The co-chairs of the Turkish Greens and the Left Party of the Future (Yesiller ve Sol Gelecek Partisi) Eylem Tuncaelli and Naci Sönmez are among 11 people calling for peace who could face an 8-year jail term following formal proceedings by the Ankara Chief State Prosecutor. 

The fate of the 630 migrants on board the Aquarius migrant ship dominated discussion among MEPs attending the Strasbourg plenary in Brussels after Italian Interior Minister Matteo Salvini refused to let it dock in Italy.

I am Italian and European, and I am not happy. As I write this there are 630 people on a ship trying to reach the only country, Spain, that has offered to welcome them.

Fantastic news has emerged from the European Parliament today, as the institution decides to ban plastic bottles from its premises.

MEPs meeting in Strasbourg last week were faced with a series of dramas that directed the flow of traffic of the political conversation.  Most notably there was Italy, which installed its new ‘populist’ government and Spain, which saw the ousting of Mariano Rajoy after a no-confidence vote and the swearing in of the socialist Pedro Sanchez. 

In the Carpathians, the largest remaining primeval forests in the EU are in danger. A unique natural heritage is disappearing inexorably, and only small parts remain protected. Unclear rules set by Romanian authorities and the suspicion of corruption in the forest management authorities have promoted ruthless deforestation.

The presentation by the European Commission of their proposal for the post-2020 EU budget was the central point of May’s first plenary session, which also included a debate with Belgian PM Charles Michel on the Future of Europe.