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Highlights of next week's European Parliament agenda in Strasbourg include:

• Sakharov Prize - Sudanese human rights lawyer (Tuesday);
• Air quality - 2nd reading directive (debate Tuesday; vote Weds);
• Preparing EU Summit - Reform Treaty (Wednesday);
• Wine sector reform (Tuesday debate; vote Wednesday);
• EU budget 2008 - 2nd reading (debate Tuesday, vote Wednesday).

 

Sakharov Prize

Each year on or around 10 December (the day on which the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights was signed in 1948) the European Parliament rewards outstanding achievements in the fight to protect freedom of thought and expression against intolerance, fanaticism and hatred: the Sakharov Prize.

The 2007 winner is Salih Mahmoud Mohamed Osman, a Sudanese lawyer who works with the Sudan Organisation Against Torture to provide legal assistance and other aid to victims of human rights abuses in Sudan.

For over two decades he has provided free legal representation to people arbitrarily detained, tortured or abused in Sudan's various civil wars. As violence in Darfur has worsened in recent years, he has worked to provide a record of the alleged war crimes in that region. He visits detainees and initiates legal action against human rights violators. His interviews with witnesses and records of crime have been turned over to the International Criminal Court to assist the Court's prosecutions.

He will be formally presented with the award in Strasbourg by the President of the European Parliament President, Hans-Gert Pöttering on Tuesday 11 December.

A short video presentation about the winner is available on the europarl website: http://www.europarl.europa.eu/sakharov_2007_package/module_en.htm

For more details on Sakharov prize: http://www.europarl.europa.eu/sakharov_2007/default_en.htm

 

Air quality

New EU rules on air pollution are set for their 2nd reading with a debate on Monday evening and vote Tuesday. The proposed Directive sets out maximum concentrations of the micro-particles and atmospheric dust most harmful to human health. Among the issues covered in the text which has now been negotiated between MEPs and the Council of Ministers:

• Targets for levels of fine particles (PM2.5) in the air from 2010, with binding limits from 2015;
• No change on the current rules governing larger particles (PM10) which came into force at the start of 2005;
• For those areas or cities which cannot meet the current PM10 limits, the need for a plan showing why maximum figures cannot be met;
• Sampling points in cities of over 250,000 inhabitants and in rural areas.

The new rules would enter into force two years after the directive's formal adoption. In the European Parliament's 1st reading debate (25 September 2006), two UK MEPs spoke: John Bowis (Conservative, London); Sarah Ludford (Lib Dem, London). Both referred specifically to air pollution problems in London.

 

EU Summit - Reform Treaty

MEPs will set the scene for the EU Summit (13-14 December) in Wednesday morning's key debate.

 

Charter of Fundamental Rights: At 10.30am (UK time), the Presidents of the European Parliament, European Commission and Council (Portuguese PM) will sign the Charter of Fundamental Rights in a formal ceremony in Strasbourg. Following Wednesday's signing ceremony, it will be published in the EU's Official Journal. A Protocol annexed to the EU Reform Treaty sets out how the Charter will have more limited legal effect in the UK and Poland. A resolution adopted by a majority in the European Parliament on 29 November urged the UK and Poland to accept unrestricted applicability of the Charter. The following UK MEPs took part in the debate on 28 November: Richard Corbett (Lab, Yorks & Humber); Andrew Duff (Lib Dem, Eastern); Jim Allister (Independent, Northern Ireland).

On 13 December, EU Heads of Government or State are due to meet in Lisbon to sign the EU Reform Treaty. European Parliament President Hans-Gert Pöttering will also attend.

On 14 December, the EU Summit will take place, dealing with substantive policy issues such as terrorism, climate change and immigration.

 

Wine sector reform

Plans to overhaul the rules governing the EU wine sector are set for debate on Tuesday (with a vote on Wednesday). The UK's wine industry may be small relative to some other EU member states but it has been growing in recent years so this debate is being watched closely in some parts of the UK. Among the issues at the centre of the debate: whether and when to allow the full liberalisation of planting rights; whether to allow the adding of sugar to increase alcohol content; the duration of any 'grubbing up' campaign; and the rules on wine names and labelling.

