Brussels, 03/05/2010 (Agence Europe) - The European Parliament, meeting in plenary session in Brussels this week, will vote on the report by Iñigo Mendez de Vigo (EPP, Spain) on Thursday 6 May. This report relates to the 18 additional members who will sit in the European Parliament for the remainder of the 2009-2014 term of office. Everything points to Parliament's going with the rapporteur and endorsing the draft recommendation approved by the constitutional affairs committee (AFCO) on 7 April, which authorised the Council to hold an inter-governmental conference (IGC) to amend protocol 36 of the Lisbon Treaty without convening a Convention (as is now required for any amendment of the treaties). EP sources said on Monday that, if Parliament were to give the go-ahead on Thursday, the European Council in June could meet as a short inter-governmental conference (“It would only need about half an hour”) to approve the amendment to protocol N° 36. This amendment of the Lisbon Treaty would then have to be ratified by the parliaments of all the member states. In the meantime, while awaiting the completion of the ratification process and the coming into force of the treaty amendment, the 18 new MEPs (4 from Spain, 2 from France, 2 from Sweden, 2 from Austria, and 1 each from the UK, Slovenia, Poland, the Netherlands, Malta, Latvia, Italy and Bulgaria) will be able to sit as observers in the European Parliament. As such, they will be allowed to speak, but not to vote. Neither will they receive MEPs' wages, only travelling expenses, the EP says. (H.B./transl.rt)