Brussels briefing, Nov. 4

 
On Wednesday, the European Parliament (EP) Committees on Foreign Affairs, Development and Civil Liberties together with representatives from the UN Refugee Agency, the European Commission and the European External Action Service will examine the situation with Syrian refugees as well as the management of the €6 billion fund the EU assigned to Turkey to take care of the refugees. 

The EP’s Environment and Public Health Committee will vote on the EP’s draft objectives for global action to fight climate change on Wednesday ahead of the 2019 UN Climate Change Conference, scheduled for December.

At a public hearing organized by the Civil Liberties Committee on Wednesday, members of the EP will debate press freedom, the protection of journalists, how to counteract online and offline hate speech and disinformation.

The possible return or repatriation to the EU of children of foreign fighters held in Syria and Iraq will be debated by the Civil Liberties Committee together with the subcommittees on Human Rights and Security and Defense on Thursday.

Finance ministers from the Eurozone will gather in Brussels on Thursday for a Eurogroup meeting to discuss growth, jobs, investment and innovation.

The Economic and Financial Affairs Council will gather in Brussels on Friday. The ministers of finance will hold a joint policy debate with education ministers to discuss the importance of effective and high-quality education and training to achieve a strong economic base for Europe. Education ministers will also hold a policy debate on artificial intelligence in education and training.

The Council is expected to adopt conclusions on climate finance and discuss the state of play in their work on digital taxation.