News from the European Parlament
MEPs will have much to discuss during the Strasbourg plenary session on 21-24 May, ranging from ways to reform the economy to measures to plug the gender pay gap. Parliament will vote on a proposed financial transaction tax on Wednesday as well as on a proposal to maximise the efficient use and recovery of natural resources, while also debating measures to support SMEs. On Thursday MEPs will vote on a resolution addressing the gender pay gap, which still averages 16% in the EU.Source : © European Union, 2012 - EP
May 17 is the International day against homophobia, an area in which the European Parliament is very active. This year's theme is "fighting homophobia and transphobia in and through education". So where do EU countries stand? Which countries protect their gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender citizens against hate crimes and afford them the same rights as other citizens? Find out in our infographic.Source : © European Union, 2012 - EP
"Europe on the Ground", a Greek youth media project, was awarded first prize at the 2012 Charlemagne Youth Prize ceremony on 15 May in Aachen. Second prize went to Europe Meets School, an exchange programme for Erasmus students (Czech Republic) and the winner of the third prize was the Cycle Me Home project, a documentary road-movie (Hungary). The Charlemagne Youth Prize is awarded annually to projects that foster a shared sense of European identity and integration among young people.Source : © European Union, 2012 - EP
The economic and monetary affairs committee has a busy meeting to look forward to on Monday 14 May when its members will look at how to make finance work for the benefit of the society as a whole. Not only will the committee vote on measures that limit bankers' bonuses and demand that banks lend more prudently, it will also decide on stricter surveillance of eurozone countries' budgets.Source : © European Union, 2012 - EP
The European Charlemagne Youth Prize is awarded to projects by young people that promote the development of a shared sense of European identity. The three winners of the 2012 Charlemagne Youth Prize will be announced on Tuesday 15 May in Aachen, Germany. We spoke to five previous winners and asked them what impact winning the prize has had on their lives.Source : © European Union, 2012 - EP
MEPs on the economics committee are set to vote on a series of big ticket items on Monday, including budgetary oversight of eurozone countries and tighter banking rules. Also up for discussion this week are Albania's EU membership prospects.Source : © European Union, 2012 - EP
The EU adopted over the past decade several regulations to protect the rights of passengers travelling by plane, train, ship or bus. Today it wants to clarify and better enforce air passenger rights and ensure consistent application of different passenger rights regulations in the future.Source : © European Union, 2012 - EP
Centuries after Blackbeard and his ilk passed into legend, piracy has once again become a major problem with a global impact. Operating off the Somali coast, modern day pirates have become a threat to regional stability, world trade and all forms of maritime transport. As long as the political situation in Somalia remains unstable, it is unlikely that the situation will improve. The EP adopted a resolution on how to tackle the challenge during the Brussels plenary on 10 May.Source : © European Union, 2012 - EP
Distilbène, Mediator, Isomeride: they are all drugs once sold legally in Europe but now believed to have provoked serious side effects including hundreds of deaths. An urgent review of medicine monitoring systems in the EU is essential according to MEP Linda McAvan, who wrote two reports on it. On May 8, the public health committee approved amendments to the pharmacovigilance regulation to improve the detection of potentially unsafe medicines and speed up action to take them off the market.Source : © European Union, 2012 - EP
Half of all flights could face delays by 2030 if nothing is done to ease congestion at Europe's busiest airports, according to the European Commission. The airports package launched by the Commission aims to tackle this problem as well as improve services to passengers and aircraft as investment in airport often takes decades from planning to completion. The Parliament's transport committee found out from representatives of the aviation sector on 8 May what they thought of the ambitious plans.Source : © European Union, 2012 - EP
Welcome
Dear Visitor,
Welcome to my homepage! This site serves the purpose of keeping you updated on the job I am doing on your behalf in the European Parliament. It's also a tool to help you find information about what's going on in the Parliament at any time. I am the chair of the EU-Russia Delegation, I sit on the Transport Committee, and I am a substitute for the Culture Committee. Fulfilling those tasks, I work hard on achieving what is best for the citizens. Please contact me if you have any concerns or feel like I could be of assistance to you!
Yours, Knut Fleckenstein