Gracing this issue’s cover is EPP Group MEP Stelios Kympouropoulos. A clinical psychiatrist by training, has already made his mark in several policy areas, well beyond what you would expect from a 2019 newcomer. In a wide-ranging interview Andreas Rogal finds out what makes the Greek deputy tick.
In our news and current affairs pages, Polish Greens/EFA MEP Sylwia Spurek talks about the need to prioritise the EU’s ratification of the Istanbul Convention, while IMCO Committee Chair, Anna Cavazinni, argues that consumer protection requires regular updates to keep abreast of changing behaviours after the pandemic.
Elsewhere, Romanian deputy Iuliu Winkler looks at the complex and often uneasy relationship between the EU and China, while Maltese Socialist MEP Alex Agius Saliba highlights the importance and impact of citizens petitions.
In our first feature we look at the 2022 EU Budget, agreed in extremis last week. One of Parliament’s negotiators, Karlo Ressler, suggests Parliament has secured significant budget reinforcement while also defending its important role as the budgetary authority.
Our second feature focuses on treating foreign interference and disinformation, where Latvian EPP member Sandra Kalniete argues that although the EU has a diagnosis and prescription to tackle the issue; the rest is up to the EU Policymaking ‘patient’.