Summary

Next week, there will be a plenary sitting of the European Parliament in Strasbourg, France. Several significant debates, votes and committee meetings will take place.

On Tuesday, MEPs will debate a report of the Committee on Industry, Research and Energy (“ITRE”), authored by Carlos Zorrinho (S&D, PT) on the proposal for a regulation on the promotion of Internet connectivity in local communities and public spaces (WiFi4EU).  The scheme would promote over 5,000 free Wi-Fi connectivity spots for citizens and visitors in public spaces such as hospitals, parks, squares, public buildings, libraries, or museums all across Europe.  The scheme would also create a single EU-wide authentication system for access to these hotspots, and forms part of efforts to create a Digital Union. 

On the same day, the plenary will debate a report of the Committee on Industry, Research and Energy (“ITRE”), authored by Jerzy Buzek (EPP, PL) on the proposal for a regulation concerning measures to safeguard the security of gas supply. Under new rules that were informally agreed by MEPs and ministers, Member States that are confronted with a gas supply crisis will be able to trigger an emergency alert and thereby receive help from neighbouring Member States, in the “spirit of solidarity”. The aim of the proposal is to reinforce the security of gas supplies across the EU. The new rules should become effective before winter.

On Wednesday, European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker will deliver his annual State of the Union address before the European Parliament.  The speech will focus on the EU’s response to a shifting political and economic landscape.  President Juncker will present his views on how the Union can ensure a “secure, prosperous and inclusive future of Europe.”  MEPs will then engage with him in a three-hour debate, where group leaders will lay out their priorities and question President Juncker on youth unemployment, job creation, economic recovery, migration and protect EU citizens against internal and external threats.

On the same day, MEPs will vote on a non-binding own-initiative report and motion for a resolution by Bodil Valero (Green/EFA, SE) on arms exports and the implementation of the Council Common Position 2008/944/CFSP, which defines common rules governing control of exports of military technology and equipment. The report, which was adopted in the Committee on Foreign Affairs (“AFET”) on July 18, 2017, provides that EU Member States must ensure consistency between their arms export control decisions; and that, should it be deemed necessary, an EU supervisory body should be established to oversee such decisions. MEPs will assess the success of the Common Position on arms export control and propose improvements to the resolution before the vote.

Meetings and Agenda

Monday, September 11, 2017

Plenary

17:00 – 21:00 (Debates)

• EU accession to the Council of Europe Convention on preventing and combating violence against women and domestic violence

  • Rapporteurs: Anna Maria Corazza Bildt (EPP, SE), Christine Revault D’Allonnes Bonnefoy (S&D, FR)

  • Committees: LIBE; FEMM

• Implementation of the Mediation Directive

  • Rapporteur: Kostas Chrysogonos (GUE/NGL, GR)

  • Committee: JURI

• European venture capital funds and European social entrepreneurship funds

  • Rapporteur: Sirpa Pietikäinen (EPP, S&D)

  • Committee: ECON

• Prison systems and conditions

  • Rapporteur: Joëlle Bergeron (EFDD, FR)

  • Committee: LIBE

• A Space Strategy for Europe

  • Rapporteur: Constanze Krehl (S&D, DE)

  • Committee: ITRE

• Impact of international trade and EU’s trade policies on global value chains

  • Rapporteur: Maria Arena (S&D, BE)

  • Committee: INTA

• The functioning of franchising in the retail sector

  • Rapporteur: Dennis de Jong (GUE/NGL, NL)

  • Committee: IMCO

 Committees

 Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety

18:00 – 19:00

• Discussion with Mr Vytenis Andriukaitis, Commissioner for Health & Food Safety, on illegal use of Fipronil in poultry farms

Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety and Committee on Industry, Research and Energy (Joint committee meeting)

19:00 – 20:30

• Consideration of amendments on draft report on Governance of the Energy Union

  • Rapporteurs: Michèle Rivasi (Greens/EFA, FR), Claude Turmes (Greens/EFA, LU)

Committee on Constitutional Affairs

19:30 – 21:30

• Consideration of draft report on the Composition of the European Parliament (INL)

  • Co-rapporteurs: Danuta Maria Hübner (EPP, PL); Pedro Silva PEREIRA (S&D, PT)

Tuesday, September 12, 2017

Plenary

9:00 – 11:50 (Debates)

• Promotion of internet connectivity in local communities

  • Rapporteur: Carlos Zorrinho (S&D, PT)

  • Committee: ITRE

• Measures to safeguard the security of gas supply

  • Rapporteur: Jerzy Buzek (EPP, PL)

  • Committee: ITRE

12:00 – 14:00 (Votes)

• Repeal of obsolete regulations with regard to inland waterway and road haulage sectors

• • Rapporteur: Karima Delli (Greens/EFA, FR)

  • Committee: TRAN

• EU-Iceland Agreement on the protection of geographical indications for agricultural products and foodstuffs

