Summary

Next week, Members of the European Parliament (“MEPs”) will gather in Brussels for committee meetings and mini-Plenary sessions.  Several interesting debates and hearings are set to take place.

On Monday, the Committee on Constitutional Affairs (“AFCO”) and the Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice, and Home Affairs (“LIBE) will have a hearing with Commissioner-designate Vĕra Jourová.  Since 2014, she holds the portfolio of Justice, Consumer Protection and Gender Equality.  She has been active as the Commissioner on data protection issues and has been credited for making the EU’s General Data Protection Regulation (“GDPR”) a worldwide standard.  If she endures Monday’s hearing, she will receive a new portfolio on “Values and Transparency”, which will include: coordinating the Commission’s work on upholding the rule of law in the EU; countering disinformation and fake information; and, improving the lead candidate system (“Spitzenkandidaten”) in the elections of the European Parliament.

On Tuesday, Vice Presidents-designate Margrethe Vestager and Frans Timmermans will also appear before the European Parliament.  Margrethe Vestager will be questioned by MEPs from the Committee on Industry, Research and Energy (“ITRE”), the Committee on the Internal Market and Consumer Protection (“IMCO”), and the Committee on the Economic and Monetary Union (“ECON”).  If confirmed, Vestager will not only continue her work as Commissioner for Competition, but will also develop a new long-term industrial strategy and coordinate the EU’s digital strategy.  She will lead the ambitious effort to introduce a European approach on Artificial Intelligence within the first 100 days of the new Commission.  She will also be concerned with the work on a new Digital Services Act and finding international consensus on digital taxation.

Vice President-designate Frans Timmermans will be questioned by the Committee on Environmental, Public Health and Food Safety (“ENVI”), on his plans for the European Green Deal, which he has to present within the first 100 days of his mandate.  As lead of the Climate portfolio, he will also introduce the first European Climate Law within the first 100 days, that will enshrine the EU’s ambition of becoming the first climate-neutral continent by 2050.  To this end, Timmermans’ Green Deal will set out a strategy that will include leading international negotiations with other major emitters and establishing a Just Transition Fund.

 Meetings and Agenda

Monday, October 7, 2019 

Joint meeting of the Committee on Constitutional Affairs and the Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice, and Home Affairs

14:30-17:30

  • Hearing of Commissioner-designate Vĕra Jourová – Vice-President: Values and Transparency

Committee on Foreign Affairs

14:30-17:30

  • Hearing of the High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy / Vice-President of the Commission-designate Joseph Borell.

Committee on Employment and Social Affairs

15:30-17:30

Debates

  • Hearing of candidates to be designated as experts to the Management Boards of Cedefop, Eurofound, EU-OSHA and ELA

Votes

  • Appointment of candidates to be designated as experts to the Management Boards of Cedefop, Eurofound, EU-OSHA and ELA General budget of the European Union for the financial year 2020 – all sections – Retabling of EMPL budgetary amendments to Plenary –
    • Rapporteur: Lucia ĎURIŠ NICHOLSONOVÁ (ECR, SK) 

Committee on Agriculture and Rural Development

16:30-18:30

  • Conclusion of the Agreement in the form of an exchange of letters between the European Union and Ukraine amending the trade preferences for poultry meat and poultry meat preparations provided for by the Association Agreement between the European Union and the European Atomic Energy Community and their Member States, of the one part, and Ukraine, of the other part (NLE)
    • Consideration of draft opinion by Zbigniew Kuźmiuk (ECR, PL)
  • Conclusion of an agreement with the United States of America on the Allocation to the United States of a Share in the Tariff Rate Quota provided for by Regulation (EC) No 617/2009 of 13 July 2009 opening an autonomous tariff quota for imports of high-quality beef (NLE)
    • Consideration of draft opinion by Herbert Dorfmann (EPP, IT)

Tuesday, October 8, 2019

Joint meeting Committee on Economic and Monetary Union and Committee on Employment and Social Affairs

09:00-12:00

  • Hearing with Commissioner-designate, Vladis Dombrovskis – Vice-President: An Economy that Works for People

Subcommittee on Human Rights

09:00-12:00

Debates

  • Debate with Sakharov Prize winners Salih Osman (Sudan) and Lorent Saleh (Venezuela)
  • Discussion on Human rights and democracy in the world and the European Union’s policy on the matter – annual report 2018.
    • Rapporteur: Isabel WiselerLima (EPP, LU)

Joint meeting of the Committee on Foreign Affairs with Committee on Development and Subcommittee on Human Rights

