Changes from report parliamentary committee draft to plenary report

Added25. Stresses the increasingly challenging communication landscape and the multiple ways in which political communication should be performed, including through engaging in various social media platforms and other media; underlines the need for the political groups to convey and communicate their message across all Member States as a key principle of a well-functioning European democracy;

Infrastructure

Change 13

Changed14.26. WelcomesAcknowledges the new approach related to buildings, wherewhere, after a period of acquisition theacquisition, Parliament has entered an era of consolidation,consolidation of buildings, taking into account sustainability, accessibility and mobility of Members and staff;

Change 14

Changed15.27. Takes note that EUR 4 million are included in the 2026 estimates for studies and the contractor's preparatory works related to the SPAAK building renovation while the overall costs are estimated at EUR 36 million; notes therefore that EUR 32 million of costs related to the SPAAK building renovation are not included in the 2026 estimates; notes that the Secretary-General intends to cover these costs by a mopping-up transfer or the use of a loan; requests the Secretary-General to provide the Committee on Budgets with detailed information on a possible loan to cover these costs, in accordance with Article 272 (6) of the Financial Regulation, as soon as possible;possible as well as the full planning of the works including the planning of the costs; insists that costs not directly linked to the renovation works should also be clearly listed and budgeted; notes that as of December 2024, the direct costs of the SPAAK project amount to EUR 14,12 million;

Change 15

Removed16. Notes that EUR 15,95 million are planned to be invested in Europa Experiences in 2026; takes note of the decision to revise the concept of Europa Experience by the Bureau in November 2024 and expects the revised concept to be more cost-efficient and more attractive to visitors; notes that there are still no Europa Experiences in Bucharest, Riga, Madrid, Lisbon, Nicosia, Valletta and Vilnius; recalls that Europa Experiences should allow all citizens to have a better understanding of the functioning of Union institutions;

Added28. Welcomes the pilot project of DG INLO aimed at removing legionella from the pipeline sanitary system of the Parliament and highlights that the only effective way to fight the further spreading of legionella is to bring the water temperature inside the pipelines to 55 degrees Celsius for a limited time;

Removed17. Recognises the importance of visitors groups as an important tool to connect citizens with the work of Members; welcomes in that regard the increase of the ceilings and cost factors for the calculation of the financial contribution to sponsored visitors as from 1 January 2025, notes that about 15 % of the quota for visitors is historically not being used by Members; calls the Secretary-General to propose to the Bureau to make the unused quota available to interested Members; notes that the budget for visitors groups represents 22 % of the overall budget of the Directorate-General for Communication;

Added29. Notes that it is planned to invest EUR 11,45 million in Europa Experiences in 2026; takes note of the decision by the Bureau in November 2024 to revise the concept of Europa Experience and expects the revised concept to be more cost-efficient and more attractive to visitors; regrets that there are still no Europa Experiences in Bucharest, Riga, Madrid, Lisbon, Nicosia, Valletta or Vilnius; calls for the establishment of Europa Experiences in all Member States as soon as a revised concept has been established; recalls that Europa Experiences should allow citizens to have a better understanding of the functioning of the Union and learn about our shared values; reiterates therefore that Europa Experiences are an integral part of Parliament’s ongoing engagement with Union citizens;

Change 16

Changed18.30. Takes note that no additional financing is needed for the opening of Parliament offices in Moldova and the Western Balkans has not been budgeted in 2026,Balkans, as these would be set up within EEAS premises; stresses the importance of Parliament’s presence in these countries as a sign of European solidarity and a sign of commitment of theParliament’s Parliamentcommitment to the accession process;

Change 17

Changed19.31. Takes note of the early termination of the contract with the previous provider of the Crèche Wayenberg after a number of serious allegations against the contractor; welcomes the agreement with a new provider that foresees better working conditions of the nursery staff;staff acknowledgesand better quality of the service for the children; acknowledges, however, that this results in an increase of the budget necessary for this purpose, but emphasises that decent working conditions for external staff should, where relevant, be a priority consideration in public procurement of Parliament as a matter of principle;

Change 18

Added32. Reiterates the need for high quality nursing rooms in Parliament's premises and calls on the competent services to upgrade the current facilities in terms of equipment, space and accessibility in order to make them child-friendly; calls for an impact assessment on the need for a family room within the premises of the Brussels seat of the Parliament, for children of Members without permanent residence in Brussels, mirroring the arrangements in Strasbourg;

