A German member of the EU Parliament has written to the body’s president, calling for an end to the practice of moving between Strasbourg and Brussels.

The parliament sits in the French city for 12 sessions a year, as per the European Union treaty, but other parliamentary businesses take place in the Belgian and EU capital.

Thousands of workers and documents, therefore, have to be regularly transferred between the cities.

Daniel Freund of Germany’s Greens asked EU Parliament President Roberta Metsola to scrap the system due to Europe’s energy crisis brought on by Russia’s war in Ukraine.

“We are facing a severe energy shortage in Europe,” Mr Freund said.

He added, “While some European citizens assume that they will not be able to heat their homes in winter adequately, the European Parliament is unnecessarily heating, lighting and operating two building complexes at the same time.’’

A response from Metsola is still pending.

The issue has long been debated in the EU, particularly on environmental grounds. Still, France was adamant about Strasbourg’s position, and a change can only be agreed upon unanimously by the EU states. 

(dpa/NAN)