Member of The European Parliament - The Job of An MEP

The Job of An MEP

Every month except August the Parliament meets in Strasbourg for a four-day plenary session, six times a year it meets for two days each in Brussels, where the Parliament's committees, political groups and other organs also mainly meet. The obligation to spend one week a month in Strasbourg was imposed on Parliament by the Member State governments at the Edinburgh summit in 1992.

In addition an MEP may be part of an international delegation and have meetings with outside delegations coming to Brussels or Strasbourg or visiting committees or parliaments of external countries or regions. There are also a number of international parliaments that members participate in such as the ACP-EU Joint Parliamentary Assembly, the Euro-Mediterranean Parliamentary Assembly, the Euro-Latin American Parliamentary Assembly and lately, the Euromed Parliamentary Assembly. This work entails full annual parliamentary meetings and more frequent multilateral committee meetings. Members also make up a portion of European Election Observation missions.

Also there is the need to keep in touch with constituents in the home state. Most MEPs return to their constituencies on a Thursday evening to spend the Friday and often weekends dealing with individual constituents, local organisations, local and national politicians, businesses, trade unions, local councils and so on. Four weeks without parliamentary meetings set aside during the year and the parliamentary recess (four weeks in summer, two at Christmas/New Year) can also be used for constituency duties.

MEPs may employ staff to help them, typically three or four split between their constituency office and office in Parliament.

Because MEPs sit in a parliament with powers over fewer high profile subjects than national parliaments (few or no powers over health, education, housing, law & order or defence, but significant powers over environmental standards, consumer protection, trade, employment law) their public profile in their home state is typically lower than that of national parliamentarians, at least those of the latter who are ministers or opposition spokesmen.

Some MEPs choose to make their family home in or near Brussels rather than in their home state.