At a glance: Parliament committees tackle faster approval for eco-friendly pest control; MEPs address affordable and social housing  in a public hearing; and Parliament launches the European Capitals of Small Retail competition for 2026.

News in Brief – 02/07/2025 - English

At a glance: a delegation of the International Trade Committee is in Washington DC to discuss EU-US political, trade and investment relations; a delegation of the Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs Committee is in the Canary Islands to learn about the island’s challenges in managing increased arrivals of migrants; MEPs from the Special Committee on the Housing Crisis in the EU are in Barcelona to gather information on how the city is addressing its housing issues.

News in Brief – 27/05/2025 - English

At a glance: MEPs call for human rights to be at the heart of Ukraine peace talks; Parliament’s Subcommittee on Human Rights will meet with journalists tomorrow to reaffirm the EU’s commitment to protecting media freedom; MEPs explore competition rules to tackle the housing crisis.

News in Brief – 08/04/2025 - English

At a glance: the Special committee on the Housing Crisis hosts a conference on affordable housing in the EU; Parliament’s Committee on International Trade approves two proposals to offer financial assistance to Egypt and Jordan; lawmakers and industry experts will meet in Brussels to discuss strategies for expanding Europe’s electric vehicle charging infrastructure.

News in Brief – 24/03/2025 - English

At a glance: MEPs will explore strategies to boost sustainable housing across the EU; the Committee on Industry, Research and Energy will discuss upcoming EU policies on defence and space with Commissioner Kubilius; and Monday is World Wildlife Day.

News in Brief – 28/02/2025 - English

At a glance: the Committee on Foreign Affairs to vote on EU security and defence policies, focusing on relations with Ukraine, Russia and China and on enlargement; the Committees on Foreign Affairs and on Budgets are set to vote on a Reform and Growth Facility of around EUR 1.8 billion to support Moldova’s reforms aimed at EU membership; a new parliamentary committee on the EU housing crisis will hold its first meeting.

News in Brief – 29/01/2025 - English

At a glance: President Metsola at the EU-Western Balkans summit: ‘It is time to grow’; Parliament sets up new committees on defence, health, democracy and housing; on 1 January, Poland will take over the EU Council presidency from Hungary.

News in Brief – 20/12/2024 - English

At a glance: in Strasbourg tomorrow, MEPs will outline their priorities for the upcoming EU summit on Ukraine, the Middle East and migration and will debate collective bargaining and abusive subcontracting practices; Parliament is also set to establish new committees on defence, health, democracy and housing.

News in Brief – 17/12/2024 - English

In July 2024&nbsp; MEPs re-elected Roberta Metsola (EPP, MT) as President of the European Parliament until 2027, with 562 votes in the first round. Roberta Metsola won the election in the first round of voting, where she received an absolute majority of 562 votes cast out of 699 by secret paper ballot, among two candidates. She will continue to lead Parliament for the first two and a half years of the 10th legislative term.

Born in Malta in 1979, Roberta Metsola has been an MEP since 2013.&nbsp;She was elected First Vice-President in November 2020, and was Parliament’s acting President after President Sassoli passed away on 11 January 2022. On 18 January 2022,&nbsp;she was elected President&nbsp;for the second half of the 9th legislative term. She is the third female President of the European Parliament, after&nbsp;Simone Veil&nbsp;(1979-1982) and Nicole Fontaine (1999-2002).

Addressing the House after she was elected, President Metsola said: “Together, we must stand up for the politics of hope, for the dream that is Europe. I want people to recapture a sense of belief and enthusiasm for our project. A belief to make our shared space safer, fairer, more just and more equal. A belief that together we are stronger and we are better. A belief that ours is a Europe for all.”

Roberta Metsola, President of the European Parliament 2024-2027

With 401 votes in favour, the European Parliament elected Ursula von der Leyen as President of the European Commission in a secret ballot on 18 July.

This will be Ursula von der Leyen’s second term as Commission President. She was first elected by MEPs in July 2019.

Parliament is currently composed of 719 MEPs, so the necessary majority was 360 votes. The vote was held by secret paper ballot. 401 MEPs voted in favour, 284 against, and 22 cast blank or invalid votes.

Ursula von der Leyen outlined her priorities ahead of the vote.&nbsp;Ursula von der Leyen put forward her vision for a stronger and more prosperous Europe. Key initiatives include a new Clean Industrial Deal to drive decarbonisation and industrial growth, and a European Competitiveness Fund to boost innovation.

She announced that she would boost security by doubling Europol’s staff and tripling the number of European Border and Coast Guards to 30 000. She proposed a European Democracy Shield for countering foreign information manipulation and interference, and a European Affordable Housing Plan.

Ms von der Leyen also suggested a plan for agriculture to address the need to adapt to climate change and a Roadmap for Women’s Rights. Saying that “we must enable young people to make the most of Europe’s freedoms”, she highlighted the importance of the Erasmus+ programme, mental health, and tackling issues related to screen time and social media, including addictive practices. She put significant focus on defence, proposing to create a new post of Commissioner for Defence to drive the European Defence Union and calling for a comprehensive aerial defence system – a European Air Shield – to protect EU airspace and “as a strong symbol of European unity in defence matters”.