The European Parliament is only consulted on this proposal and the final say remains with the Council of Ministers. The Council is set to meet on 17-19 December 2007 to discuss outstanding issues. Parliament's Agriculture Committee, chaired by UK Conservative MEP Neil Parish (South West), adopted 287 amendments to the proposal.

 

EU budget 2008

MEPs will hold their 2nd reading debate on the 2008 EU budget on Tuesday afternoon, with the final vote set for Thursday.

One of the main issues this year has been funding for the European satellite navigation system Galileo. MEPs have now agreed with the Council that Galileo should be funded entirely out of the EU's budget, with funds taken mainly from unused agricultural spending in 2007. The agreement has also earmarked funding for the proposed European Institute of Technology (EIT).

The EU's budgetary year runs from 1 January to 31 December, so the European Parliament's 2nd reading vote is vital to enable EU funding to be available for the start of 2008.

 

UK MEPs

 

David Martin MEP (Labour, Scotland) - Korea

Scottish Labour MEP David Martin will lead Thursday morning's debate on EU relations with Korea. The main point of the resolution set for adoption on Thursday is that there should be a Free-Trade Agreement between the EU and South Korea. David Martin's report addresses specific problems in the automotive and ship-building sectors and intellectual property issues, as well as trade relations between North and South Korea.

Glyn Ford MEP (Labour, South West) - Hotel safety

Glyn Ford (Lab, South West) will be tabling a question to the European Commission on Monday evening on the compulsory fitting of sprinkler systems in hotels. This comes in the wake of the Penhallow (Cornwall) hotel fire earlier in the year.

Textile trade

Robert Sturdy MEP (Cons, Eastern), Glyn Ford MEP (Lab, South West) and Caroline Lucas (Greens, South East) are among the signatories of an oral question to the European Commission on the textile trade. Trade relations with China are at issue here, with the transition to free trade and an end to the quota system the main substantive questions. The European Commission will respond to the debate on Thursday morning.

Chris Heaton-Harris MEP (Conservative, East Midlands)

East Midlands Conservative MEP Chris Heaton-Harris is tabling a report due for adoption on Tuesday, which will lay down some of the technical specifications necessary for the introduction of a new EU Customs Code. The aim is to bring in electronic customs declarations and electronic data exchange between customs authorities.

 

OTHER LEGISLATION

Car spare parts - legal protection of design

The market in car spare parts and other components is affected by a proposed directive on the legal protection of design. MEPs will debate the proposal on Tuesday evening, with a 1st reading vote to follow on Wednesday. If adopted, the directive will allow suppliers to produce motor vehicle components which are identical to the original parts without infringing design protection. The UK is one of only nine EU Member States where spare parts for repair or replacement are allowed in the after-sales market. One of the amendments adopted at committee stage would allow Member States to retain design protection for a further five years.

 

Marine environment

Protection of the marine environment is the goal of a new directive due for its 2nd reading (debate Monday; vote Tuesday). The text agreed in negotiations between the European Parliament and the Council of Ministers will see Member States developing marine strategies by 2020, with a series of measures designed to improve the marine environment being introduced from 2016. At the time of writing, the text is not yet available as it has been amended through informal discussions since the committee stage vote.

During the 1st reading debate on 13 November 2006, the following UK MEPs spoke: Chris Davies (Lib Dem, North West); John Purvis (Conservative, Scotland); and Ian Hudghton (SNP, Scotland).

 

Aviation safety

The European Aviation Safety Agency's rules and competences are to be reviewed as MEPs have their 2nd reading of a proposed Regulation. Among the issues now agreed between Parliament and the Council: that the European Commission can impose fines on airlines as an alternative to the outright withdrawal of their certificate; the definition of aircraft size thresholds; flight time limitations; cabin crew recognition of certificates.

One UK MEP, Robert Evans (Labour, London) spoke in the 1st reading debate on this proposal (13 March 2007).

