On Friday 7 July, the President of the European Parliament, Roberta Metsola, will attend the meeting to launch discussions between the EU institutions and bodies on the creation of a European Ethics Body (see EUROPE 13197/14).
Next week, the Conference of Presidents (CoP) of Parliament’s political groups will decide on the composition of its negotiating team for the future European body. According to our information, this team should comprise the German Social Democrat Katarina Barley, the German from the Greens Daniel Freund and the Italian Christian Democrat Salvatore De Meo, who chairs Parliament’s Committee on Constitutional Affairs (AFCO). Ms Metsola will be kept regularly informed of ongoing negotiations.
The Renew Europe Group has announced that it will not be taking part in the negotiations on the European Ethics Body. We don’t see the point of negotiating on this basis, because the Commission’s difference in ambition is so far removed from our position that we don’t see how this ambition could be raised, a parliamentary source told EUROPE on Thursday 6 July.
On Wednesday 12 July, Parliament will adopt a specific resolution on the expectations of MEPs in these negotiations. In the draft resolutions they have tabled, the S&D, Renew Europe, Greens/EFA and The Left Groups advocate giving the European Ethics Body powers to investigate and make recommendations on specific cases, along the lines of the Parliament resolution of September 2021 tabled by Mr Freund (see EUROPE 12792/9).
On the other hand, the EPP Group welcomes the fact that the Commission’s proposal clarifies that the future body will not interfere with, or in any way limit, the investigative functions of existing European bodies such as OLAF and the European Public Prosecutor’s Office.
See the political groups’ motions for resolutions: https://aeur.eu/f/7yd
Parliament rules of procedure. Representatives of the political groups in the AFCO Committee are also working hard to reach agreement on a new reform of Parliament’s rules of procedure in response to the ‘Qatargate’ scandal of alleged corruption of MEPs by third countries (see EUROPE 13200/26).
But Ms Metsola’s objective of adopting this reform at the July plenary session will not be achieved. The draft report by Gabriele Bischoff (S&D, German) will be presented on 17 and 18 July, with a view of a vote in the AFCO Committee in September.
Among the measures negotiated are stricter rules on the transparency of MEPs’ financial declarations and their meetings with representatives of interest groups and third countries, an extension of the types of behaviour that can be penalised, and a strengthening of the powers of the Parliament’s advisory committee on ethical issues. (Original version in French by Mathieu Bion)