The European Parliament cuts its plenary session in Brussels this week short because of the spread of the new coronavirus (Covid-19).
The plenary sessions in the European Parliament normally take place from Monday evening to Thursday. After it had already been decided that this week's session would not be held in Strasbourg, but in Brussels, the political group chairmen decided on Monday to also cut it short, reports De Tijd.
On Monday at 5:00 PM, President David Sassoli officially declared the meeting to be opened, but the MEPs could leave immediately after, and are not expected back until Tuesday 9:00 AM.
The Parliament will debate on the coronavirus, the negotiations on the European multi-annual budget, and the unrest at the Greek-Turkish border, but votes will not be held.
The session will be suspended after the last debate, and the MEPs will not meet on Wednesday and Thursday. According to Sassoli, the MEPs want their hemisphere to function as normal as possible, but the necessary precautions should also be taken in the context of the spread of the new coronavirus.
It is not yet clear what will happen to the next plenary session, which will start on Monday 30 March. There are no possibilities for the MEPs to vote remotely, a spokesperson told Bruzz.
Maïthé Chini
The Brussels Times
