REMINDER: COSAC – Conference of Parliamentary Committees for Union Affairs on 19 and 20 November

Amended Programme: European parliamentarians meet in Vienna to discuss Brexit, the Energy Union and the upcoming European elections

On 19 and 20 November the Austrian Parliament will host the Plenary Meeting of the Conference of Parliamentary Committees for Union Affairs of Parliaments of the European Union (COSAC). On Monday 19 November, the discussions will focus on the Brexit negotiations. After the recent breakthrough in the negotiations, parliamentarians from all EU member states will discuss the agreement reached between the European Union and the United Kingdom. On behalf of the British Parliament – which ultimately has to approve the deal – Sir William Cash (House of Commons) and Lord Boswell of Aynho (House of Lords) are to give a statement ahead of the EU special summit on 25 November. The conference will take place at the Austria Center Vienna, the permanent conference and media centre of the Austrian Presidency of the Council of the EU.

The introductory statement on Brexit will be presented by Danuta Hübner, the Chair of the Committee on Constitutional Affairs in the European Parliament. Austrian State Secretary Karoline Edtstadler will provide an insight into the state of play of the Austrian Presidency of the Council of the EU. The keynote speeches on climate policy will be held by Maroš Šefčovič, European Commissioner for the Energy Union, and Monika Langthaler, Director of the R20 Regions of Climate Action.

The second day of the conference will be devoted to discussing the issue of a European Union that is transparent and close to its citizens against the backdrop of the upcoming European elections. Statements will be presented by Mairead McGuinness, First Vice-President of the European Parliament, and Josef Moser, Austrian Federal Minister for Constitutional Affairs, Reforms, Deregulation and Justice.

The COSAC Plenary Meeting will be opened by Austrian National Council President Wolfgang Sobotka and Austrian Federal Council President Inge Posch-Gruska. The 2‑day conference will be chaired by Reinhold Lopatka and Christian Buchmann, chairs of the European affairs committees of the Austrian National Council and the Austrian Federal Council, respectively.

COSAC

The European affairs committees of the national parliaments are responsible for debating EU projects and for preliminary consultations for EU legislative proposals in accordance with the principle of subsidiarity. The objective of COSAC is to enable a regular exchange of views on current EU-relevant issues, on their debates in the national parliaments as well as on the participation and role of the national parliaments in the EU. Furthermore, the meeting provides a forum for adopting COSAC's contribution and its onclusions, and for presenting its semi-annual report.

COSAC meetings are held four times a year: The first half-year meeting brings together the chairs of the European affairs committees of the national parliaments. The second meeting, the COSAC Plenary, is made up of a maximum of six COSAC delegates from each national parliament and the European Parliament. The parliaments of EU candidate countries also have the opportunity to send delegates to the conferences as observers.

Accreditation for media representatives

Permanent accreditation for the Austrian Presidency of the Council of the EU is valid for all conferences and press events of the parliamentary dimension.

Only media representatives who have obtained prior online accreditation with the Federal Press Service are allowed access to the COSAC Plenary Meeting and to use the media room at the permanent conference and media centre of the Austrian Presidency of the Council of the EU in the Austria Center Vienna (ACV), Bruno-Kreisky-Platz 1, 1220 Vienna.

Online accreditation can be carried out directly on the website of the Austrian Presidency at https://www.eu2018.at/media/Media-accreditation.html.

You can collect your accreditation badge Monday to Friday from 09:00 to 13:00 from the Media Accreditation Office of the Federal Press Service (Schauflergasse 1, 1010 Vienna).

On both conference days, you can also collect your accreditation badge from the media accreditation desk of the permanent conference and media centre in the Austria Center Vienna.

Collection times for accreditation badges at the Austria Center Vienna on the 2 conference days:
Monday 19 November: from 07:30 to 15:00
Tuesday 20 November: from 08:00 to 11:00

To collect your accreditation badge, you will need to present three documents: your accreditation confirmation, a valid press card or the original letter of assignment from your media organisation, and a government-issued photo identification (identity card, passport or driving licence).

Contact for accreditation:
Irene Kaufmann
Tel.: +43 1 53115 202561
irene.kaufmann@bka.gv.at
federalpressservice@bka.gv.at

Press enquiries for the COSAC Plenary Meeting:

press-eu2018@parlament.gv.at

Details on the programme of the COSAC Plenary Meeting can be found at www.eu2018.parl.at.

More information about the event can be found on the event page.