EU Parliament Gears Up for Action-Packed Week (Spoiler: It’s Not Just Coffee Breaks)
The European Parliament is rolling up its sleeves for what promises to be a marathon session from March 9-12, and they’re holding a press briefing Friday at 11:00 to prep everyone for the chaos—er, important legislative work—ahead.
First up on the agenda: MEPs will tackle the US-Israel military operation against Iran, because nothing says “Monday morning” quite like international military conflicts. They’ll also preview the March 19-20 EU summit, presumably to coordinate who’s bringing the snacks.
But wait, there’s more! Europe’s housing crisis gets its moment in the spotlight with debates and votes on recommendations that might actually help people afford a place to live. Revolutionary stuff.
Defense nerds will appreciate discussions on creating an EU single market for defense (because apparently buying tanks shouldn’t be complicated by borders), while energy policy gets a refresh focused on being clean, independent, and secure—basically the opposite of your college roommate.
Travelers rejoice: the Package Travel Directive is getting an update to better protect you when your budget airline inevitably cancels your flight. Meanwhile, child safety online takes center stage with votes on detecting abuse material, and AI copyright protections will be decided because someone needs to figure out who owns that robot-generated art.
International Women’s Day gets marked, Armenia’s Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan drops by for a formal sitting, and the first European Order of Merit laureates will be announced—essentially the EU’s version of “Employee of the Month,” but fancier.
Journalists can tune in via webstreaming or the fancy Interactio platform, though they’re warned to connect 30 minutes early if they’ve never used it before. Because nothing says “cutting-edge democracy” like technical difficulties.