On Thursday 9 May during the Sibiu European Summit (see other news), Antonio Tajani advocated granting the European Parliament, which he presides over, a right of legislative initiative.
The European Parliament is "the only parliament in the world" that does not have such a right, he explained. In his view, the European institution should also benefit from greater control over the other EU institutions, in particular through commissions of inquiry.
At the beginning of May, the EPP Party's top candidate (Spitzenkandidate) for the European elections and President of the EPP Group in the European Parliament, Manfred Weber, spoke out in favour of a power of initiative for Parliament during the Florence election debate (see EUROPE 12246/2).
Mr Tajani, who is also vice-president of the EPP Party, reiterated his support for the Spitzenkandidaten process and, therefore, for Manfred Weber where he is concerned, in the race for the presidency of the European Commission (see other news).
The Italian Christian Democrat, who does not rule out a second term as the President of the European Parliament, urged the EU-27 to focus on the reforms that citizens are demanding, particularly in the areas of climate and defence. In his view, there is no room for transatlantic trade tensions, as the shared problem of the United States and the EU was the "Chinese trade offensive" in the world.
As for Brexit, Mr Tajani found it only natural that the United Kingdom should hold European elections, since it remains a member of the EU. He said that the British will be "welcome" if they revoke Article 50 of the Treaty. (Original version in French by Mathieu Bion)