The plenary of the European Parliament on Thursday approved the waiver of the parliamentary immunity of Socialist MEPs Andrea Cozzolino and Marc Tarabella to be tried by Belgian authorities for their alleged involvement in the scheme of bribes paid by Qatar and Morocco to gain influence in the EU institutions.
The vote by show of hands supports two reports by the Legal Affairs Committee (JURI) of the European Parliament that recommended already on Monday to accept the request of the Belgian judicial authorities.
The procedure that began on January 16 with the formal announcement of the president of the institution, Roberta Metsola, in a previous plenary session will officially conclude once the lifting of their immunities is communicated to the two concerned and the authorities that requested it.
With this procedure, the European Parliament responds to the request of the Belgian Justice to waive the immunities of these two MEPs from the group of European Socialists and Democrats (S&D) to be investigated in the case opened by the alleged payment of bribes by Qatar and Morocco to MEPs and parliamentary staff to influence «politically and economically» in the European Parliament.
At the time of the decision, Cozzolino and Tarabella appear as MEPs of the Non-attached group after their suspension – voluntary in the case of the Italian and forced in the case of the Belgian – from the Social Democratic group in the European Parliament.
In the framework of this investigation there are already four defendants who remain in custody since late December accused of belonging to a criminal organization, corruption and money laundering, including the vice president of the European Parliament Eva Kaili, dismissed from her functions in the institution following her arrest although, like the rest, she maintains her seat.
Source: (EUROPA PRESS)
