24th – 28th June 2013. EU Summit. EU budget. Agriculture council. Baltic Way. Foreign affairs council. Armenia.

EU Summit

ECR Group Chairman Martin Callanan MEP will be available for comment at the Justus Lipsius building during this week’s EU summit in which economic issues, especially youth unemployment, will be discussed.

In the recent plenary debate on this week’s summit, Mr Callanan said that more open markets and fewer undeliverable headline-grabbing initiatives are needed. Watch his speech here:

click here

Press officer to contact: James Holtum on +32 473 861762

Summit: Thursday and Friday

EU budget

Both MEPs and national governments will meet separately to see if there is sufficient support to deliver an agreement on the next long-term EU budget. ECR budgets spokesman Richard Ashworth believes the parliament should now act responsibly and reach a deal with the council. He supports a mid-term review under a unanimity voting system, and more flexibility in the budget.

Meanwhile, the EU Budgets commissioner is due to present his proposals for the 2014 EU budget in the committee. As this is the first annual budget in the new 7-year framework, it is expected to reflect the cut agreed by heads of government.

Press officer to contact: John Furbisher on +32 498 984760

General Affairs Council and MEP MFF ‘Contact Group’ meetings: Tuesday

Presentation of 2014 budget: Wednesday

Agriculture council

Agriculture ministers will seek to reach political agreement on the CAP reform proposals. ECR agriculture spokesman James Nicholson, and members of the agriculture committee Julie Girling MEP and Janusz Wojciechowski MEP will be present for the debates in Luxembourg. ECR Agriculture spokesman James Nicholson said he wants a fair deal on the reform, not necessarily a fast one. See

http://ecrgroup.eu/?p=8670

Press officer to contact: John Furbisher on +32 498 984760

Debate: Monday afternoon onwards

Baltic Way

The President of the European Parliament, along with the President of Lithuania, Dalia Grybauskaitė, the Prime Minister of Latvia, Valdis Dombrovskis, and leaders of the Baltic Revolution will name a European Parliament corridor after the 1989 demonstration by two million people who joined hands to form a 600km human chain across the three Baltic States. ECR Latvian Member Roberts Zile campaigned for the naming of the corridor.

Press officer to contact: Roland Petersons on +32 498 984707

Inauguration of ASP00F100: Wednesday @ 18.30

Foreign affairs council

High Representative Catherine Ashton will debrief MEPs in the Foreign Affairs committee on the outcome of this week’s Foreign Affairs Council where the Western Balkans, the Southern Neighbourhood, the Middle East Peace process and the Eastern Partnership will be discussed. ECR Foreign Affairs spokesman Charles Tannock will lead for the ECR during the discussion, whilst ECR Chairmen of the Ukraine delegation Pawel Kowal, and the Georgia delegation, Milan Cabrnoch, will follow the preparations for July’s Eastern Partnership meeting closely.

Press officer to contact: John Furbisher on +32 498 984760

Debate: Thursday

Armenia

The Foreign Affairs committee and home affairs committee will vote on an agreement between the EU and Armenia on the facilitation of visas. ECR MEP Tomasz Poreba is drafting the Foreign Affairs committee’s opinion.

Press officers to contact: Mateusz Kochanowski on +32 489 582781 or Katarzyna Ochman on +32 470 955928

Vote: Thursday @ 09.00