Quote of the week by S&D Group vice-president and co-author of the Panama Papers’ inquiry committee report, Jeppe Kofod

“The Panama Papers revealed that a global corrupted elite of politicians, celebrities and big businesses can put themselves above any tax laws. A lot of these people have used tax advisers to avoid paying tax, hide money or to partake in money laundering and other criminal activities. This is fundamentally detrimental to our democracy and to the trust of the people. We need to act on behalf of our citizens to clean up the mess that we have seen with the Panama Papers. Our conclusions are clear. The EU legislation on anti-money laundering has not been properly implemented by member states, or enforced by the European Commission.”

Past activities

This week MEPs made their final trip to Strasbourg of the year, with important votes on the ongoing Brexit negotiations, the conclusion of the Panama Paper Committee, and the expansion of the European Fund for Strategic Investments.

The S&D Group also reiterated their call for Romania and Bulgaria to be allowed to join the Schengen passport free area as soon as possible and a commitment that Croatia will join as soon as it meets the technical requirements.

Upcoming activities

Parliament now returns to Brussels for a final week of work before the Christmas break. Various Parliamentary delegations are taking place. A joint delegation from different Committees will join the 12th annual meeting of the Internet Governance Forum (IGF), which will take place from 19 to 21 December 2017, in Geneva. The Africa Caribbean Pacific (ACP) - European Union Joint Parliamentary Assembly will meet in Haiti between 18 to 20 December 2017.

Work will also continue on various upcoming events for January. On 23 January SOLIDARwill organise its annual Silver Rose Award, which celebrates Civil Society Organisations and individuals whose extraordinary struggles contribute greatly to social justice and solidarity throughout the world. The event is organised with the S&D Group and the Party of European Socialists (PES) under the Europe Together umbrella. It will take place in the European Parliament in Brussels. Join the debate on the ‘role of civil society’ on our Europe Together Platform or by using the #EuropeTogether.

On 30 January to 1 February 2018, the Step it up for Gender Equality: Youth for Gender Equality Forum 2018 will take place on in Brussels. Step it up for Gender Equality is an interactive and inspiring initiative to promote dialogue, exchange, learning and networking for people engaged in promoting gender equality in their daily lives.

Find out more and register here for upcoming S&D events

From everyone at the S&D Group we hope you have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! 

S&D press contact