The Week Ahead 21 – 27 February 2022

No parliamentary meetings are foreseen in Brussels, as the week is set aside for committee delegations/missions in relation to topics falling under their responsibility.

Rule of law/Poland. A delegation from the Civil Liberties and Constitutional Affairs Committees will travel to Warsaw. They will assess the rule of law situation, including the issue of the primacy of EU law, in the framework of the ongoing “Article 7” procedure on possible breach of EU values against Poland. MEPs plan to meet, among others, representatives of the Polish Government, the judiciary, civil society organisations and media (Monday to Wednesday). A press conference will take place on Wednesday at 14:15.

Ukraine crisis/Estonia/Lithuania. A delegation of the Security and Defence Subcommittee will go to Tallinn and Vilnius, to receive first-hand information on the threat from cyber-attacks in the context of escalating tensions related to the Ukraine crisis. MEPs will meet representatives from the government, NATO and private companies (Monday to Thursday).

Turkey/Human rights. A Subcommittee on Human Rights delegation will travel to Ankara and Istanbul, where MEPs will meet with political representatives and stakeholders to discuss the country’s human rights situation, the rule of law, and refugee protection and migration management (Tuesday to Thursday).

Trade/Mexico. An International Trade Committee delegation travels to Mexico City to meet with government and parliament representatives to learn about the status of the modernisation of the EU-Mexico trade agreement (Tuesday to Thursday).

2021 natural disasters/Netherlands/Germany/Belgium. A Regional Development Committee delegation will go to The Netherlands, Germany and Belgium to visit flood-affected regions. MEPs will take stock of EU relief measures in these regions following the severe flooding and landslides that hit several European countries in the summer of 2021 (Monday to Wednesday).

European Citizens’ Panels/Conference of the Future of Europe. The final European Citizens’ Panels to deliver its recommendations, covering ‘A stronger economy, social justice and jobs / Education, culture, youth and sport / Digital transformation’, will meet in Dublin, Ireland. The recommendations will be debated at the Conference Plenary in early March, alongside recommendations from the Panel on ‘EU in the world / migration’, and from national panels and events (Friday to Sunday).