MEP will vote against Canada trade agreement

Press release from EFA MEP Jill Evans (Wales)

Plaid MEP Jill Evans will vote against the EU – Canada trade agreement, known as CETA, in the European Parliament this week. MEPs will vote on the controversial trade deal on Wednesday. The Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement is a free trade agreement that has been negotiated over th...

Social rights must be foundation of European Union

Press release by EFA MEP Jordi Solé (Catalunya)

Catalan MEP Jordi Solé has called for social rights to be a cornerstone of the European Union. MEPs in Strasbourg have been debating plans to create a 'European Pillar of Social Rights'. They insist that this must be more than well intentioned words, and call for a law to guaran...

New President of European Parliament

Press release from EFA MEP J-M Terricabras (Catalunya)

Commenting on the election of Antonio Tajani as the new President of the European Parliament, President of the EFA Group in the European Parliament, Josep-Maria Terricabras said: "I congratulate Mr Tajani on his election as President of the European Parliament. "This institution whi...

European Parliament united in defence of fundamental rights

The European Parliament has approved a report on the Situation of Fundamental Rights in the EU in 2015, with the Greens/EFA Group voting in favour. Three of the four amendments presented by the Greens/EFA Group were approved. Following the vote, MEP Josep-Maria Terricabras, spokesperson on the subje...

EU-Turkey Relations

Press release from EFA MEPs Maragall and Terricabras

EFA MEPs Ernest Maragall and Josep-Maria Terricabras have voiced their concerns about the situation in Turkey as the European Parliament prepares to vote on freezing EU accession negotiations. Maragall & Terricabras This follows the deteriorating state of Turkish democracy and human rights...

EU double standards on false anti-Russian propaganda

Press release from EFA MEP Tatjana Ždanoka

Speaking ahead of a European Parliament vote on a report that accuses Russia of propaganda against the West, Latvian MEP Tatjana Ždanoka says MEPs must avoid double standards in dealing with Russia. At next week's plenary session of the European Parliament MEPs will vote on the Fotyga report which ...

Civil liberties must be safeguarded in fight against terror

Press release from EFA MEP J-M Terricabras (Catalunya)

MEPs in Strasbourg on Tuesday debated progress on security issues, with new European Commissioner for the Security Union, Sir Julian King. President of the EFA Group in the European Parliament, Josep-Maria Terricabras, took part in the debate and emphasised the need to protect and defend human ri...

Brexit - Scotland's democratic will must be recognised

Press release from EFA MEP Ian Hudghton (SNP)

In a European Parliament debate on the future of the EU, dominated by the response to Brexit, SNP President Ian Hudghton MEP called for the democratic will of the people of Scotland to be recognised. MEP Ian Hudghton The debate followed a major speech on the 'State of the Union' by EU ...

Human rights must be central to EU migration compact

Press release from EFA MEP J-M Terricabras (Catalonia)

MEPs in Strasbourg have debated the European Union's proposed new 'migration compact' aimed at addressing the root causes of migration. The European Commission proposes using EU funding to encourage private investment in migrants' countries of origin, notably Africa. The propos...

European police and security

New EUROPOL rules will strengthen police cooperation

The European Parliament today adopted new rules on EUROPOL, the EU's law enforcement agency. The new rules will strengthen EUROPOL's ability to ensure cross-border cooperation between police services. After the vote, Greens/EFA vice-president Josep-Maria Terricabras said: “The tragic terrorist att...

Yes to Turkey visa liberalisation, but not at any price

Press release from EFA MEP Ernest Maragall

Greens/EFA MEP Ernest Maragall, a member of the European Parliament's Delegation for relations with Turkey, has spoken out in support of liberalising EU visa conditions for Turkish citizens to visit Europe. But the Catalan MEP said that visa liberalisation should not be approved until the Turkish s...

Basque peace process - Otegi visit to European Parliament

Press release from EFA MEPs J-M Terricabras & Tatjana Ždanoka

At the invitation of the European Parliament's Basque Friendship Group, well-known Basque independentist figure Arnalo Otegi is visiting Brussels to push for greater support for the Basque peace process. MEPs have called for the Spanish government to enter into dialogue in the search for a la...

Jill Evans MEP asks 'who made my clothes'?

Press release from EFA MEP Jill Evans (Plaid Cymru)

As the third anniversary of the Rana Plaza clothing factory tragedy approaches this Sunday, Plaid Cymru MEP Jill Evans is backing a campaign for ethical clothes labelling in Europe. Over a thousand people died and more than two thousand five hundred were injured in Dhaka, Bangladesh in 2013 when th...

MEPs back improvements to flagship Erasmus+ scheme

Press Release from EFA MEP Ernest Maragall (Catalonia)

In a key report by Greens/EFA MEP Ernest Maragall voted today by the European Parliament, MEPs have called for the EU's flagship Erasmus+ programme to do more to promote mobility through vocational training in Europe. But MEPs rejected an amendment calling for the documentation about the prog...

Inclusion is key to resolve Nagorno-Karabakh dispute

Press release from EFA MEP Josep-Maria Terricabras (Catalonia)

Speaking as the European Parliament debates the situation in Nagorno-Karabakh, Josep-Maria Terricabras, President of the EFA Group in the European Parliament, called for the legitimate representatives of the people of the territory to be included in the negotiations about its future. MEP Josep-Ma...