On Wednesday, the European Parliament plenary gave its final green light to granting new powers to Europol. With 480 in favour, 143 against, and 20 abstaining, MEPs endorsed the deal reached in February by Parliament and Council negotiators on strengthening the mandate of Europol, the EU’s police agency, which supports police investigations carried out by the member […]
European Parliament proposes revision of the Treaties for the Conference on the Future of Europe
MEPs support the ambitious, citizen-driven proposals of the Plenary of the Conference on the Future of Europe to profoundly reform the EU. On Wednesday, Parliament adopted a resolution on the follow-up to the conclusions of the Conference on the Future of Europe, by a show of hands. Parliament acknowledges that the “ambitious and constructive proposals” […]
Speech by President von der Leyen at the EP on the social and economic consequences for the EU of the Russian war in Ukraine
Madam President, dear Roberta, Honourable Members, Next week, we will mark Europe Day. The 72nd birthday of our Union. This Europe Day will be all about the Union of the future – how we make it stronger, more resilient, closer to its people. But the answer to all of these questions, we cannot give alone. […]
MEPs begin revising rules on EU elections, calling for pan-European constituency
Parliament has started the reform of the EU’s Electoral Act, seeking to turn the 27 separate elections and their diverging rules into a single European election. On Tuesday, Parliament adopted a legislative initiative report that seeks to overhaul the rules for European elections. The draft legislative act was approved by 323 votes for, 262 against, […]
New electoral reform: MEPs push for common standards and transnational lists
The European Parliament will vote on a proposal to have more common rules for EU elections and the addition of an EU-wide constituency. The EU elections determine the representatives of Europeans at EU level, but how they are organised is largely decided at national level. This means that countries vote on different days, only national […]
How is gender-based violence addressed in the EU?
Gender-based and domestic violence remain common in Europe, especially affecting women and girls. The EU is taking measures to put an end to it. Most EU countries have laws tackling violence against someone because of gender or sexual orientation, but the lack of a common definition of gender-based violence and common rules to address the […]
European security: Parliament delegation to visit Moldova
MEPs from the Foreign Affairs Committee and Security and Defence Subcommittee will visit Moldova from 31 March to 2 April, following the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Led by the Vice-Chair of the Foreign Affairs Committee, Urmas Paet (Renew Europe, Estonia) and the Chair of the Subcommittee on Security and Defence, Nathalie Loiseau (Renew Europe, France), a high-level delegation of […]
We stand united in defending democracy and the rule of law
In her address during the Conference of Speakers of the European Union Parliaments, European Parliament President Roberta Metsola spoke about the importance of being united in defending shared values of democracy and the rule of law. Besides making reference to the war in Ukraine, President Metsola spoke about the importance of having an open and […]
MEPs want more effective measures to respond to rising prices
MEPs urged the EU to better counteract Russia’s energy dependence and quickly secure cleaner and more affordable energy for all. In the wake of the Russian invasion of Ukraine and the resulting rise in energy prices, MEPs in a plenary debate on March 24 put questions to the Council and the Commission on the Union’s […]