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Model European Parliament

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Not to be confused with Model European Union Strasbourg or European Youth Parliament.

Model European Parliament
FrequencyBiannual (spring & autumn)
Location(s)Varies
Years activeSince 1994
Previous eventAutumn 2023: Prague, Czech Republic
Next eventSpring 2024: Tallinn, Estonia
Participants180 students per session
Organised byModel European Parliament Foundation

The Model European Parliament (MEP) is an international simulation of the working of the European Parliament for students aged 16–19. The aim of the programme is to give young people an insight into the workings of the European Parliament and raise their awareness of European citizenship.[1] Two sessions are held each year, each involving 180 secondary school students.[2]

Format

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The format of the MEP resembles that of the actual European Parliament: approximately 15 delegates of different nationalities form a committee that debates a certain topic extensively and drafts a resolution, a non-binding piece of legislation outlining the key issues of the topic and proposing solutions.[3] The drafting process is followed by lobbying, during which delegates may debate and propose amendments for other resolutions. The finale of a session is the General Assembly (GA). During this, resolutions and amendments are debated and voted upon by all of the delegates. Any successful resolutions are then forwarded to the European Parliament, the European Commission and the Council of the European Union.[4] The elder members are titled as Presidents or Chairs, while the youngers are entitled as delegates.

Participating countries

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General Assembly of a Spanish regional MEP held in the Cortes (legislative assembly) of Castile and León, 2008/2009

As of 2013, participants come from all 28 member states of the European Union and two candidate countries: Republic of Macedonia and Turkey. Each country can choose five delegates in any way they deem appropriate. Many hold regional and/or national sessions using the same format but with a narrower scope.[5]

Connections to politics

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Famous members of the European Parliament often visit the MEP, hold speeches and participate in debates. Some delegates of the international session in Brussels in February 2023 had the honour to be welcomed by the President of the European Parliament Roberta Metsola. Also the First Vice President of the European Parliament Othmar Karas and the Vice Presidents Rainer Wieland and Evelyn Regner visited the session in several parts of the programme. The General Assembly of the sessions is often held in real Parliamentary or governmental buildings of the hosting country, region or city or the European Union. In 2019 there was a General Assembly in the real building of the European Parliament in Strasbourg. The international session in February 2023 in Brussels had the General Assembly in the building of the European Committee of the Regions. Also national parliaments like the Narodno Sabranie in Sofia, Bulgaria, hosted international sessions in their plenary hall.

List of international sessions

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The following international sessions have been held or announced:[6]

