The new European Parliament - a Burson-Marsteller Insight

Having (almost) decided on the split of committees and nomination of Chairs, the European Parliament’s committees will begin work next week in Strasbourg, and continue in Brussels on 20 July.

The timing of the constituent meetings are as follows, with three meetings taken place simultaneously in Strasbourg, and four in Brussels:

Thursday 16 July (Strasbourg):

1030-1115: foreign affairs, budgets, and international trade

1125-1210: economic and monetary affairs, employment and social affairs, and women’s rights

1220-1305: industry, civil liberties, and legal affairs

1315-1400: environment, internal market and consumer protection, and petitions

Monday 20 July (Brussels):

1500-1600: human rights, development, budgetary control, and transport

1615-1715: security and defence, agriculture, fisheries, and regional development (continuing into an ordinary meeting)

1730-1830: culture, and constitutional affairs.

The committees have also prepared detailed notes for new members. New members of the Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety will, for example, receive a 15-page document that outlines pending legislative dossiers (including industrial emissions (IPPC), novel foods, and cross-border healthcare), dossiers that are yet to officially start (including those already discussed by the Parliament, such as food labelling, the pharmaceutical package, waste electronic and electrical equipment (WEEE), hazardous substances (RoHS) and biocides), planned Commission initiatives (such as consumer information on car emissions and a revised Directive on drinking water) and likely recasts and revisions of legislation, as well as follow-up actions required by existing legislation.

More widely, the Parliament’s services have produced a series of documents on key policy issues over the next decade that will impact the assembly’s work, covering a range of social and economic policies.