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European Parliament set to cancel next Strasbourg plenary session

by editor

The European Parliament is set to cancel its plenary session in Strasbourg in October after Belgian authorities designated the Alsatian city as a “red zone” due to the number of cases of coronavirus, according to three Parliament officials.

The three officials said the decision to cancel the October 5 to 8 session and hold it in Brussels had not been taken officially. But one senior official said David Sassoli, the Parliament president, received a letter on Friday from the Belgian Permanent Representation notifying him that Strasbourg was classed as a red zone and that if staff made the trip, they would have to quarantine.

“There will be no Strasbourg,” the official said. Another official said that “going to Strasbourg in those circumstances will be very difficult.”

Sassoli will discuss the issue with group leaders next week and is due to sign off on the decision at the Conference of Presidents meeting on Thursday, the third official said.

A second October session in Strasbourg, scheduled to begin on the 19th, is also in doubt.

The Parliament canceled its Strasbourg session in September after the Alsatian city and the surrounding area were designated as a coronavirus red zone by French authorities.

The decision sparked outrage among French government officials, one of whom called it “incomprehensible.” Another cancellation of Strasbourg plenary is likely to further infuriate French officials, who have long defended the city as the official headquarters of the European Parliament.

In a normal month, 705 MEPs and some 2,500 parliamentary staffers converge on Strasbourg for a plenary session.

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