Others

Change 19

Changed20.33. Reiterates its request, adopted at Plenary level at several occasions, tofor the Bureau torelevant startbodies theto workreflect on a technical solution enabling Members to exercise their right to vote remotely, during benefiting from maternity or paternity leave, during a long-term illness or in cases ofcertified forcelong-term majeure,illness, taking advantage of the lessons learnt during the pandemic on the technical aspects of this voting method;

Change 20

Added34. Reaffirms its call for the Secretary-General to emphasise the fundamental principle that all recruitment should be based on competency while also ensuring geographical balance among all Member States at every staff level; calls on Parliament to build its own outreach capacity, with the goal of attracting to competitions quality candidates that Parliament needs, in terms of profile, age, gender and nationality and especially from under-represented countries; underscores that achieving fair geographical representation is essential to fostering a genuinely European public service; notes that Parliament has consistently taken measures to support this objective, including the organisation of nationality-specific competitions while maintaining a strict merit-based selection approach;

35. Believes that Parliament should lead by example concerning the rights of persons with disabilities, both as an employer and as a public institution; welcomes Parliament’s policy aiming to ensure the fully independent use of Parliament buildings by persons with disabilities and supports further measures and adaptations that will be necessary in this regard; notes that the budget foresees EUR 3,7 million for this purpose;

Change 21

Removed22. Notes that mission expenses of Members and staff amount to EUR 116 million in Parliament’s budget; calls for a reflection of Parliament’s bodies on mission practices and a revision of mission rules and practices with the overall aim to reduce the number of missions, and the associated financial and environmental costs; in this context, calls for limiting the use of Business class flights for Members and staff as well as the use of flights where train travel is feasible;

Added36. Stresses the fact that Parliament having a single seat could reduce the financial and environmental costs; recalls that, according to the Treaty on European Union, Parliament is to have its seat in Strasbourg; notes that permanent changes would require a Treaty change for which unanimity is needed;

Removed23. Recalls that during the conciliation between the Bureau and the Committee on Budgets on the Preliminary Draft Estimates of the European Parliament for 2025 last April, the Secretary-General committed to initiating discussions with the responsible governing bodies before the end of 2024 on the possibility of allowing APAs, under certain conditions, to accompany Members of the European Parliament on official delegations and missions; regrets that no progress has been achieved so far; calls on the Secretary-General to continue his efforts and work towards a solution to be submitted to the responsible bodies without any further delay;

Added37. Notes that mission expenses of Members and staff amount to EUR 116 million in Parliament’s budget; calls for Parliament’s bodies to reflect on mission practices and a revision of mission rules and practices with the overall aim of continuing to improve the nature of missions and further diminishing the associated financial and environmental costs; encourages Members to use low-carbon transport alternatives and advocates for responsible and measured use of best-value flights options, and the preference for train travel where it is a viable option;

Added38. Takes note that Article 46(2) of the Implementing Measures for the Statute for Members of the European Parliament provides for the possibility to finance extra costs linked to the parliamentary assistance budgets with appropriations from their General Expenditure Allowance (GEA); calls on Parliament's administration to take the necessary measures to enable Members who wish to do so to use their GEA to cover the cost of APA missions; highlights that such a measure would address increasing costs in Members' offices while being budgetary neutral;

Added39. Calls on the Bureau not to index the GEA and not to grant GEA to former Members, thus allowing for significant savings in the statutory costs;

Added40. Takes note of the Conference of Presidents’ decisions of March 2025 on the Implementing provisions governing the missions outside the three places of work of the European Parliament; recalls that Parliament has consistently voted in the Plenary since 2018 to consider lifting the overall ban on APAs participating in official delegations and missions;

Added41. Welcomes the work of the APA Committee which represents around 2 000 APAs, whose work is crucial to the smooth operation of the MEP’s daily activities; notes the earmarking of EUR 10 000 in order for the APA Committee to fulfil its role and ensure sufficient resources to effectively support and properly represent the APAs;

42. Welcomes the exceptional 10 % increase in scholarships for each trainee in 2026, budgeted for EUR 1 million in 2026 to help them cope with growing housing costs in Brussels and Luxembourg;

Change 22

Added43. Expects that requests voted by the Plenary should be treated by the responsible bodies as a matter of high priority;

44. Adopts the estimates for the financial year 2026;

45. Instructs its President to forward this resolution and the estimates to the Council and the Commission.