  1. 1994 Spring:  The Netherlands, The Hague/Maastricht
  2. 1995 Spring:  The Netherlands, The Hague
  3. 1996 Spring:  France, Paris
  4. 1996 Autumn:  Ireland, Dublin
  5. 1997 Spring:  United Kingdom, Stowe/Oxford
  6. 1997 Autumn:  Italy, Carpi/Bologna
  7. 1998 Spring:  Sweden, Stockholm
  8. 1998 Autumn:  Spain, Madrid
  9. 1999 Spring:  Germany, Bonn
  10. 1999 Autumn:  Luxembourg, Luxembourg
  11. 2000 Spring:  Portugal, Lisbon
  12. 2000 Autumn:  Austria, Vienna
  13. 2001 Spring:  Denmark, Copenhagen
  14. 2001 Autumn:  The Netherlands, Rotterdam
  15. 2002 Spring:  Slovenia, Ljubljana
  16. 2002 Autumn:  Ireland, Dublin
  17. 2003 Spring:  Finland, Helsinki
  18. 2003 Autumn:  Greece, Athens
  19. 2004 Spring:  Poland, Warsaw
  20. 2004 Spring:  Luxembourg, Luxembourg
  21. 2004 Autumn:  Hungary, Budapest
  22. 2005 Spring:  The Netherlands, The Hague
  23. 2005 Autumn:  Spain, Madrid
  24. 2006 Spring:  Lithuania, Vilnius
  25. 2006 Autumn:  Slovenia, Ljutomer / Ljubljana
  26. 2007 Spring:  Bulgaria, Sofia
  27. 2007 Autumn:  Italy, Rome
  28. 2008 Spring:  Sweden, Stockholm
  29. 2008 Autumn:  Slovak Republic, Bratislava
  30. 2009 Spring:  Cyprus, Nicosia
  31. 2009 Autumn:  Germany, Bonn
  32. 2010 Spring:  The Netherlands, The Hague
  33. 2010 Autumn:  Turkey, Istanbul
  34. 2011 Spring:  Estonia, Tallinn
  35. 2011 Autumn:  Republic of Macedonia, Skopje
  36. 2012 Spring:  Slovenia, Ljutomer / Ljubljana
  37. 2012 Autumn:  Spain, Madrid
  38. 2013 Spring:  United Kingdom, Norwich
  39. 2013 Autumn:  Lithuania, Vilnius
  40. 2014 Spring:  Austria, Vienna
  41. 2014 Autumn:  Luxembourg, Luxembourg
  42. 2015 Spring:  Italy, Naples / Rome
  43. 2015 Autumn:  Germany, Berlin
  44. 2016 Spring:  Hungary, Budapest
  45. 2016 Autumn:  Denmark, Copenhagen
  46. 2017 Spring:  Netherlands, Maastricht
  47. 2017 Autumn:  Finland, Helsinki
  48. 2018 Spring:  Estonia, Tallinn
  49. 2018 Autumn:  Spain, Toledo / Madrid
  50. 2019 Spring:  France, Paris / Strasbourg
  51. 2019 Autumn:  Malta, Valletta
  52. 2020 Autumn:  Sweden, Stockholm (online)
  53. 2021 Spring:  Austria, Vienna (online)
  54. 2021 Autumn:  Germany, Berlin (online)
  55. 2022 Spring:  Romania, Bucharest
  56. 2022 Autumn:  Bulgaria, Sofia
  57. 2023 Spring:  Belgium, Brussels
  58. 2023 Autumn:  Czech Republic, Prague
  59. 2024 Spring:  Estonia, Tallinn
  60. 2024 Autumn:  Greece, Athens
  61. 2025 Spring:  France, Strasbourg

Model European Parliament Baltic Sea Region

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The Model European Parliament Baltic Sea Region (MEP BSR) is an international organization that includes eight member states of the EU situated in the Baltic Sea Region, but also welcomes delegates from Iceland, Norway and Russia (Kaliningrad). The MEP BSR, which is organised and managed by the Model European Parliament BSR Association, uses the same format as the main international MEPs, but with ten delegates representing each country rather than five.[7]

List of MEP BSR sessions:[8]

  1. 2005 Spring:  Denmark, Copenhagen
  2. 2006 Spring:  Estonia, Tallinn
  3. 2006 Autumn:  Germany, Bremen
  4. 2007 Spring:  Denmark/ Sweden, Øresund Region
  5. 2007 Autumn:  Latvia, Riga
  6. 2008 Spring:  Finland, Helsinki
  7. 2008 Autumn:  Russia, St. Petersburg
  8. 2009 Spring:  Poland, Toruń
  9. 2009 Autumn:  Denmark, Copenhagen
  10. 2010 Spring:  Sweden, Stockholm
  11. 2010 Autumn:  Russia, Kaliningrad
  12. 2011 Spring:  Lithuania, Vilnius
  13. 2011 Autumn:  Poland, Gdańsk/Gdynia
  14. 2012 Spring:  Denmark, Copenhagen
  15. 2012 Autumn:  Germany, Leipzig
  16. 2013 Spring:  Iceland, Reykjavik
  17. 2013 Autumn:  Belgium, Brugge/Blankenberge
  18. 2014 Spring:  Estonia, Tartu
  19. 2014 Autumn:  Sweden, Stockholm
  20. 2015 Spring:  Finland, Helsinki
  21. 2015 Autumn:  Norway, Oslo/Nesbru
  22. 2016 Spring:  Latvia, Riga
  23. 2016 Autumn:  Russia, Kaliningrad
  24. 2017 Spring:  Norway, Elverum
  25. 2017 Autumn:  Latvia, Riga
  26. 2018 Spring:  Poland, Iława
  27. 2018 Autumn:  Denmark, Sønderborg
  28. 2019 Spring:  Denmark, Copenhagen
  29. 2019 Autumn:  Austria, Vienna
  30. 2021 Autumn:  Denmark, Copenhagen
  31. 2022 Autumn:  Germany, Potsdam
  32. 2023 Autumn:  Norway, Oslo