15:00-16:30

Votes

  • Decision to start trialogues on Establishing the Neighbourhood, Development and International Cooperation Instrument. Jointly with the Committee on Development, Rule 58
    • Co-rapporteurs: Michael GAHLER (EPP, DE – AFET); Maria ARENA (S&D, BE – AFET); Rasa JUKNEVIČIENĖ (EPP, LT – DEVE); Charles GOERENS (RE, LU – DEVE).
  • Decision to start trialogues on Establishing the Instrument for Pre-accession Assistance (IPA III).
    • Co-Rapporteurs: Željana ZOVKO (EPP, HR); Tonino PICULA (S&D, HR)

Debates

  • Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought 2019: Vote on a shortlist of 3 candidates. Jointly with the Committee on Development and in cooperation with the Subcommittee on Human Rights

Subcommittee on Security and Defence

09:00-12:30

Debates

  • Debate on the state and outlook of the Permanent Structured Cooperation (PESCO) project
  • Debate on military mobility
  • Debate on coordinated maritime presences

Committee on Development

09:00-13:00

Votes

  • Amendments to the document for the 25th Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP25)
  • Draft opinion to the general budget of the European Union for the financial year 2020 (BUDG file). Rapporteur for the opinion: Charles Goerens (Renew, LU)

Committee on Budgetary Control

09:00-18:30

Debates

  • European Court of Auditor’s Annual Report 2018
  • ECA Rapid case review: Reporting on sustainability – A stocktake of EU Institutions and Agencies
  • ECA Special Report 14/2019 (Discharge 2018): ‘Have your say!’: Commission’s public consultations engage citizens, but fall short of outreach activities
  • ECA Special Report 7/2019 (Discharge 2018): EU actions for cross-border healthcare: significant ambitions but improved management required

Votes

  • Investigations conducted by the European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF) as regards cooperation with the European Public Prosecutor’s Office and the effectiveness of OLAF investigations
  • EU Anti-Fraud Programme

Committee on the Internal Market and Consumer Protection

09:00-12:30

Votes

  • Establishing the Programme for single market, competitiveness of enterprises, including small and medium-sized enterprises, and European statistics – Vote on the decision to enter into interinstitutional negotiations
    • Rapporteur: Brando BENIFEI (S&D, IT)
  • Establishing the ‘Customs’ programme for cooperation in the field of customs – Vote on the decision to enter into interinstitutional negotiations
    • Rapporteur: Maria GRAPINI (S&D, RO)
  • Establishing, as part of the Integrated Border Management Fund, the instrument for financial support for customs control equipment – Vote on the decision to enter into interinstitutional negotiations
    • Rapporteur: Jiří POSPÍŠIL (EPP, CZ)

Committee on Agriculture and Rural Development

10:30-12:30

  • Exchange of views with Commission representatives (DG AGRI, DG COMP and DG TRADE) on the long-term prospects for the European beef sector

Committee on Constitutional Affairs

14:30-17:30

Debate

  • Brexit: Hearing with organizations representing EU citizens in UK and British citizens in EU – exchange of views with organizations and campaigners representing the interests of different groups of citizens affected by Brexit.

Joint meeting Committee on Industry, Research and Energy, the Committee on the Internal Market and Consumer Protection, and the Committee on the Economic and Monetary Union

14:30-17:30

  • Hearing with Commissioner-designate, Margrethe Vestager – Vice-President: A Europe fit for the Digital Age.

Committee on Environment, Public Health and Food Safety

18:30-21:30

  • Hearing with Commissioner-designate, Frans Timmermans – Vice-President: the European Green Deal

Wednesday, October 9, 2019

Plenary Session

15:00-22:00

Debates

  • Resumption of session and order of business
  • Preparation of the European Council meeting of 17 and 18 October 2019
  • Multiannual Financial Framework 2021-2027 and own resources: time to meet citizens’ expectations
  • Situation in Ukraine
  • One-minute speeches (Rule 172)

Thursday, October 10, 2019

Plenary Session

09:00-11:20

Debates

  • Greening the European Investment Bank
  • Economic policies of the euro area 2019
    • Report: Esther de Lange (Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs)
  • Employment and social policies of the euro area
    • Report: Yana Toom (Committee on Employment and Social Affairs)

Votes

  • Eurojust and Serbia Cooperation Agreement
    • Report: Juan Fernando López Aguilar (Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs)
  • Draft amending budget No 4/2019: reduction of commitment and payment appropriations in line with updated needs of expenditure and update of revenue (own resources)
    • Report: John Howarth (Committee on Budgets)
  • Adjustments to the amounts mobilised from the Flexibility Instrument for 2019 to be used for migration, refugee inflows and security threats
    • Report: John Howart  (Committee on Budgets)
  • Foreign electoral interference and disinformation in national and European democratic processes
  • Multiannual Financial Framework 2021-2027 and own resources: time to meet citizens’ expectations
  • Economic policies of the euro area 2019
    • Report: Esther de Lange (Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs)
  • Employment and social policies of the euro area

Report: Yana Toom (Committee on Employment and Social Affairs)