This is the directly elected parliament of the EU. It has 736 seats. Members of the European parliament are elected every five years by the citizens of the EU. The legislative power of the parliament is shared equally with the Council of the European Union.
Social inclusion and sport go hand-in-hand – but, within Irish games, there remains two distinct playing fields: one for LGBT people and one for straight people. The time has come to change this, writes Phil Prendergast MEP.
EU leaders agreed to hold further discussions on agreeing a budget for the next seven years as well as plugging a shortfall in this year’s finances following negotiations, chaired by Ireland, in Brussels.
In an address to the European Parliament in Strasbourg, Higgins said citizens placed their trust in elected members and they must act in their best interests.
His 11am address, entitled “Towards a European Union of the Citizens”, will be followed by a joint press conference with the President of the European Parliament, Martin Schulz.
The MEP will address a meeting of the Campaign for Labour Policies group in Dublin today which is likely to hear plenty of criticism of the junior coalition party.
Eamon Gilmore will have one less Christmas card to write now – but if Labour took its MEPs seriously, this may never have happened, writes Nessa Childers’ former parliamentary assistant Ciara Galvin.
Elmar Brok, the chair of the European Parliament’s Foreign Affairs Committee, has admitted he can foresee a situation where Cyprus could exit the single currency and said that authorities underestimated the current situation there.
TheJournal.ie has learned that the senator is in discussions over the possibility of joining Fine Gael and running for the seat being vacated by Gay Mitchell next year.
Former world champion runner Eamonn Coghlan is among the favourites to run for Fine Gael in Dublin in next year’s European elections but there are others in contention…
Most MEPs agreed that regluation was needed, though some said they were worried about the fiscal impact and an increase in the illegal cigarette trade.
The agreement will ensure that a civil protection order, such as a barring order for domestic violence, can still be enforced if the victim travels or moves country.
Childers said clients should be aware of certain Irish PR firms, which she claimed were “representing the tobacco industry and not being open and transparent about it”.
The fact-finding mission this coming September is a response to complaints in relation to Aughinish Alumina plant and plans for a liquefied natural gas terminal.
Ireland is not in a position to invest financially in transport like it was in the past – so it needs to be wiser about how it does invest, says the Minster for Transport.
Yesterday MEPs called for regulation of hand luggage charges to protect consumers from being exploited by airlines. Do you think the EU should introduce common rules?
MINISTER JAMES REILLY has started a campaign to control the costs of health insurance this week with the appointment of an independent expert to chair a forum of providers.
The Fine Gael TD has voiced his disappointment at rising premium prices in recent weeks but insurers insist they have been forced into the increases because of higher charges for public hospital beds and a government levy.
Regardless of where the expenses originate, the customer has experienced annual hikes in their payments, to the point where many have reduced their cover or cancelled it entirely. Last month, figures from the Health Insurance Authority showed the percentage of the population with cover fell to 45.3 per cent.
Today, we ask about your own experiences. Have you given up your health insurance in recent years?
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