The Week Ahead 18 – 24 April 2022

The humanitarian situation in Ukraine. The Chair of the Humanitarian Committee of the Ukraine’s Verkhovna Rada, Mykyta Poturayev, will speak with Development Committee MEPs about the devastating humanitarian consequences of the Russian invasion. The European Commission and humanitarian organisations active in Ukraine will also take part in the debate (Wednesday).

Other committee debates on Ukraine. Among other debates taking place across different committees, the Women’s Rights and Civil Liberties committees will hold a hearing on the situation of women refugees from Ukraine, while the Employment and Social Affairs and Legal Affairs Committees will debate the risk of the illegal adoption of Ukrainian children with the Children’s Rights Coordinator Ewa Kopacz (Thursday).

Sanctions against Russia. The Foreign Affairs Committee will discuss the impact and effectiveness of western sanctions on Russia, as well as the opportunity to expand them (Wednesday).

EU enlargement. The Foreign Affairs Committee will vote to assess the progress achieved by Albania and North Macedonia on their path to EU membership, and will discuss the state of play for Serbia and Kosovo (Wednesday and Thursday, respectively).

Hungary/LGBTI. The Civil Liberties Committee will discuss the situation in Hungary regarding its LGBTI laws with Justice Commissioner Didier Reynders (Wednesday).

Common charger. The Internal Market and Consumer Protection Committee will vote on their position on a draft EU law establishing a common charger for all mobile phones, tablets, digital cameras and other portable electronic devices (Wednesday).

First Annual Report of the European Public Prosecutor (EPPO). European Chief Prosecutor Laura Kövesi will present the results of the first seven months of the EPPO’s operations to the Budget Control and Civil Liberties committees (Wednesday).

Pegasus Inquiry Committee. The newly established Inquiry Committee on the use of Pegasus and equivalent surveillance spyware starts its work. The committee will consider alleged breaches of EU law in the use of spyware by, among others, Hungary and Poland (Tuesday).

COVID-19 Special Committee. The Special Committee on the COVID-19 pandemic will holds its constitutive meeting. The committee will look into the EU response to the pandemic in the areas of health, fundamental rights, the economy and society, and global solidarity (Tuesday).