The Week ahead

As the COVID-19 pandemic hit, the EU was caught off guard. However, Europe has proven over and over again that from the darkest of times, it emerges stronger. The concrete solidarity shown to find the COVID-19 vaccine proves what Europeans can achieve when they stick together – we can save lives. The pandemic has also made it blatantly clear that health is not only a national issue, but also a European one, an idea that would have been unthinkable just 12 months ago.  On Wednesday, the EPP Group is hosting a live online event 'Towards a European Health Union'. We'll be talking about COVID-19 vaccines with all the major vaccine players - CEOs of Pfizer, BioNTech, CureVac and the Chief Medical Officer of Moderna. The event will feature three European Commissioners, namely Vice-President Margaritis Schinas, the Commissioner for Innovation and Research, Mariya Gabriel, and the Commissioner for Health and Food Safety, Stella Kyriakides. Along with leading vaccine developers and renowned health experts, the EPP Group will discuss concrete proposals on how to achieve a true Health Union. Join our live event here.

Following the market authorisation of the Moderna vaccine, the lead negotiator of the European COVID-19 vaccines contracts will take part in an extraordinary Environment Committee meeting to be held on Tuesday. Sandra Gallina, Director-General of the European Commission department responsible for EU policy on health and food safety, will answer MEPs' questions on the issue of vaccines in the EU.

As the EU and the UK have finally managed to agree in principle on their future trade relationship, now, Parliament can finally get to work to scrutinise the provisional agreement. MEPs in the Trade Committee will hold their first discussion on the EU-UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement on Monday, and will continue on Thursday with the Foreign Affairs Committee, as these two committees are responsible for recommending whether MEPs should approve the text. The EU-UK deal and sectoral policies will also be discussed on Monday and Thursday in the committees on Transport and Tourism, Fisheries, Economic and Monetary Affairs as well as in the Internal Market and Consumer Protection Committee together with the European Commission's Task Force for Relations with the United Kingdom, exploring the impact on their respective policies. The EPP Group deeply regrets that the negotiations were stretched so late into the year that provisional application was the only way to avoid a cliff edge at the end of the transition period. This is not the legal security that businesses need and deserve after years of Brexit negotiations. The European Parliament will now take its time to scrutinise the deal properly and deliver its verdict. This procedure shall not be seen as a precedent for future trade agreements.

On Monday, the Beating Cancer Committee will focus on cancer patients, their families and caregivers. Members will hear patients' problems, experiences and their recommendations that will help shape the committee's future legislative proposals. The EPP Group believes that we all must join efforts, knowledge and money in Europe to fight one of the most dreadful diseases of mankind. With the work of the special committee and with European Commission proposals, we want to achieve a comprehensive European action plan in 2021. We need to work together to help every patient, no matter where he or she lives in Europe.