Brussels, 11/05/2006 (Agence Europe) - During the Conference of Presidents of the political groups of the European Parliament on 11 May, Monica Frassoni, Co-President of the Greens/EFA Group, requested that the next Conference of Presidents on 18 May in Strasbourg should resume discussion on the seat of the EP in the context of an own-initiative report from the European Parliament. The Italian Green member states in a press release: “We want a parliamentary debate and a plenary vote” as this issue must no longer be discussed in a secret manner (Ed.: for example through an annual vote on the programme of plenary sessions in Strasbourg and Brussels). Ms Frassoni specifies that the presidents of political groups have asked President Borrell to speak to the Heads of State and Government about this during the European summit on 15 and 16 June and to verify whether they are ready to amend the articles of the current Treaty on the question of the seat (Ed.: something that France, in particular, is certainly not ready to do).
The president of the European United Left/European Nordic Left Group, Francis Wurtz of France, has written to President Borrell stating his objection to the initiative. Having been unable to take part in the Conference of Presidents on 11 May, Mr Wurtz notes that this request by other Group leaders (he cites Socialist Martin Schulz) must be seen in “implicit but obvious liaison with the polemic between the Parliament and the Town of Strasbourg” (see EUROPE 9181 on the subject of the matter of rent for buildings used by the EP). He explained: “As much as it appears indispensable to shed light on real estate transactions between the EP and the Town of Strasbourg, it seems to me truly inappropriate to link this affair with that of the seat” (see EUROPE 9189 on the subject of the initiative of members of the Campaign for Parliament Reform in favour of a single EP seat in Brussels).