Summary Next week will be a committee week and a mini-plenary in the European Parliament, during which some interesting votes will take place. On Tuesday, the Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety (“ENVI”) is expected to vote on its report on Binding annual greenhouse gas emission reductions. The report seeks to set … Continue Reading
Summary Next week is a constituency week for Members of the European Parliament (“MEPs”). MEPs will go back to their home countries to handle national issues, or convene in their parliamentary delegations to work on matters related to non-EU Member States. However, this past week, the European Parliament held a plenary session. A number of … Continue Reading
Summary Next week will be plenary week in Strasbourg, with a few committee meetings. On Monday, the Committee on Regional Development (“REGI”) will introduce its report on “FinTech: the influence of technology on the future of the financial sector” to the plenary, for debate. The report highlights the development of FinTech in the recent years, … Continue Reading
On May 7, President-elect Emmanuel Macron greeted his jubilant supporters in the grounds of the Louvre to a serenade of the Ode to Joy, the anthem of the European Union. He had won the second round of the French Presidential election, dismissing the far-right Marine Le Pen’s challenge by 66.1% to her 33.9% A New … Continue Reading
Brexit and European Elections On Tuesday, April 18, U.K. Prime Minister Theresa May announced that she was calling a snap general election on June 8. She explained that divisions in Westminster over Brexit had made an early vote unavoidable: “The country is coming together, but Westminster is not,” she told reporters outside 10 Downing Street. … Continue Reading
Summary This week was a committee week and a mini-plenary in the European Parliament, during which some interesting votes took place. On Tuesday, the European Parliament’s Culture and Education Committee (“CULT”) passed its report on the draft for a revised Audiovisual Media Services Directive proposed by the European Commission in May 2016. While some have … Continue Reading
The Joint Committee on Human Rights – comprised of members of both Houses – has published a report calling on the U.K. government to take significant further steps to improve corporate human rights practices, including criminalising “failure to prevent human rights abuses”. The Committee acknowledges that the U.K. Government’s introduction of reporting requirements under the … Continue Reading
Summary Next week will be a committee week in the European Parliament. There will be a number of interesting discussions in committee and public hearings. On Tuesday, the Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety (“ENVI”) will vote on a its own-initiative draft report on resource efficiency: reducing food waste, improving food safety. … Continue Reading
Summary Next week will be an interesting plenary in Strasbourg with a mixture of votes on various long-awaited topics. On Monday, the Parliament will debate a draft report prepared by the Parliament’s Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety (“ENVI”) on palm oil and the deforestation of rain forests. The draft report seeks … Continue Reading
Sebastian Vos, a Partner and co-chair of the firm’s global Public Policy and Government Affairs Practice, appeared on CNBC this morning (CET) to discuss Brexit and its implications. He outlined the likely timeline for the next two years and key players in the negotiations. Mr. Vos discussed the likely pressures, positioning and messaging around the … Continue Reading
Summary Next week will be a political group week in the European Parliament. Members of the European Parliament (“MEPs”) will hold meetings with their political party in preparation of the plenary week, to be held in Strasbourg from April 3 to 6. Nevertheless, a few parliamentary committee meetings will take place. On Monday, the Economic … Continue Reading
Summary Next week will be a committee week in the European Parliament. It is also an important week for the EU as Saturday, March 25, will mark the 60th anniversary of the Treaty of Rome, which established the European Economic Community. In addition, it may see the UK formally begin the two-year process for leaving … Continue Reading
Summary Next week, there will be a plenary sitting of the European Parliament in Strasbourg, France. Several significant debates, votes and committee meetings will take place. On Tuesday, the plenary will vote on a text on long-term shareholder engagement in corporate governance. The European Parliament had previously adopted, with 556 votes to 67, amendments to … Continue Reading
Brexit, the EU’s Response, and U.S.-EU relations On February 8, the UK House of Commons approved by 494 votes to 122 the British Government’s Brexit legislation – the European Union (Notification of Withdrawal) Bill (see here). This legislation, proposed by Prime Minister Theresa May, would give her Government the power to trigger the UK’s exit … Continue Reading
Summary Next week is a committee and political group week in the European Parliament. Only several committee meetings are scheduled, as MEPs will spend the majority of their time with their political group, preparing for the plenary week in Strasbourg on March 13 – 16. The various political groups are likely to discuss their voting … Continue Reading
Summary Next week will be very busy in the European Parliament as it is a committee week. On Monday, the Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety (“ENVI”) will consider amendments on a proposal for a Regulation on the binding annual greenhouse gas emission reductions. The Regulation, dubbed the “Effort Sharing Regulation”, seeks … Continue Reading
The European Commission has presented a proposal to amend the EU’s examination comitology procedure with the aim of forcing Member States to vote and take responsibility in the adoption of controversial decisions mostly affecting health and the environment, such as pesticides, GMOs, and chemicals. If adopted, the proposed amendments are likely to result in an … Continue Reading
Summary Next week is constituency week for Members of the European Parliament (“MEPs”). MEPs will go back to their home countries to handle national issues, or convene in their parliamentary delegations to work on matters related to non-EU Member States. This week was, however, important as many significant initiatives were adopted by the Parliament. On … Continue Reading
Summary Next week, there will be a plenary sitting of the European Parliament in Strasbourg, France. Several significant debates and votes will take place, in addition to various committee meetings. On Monday, the plenary will debate a draft report on a proposal for a directive regarding enhancing cost-effective emission reductions and low-carbon investments. This debate … Continue Reading
Brexit and the EU’s Response On January 17, in a speech in Lancaster House to the British diplomatic corps, Prime Minister Theresa May presented her “plan for Britain”, which includes 12 “priorities” the UK government will defend in the Brexit negotiations. The text of the speech can be found here. May’s highly-anticipated speech came ahead … Continue Reading
Summary Next week is a committee and political group week. Political groups will meet to prepare the plenary session, scheduled for February 13 to 16, 2017. A few interesting committee meetings will take place. On Monday, the Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs (“ECON”), will organize a workshop on EU energy independence, security of supply … Continue Reading
On January 19, 2017, Advocate General (“AG”) Szpunar delivered his Opinion in case C-591/15, The Gibraltar Betting and Gaming Association Ltd. In this case, the Court of Justice of the EU (“CJEU”) must decide whether Gibraltar and the UK are to be treated as if they were part of a single Member State for the … Continue Reading
Summary Next week will be an interesting week in the European Parliament, with a mixture of committee meetings, and plenary sessions. The Parliament will address energy, chemicals, food and drugs, and the constitutional relationship between the United Kingdom and Scotland and Gibraltar respectively. On Monday, the Committee on Constitutional Affairs (“AFCO”) will invite representatives of … Continue Reading
Summary On Tuesday, January 17, EU MEPs elected the European Christian Democrat Antonio Tajani (EPP, Italy), as new President of the European Parliament. Mr. Tajani will remain in office for two and a half years. See all new nominations (including Vice-Presidents and Quaestors) here. This week will be very busy in the European Parliament as … Continue Reading