 

Public Private Partnerships

Public-private partnerships in the research field are set to get the go-ahead following a vote on Tuesday. The four so-called Joint Technology Initiatives (JTIs) will be in the fields of nano-electronics technologies; aeronautics and air transport; innovative medicines; and embedded computer systems. The JTI approach signals a real change in how Europe promotes industry-driven research.

 

Census information

Monday evening sees a debate on proposed census questions to be asked from 2011. This had aroused some interest in the UK media at the committee stage before MEPs on the Employment Committee threw out a proposed question on 'consensual union'. The Regulation aims to overcome wide disparities between Member States' questions and timings of population and housing censuses, making comparisons difficult and thereby hindering the development of regional, social and environmental policies in the future.

This is the 1st reading in the codecision procedure where the European Parliament has equal decision-making power with the Council of Ministers. If the Council does not accept all amendments adopted at 1st reading, the proposal will return to Parliament for a 2nd reading at a later stage.

Agriculture - Farm support + information measures

The system of farm support payments under the Common Agricultural Policy is up for review. MEPs will be voting on a proposed change to the rules on the criteria for granting aid. Since the CAP was reformed in 2003, EU farm payments have been linked to land husbandry, including animal welfare and environmental protection. However, the system for administering the changes has proved difficult to put into practice in some EU Member States, hence the proposed changes before Parliament now.

The Agriculture Committee adopted 29 amendments to the proposal and the full Parliament will vote on Wednesday. The Council of Ministers has the final say on these rule changes, however.

MEPs will also be debating (Tuesday) and voting (Wednesday) on funding criteria for promoting farm produce both within the EU and beyond in the wider world.

OTHER ISSUES

• EU-Africa summit: Tuesday sees a debate on the outcome of the EU-Africa summit (taking place on 8-9 December in Lisbon). Most UK media coverage in the run-up to the summit focused on whether President Mugabe of Zimbabwe would attend with a knock-on effect on UK participation. Three UK MEPs are attending the summit: Fiona Hall (Lib Dem, North East); Glenys Kinnock (Labour, Wales) and Robert Sturdy (Conservative, Eastern).

• 2008 work programme: MEPs will adopt a resolution setting out their response to the European Commission's legislative and work programme for 2008. In the debate which took place on 13 November, after the European Commission formally presented its programme, the following UK MEPs spoke: Andrew Duff (Lib Dem, Eastern); Liz Lynne (Lib Dem, West Midlands); Nigel Farage (UKIP, South East); John Bowis (Conservative, London); Linda McAvan (Labour, Yorks & Humber); Fiona Hall (Lib Dem, North East); Giles Chichester (Cons, South West); Sarah Ludford (Lib Dem, London); Robert Sturdy (Cons, Eastern) - vote Wednesday

• Maintenance obligations: On Wednesday evening, MEPs will discuss proposed new rules governing maintenance obligations in the case of divorced couples where the two people concerned live in different EU member states. According to the report from the Civil Liberties Committee, it is very common for people to avoid paying maintenance in such circumstances. The European Parliament is only consulted on the proposed Regulation, the final say being with the 27 governments in the Council of Ministers. The Committee report, however, proposes 60 amendments to the legislation aimed mainly at protecting the interests of children involved.

• Extremism: MEPs will debate the rise of extremism in Europe after hearing a statement from the European Commission (Wednesday).

• Black Sea shipping disaster: MEPs will hear a European Commission statement (Wednesday) on the aftermath of the recent Black Sea shipping disaster and the subsequent oil pollution in the area.

• Jordan: The King of Jordan is due to make a formal address to the European Parliament at 11am (UK time) on Wednesday. King Abdullah II was educated in Surrey and later attended Sandhurst. He has reigned since 1999 and previously addressed the European Parliament in June 2002.

Full information can be found in "The Briefing" at: http://www.europarl.europa.eu/news/expert/tous_les_briefing/default/default_en.htm

 

 

Plenary session Strasbourg

Committee Meetings

Diary Dates

Further information

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Further information