European Parliament

After long negotiations a compromise deal on new EU legislation to regulate trade in over-the-counter (OTC) derivatives and make the derivatives market safer and more transparent was struck by Parliament and Council representatives on Thursday. Derivatives trading is widely believed to have contributed to the global financial crisis.
Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs

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Following the debate with Hungary's Prime Minister Orbán at the Strasbourg plenary session in January, the Civil Liberties Committee will hold a hearing with representatives of the Hungarian government, the media and the civil society to assess the civil rights situation.
Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs

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Parliament's Budgetary Control Committee on Thursday voted for Spain's new nominee to join the European Court of Auditors, Mr Baudilio Tomé Muguruza.
Committee on Budgetary Control

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Draft EU legislation to discourage insider trading and market manipulation was discussed for the first time in the Economic and Monetary Affairs Committee on Monday. MEPs focused on how best to define "insider information", ensure proper surveillance, encourage whistle blowers and punish offenders.
Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs

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A draft law to strengthen the European Network and Information Security Agency (ENISA) was approved by Industry, Research and Energy Committee MEPs on Monday.
Committee on Industry, Research and Energy

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A Eurozone financial transaction tax would not only curb high-frequency and intermediary traders, but could even boost overall GDP, said financial experts at an Economic and Monetary Affairs Committee hearing on Monday. MEPs also reiterated their support for the idea, although some said that the Commission proposal needs more fine tuning.
Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs

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A two-year reprieve for the EU's "food for the needy" programme, on which 18 million of the EU's most deprived people rely, was backed by the Agriculture Committee on Monday. If Parliament as a whole endorses the plan to rescue the programme, it will run until the end of 2013, with a budget of up to €500 million per year.
Committee on Agriculture and Rural Development

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On Monday, the Budgets Committee started its work on the next year's budget with a debate on the general guidelines for the Commission's 2013 budget, which covers EU spending in the Member States, and a vote on the EU institutions' administrative budgets.
Committee on Budgets

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Week of committee and political group meetings - Brussels

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Plenary sessions : Members backed the tough new EU sanctions imposed on Iran in an effort to bring Iran to the negotiating table, while calling for them to have as little impact as possible on the civilian population, in a resolution adopted on Thursday. The House demands that Iran halt its clandestine nuclear programme and condemns its threat to close the Strait of Hormuz.

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Plenary sessions : Limited liability companies should be able to migrate anywhere within the EU, provided that employees are consulted, shareholders approve, and the move does not circumvent tax or social laws, says Parliament in a request, endorsed in a vote on Thursday, that the Commission table legislation to this end.

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Plenary sessions : The fight against doping, violence in stadiums, match-fixing and shady deals by players' agents demands better-coordinated action at EU level, says a resolution passed by Parliament on Thursday.

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Plenary sessions : The European Parliament has blocked changes to nutrition labelling that would have allowed new "percentage less" claims on sugar, salt and fat content. The new labels could have confused or misled consumers, said a resolution voted by MEPs on Thursday.

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Plenary sessions : President Martin Schulz announced the resignations of MEPs Diana Wallis (ALDE, UK) and Proinsias De Rossa (S&D, IE), and thanked them for their services to Parliament, at the opening of the 1-2 February mini-plenary in Brussels.

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The EU needs to improve its Emissions Trading System (ETS) and other policies to help its transition towards an economy less dependent on carbon, says a non-legislative report adopted by the Environment Committee on Tuesday.
Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety

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A proposed EU concession to help put an end to the 20-year hormone beef trade war with the USA and Canada was unanimously endorsed by the International Trade Committee on Thursday. The proposal, which would raise the EU import quota for beef from animals not treated with hormones, will be put to a vote by Parliament as a whole on 13 March.
Committee on International Trade

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Plenary Session and Committee Meetings – Brussels

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General : The priorities of Denmark's Presidency of the EU Council of Ministers are being presented to European Parliament committees by Danish ministers at meetings on 23-26 January. This compilation will be updated daily during this week.

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General : After the election of a President, Vice-Presidents and Questors of the European Parliament in Strasbourg last week, parliamentary committees convened this week in Brussels to elect chairpersons and their deputies for next two and a half years until the end of the legislature.

