Brexit negotiations and preparation for the European summit on 19 and 20 October will dominate next month’s first plenary session which will take place in Strasbourg from 2 to 6 October.
Other issues of interest include the votes on the European Public Prosecutor’s Office and on cybercrime, and a debate on the use Turkey makes of Interpol arrest warrants to track down possible militants and political opponents.
On Tuesday morning, MEPs will focus on the negotiations on the withdrawal of the United Kingdom from the EU with a debate followed by a vote on a resolution (see EUROPE 11872). On Thursday, EU Chief Negotiator Michel Barnier presented a still mixed summation of the talks, acknowledging that some progress had been made and that there had been a change of tone from London but still taking the view that progress was insufficient. This is, in substance, what Parliament is expected to say in its resolution, with MEPs also likely to recommend to the European Council that it should not yet approve moving on to the second phase of the negotiations, that of the future relationship between the two parties.
In their draft resolution, MEPs say they are happy to accept a transition period, as called for by Theresa May in her speech in Florence (see EUROPE 11868), but only if agreement has first been reached on the key principles of the divorce. They also say that any transition period would mean compliance with European rules and jurisdictions responsible for applying these rules, that is to say, notably, the European Court of Justice. The resolution will be discussed once again by the Parliament’s political groups on the eve of the debate.
With regard to preparation of the European summit, MEPs are expected to set out their vision for the future of a 27-member EU, this after a series of events, from the speech by French President Emmanuel Macron at the University of the Sorbonne (see EUROPE 11870) and the informal European summit in Tallinn (see other articles).
Climate, European prosecutor, Ryanair and endocrine disruptors. Other issues will come under the groups’ microscopes, such as preparation of COP 23 in Bonn. On this point, the GUE/NGL Group will express its serious concern at the failure to provide sufficient means to implement COP 21 (Paris), it has already stated. The draft resolution, which will be put to the vote, will call for carbon neutrality by 2050 (see EUROPE 11858).
The European Prosecutor’s Office will be debated on Wednesday and a text adopted on Thursday. This will confirm the green light for the enhanced cooperation involving 20 member states. With the current focus on tackling European budget fraud, its areas of responsibility could develop in future, Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker having already called for it to have anti-terrorism powers. This call has been backed and repeated by France and Italy.
Also debated in Strasbourg will be the large numbers of flight cancellations announced by low-cost airline Ryanair in mid-September which have left thousands of travellers in difficulty. MEPs will hold a discussion with the Commission and the Council on Tuesday on how air passenger rights can be enforced in these circumstances.
A further high point will be the vote on the draft resolution, formalised in the environment committee on Thursday 28 September (see EUROPE 11872) on the Commission’s criteria for the determination of endocrine disruptors. The Greens/EFA Group believes it has a good chance of having the resolution passed, probably on Wednesday 4 October.
An absolute majority is required and “we got that in committee”, said group spokesperson David Weir on Friday 29 September. The EPP and ECR will vote against rejection of the criteria – not because they support the Commission’ definitions but because they want a basis for further work to remain on the legislators table, said the Christian Democrat group.
On the sidelines of the plenary session, at a joint meeting of the foreign affairs and development committees and the human rights sub-committee on Monday 2 October, the political groups will present their candidates for the 2017 Sakharov Prize for freedom of thought.
The candidates are: Asia Bibi (Pakistan), Aura Lolita Chavez Ixcaquic (Guatemala), Selahattin Demirtaş and Figen Yüksekdağ (Turkey), the democratic opposition in Venezuela, Dawit Isaak (Sweden-Eritrea) and Pierre Claver Mbonimpa (Burundi). (Original version in French by Solenn Paulic)