The Week Ahead 09 – 15 May 2022
Committee and political groups’ meetings, Brussels
Conference on the Future of Europe/Closing event. The final report of the Conference will be presented to the Presidents of Parliament, Council and Commission during a closing event on 9 May, Europe Day, in Strasbourg. Presidents Metsola, von der Leyen and Macron will deliver speeches, alongside contributions from citizens on the National and European Panels and from the Conference Co-Chairs. After the event, Presidents Metsola, Macron and von der Leyen will hold a press conference in Parliament’s Daphne Caruana Galizia press conference room.
NATO/Finland. Finland’s Foreign Minister Pekka Haavisto will discuss with the Foreign Affairs Committee the implications for the EU and Finland of the war in Ukraine as well as the country’s possible bid to join NATO (Thursday).
Ukraine/EU defence policy. The Foreign Affairs Committee will adopt a series of recommendations to Council and EU Foreign Policy Chief Josep Borrell to further strengthen the EU’s response to global security threats and its ability to keep citizens safe (Thursday).
Ukraine/Security of nuclear installations. In the context of the ongoing Russian war against Ukraine, the Foreign Affairs Committee and the Security and Defence Subcommittee will debate with Ambassador Rafael Mariano Grossi, Director-General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), on the safety and security of nuclear installations in Ukraine (Tuesday).
CO2 emission for cars and vans. The Environment and Public Health Committee will vote on draft legislation to strengthen the CO2 emission performance standards for new passenger cars and new light commercial vehicles in line with the EU’s increased climate ambition. The proposal is part of the so-called “Fit for 55” package to fight climate change (Wednesday).
Pegasus inquiry. The Inquiry Committee on the use of Pegasus and equivalent surveillance spyware will kick off its investigation with a hearing of IT security experts (Tuesday).
Foreign Interference. The Special Committee on Foreign Interference holds it constitutive session to elect its chair and four vice-chairs. The committee is tasked with screening existing and planned EU legislation for loopholes that could be exploited by non-EU countries for malicious purposes (Thursday).
Plenary preparations. Political groups will prepare for the 18-19 May plenary session, taking place in Brussels, where MEPs will debate European solidarity and energy security following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, particularly concerning gas supply cuts to Poland and Bulgaria, as well as the fight against impunity for war crimes in Ukraine. Members will also hold a debate with Moldova’s President Maia Sandu. Still during the session, Parliament will vote on resolutions assessing the social and economic consequences of the war in Ukraine as well as North Macedonia and Albania’s progress towards EU membership.
President’s diary. EP President Roberta Metsola will have a bilateral meeting with France’s President Emmanuel Macron before the start of the 9 May event, in Strasbourg. She will also join a discussion with young people on the TV series ‘Parlement’. On Tuesday, President Metsola will go to Luxembourg for the inauguration of Parliament’s Konrad Adenauer building, in the presence of His Royal Highness the Grand-Duke of Luxembourg and Prime Minister Xavier Bettel, with whom she will also have a working lunch. On Wednesday, the President will meet Palestine’s Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh, the daughter of Sakharov Prize laureate Ilham Tohti, Jewher Ilham, and Montenegro’s President Milo Djukanovic. President Metsola will meet Bahrain’s House of Representatives Speaker Fawzia Zainal and open the first EU-UK Parliamentary Partnership Assembly meeting, on Thursday. Finally, on Friday, she will be in Estonia for an official visit.