Model European Parliament Central and South East Europe

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The Model European Parliament Central and South East Europe (MEP CSEE) is an organisation largely similar to MEP BSR, but it invites students from member states Austria, Slovenia, the Czech Republic, Germany, Slovakia, Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria, candidate countries the Republic of Macedonia, Serbia, and neighbouring countries Moldova, Bosnia-Herzegovina and Montenegro.[9]

List of MEP CSEE sessions:

  1. 2001 Autumn:  Austria, Vienna
  2. 2002 Autumn:  Italy, Capri/Rome
  3. 2003 Autumn:  Slovenia, Ljutomer
  4. 2015 Autumn:  Romania, Bucharest
  5. 2016 Autumn:  Bulgaria, Sofia
  6. 2018 Spring:  Slovenia, Ljutomer
  7. 2018 Autumn:  Austria, Vienna
  8. 2019 Autumn:  Hungary, Budapest
  9. 2021 Spring:  Slovak Republic, Bratislava (online)
  10. 2021 Autumn:  Romania, Bucharest (online)
  11. 2022 Autumn:  Hungary, Szeged
  12. 2024 Spring:  Germany, Munich

Model European Parliament Western European Region

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A Western European version was launched in Autumn 2016 with the participation of Belgium, France, Germany, the United Kingdom, Luxembourg, Ireland and the Netherlands.

List of WEMEP sessions:

  1. 2016 Autumn:  Netherlands, The Hague
  2. 2018 Spring:  Belgium, Lier
  3. 2019 Spring:  Germany, Koblenz/Bonn
  4. 2020 Spring:  Luxembourg, Luxembourg City
  5. 2023 Spring:  The Netherlands, The Hague
  6. 2024 Spring:  Belgium, Lier

Model European Parliament Mediterranean Region

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The Model European Parliament Mediterranean Region is a non-partisan leadership programme for youth in Mediterranean countries. The aim of the MED MEP Region programme is to develop interest and skills in addressing high level international issues jointly among high-school students. The program is a training ground for future leaders and politicians, and is mainly aimed at Italy, Croatia, Albania, Greece, Spain, Portugal, Malta, Cyprus, France and Turkey[10]

List of MEP MED sessions:

  1. 2017 Autumn:  Italy, Naples
  2. 2018: Autumn:  Greece, Athens
  3. 2019: Autumn:  Cyprus, Nicosia
  4. 2022: Autumn:  Italy, Milan
  5. 2025: TBA:  Spain, Madrid

Similar projects

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The European Youth Parliament and Model European Union are separate projects, but follow the same format as the Model European Parliament to some extent.[11][12]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Model European Parliament". Goethe Institute. Retrieved 15 April 2013.
  2. ^ "Model European Parliament". Wymondham College. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 20 April 2013.
  3. ^ MEP Foundation. "Guidelines for MEP sessions" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 3 March 2016. Retrieved 16 April 2013.
  4. ^ "MEP Netherlands". Retrieved 15 April 2013.
  5. ^ "What is the Model European Parliament?". MEP Norwich 2013. Archived from the original on 4 July 2013. Retrieved 15 April 2013.
  6. ^ "All MEP Sessions". MEP Europe. Retrieved 23 February 2023.
  7. ^ "About MEP BSR". Retrieved 15 April 2013.
  8. ^ "Past sessions". MEP Baltic Sea Region. Retrieved 6 October 2015.
  9. ^ "About". The Model European Parliament Central and South East Europe. Retrieved 6 October 2015.
  10. ^ "MEP Mediterranean Region". MEP. Retrieved 19 September 2018.
  11. ^ "European Youth Parliament: What we do". European Youth Parliament. Archived from the original on 24 May 2013. Retrieved 4 May 2013.
  12. ^ "What is MEU?". MEU Strasbourg. Archived from the original on 18 May 2013. Retrieved 4 May 2013.
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