington Summit led to an action plan for dealing with the financial and economic crisis. Meanwhile, financial markets and financial institutions remain severely perturbed and under distress. The economic situation worldwide is deteriorating further as the malaise spreads to other countries.
Czech PM on the conclusions of the European Council
Czech Prime Minister Mirek Topolanek will present the conclusions of the European Council of 19 and 20 March to MEPs in Strasbourg at 9am on Wednesday. The European Council focused on the economic and financial situation, energy and climate change and external relations.
European conscience and heroes of the fight against totalitarianism
Polish UEN Member Hanna Foltyn-Kubicka, on behalf of the UEN Group, will be asking the Council and Commission questions on the European conscience and heroes of the fight against totalitarianism. MEPs will vote on a resolution on 2 April.
Safer cosmetics
Parliament will be asked to approve an update of EU legislation on cosmetics when it votes on a first-reading agreement thrashed out between EP and Council representatives. The basic aim of the new regulation is to remove legal uncertainties and inconsistencies, while increasing the safety of cosmetics. Parliament's amendments add further improvements, especially regarding the claims companies make for their products and the safety of nanomaterials used in cosmetics.
Keeping phones masts away from schools
Antennas, mobile phone masts and other electromagnetic emitting devices should be set within a specific distance from schools and health institutions, according to a report to be voted on next week by the European Parliament. The report acknowledges the wide use of wireless technologies and other electromagnetic emitting technologies and their benefits to society, but also raises concerns over their “continuing uncertainties about possible health risks.”
Single European Sky
A safer and more efficient European air traffic control system is the main goal of two regulations revising the Single European Sky legislation that should be approved by Parliament following a first reading agreement reached on 17 March between MEPs and EU transport ministers.
Novel foods - MEPs to set out new rules
The European Parliament will debate and vote next week in Strasbourg on a proposal to update the EU regulation on novel foods. The report by the Environment Committee calls on the Commission to ban the placing on the market of food derived from cloned animals and their descendants. MEPs also want food being produced by nanotechnology processes to undergo a specific risk assessment before being approved for use.
Female genital mutilation
A clear strategy for banning female genital mutilation on EU territory and the need to acknowledge the problem in EU immigration law and cooperation agreements are among the key points of a report proposed by the EP Women's Rights Committee, aimed at stamping out this practice. Since FGM is a violation of rights, it can constitute a legitimate reason for applying for refugee status, says the report. This point was not supported unanimously by the committee and some MEPs voted against the report because of it and may therefore be subject to an alternative resolution.
Best practices in regional policy
Regional development projects need simpler procedures and a clearer division of powers and responsibilities among the EU, Member States and regional and local authorities. The own-initiative report adopted by the Regional Development Committee on 11 February proposes possible common criteria for defining best practices, with a view to overcoming obstacles to use of the structural funds. It also suggests instruments to make these practices more accessible and visible to potential stakeholders.
Getting the best out of urban development spending
Cities, which are home to 80% of the EU's 492 million people, need fully integrated urban development plans to tackle their economic, social and environmental problems, says this report, which urges EU Member States to delegate the management of EU money for urban sustainability projects to cities, and calls for more flexibility to combine funding from different sources.
Urban development should be a strategic priority
The report regrets that Member States are not obliged to promote urban development as a strategic priority. It urges them, the European Commission, and regional and local authorities to evaluate impact of mainstreaming the URBAN initiative (stakeholder partnerships, integrated approach and “bottom-up” input to planning) and to monitor the impact of EU funds in urban areas.
Getting the best out of rural development spending
Rural per capita income and access to goods and services are best improved by supporting non-agricultural activities in rural areas, without depleting farmers' incomes, says this report, which calls for figures on the take-up of rural development funding under the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP), and advocates closer co-ordination of rural and regional development measures, so as to enhance their combined impact.
