The Week ahead

Ukraine and the EU's assistance to the country as it faces another year of Russian war will be high on the European Parliament’s plenary agenda. The EPP Group reiterates that the EU and G7 countries urgently need a strategy for financing Ukraine’s defence and survival. "Ukraine needs Europe and Europe needs Ukraine. Ukrainians are paying the highest price for our joint future, for the right to live in free countries and for peace on our continent. We must not shy away from bold decisions and honour our commitment to help and assist them in their fight. If we fail now, we will pay an infinitely higher price in the near future,” stresses Rasa Juknevičienė MEP, EPP Group Vice-Chair in charge of Foreign Affairs.

Extreme time pressure hangs over the European Council ahead of its extraordinary summit on 1 February, where EU leaders are aiming to agree on a revision of the EU's long-term budget. In a key plenary debate on Wednesday, MEPs will stress the urgent need to make progress in the negotiations. "There's enormous time pressure mounting ahead of the European Council summit on 1 February. We strongly urge Member State leaders to agree on a negotiating position on the Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF) by that date; otherwise, we'll be racing against the clock to finalise the comprehensive revision of the EU's budget until 2027," says Jan Olbrycht MEP, the Parliament's lead negotiator on the MFF.

The European Parliament will debate the humanitarian situation in Gaza on Tuesday. For the EPP Group, regular humanitarian pauses are needed to ensure the distribution of food and other necessary supplies throughout the Gaza Strip. For this purpose, further border crossings from Israel should be opened to ensure that supplies reach all parts of the Gaza Strip.  “After the end of Hamas' rule in Gaza, we as Europeans – preferably in coordination with the United States – must work to establish a robust mandate within the framework of the United Nations – for Gaza – where a strong international presence will first provide a constant flow of humanitarian aid and then start the reconstruction of the Gaza strip while at the same time ensuring that no terrorist threat against Israel continues. This must then lead to a peace process, where elections will take place and negotiations will ensure a pacification of the conflict," says Michael Gahler MEP, the EPP Group spokesman in the Committee on Foreign Affairs. “We have all condemned Hamas' attack against Israel, their killing and hostage-taking of innocent civilians. At the same time, we are aware of the suffering of the Palestinian civilians, the victims, and the human shields of Hamas. We continue to demand the unconditional release of the Israeli hostages. But, we also see the urgent need for regular humanitarian pauses to provide the innocent civilian population with essential food and medicine supplies," stresses Antonio López-Istúriz White MEP, Chairman of the delegation for relations with Israel. On Thursday, a resolution will be voted on.

The EPP Group wants EU funds to be used effectively and in line with the EU’s objectives. Any organisation receiving EU funding, including non-governmental organisations (NGOs), must be transparent about what they do with the money. The Parliament will debate on Tuesday and vote on Wednesday on a report on the transparency and accountability of NGOs funded from the EU budget. Acknowledging the important work NGOs do in many areas, the report states that so far only the EU funds directly awarded to NGOs are subject to monitoring and reporting. “We must strengthen public transparency to prevent and fight against fraud and to ensure that EU funds are not used against EU values as we saw for example during Qatargate in 2022,” says Markus Pieper MEP, who drafted the report. The report calls on the European Commission to verify the reallocation of funds and their use by each beneficiary. It also proposes the creation of a public exclusion list of NGOs to ensure that those who have engaged in hate speech or religious extremism are blocked from accessing to EU funds.

On Wednesday, the European Parliament will vote on a report scrutinising the security and defence implications of China’s influence on critical infrastructure in the EU. The Parliament warns that Beijing’s actions are driven mainly by the goal of strengthening the totalitarian regime and achieving military dominance. Large Chinese investments in European seaports, railways and airports enable Beijing to monitor and control activities in our key logistical nodes. The EPP Group calls for systematic screening of Chinese companies benefiting from European programmes of strategic importance and, where necessary, preventing their participation. “Protecting our critical infrastructure including ports, energy grids and digital networks is crucial to strengthening the EU’s resilience against growing threats from China. The key to achieving this is the proper implementation of existing legislation and commitments,” insists Miriam Lexmann MEP, who spearheaded the report on behalf of the EPP Group.

The EPP Group wants the EU’s Common Fisheries Policy (CFP) to be reformed and adapted to address current challenges such as decarbonisation and generational renewal. The plenary will vote on a report on the state of play and the future of fisheries policy, on Thursday. “We recognise the strategic role of the fisheries and aquaculture sectors in ensuring food security, the European Green Deal and achieving the Sustainable Development Goals. Yet, the current CFP does not give sufficient consideration to the socioeconomic and food supply aspects,” says the EPP Group MEP Gabriel Mato, who drafted the Parliament’s report. The EPP Group also calls on the next European Commission to have a Commissioner dedicated exclusively to fisheries.