Election of the 2024-2029 European Commission President

Italy is a parliamentary republic with a head of government - the prime minister - appointed by the president and a head of state - the president. The Parliament is composed of 2 houses: the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate of the Republic.

Italy is a member of the eurozone since 1 January 1999 and of the Schengen area since 26 October 1997. There are 75&nbsp;members of the European Parliament from Italy.

EU - Italy

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Parliament&nbsp;established a Special Committee on the Housing Crisis, with a 12-month mandate, to propose solutions for decent, sustainable, and affordable housing for all European citizens. It has been tasked with mapping housing needs, analysing existing housing policies across the EU and contributing to the future implementation of the European affordable housing plan.

On 24 March 2025, Parliament’s Special Committee on the Housing Crisis hosted a conference with the Commission to discuss ways to ensure EU citizens can access affordable housing.

The conference launched&nbsp;the public debate on affordable housing and its findings will help inform a Parliament report on the topic, expected to be presented later this year.&nbsp;

HOUS - Special Committee on the Housing Crisis in the European Union

At a conference entitled "Affordable Housing - addressing the housing crisis in the European Union”, the Special committee on the Housing Crisis in the EU launches the debate on the causes of this crisis, how the EU can help EU countries tackle it and what measures could be taken at European level. The event, hosted jointly by Parliament and the Commission gathers experts and representatives of EU institutions, and national and regional authorities.

Affordable Housing conference: Joint conference of the EU Parliament and the EU Commission on the EU Housing Crisis

TUESDAY:

President Metsola leads talks with European companies in Washington DC
President Metsola addresses Members of the European Parliament's Committee on Internal Market and Consumer Protection

WEDNESDAY:

President Metsola leads roundtable discussion with the United States Chamber of Commerce 
President Metsola pays tribute to United States servicemen and women on the occasion of the 80th Anniversary of the end of World War II at Arlington National Cemetery
President Metsola meets with Members of Congress in the House of Representatives and the Senate at Capitol Hill

THURSDAY:

President Metsola addresses a Keynote Speech at Johns Hopkins University titled 'Europe and the United States in a New World'
President Metsola leads roundtable talks with American & European business leaders on the Meridian Corporate Council

Roberta METSOLA, EP President Official visit to Washington DC, United States of America

European Parliament President Roberta Metsola meets with the Speaker of the House of Representatives of Egypt Hanafy El Gebaly and the President of the Senate of Egypt Abdel-Wahab Abdel-Razeq.

The visit takes place against the background of strengthening relations between the European Union and Egypt, ongoing discussions on EU macro-financial assistance and the geopolitical situation in the Middle East and the neighbouring region.

The meetings provides an opportunity to discuss interparliamentary relations, including the organisation of the next EU-Egypt Inter-Parliamentary Meeting (IPM) in Cairo, the EU's macro-financial assistance to Egypt, currently under discussion in the European Parliament, migration flows and asylum.

Roberta METSOLA, EP President Official visit to Cairo (Egypt)

Dan Jørgensen was Member of the EP (2004-2013), Danish Minister for Food, Agriculture and Fisheries (2013-2015), Minister for Climate, Energy and Utilities (2019-2022) and Minister for Development Cooperation and Global Climate Policy since 2022. He is now European Commissioner-designate for Energy and Housing, for the von der Leyen Commission II.

Confirmation hearing of Dan JØRGENSEN, Commissioner-designate, Energy and Housing

HOUS - Public Hearing on Addressing Vacancy and the Repurposing of Empty Housing in the EU

Special committee on the Housing Crisis in the European Union Ordinary meeting

HOUS

Special Committee on the Housing Crisis in the European Union – Extraordinary Meeting

Press conference by Irene TINAGLI, (S&D, IT), HOUS Chair and Ioannis TSAKIRIS, European Investment Bank, VP on the European Investment Bank Housing Action Plan for Affordable and Sustainable Housing

HOUS - Public hearing on Financialisation in the Housing Market: Effects and Policy responses

EMPL HOUS - Hearing on ' Housing Rights, Property Rights and Tenants Protections: Addressing Evictions and Homelessness '

HOUS - Exchange of views on the European Investment Bank (EIB) Group Action Plan for Affordable and Sustainable Housing with Ioannis Tsakiris, Vice-President of the EIB

Press conference on the European Investment Bank Housing Action Plan for Affordable and Sustainable Housing

Article 17 dialogue on Housing in the EU: Strategies for a Europe that Supports People, Families and Younger GenerationsArticle

HOUS committee delegation mission to Barcelona

HOUS - Meeting on Affordable Housing Regional and Local authorities perspectives

Official visit by Roberta METSOLA, EP President to Nicosia (Cyprus) - Meeting with Annita DEMETRIOU, President of the House of Representatives of Cyprus

