The View from Brussels #113

Highlights from Last Week

CW 7 / Monday, 10th to Thursday, 13th February: Plenary Sessions (Strasbourg)

Artificial Intelligence: It’s without doubt the topic of the hour. Last week kicked off with the first discussions and press conferences, such as those of the JURI MEP trio Voss, Garcia del Blanco, and Séjourné (press release). All three are rapporteurs for AI legislative reports on liability, ethics, and intellectual property respectively.

Last week also saw the approval of the resolution of the IMCO Committee on “Automated decision- making processes: ensuring consumer protection and the free movement of goods and services”. The Parliament wants to see fair and safe use for consumers (press release).

Next Wednesday will then see the Commission presenting its proposals on AI.

EP Think Tank Publications:

• Parliament’s right of legislative initiative
• European Commission Work Programme for 2020

 

Highlights of the Coming Week

 CW 8 / Monday, 17th to Thursday, 24th February: Committee Meetings (Brussels)

You can find a list of the upcoming dates of the European Parliament here. You can find an overview of the most important dates of the Council’s week here and its meeting calendar here.

A number of Council and Working Party meetings will be taking place this week.

• General Affairs Council (Monday, with topics including MFF) – agenda
• Foreign Affairs Council (Monday) – agenda
• Economic and Financial Affairs Council (Tuesday) – agenda
• Special European Council (Thursday, including MFF) – agenda
• Education, Youth, Culture & Sports Council (Thursday) – agenda
• Working Party on Telecommunications and Information Society (Tuesday, with topics including 5G cybersecurity toolbox, Internet Governance)
• Working Party on Consumer Protection and Information (Tuesday).

Meetings will also take place this week of Coreper I (Wednesday) and Coreper II (Wednesday).

Information on the weekly Commission meeting can be found in the preview or (shortly beforehand) in the current agenda.

The topics proposed for the coming meeting are:

• A Strategy for Europe – Fit for the Digital Age
• White Paper on Artificial Intelligence
• European Data Strategy

 

LIBE Committee (EP)

Current Meetings

• 19th February 2020, 9.00-12.30 and 15.00-18.30 (Brussels)
• 20th February 2020, 9.00-12.30 and 14.00-17.30 (Brussels)

Excerpts from the draft agenda

19 February 2020, 9.00 – 12.30

…

Item 5. Structured dialogue with Věra Jourová, Vice-President for Values and Transparency

LIBE/9/02507

Exchange of views

19 February 2020, 16.30 – 17.45

Item 6. EU Strategy for Completing the Security Union: addressing both traditional and modern threats

LIBE/9/02525

Exchange of views with Margaritis Schinas, Vice-President for Protecting our European Way of Life

20 February 2020, 14.00 – 17.30

Item 12. Hearing on Artificial Intelligence in Criminal law and its use by the Police and Judicial authorities in criminal matters
(programme)

Further Meetings (Calendar)

• 16th March 2020, 15.00-18.30 (Brussels)
• 17th March 2020, 9.00-12.30 and 15.00-18.30 (Brussels)

 

IMCO Committee (EP)

Current Meetings

• 17th February 2020, 14.30-18.30 (Brussels)
• 18th February 2020, 9.00-12.30 and 14.30-18.30 (Brussels)
• 19^th February 2020 ,16.00-18.00 (Brussels) – together with ITRE

Excerpts from the draft agenda

17th February 2020, 15.00 – 17.00 

…

Public hearing

Item 4. Digital advertising and consumer information (programme)

…

18 February 2020, 9.45 – 12.30

With the Commission

Item 8. Third annual review of the functioning of the EU-U.S. Privacy Shield

…

18 February 2020, 14.30 – 16.00

With the Commission

Item 10. Exchange of views with Mrs. Gertrud Ingestad, Director general of DG DIGIT, on supporting the digital transformation of European public administrations in Member States

Further Meetings  (Calendar)

• 18th March 2020, 9.00-12.30 and 14.30-18.30(Brussels)
• 19th March2020, 9.00-12.30and 15.00-18.30 (Brussels)

 Excerpts from the draft agenda

Hearing: AI and Blockchain: opportunities and challenges for the Single Market

 

JURI Committee (EP)

Current Meetings

• 17th February 2020, 15.00-18.30 (Brussels)
• 18th February 2020, 9.00-12.30 and 14.30-18.30 (Brussels)

Excerpts from the draft agenda

18 February 2020, 11.30 – 12.30

Item 12. Digital Services Act: adapting commercial and civil law rules for commercial entities operating online

JURI/9/02298

2020/2019(INL)

