Week Ahead (24 May)

Tuesday, 25 May - European Parliament trade committee to consider draft opinion on EU-China strategy

Tomorrow, the European Parliament's Committee on International Trade will discuss the EU-China Comprehensive Agreement. The discussion will occur amid an apparent deterioration in relations between the two blocs. Last week, the European Parliament adopted a resolution condemning China for imposing sanctions on some MEPs and said that it would not participate in any talks on ratifying the EU-China agreement while they remain in place.

The move means an uncertain future for the EU-China Comprehensive Agreement on Investment (CAI), which was agreed in principle in December 2020. One of the MEPs sanctioned by China, Reinhard Butikofer, said on Twitter in the aftermath of the vote, "CAI is definitely in the freezer. China miscalculated and shot themselves in the foot".

Parliament has said that China must lift the sanctions before it will resume its consideration of the CAI and told the European Commission that it will take China's human rights record into consideration when deciding on whether to endorse the deal.

Tuesday, 25 May - European Parliament tax subcommittee to discuss tax fraud and simplification of compliance

The European Parliament's FISC subcommittee on tax matters will hold a public hearing on Tuesday to discuss the opportunities presented by digitalisation in the fight against tax fraud, evasion and avoidance. The discussion will focus on how new digital tools can help to ensure better compliance with tax regulations.

The meeting follows Parliament's approval last Wednesday of a €269 million programme, to be rolled out over the next seven years, which aims to promote co-operation between member state tax authorities. Green MEP Sven Giegold, the rapporteur for the programme, said, "Co-operation between tax administrations in Europe and beyond is vital to ensure that everybody contributes their fair share to society", adding that, "[the programme] is an important recognition from the Member States that democratic scrutiny in matters of taxation is crucial."

Thursday, 27 May - Netherlands to vote on Own Resources decision

On Thursday, the Dutch Senate will decide on whether to approve the own resources decision necessary to pass Europe's recovery fund and multiannual financial framework. The Dutch House of Representatives approved the Own Resources decision in February.

Only five countries have not yet passed the own resources decision through their national parliaments, namely Netherlands, Poland, Hungary, Austria and Romania. In addition, 18 member states have now sent their final recovery and resilience plans to the European Commission for approval. Among the 9 outstanding plans, the interim Dutch government has written to the European Commission to indicate that it should not expect to receive its RRF plan until after a new government is formed. Cyprus was the most recent country to submit its plan, requesting €1 billion in grants and €227 million in loans under the RRF last Monday.

Thursday, 27 May - European Financial Integration and Stability report to be released

On Thursday the European Commission and the European Central Bank will hold their annual joint conference on financial integration and stability. The meeting will be hosted by the Commissioner for Financial Services, Financial Stability and the Capital Markets Union, Mairead McGuinness, and the Vice President of the European Central Bank, Luis De Guindos.

The meeting will also see the launch of the annual joint report on financial integration and stability, which considers developments in finance, markets and banking over the last year, focusing particularly on financial stability.