Brussels, Belgium – Lidia Pereira, YEPP President and Member of the European Parliament, addressed a letter to Mr Sassoli, President of the European Parliament, to outline her concerns related to the COVID-19 outbreak and suggest a plan of action to improve the communication and coordination among the European institutions.
In her letter, Ms Pereira states that this pandemic outbreak will have an unprecedented impact on both the healthcare systems across Europe as well as the economy. She stresses that the European Commission clearly outlines various measures and initiatives to tackle and contain the spread of COVID-19, but it is of essence that further measures are discussed and approved rapidly.
“With this crisis, the European Union is put to a test: democracy and economy are at stake and we must act fast.”
In order to effectively accompany the actions taken by the European Commission, Ms Pereira proposes setting up a Committee which would provide for a swift and effective response to the questions posed as well as facilitate improved coordination among the European Institutions. The grounding for such action is laid out in the Rules of Procedure of the European Parliament (#49) which suggests that responsible committee(s) may play such a role in order to accelerate the legislative procedures.
“We cannot afford that the European citizens question the role of the European Parliament in this crisis. We cannot afford that there is no clarity, as uncertainty aggravates the distance that European citizens already feel between Brussels and their lives,” concludes Ms Pereira.
