On the evening of Monday 11 March, MEPs of the European Parliament's Committee on Civil Liberties (LIBE) approved the interinstitutional agreement reached on 19 February (see EUROPE B12197A8) on new security standards for identity cards and residence permits issued in the EU.
However, it was only by a narrow majority (30 votes in favour, 20 against and 2 abstentions) that they voted in favour of this agreement, which was defended by Belgian MEP Gérard Deprez (ALDE). The S&D group had...