European Ideas Lab - Brussels

01.03.2018

Greens meet Changemakers

DRAFT PROGRAMME    Thursday 1 March 2018   15:00-17:00 European Parliament tour with Greens/EFA MEPs   17:00-18:00 Registration   18:00 ...

Regional European Ideas Lab in Madrid

01.12.2017

Greens meet changemakers

DRAFT PROGRAMME   Friday 1 December 2017   14:00-15:00 Registration 15:00 Welcome by Greens (Spanish, Greens/EFA, GGEP) 15:15 Keynote speech (Input, Q...

EU Leaks

The Greens/EFA support whistle blowers

Greens/EFA have decided to set up a secure email account, which allows you to blow the whistle in defence of the public interest, whilst remaining anonymous.

Commission’s embarrassing reaction on access to justice on environmental matters

Aarhus Convention

This is the first time that the European Union is evaluated by the UN Aarhus Compliance Committee. Shockingly, it is also the first time that the Commission proposes to vote against the findings and recommendations made by the Committee to ensure the proper implementation of the world’s first international environmental treaty, also known as the “Aarhus Convention”.

More democracy needed in Europe

Here’s a chance to push for it!

For those of us who believe in democracy, freedom and fundamental rights, the importance of citizen participation and inclusiveness is obvious. That’s why the Greens/EFA Group picked Transparency and Democracy as one of its priorities, and that’s why we rejoiced when - finally - after years of denying the need to improve the world’s very first tool for citizen participation across borders, the European Commission announced that it would take steps to reform the European Citizens’ Initiative (#ECI).

MEPs back measures to fight VAT crime

VAT fraud

The European Parliament has backed the directive on the protection of the financial interests of the EU (or "PIF Directive"). This will reform the collection of VAT for cross-border businesses and will make consistent EU-wide rules on VAT fraud.

Country-by-country reporting is a major win for tax justice

Tax Justice

The European Parliament has today backed proposals for country-by-country reporting of financial information, a major tool in the fight for tax justice. Country-by-country reporting would require large multinationals operating within the EU to publish financial information for all territories in which they operate, including those outside the EU.

We want to get rid of conflict of interests in the EU agencies!

As the debate over independence and conflicts of interest in scientific assessments continues to heat up, Members of the EU Parliament’s Environment committee organised an exchange of views this morning with the Court of Auditors and the European agencies on Medicines, Chemicals and Food (EMA, ECHA, and EFSA respectively). The aim of the meeting was to undertake a comprehensive analysis of these agencies’ approach in dealing with potential conflicts of interest. Greens/EFA MEPs called for more stringent measures to avoid any corporate bias in the agencies’ evaluations and conclusions.

Political groups block lobby transparency

Lobbying Transparency Register

Citizens have a right to know which lobbyists politicians have met in the process of creating a law. Regrettably, such a binding legislative footprint was not included in today's mandate. The objectors to mandatory lobby transparency will use the protection of their free mandate as a fig leaf.

Fair and thorough investigation urgently needed

Malta / Money Laundering

MEPs have today held a debate on the Panama Papers and the rule of law in Malta in the presence of Maltese Prime Minister, Joseph Muscat. Prime Minister Muscat faces allegations that senior members of his government were involved in money laundering. Despite several senior officials being implicated...

Lobbying Transparency versus “freedom of the mandate”

A false debate

Members of the European Parliament are about to miss a big opportunity to deliver on lobby transparency in Europe. This is because Members from the EPP, S&D and ALDE groups are - rather ironically - arguing that their “freedom of the mandate” would make it legally impossible for them to enact policies that could finally transform the EU lobby register into an effective transparency system.

Glyphosate

Greens/EFA MEPs go to ECJ over access to studies

A group of Greens/EFA MEPs has filed a case with the European Court of Justice demanding public access to the studies used by the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) in assessing the safety of glyphosate.