The Week Ahead 08 – 14 November 2021
Plenary session and committee meetings, Brussels
Committees
Facebook whistleblower. MEPs will discuss with Facebook whistleblower Frances Haugen the negative impact of big tech companies’ business models on users and societies and how this could be tackled by the EU’s digital legislation. The public hearing is organised by the Internal Market and Consumer Protection Committee, in cooperation with several other committees (Monday).
Climate change/COP26. A Parliamentary delegation will be in Glasgow for the UN COP26 Climate Change Conference. MEPs want accelerated climate action worldwide, all G20 countries to commit to being climate neutral by 2050 and at least $100 billion in climate finance per year for developing countries (Monday to Saturday). An online press seminar with leading MEPs on what Parliament wants to achieve in Glasgow will take place on Monday.
Plenary
Corporate tax transparency. A new law obliging multinationals to publically declare what taxes they pay in each EU country for the benefit of the public and tax authorities, also known as public country-by-country reporting, is set to get the final approval from MEPs (debate on Wednesday, vote on Thursday).
EU Agency for Asylum. MEPs should give the final green light to the creation of the EU Agency for Asylum. The former Asylum Support Office (EASO) will be transformed into a fully-fledged agency and will have greater powers to facilitate cooperation among member states (vote Thursday).
Media Freedom/SLAPP. MEPs will put forward a package of proposals to counteract the threat that Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation (SLAPPs) pose to journalists, NGOs and civil society (Thursday).
European Council. The EU’s response to health emergencies, Rule of law in Poland, energy prices, migration and trade will be among the issues MEPs will discuss in a debate with European Council President Michel on the 21-22 October EU summit (Wednesday).
Poland/De facto abortion ban. MEPs will adopt a resolution on the one-year anniversary of the near-total abortion ban in Poland. The controversial ruling made by Poland’s Constitutional Tribunal restricts legal abortion to cases of rape, incest, or when a pregnancy endangers the mother’s life (vote Thursday).
European political parties and foundations. Parliament is set to adopt recommendations to strengthen European democracy. Among the proposals are removing red tape, making donations more transparent and withholding funds from parties that do not comply with EU values (debate and vote on Thursday).
UN High Commissioner for Refugees. Filippo Grandi, the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, will address the Plenary and debate with political groups’ speakers at the start of the session (Wednesday).
