Parliament rejects motion of censure against European Commission

In a vote on Thursday, MEPs rejected a motion of censure against the European Commission.

The motion, tabled by the Patriots for Europe group, was rejected by 165 votes in favour and 390 against, with 10 abstentions.

The vote was preceded by a plenary debate with Commissioner Maroš Šefčovič on Monday 19 January.

Background

The Patriots for Europe political group brought forward the motion of no confidence against the Commission, contesting the EU-Mercosur trade agreement, which was approved by the Member States on 9 January and signed on 17 January in Paraguay.

According to Parliament’s Rules of Procedure, a motion of censure in respect of the Commission may be submitted to the President by one 10th of the component members of Parliament, i.e. currently 72 MEPs. The vote must take place by roll call and requires a two-thirds majority of the votes cast, representing a majority of component members of Parliament, to be adopted.