Territorial cohesion and future cohesion policy
Pointers to a reformed EU regional development policy, built around the concepts of (economic) concentration, connection and co-operation, are set out in this report, which responds to the Commission's Fifth progress report on economic and social cohesion and Green Paper on territorial cohesion. Parliament's report calls inter alia for a more comprehensive system of “transitional” assistance to regions about to rise above the full structural funding eligibility threshold (75% of EU average GDP) and a formal multi-level system of governance, to involve all stakeholders in regional policy design and implementation.
Structural Funds Regulations 2007-2013
This report responds to a Commission Communication on regional policy programmes for 2007-2013, which, with investments of €347 billion, make up the second-largest item in EU budget. 81.5% of investment funds go to “convergence” (i.e. fully eligible - under 75% of EU average GDP) regions, which are home to 35% of the EU population.
A closer and deeper strategic partnership with the USA
A new transatlantic partnership is needed to strengthen ties between the EU and America now that Barack Obama has taken office, says the EP Foreign Affairs Committee. MEPs are calling for a new institutional architecture including a political council and a joint parliamentary committee.
Better coordination between the European Investment Bank and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development
Increasingly, the European Investment Bank and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development are financing operations in the same geographical areas, including Eastern Europe, the Southern Caucasus, Russia, the Western Balkans, and soon, Turkey. In light of this, the Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs is calling for increased cooperation between the two institutions.
EU - Belarus relations
MEPs will debate EU-Belarus relations after hearing statements from Council and Commission. Parliament will vote on a resolution during the plenary session in Brussels on 2 April.
Cigarette tax at least €1.50 per pack from 2014
A gradual increase in minimum tax rates on cigarettes, to at least €1.50 per pack by 2014, and other tobacco products, is backed by the Economic Affairs Committee, but it advocates smaller increases than those proposed by the Commission. The aim of the proposed legislation is to avoid distorting the single market and to foster tax convergence (tobacco tax rates currently differ from country to country).
Multilingualism: an asset for Europe
EU citizens must be helped and encouraged to learn languages other than their own if they are to derive full economic, social and cultural benefit from freedom of movement, says a report tabled by the Culture Committee. The committee's own-initiative report, which is a response to a Commission Communication on multilingualism, was drafted by Portuguese MEP Vasco Graça Moura (EPP-ED). It stresses the need to promote more and better language teaching, as a knowledge of languages is an asset - and increasingly a necessity - in many walks of life.
Unity and diversity through art
In an increasingly heterogeneous and multicultural world, artistic studies can be used to preserve our identities and to encourage inter-cultural understanding, according to a report by the Committee on Culture and Education. In order for this to happen, the European Union needs to address “significant disparities between the existing artistic education models in the various Member States.”
Food aid programme for Europe's poorest people set to expand
The EU food distribution programme for the most deprived people in Europe must continue within the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP), be fully funded by the EU and consist purely of food products of Community origin, says the Agriculture Committee. Since the programme came into being in 1987, millions of needy Europeans have received food from intervention stocks of the CAP, distributed via charities and social services. In the mid-1990s, the rules were changed to allow food to be bought on the open market to supplement this source, in certain circumstances.
EU must guarantee reasonable food prices for consumers and profits for farmers
Correcting the market inequalities, and improving direct relations between consumers and producers, in order to guarantee reasonable prices for the former and profits for the latter, are the principle objectives of a report proposed by the Agriculture Committee on the difference in price between production and consumption in the food chain.
Partnership agreements with the Caribbean and Côte d'Ivoire
The EP International Trade Committee will ask Parliament to give its formal assent to allow two Economic Partnership Agreements to go ahead, one with the Caribbean countries grouped in Cariforum, the other with the West African state of Côte d'Ivoire.
EU - India Free Trade Agreement
For the last two decades, India has been emerging as a “major innovator, developer, as well as producer and exporter” of goods and services. Due to its geographical size, population and economic growth, it is becoming an influential player in global affairs. The EU is the world s biggest economic bloc, and India is the world's second most populous nation.