• • Rapporteur: David Borrelli (EFDD, IT)

  • Committee: INTA

• EU-Iceland Agreement concerning additional trade preferences in agricultural products

• • Rapporteur: David Borrelli (EFDD, IT)

  • Committee: INTA

• Whale hunting in Norway

• • Committee: ENVI

15:00 – 21:00 (Debates)

Debates on foreign affairs issues in the presence of the Vice-President of the Commission/High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy)

• Arms export: implementation of Common Position 2008/944/CFSP

• • Rapporteur: Bodil Valero (Greens/EFA, SE)

  • Committee: AFET

• EU political relations with India

• • Rapporteur: Cristian Dan Preda (EPP, RO)

  • Committee: AFET

• EU political relations with ASEAN

• • Rapporteur: Reinhard Bütikofer (Greens/EFA, DE)

  • Committee: AFET

• EU political relations with Latin America

• • Rapporteur: Javi López (S&D, ES)

  • Committee: AFET

• Corruption and human rights in third countries

• • Rapporteur: Petras Auštrevičius (ALDE, LT)

  • Committee: AFET

• Presentation by the Council of its position on the draft general budget – 2018 financial year

Wednesday, September 13, 2017 

Plenary:

09:00 – 11:50 (Key Debate)

• State of the Union

12:00 – 14:00 (Votes)

• Extension of the European statistical programme to 2020

• • Rapporteur: Roberto Gualtieri (S&D, IT)

  • Committee: ECON

• Uniform format for residence permits for third country nationals

• • Rapporteur: Jussi Halla-aho (ECR, FI)

  • Committee: LIBE

• Subjecting acryloylfentanyl to control measures

• • Rapporteur: Brice Hortefeux (EPP, FR)

  • Committee: LIBE

• Multilateral Agreement on the establishment of a European Common Aviation Area (ECAA)

• • Rapporteur: Roberts Zīle (ECR, LV)

  • Committee: TRAN

• Draft amending budget No 3/2017: budgetary resources of the Youth Employment Initiative; establishing plans of ACER and SESAR2

• • Rapporteur: Jens Geier (S&D, DE)

  • Committee: BUDG

• Mobilisation of the European Union Solidarity Fund to provide assistance to Italy

• • Rapporteur: Giovanni La Via (EPP, IT)

  • Committee: BUDG

• Draft amending budget No 4/2017 accompanying the proposal to mobilise the European Union Solidarity Fund to provide assistance to Italy

• • Rapporteur: Jens Geier (S&D, DE)

  • Committee: BUDG

• Mobilisation of the European Globalisation Adjustment Fund: application EGF/2017/002 FI/MICROSOFT 2

• • Rapporteur: Petri Sarvamaa (EPP, FI)

  • Committee: BUDG

15:00 – 21:00 (Debates)

• Topical debate (Rule 153a)

• Fire safety in buildings

• • 2017/2764 (RSP)

• Accessibility requirements for products and services

• • Rapporteur: Morten Løkkegaard (ALDE, DK)

  • Committee: IMCO

• CE marked fertilising products

• • Rapporteur: Ildikó Gáll-Pelcz (HU)

  • Committee: IMCO

• The future of the Erasmus+ programme

• • Report

• Modernisation of the trade pillar of the EU-Chile Association Agreement

• • Rapporteur: Inmaculada Rodríguez-Piñero Fernández (S&D, ES)

  • Committee: INTA

• EU-Chile Agreement on trade in organic products

• • Rapporteur: Inmaculada Rodríguez-Piñero Fernández (S&D, ES)

  • Committee: INTA

• Protocol to the EU-Chile Association Agreement (accession of Croatia)

• • Rapporteur: Inmaculada Rodríguez-Piñero Fernández (S&D, ES)

  • Committee: INTA

Thursday, September 14, 2017

Plenary

9:00 – 11:50 (Debates)

• A new skills agenda for Europe

• • Rapporteurs: Momchil Nekov (S&D, BG), Martina Dlabajová (ALDE, CZ)

  • Committees: EMPL; CULT

• Academic further and distance education as part of the European lifelong learning strategy

• • Rapporteur: Milan Zver (EPP, SI)

  • Committee: CULT

12:00 – 14:00 Votes

• Motions for resolutions concerning debates on cases of breaches of human rights, democracy and the rule of law (Rule 135)

15:00 – 16:00 Major interpellations

• Major interpellations (Rule 130b)

Committees

Committee on Foreign Affairs

09:00 – 10:30

• Consideration of the draft report on a recommendation to the Council, the Commission and the EEAS on the Eastern Partnership, in the run-up to the November 2017 Summit

  • Co-rapporteurs: Knut Fleckenstein (S&D, DE), Laima Liucija Andrikienė (EPP, LT)

• In association with the Delegation to the Euronest Parliamentary Assembly: Discussion on the perspectives for the November 2017 Eastern Partnership Summit with the Bureau of the Euronest Parliamentary Assembly