EP Rules of procedure, rules 29, 33 and 82: balanced rights between individual Members and groups

The committee adopted the report by Richard CORBETT (PES, UK) proposing changes to the Rules of Procedure with a view to balancing the rights of individual Members and groups. The proposal is aimed at the non-attached Members who, the committee said, should enjoy the same rights as MEPs in other political groups. The proposed amendments therefore provided for the non-attached Members to be able to delegate two of their number to attend meetings of the Conference of Presidents, with those delegates having the right to vote (they were currently able to attend without having the right to vote). The report also stipulated that, where the Rules of Procedure confer a right on a political group, such a right may also be exercised by 16 non-attached Members. Another amendment said that, in forming a group together, the Members concerned accept by definition that they have political affinity and that only when this is denied by the Members concerned is it necessary for Parliament to evaluate whether the group has been formed in conformity with the Rules of Procedure. �