One year after Lisbon: the Africa-EU partnership at work
The Development Committee will submit to the House an own-initiative report drafted in response to the Commission Communication “One year after Lisbon: The Africa-EU partnership at work”.
EU must improve its commitment to the Millennium Development Goals
Development and cooperation in the year 2000, the international community, including the European Union, made commitments to halve extreme poverty worldwide by 2015. Currently, most developing countries do not have the resources to meet the eight Millennium Development Goals, so the Committee on Development is calling on the Commission and Member States to increase and standardise their financial contributions.
Future of the car industry
MEPs will debate future of the car industry after hearing statements from the Commission. Ministers have expressed deep concern about the serious situation that the sector is facing at present, putting at risk a very significant number of jobs. In 2008 there were about 8% fewer cars sold in the EU than in 2007. The automotive sector with its 12 million jobs depending on this strategic industry has been hit particularly hard by the current economic crisis with new registrations down by 20% and gloomy expectations for 2009.
EP reviews 2007 - 2013 Financial Framework
The EP is set to vote on a report by the Budget Committee on the mid-term review of the 2007-2013 financial framework. In the current context of economic crisis and forthcoming elections in the EP, the report recommends a realistic rather than ambitious review. It also states that “the general magnitude of EU resources must not be affected” by the global economic problems.
Non-interoperability of mobile phone chargers - MEPs quiz Commission
With reference to the non-interoperability of mobile phone chargers, the Commission will be questioned on what progress has been made towards harmonisation and, in particular, whether it has already taken measures to tackle this problem, which directly affects European consumers (who are obliged to replace chargers which still work) and the environment (because of the enormous quantity of waste thus generated).
Substances that deplete the ozone layer
A compromise has been reached between representatives of the EP and Council on a regulation updating the EU law on substances depleting the ozone layer. The new law brings EU legislation in line with developments of the Montreal protocol aiming at protecting the ozone layer, but goes beyond it, so that the EU will continue to lead by example. The deal does not only cover the marketing ban of certain substances but also substances contained in refrigerators and insulation material in buildings.
A first reading compromise has been achieved
Criticism of “extensive urbanisation” practices in Spain
Extensive urbanisation“ practices in Spain are criticised in a report proposed by the Petitions Committee, which suggests interrupting EU aid for the country until the problem is solved. The report deals with problems associated with ”extensive urbanisation“ in Spain and suggests interrupting the provision of EU aid to the country until these are solved. It says Spain should ”suspend and review“ all the new urbanisation plans which do not respect the right to legitimate ownership ”suspend and review“. The report also calls for ”adequate compensation“ for those affected. Two alternative resolutions will be put to the vote also.
Biometric visas: children under twelve exempted from giving fingerprints
Biometric visas, like biometric passports, should improve security provided the fingerprints they include are reliable. Children under twelve will be exempted from the requirement to provide fingerprints, as MEPs wished, following an agreement with the Council proposed by the EP Civil Liberties Committee.
Working conditions: companies must be liable for subcontractors
Companies must be responsible for the conditions of workers employed by their subcontractors and an EU legal instrument is needed to make sure this is the case say Members of the EP Employment and Social Affairs Committee, referring to the concept of ”joint and several liability“. There is a possibility that an alternative resolution will be put forward.
Security and fundamental freedoms on the internet
Increasingly, companies, governments, police and even criminals are seeking the greatest possible access to our private data. The internet provides a previously unimaginable level of access to information about our private lives, which unfortunately, can be abused by companies, intelligence services or even identity thieves. A report by the Committee on Civil Liberties Committee proposes action against cybercriminals whilst also guaranteeing fundamental rights to privacy for internet users.
Follow-up to the Declaration of the Sports Ministers of the European Union at their meeting in Biarritz in November 2008
Katerina Batzeli and Doris Pack, on behalf of the Committee on Culture and Education will be asking questions to the Commission on the follow-up to the Declaration of the Sports Ministers of the European Union at their meeting in Biarritz in November 2008.