Estonia's EU Presidency welcomed

EFA President Josep-Maria Terricabras on Estonia's EU Presidency

President of the EFA Group in the European Parliament, and Greens/EFA Vice President Josep-Maria Terricabras has welcomed the start of Estonia's six-month Presidency of the EU Council during a special debate at the E...

From remainers to retainers – Brexit's impact on culture and education

EFA - Culture committee considers Brexit

The implications of Brexit for culture and education were the focus of a hearing of the European Parliament's Culture Committee this week. MEPs heard evidence from a number of expert speakers including Eluned Haf,...

Transparency and accountability vital to avoid misuse of European funds

Debating the future of European Political Parties

Greens/EFA Vice President, and President of the EFA Group in the European Parliament, Josep-Maria Terricabras, has voiced support for greater transparency and accountability in order to counter any possible misuse of Eur...

"Do you want Catalonia to be an independent state in the form of a Republic?"

EFA MEP Jordi Solé on Catalonia's plans for an independence referendum on 1 October

The Catalan government has announced a referendum on independence which will take place on 1 October 2017. EFA MEP Jordi Solé from Esquerra Republicana de Catalunya took the floor at the European Parliament in ...

Europe's Languages Charter – 25 years later

25th anniversary of the adoption of the European Charter of Regional and Minority Languages

To mark the 25th anniversary of the adoption of the European Charter of Regional and Minority Languages by the Council of Europe, diverse MEPs intervened in the European Parliament's Strasbourg Plenary session in the...

LGBTi Rights - "Progress is reversible"

EFA MEP Alyn Smith (Scotland) speaks out on LGBTi rights

EFA MEP Alyn Smith (Scottish National Party) has spoken out in the European Parliament, in Strasbourg over the alarming situation of LGBTi rights and the EU guidelines to protect and uphold them, particularly in the afte...

Citizens must be central to Brexit talks

According to MEPs from the European Free Alliance group, the negotiations should be fair and in good faith, with citizens' interests coming first and people not used as bargaining chips

Scotland's place in Europe's family of nations

Plenary intervention by Alyn Smith

Scotland faces the prospect of being removed from our family of nations against our clearly expressed democratic will. It's not fair, and if the EU is not a community of justice and law and democracy then what are we for?

Europe must embrace strongly pro-European historic nations like Scotland and Catalonia

Terricabras on the future of Europe

Terricabras was speaking in a debate in the European Parliament with European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker on his much awaited 'White paper on the future of Europe', which sets out five scenarios for the future course of the EU post-Brexit.

EFA MEPs join CETA protest

EFA MEPs Josep-Maria Terricabras and Jill Evans joined protestors outside the European Parliament in Strasbourg to show their opposition to the controversial CETA trade agreement between the EU and Canada.

Electricity price scandal in the Spanish state

Scandalously high electricity prices in the Spanish state have been highlighted by Esquerra Republicana de Catalunya MEPs Josep-Maria Terricabras and Jordi Solé in a written question to the European Commission. ...

Huge interest in Catalan independence process at European Parliament

EFA event

Several hundred people attended an event at the European Parliament in Brussels to hear more about Catalonia's forthcoming independence referendum.