&lt;p>After opening the session, President Metsola led members in commemorating the 1995 Srebrenica genocide, where thousands of Bosnian Muslims were murdered or disappeared, and tens of thousands more were forcibly expelled from the enclave. Tragically many victims remain unidentified. MEPs paid homage to two survivors of the massacre, Lamasa and Almir Salihović, who were present in the hemicycle. “This House honours you and all survivors, just as we continue to keep the memories of the victims alive”, Metsola said. This news item shows extracts from the Commemoration of the 30th anniversary of the Srebrenica genocide.&lt;/p>

Commemoration of the 30th anniversary of the Srebrenica genocide: extracts from the debate

MEPs vote on its position on the first EU standards for the breeding, housing, and handling of dogs and cats, report by Veronika Vrecionová (AGRI 14/05) - Welfare of dogs and cats and their traceability ; Media freedom in Georgia, particularly the case of Mzia Amaglobel ; The case of Ahmadreza Jalali in Iran ; Dissolution of political parties and the crackdown on the opposition in Mali ; Electricity grids: the backbone of the EU energy system ; Clean Industrial Deal ; The United Kingdom accession to the Convention of 2 July 2019 on the Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Judgments in Civil or Commercial Matters

Votes

Irene TINAGLI, (S&D, IT), Chair of the Special committee on the Housing Crisis in the European Union (HOUS) and Ioannis TSAKIRIS, Vice-President of the European Investment Bank (EIB), give a press conference on the Housing Action Plan for Affordable and Sustainable Housing. Parliament established the HOUS Committee with a 12-month mandate, to propose solutions for decent, sustainable, and affordable housing for all European citizens. It has been tasked with mapping housing needs, analysing existing housing policies across the EU and contributing to the future implementation of the European affordable housing plan. This transcription is a result of an automatic process. Please check against delivery.

Press conference by Irene TINAGLI, (S&D, IT), HOUS Committee Chair, and Ioannis TSAKIRIS, Vice-President of the EIB, on the Housing Action Plan for Affordable and Sustainable Housing

Irene TINAGLI, Chair of Special Committee on the Housing Crisis in the EU (HOUS) gives a press conference at the European Parliament’s Liaison Office in Barcelona. A delegation from the Special Committee on Housing travelled from 26 to 28 May to Spain to meet local, regional and national governments, economic and social actors and education and research institutions. One of the aims of this visit was to assess cities that are tourist destinations and that have experienced a significant increase in short-term rentals, which has led to a transformation of the housing market, and to learn from the strategies that cities implemented to address the issue. In Barcelona, MEPs gathered information on how the city is addressing this issue. This transcription is a result of an automatic process. Please check against delivery.

Press conference by Irene TINAGLI, Chair of HOUS Committee, on the housing needs in Barcelona and Badalona

MEPs, the Commission and the Council discuss the Commission’s recent proposal to phase out Russian gas, nuclear energy and oil imports. The debate is also expected to touch on Nord Stream and the EU's energy sovereignty.

Russian energy phase out, Nord Stream and the EU's energy-sovereignty: closing statements by Adam SZŁAPKA, Polish Minister for European Affairs, and by Dan JØRGENSEN, European Commissioner for Energy and Housing

MEPs, the Commission and the Council discuss the Commission’s recent proposal to phase out Russian gas, nuclear energy and oil imports. The debate is also expected to touch on Nord Stream and the EU's energy sovereignty. This transcription is a result of an automatic process. Please check against delivery.

Russian energy phase out, Nord Stream and the EU's energy-sovereignty: opening statements by Dan JØRGENSEN, European Commissioner for Energy and Housing, and by Adam SZŁAPKA, Polish Minister for European Affairs

Roberta Metsola, President of the European Parliament, participates in the European Political Community (EPC) Summit in Tirana, Albania. This news item shows extracts from President Metsola walking and participating in the roundtable on "Securing Europe and Stregthening Democratic Resilience" at Summit House. The summit brought together 47 Heads of State or Government, along with leaders of major European and international institutions, to discuss common strategic priorities. The agenda focused on democratic security and stability, with particular emphasis on reinforcing support for Ukraine and countering foreign interference in European democracies.

Roberta METSOLA, EP President, participates in the meeting of the European Political Community, in Tirana (Albania): General views

Roberta METSOLA, EP President, intervenes as keynote speaker in the session "The future European Union: General perspectives, Federalism or national sovereignty" during the Conference of Speakers of the EU Parliaments in the Hungarian House of Parliament in Budapest. This transcription is a result of an automatic process. Please check against delivery.

The future European Union: General perspectives, Federalism or national sovereignty: address by Roberta METSOLA, EP President

Roberta METSOLA, EP President meets with Annita DEMETRIOU, President of the House of Representatives of Cyprus: arrival, meeting, extracts from the press statement

Official visit by Roberta METSOLA, EP President to Nicosia (Cyprus) - Meeting with Annita DEMETRIOU, President of the House of Representatives of Cyprus arrival meeting extracts from the press statement

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