15/09/2021 (Agence Europe) – Meeting in plenary session in Strasbourg, MEPs voted on Wednesday 15 September in favour of extending the safety certificates and licences of railway undertakings operating in the Cross-Channel tunnel (see EUROPE 12625/17). These measures, which were initially set to expire on 30 September, will be extended until 31 March 2022. The European Commission's urgency procedure, endorsed by the European Parliament, is intended to finalise the procedures still underway, to ensure connectivity between the UK and the EU during the post-Brexit transition period and to avoid the disruption that would be caused by a forced shutdown of the sector. See the document: https://bit.ly/3ElW5pt (TM)