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As the world's biggest consumer of chocolate, the EU must take responsibility for the sustainability of the cocoa sector, said Parliament's International Trade Committee on Thursday. MEPs recommended that Parliament give its consent to a new International Cocoa Agreement, but also adopted a resolution calling for action against the use of child labour in the sector.
Committee on International Trade

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A pan-European constituency with transnational lists for European Parliament elections is among the proposals put forward by the Constitutional Affairs Committee on Thursday. MEPs called on the Council and the Commission to join in negotiations to reform the EU electoral system so as to boost voter turnouts.
Committee on Constitutional Affairs

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The draft international agreement on enhanced economic governance lacks measures to promote growth and alone would not solve the crisis, the three EP representatives on the drafting group said on Thursday. The MEPs were nonetheless "cautiously optimistic" that some of their demands would be included in the final version of the text.
Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs
Committee on Constitutional Affairs

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Non-EU skilled employees working for multinational companies should be easier transfer from a branch outside the EU to a division or subsidiary within the EU thanks to a draft law endorsed by the Civil Liberties Committee on Thursday. MEPs also amended the draft to make it easier to move transferred workers between EU Member States and entitle their relatives to work in the host country, too.
Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs

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Mortgages should be subject to normal marketing and advertising rules, and lenders required to give prospective buyers specific information to enable them to assess the likely impact on their finances before signing up for one, said the Internal Market Committee on Wednesday. To this end, the committee amended a draft directive which aims to curb irresponsible mortgage borrowing, and also tighten up the supervision of lenders, whilst respecting existing lending practices in EU Member States.
Committee on the Internal Market and Consumer Protection

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The proposed EU-Morocco trade liberalisation agreement for farm and fishery products was approved by the International Trade Committee on Thursday. If approved by Parliament as a whole, the deal will immediately liberalise trade in 45% of EU exports (by value) to Morocco and in 55% of EU imports from Morocco.
Committee on International Trade

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The deadline for candidates to come forward for the 2012 Charlemagne Prize has been extended to 13 February 2012, giving more youngsters a chance to come forward for the fifth edition of the prize.

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General : A date should be set for the start of accession talks with the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia and the five EU Member States that have yet to recognise Kosovo's independence should now do so, said the Foreign Affairs Committee in two separate resolutions voted on Tuesday. Both resolutions are to be put to a plenary vote in March.

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MEPs voiced concern about evacuation procedure training on passenger ships and suggested limiting cruise ship size by law, in a Transport and Tourism Committee debate with Commissioner Siim Kallas on Tuesday. An investigation of the Concordia accident will help shape a revision of ship safety rules and new measures might be tabled before the end of 2012, Mr Kallas said. He also deplored EU Member States' "lack of enthusiasm" for stepping up the European Maritime Safety Agency's powers.
Committee on Transport and Tourism

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Stepping up supervision of credit rating agencies could help to eliminate their conflicts of interest, but obliging companies to "rotate" their use of them could actually reduce competition among agencies, argued experts at a public hearing held by the Economic and Monetary Affairs Committee on Monday and Tuesday.
Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs

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General : European Charlemagne Youth Prize 2012 - new deadline for the submission of applications.

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Medical devices such as silicone breast implants, should be subject to stricter controls and better traceability, said MEPs and European Commission representatives at an Environment and Public Health Committee meeting this morning.
Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety

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The EU should retain its development aid commitment of 0.7% of Gross National Income in its multi-annual financial framework (long-run budget) for 2014-2020, Bill Gates told the Development Committee on Tuesday.
Committee on Development

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The functioning of the European Finance and Stability Mechanism (EFSM) and the European Finance and Stability Fund (EFSF) will be debated by Economic and Monetary Affairs Committee MEPs and external experts on Monday from 15.30h to 16.30h and Tuesday from 17.30h to 18.30h. Speakers will include EFSF chief Klaus Regling.
Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs

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The EU's "Horizon 2020" plans to stimulate research and innovation will be tabled by the Commission in the Industry, Research and Energy Committee on Monday afternoon. This framework programme for 2014-2020 sets out legislative proposals for aims and funding, participating and disseminating results, specific implementing arrangements, Euratom research and the European Institute for Innovation and Technology.
Committee on Industry, Research and Energy

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Committee Week - Brussels

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Plenary sessions : Up to 50% of edible and healthy food gets wasted in EU households, supermarkets, restaurants and along the food supply chain each year, while 79 million EU citizens live beneath the poverty line and 16 million depend on food aid from charitable institutions. Parliament called in a resolution adopted on Thursday for urgent measures to halve food waste by 2025 and to improve access to food for needy EU citizens.

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Plenary sessions : All 14 European Parliament Vice-Presidents were elected in the third round with a simple majority of the valid votes cast. Edward McMillan-Scott (ALDE, UK) was re-elected Vice-President. On Wednesday afternoon, five Quaestors were elected. Jim HIGGINS (EPP, IE) was re-elected Quaestor.

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Plenary sessions : On Wednesday morning, Danish Prime Minister Helle Thorning-Schmidt presented the programme of her Government's 6-month Presidency of the Council. Most of MEPs expressed their support and urged her to take a firm stand in solving the financial crisis.

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We talked to Martin Schulz, the favourite to win the European Parliament's presidential elections. But, as he says, it's not yet set in stone.

We talked to Diana Wallis, one of the three candidates in the European Parliament's presidential elections.