The special committee on the Covid-19 pandemic started its work and elected its bureau on 19 April 2022.
The new special committee was holding its inaugural meeting. At this session, the 38-member special committee elected its Chair, Kathleen Van Brempt (S&D, Belgium), and its four Vice-Chairs, Andreas Glück (Renew Europe, Germany), Ewa Kopacz (EPP, Poland), Michèle Rivasi (Greens/EFA, France) and Karol Karski (ECR, Poland).
This special committee was set up by the European Parliament on 10 March 2022 on the proposal of the Conference of Presidents and approved at the plenary session of 23 and 24 March.
The mandate of the special committee is extended. “We have a very complex task ahead of us”, warned the newly elected chair, who nevertheless believes that the mandate is simple: “to prepare our beloved European Union to face new crises in the wake of this pandemic”.
The special committee was mandated to prepare a report on how the European response to the pandemic and the lessons learned from the crisis can contribute to future EU action in four main areas of European public policy: health, a coordinated approach to democracy and fundamental rights, the socio-economic consequences of the pandemic and the crises, and the European Union and the world. “This is the first time”, Kathleen Van Brempt stressed, “that a European institution will look at the Covid-19 pandemic in a holistic way”. The initiative is in line with the European Commission’s proposals on the European Health Union and the proposed regulation on serious cross-border health threats.
Representatives of the political groups made introductory statements before the coordinators continued their meeting behind closed doors.
The initial term of office of this special committee is 12 months, but this term can be extended. However, Kathleen Van Brempt has warned that she does not want the work of the committee to be unduly prolonged. The MEP called on the members of the special committee to conclude their report well before the next European elections.
The calendar of meetings and work of the committee has not yet been finalised, but it should be set up quickly. The next meeting of the special committee is scheduled for 11 or 12 May 2022.
Link to the European Parliament’s decision on the constitution of the special committee: https://aeur.eu/f/1ad (Original version in French by Emilie Vanderhulst)