Parliament grows stronger

Elections for the European Parliament (22-25 May) are approaching, and hence the parliamentary term is coming to an end. The Assembly gathered in plenary session in Strasbourg (24-27 February) will meet again a few more times before the end of term. For this reason legislative procedures on a number of measures in the pipeline, that would otherwise lapse, should be accelerated, notably the establishment of Banking Union. But in the ongoing plenary other items are on the agenda: the value of EU legislation is growing, an increasing number of issues are deferred to the EU for the adoption of effective and coherent legislation, thereby ascribing to the European parliament a crucial role in the lives of citizens. Moreover, the Chamber is urged to take a stand on political developments at continental level, which obviously puts the spotlight on the situation in Ukraine. Emergency Ukraine. Parliament president Martin Schulz addressed the situation in Kiev, the riots and the victims of Maidan, the flight of president Viktor Yanucovich and the next steps ahead of elections and democratic transition; on February 25 a delegation of MEPs in Ukraine, led by German MEP Elmar Brok reported on their mission to the country; parliament debate will take place on Wednesday 26, while Thursday February 27 Parliament will vote on a political resolution. Urgent legislative resolutions on which the Assembly is called to cast its vote include regulations against smoking, especially among the youth. The text under discussion for a long time in the EU seats provides, inter alia, that 65% of the packages of cigarettes, pipe tobacco, and the like should bear explicit warnings on the serious health hazards of tobacco. Equally important is the “railway package” to liberalize passenger transport services. Help to indigents. During the plenary session MEPs were frequently called upon to give the final approval to the fund for indigent persons (which includes the distribution of food and essential services): the financing of 500 million per year remains unchanged thanks to the firm and uncompromising position shown by MEPs on this budget item during the negotiations with the EU Council, where member state governments were not very available to compromise solutions. The fund in the multi-annual budget 2014/2020 was confirmed at 3.5 billion Euros. The chamber then tackled the issue of pollutant emissions from vehicles, insurance, the establishment of a European Voluntary Humanitarian Aid Corps, laws to freeze and confiscate property belonging to persons convicted for criminal activities (“currently – MEPs made known- less than 1% of the proceeds of criminal offense such as drug trafficking, counterfeiting, human trafficking or smuggling of weapons are confiscated”). Among other things on February 25 in Strasbourg was presented the new “High Level Group on own resources”, set up by the EU in order to give greater coherence, effectiveness and autonomy to the Community budget. Reports on rights. On February 26 an exhaustive report was presented, without legislative value but problematic under certain aspects (living wills and end-of life, sexual and reproductive health…) on the “situation of fundamental rights in the European Union”, drawn up by Belgian MEP Louis Michel. The document reaffirms the central role of fundamental rights, yet to be promoted, in the integration process along with the principles of solidarity, citizenship, justice, insufficiently protected in several member countries and in various areas of European society. The report underlines a set of problems regarding, for example, the protection of minority groups (notably the Roma), the fight on human trafficking, freedom of religion, discrimination against disabled and old people, the situation of women, often object of domestic violence, or victims of trafficking and prostitution. Special emphasis is also placed on the denial of rights to migrants and refugees, national and linguistic minority groups and the unpredictable situation of the freedom of speech and of the press (market transformations, of editorial groups and advertising). The Internet instead is often used as tool to undermine privacy rights and a means to threaten personal safety, representing a greater danger for children. Ambiguous statements. As often happens in the periodical reports on human rights, a long set of paragraphs focus on sexual and reproductive health, on “dignity at the end of life” (“in particular by ensuring that decisions expressed in living wills are recognized and respected”), on various forms of cohabitation: in this case the Michel report “welcomes the decision of a growing number of States that ensure the respect of the right to establish a family through marriage, civil partnership or registered cohabitation and the right to adoption of the without any discrimination based on sexual orientation”.