Rapporteur:
	Tiemo Wölken (S&D)
Responsible:
	JURI*
Opinions:
	IMCO*
	CULT

Exchange of views

18 February 2020, 15.30 – 18.30

…

Item 16. Framework of ethical aspects of artificial intelligence, robotics and related technologies

JURI/9/02261

2020/2012(INL)

Rapporteur:
	Ibán García Del Blanco (S&D)
Responsible:
	JURI*
Opinions:
	AFET*
	EMPL
	ENVI –	Adam Jarubas (PPE)
	IMCO*
	TRAN* –	Valter Flego (Renew)
	CULT –	Łukasz Kohut (S&D)
	LIBE* –	Robert Roos (ECR)
	AFCO –	Decision: no opinion

Exchange of views

Item 17. Civil liability regime for artificial intelligence

JURI/9/02275

2020/2014(INL)

Responsible:
	JURI –	(PPE)
Opinions:
	IMCO
	TRAN –	Cláudia Monteiro de Aguiar (PPE)
	LIBE –	Decision: no opinion

Exchange of views

Item 18. Intellectual property rights for the development of artificial intelligence technologies

JURI/9/02279

2020/2015(INI)

Rapporteur:
	Stéphane Séjourné (Renew)
Responsible:
	JURI
Opinions:
	IMCO
	TRAN –	Andor Deli (PPE)
	CULT –	Sabine Verheyen (PPE)
	AFCO –	Decision: no opinion

Exchange of views

Item 19. Artificial intelligence: questions of interpretation and application of international law in so far as the EU is affected in the areas of civil and military uses and of state authority outside the scope of criminal justice

JURI/9/02269

2020/2013(INI)

Rapporteur:
	Gilles Lebreton (ID)
Responsible:
	JURI*
Opinions:
	AFET*
	IMCO
	TRAN –	Ondřej Kovařík (Renew)
	LIBE –	Robert Roos (ECR)
	AFCO –	Decision: no opinion

Exchange of views

Further Meetings (Calendar)

• 18th March 2020, 9.00-12.30 and 14.30-18.30 (Brussels)
• 19th March 2020, 9.00-12.30 (Brussels)

 

ITRE Committee (EP)

Current Meetings

• 17th February 2020 (Brussels)
• 18th February 2020 (Brussels)
• 19^th February 2020, 16.00-18.00 (Brussel) – together with IMCO

Excerpts from the draft agenda

17 February 2020, 15.00 – 18.30

…

Item 3. Presentation by the Joint Research Centre of the two reports on Blockchain and on Artificial Intelligence

Item 4. Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament, the Council, the European Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions: Secure 5G deployment in the EU – Implementing the EU toolbox

COM(2020)0050

•  Presentation by the Commission

Item 5. Report from the Commission to the European Parliament and the Council on the review of the roaming market

COM(2019)0616

•  Presentation by the Commission

Item 11. Structured dialogue with Ms Mariya Gabriel, Commissioner for Innovation, Research, Culture, Education and Youth

18 February 2020, 14.30 – 17.30

Joint debate on EU SME policy

Item 12. Exchange of views with the Commission on the horizontal SME policy

Item 13. Presentation by the European Court of Auditors (ECA) of the Special Report: The SME Instrument in action: an effective and innovative programme facing challenges

* * *

Item 14. Structured dialogue with Mr Frans Timmermans, Executive Vice-President for the European Green Deal

…

Wednesday 19 February 2020, 16.00 – 18.00

Presentation by Mr Thierry Breton, Commissioner for Internal Market, of the new initiatives in the digital sector

Further Meetings (Calendar)

• 18th/19th March 2020 (Brussels)

 

CULT Committee (EP)

Current Meetings

• 19th February 2020, 9.00-12.30 and 15.00-18.30 (Brussels)
• 20th February 2020, 9.00-12.30 (Brussels)

Excerpts from the draft agenda

19 February 2020, 9.00 – 12.30

…

Item 7. Structured dialogue with Commissioner Mariya Gabriel

19 February 2020, 15.00 – 17.30

Item 8. Public hearing on ‘The use of artificial intelligence in education, culture and the audiovisual sector’

Further Meetings (Calendar)

• 16th March 2020, 15.00-18.30 (Brussels)
• 17^th March 2020, 9.00-12.30 and 15.00-18.30 (Brussels)

 

Further Parliamentary Calendar Dates

• CW 9 / Monday, 24th to Thursday, 28th February: Green Week (no meetings);
• CW 10 / Monday, 2nd to Thursday, 5th March: Political Group and Committee Meetings (Brussels);
• CW 11 / Monday, 9th to Thursday, 11th March: Plenary Sessions (Strasbourg).