TIMES.KY

Cayman Islands, Caribbeanand International News
Sunday, Apr 02, 2023

MEPs want to grill von der Leyen over Pfizer vaccine contract

MEPs want to grill von der Leyen over Pfizer vaccine contract

The European Parliament’s COVID-19 committee will ask the European Commission president to appear before the panel.
An unwanted invite may soon be landing in Ursula von der Leyen's mailbox.

The MEPs leading the European Parliament's COVID-19 committee have decided to ask the president of the European Commission to appear publicly in front of the panel, according to a statement sent exclusively to POLITICO by the committee's chair, Belgian MEP Kathleen Van Brempt.

Lawmakers want to ask von der Leyen about her role negotiating a massive, multibillion euro coronavirus vaccine contract signed at the height of the pandemic. It was in the run-up to this contract that she is reported to have exchanged text messages with Pfizer's Chief Executive Albert Bourla.

"The European Union has spent a lot of public resources into the production and purchase of vaccines during the pandemic," Van Brempt said in the statement. "[T]he Parliament has the right to obtain full transparency on the modalities of these expenditures and the preliminary negotiations leading up to them."

So far, the Commission President has dodged questions about what went down in those crucial months.

Neither the EU's ombudsman or the Court of Auditors have been able to shed a light on the murky dealings. The European Public Prosecutor's Office, which is armed with legal powers that the other watchdog agencies lack, has opened an investigation into the vaccine contracts, without saying whether the Commission President is its target.

The COVID panel has been looking into the deal — the third and largest contract signed with Pfizer and its German partner BioNTech — and has so far heard from both the Court of Auditors and the ombudsman. But Bourla refused the summons, sending an underling in his stead.

Following the Parliament's rules, the invite will be sent to Parliament President Roberta Metsola, who will decide then whether to ask von der Leyen to attend the hearing. Metsola is a member of the center-right European People's Party group, the same one that placed the Commission President in her role.

The invitation, if it does arrive, doesn't have any legal force. Like Bourla, von der Leyen can refuse to appear. But with calls for greater transparency growing louder as the Qatargate corruption scandal engulfs Brussels, she may feel like she can't say no.

It's not just von der Leyen who is in the MEPs' crosshairs. Van Brempt said in her statement that the committee would also ask to revoke Pfizer's European Parliament access privileges in response to Bourla's refusal to testify. It's happened in the past: Lawmakers voted to ban Monsanto lobbyists in 2017 after the company refused to turn up to a hearing. But it's not automatic — the decision would have to be approved through the Parliament's internal processes. And individual MEPs can continue to sign in Pfizer lobbyists as private guests. 

But even symbolic moves have their place as the EU's institutions try to repair their recent reputational damage.

"Transparency is essential to ensure our citizens’ trust in the European institutions," Van Brempt explained.
Newsletter

Related Articles

TIMES.KY
Close
0:00
0:00
The G-7 aims to make global crypto regulations tougher
Don’t Dismiss China’s Peacemaking Bid
China and Brazil have signed a new deal that will allow them to trade in their own currencies, bypassing the US dollar as an intermediary
Elon Musk and Others Call for Pause on A.I., Citing ‘Profound Risks to Society’
Nashville style execution
“We've had evidence prior to the pandemic that masks were largely ineffective at preventing community transmission of influenza “
Former Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz:
Former Starbucks CEO Howard Schultz rejects being labeled a "billionaire"
Jamie Dimon is being deposed over JPMorgan Chase role in Epstein lawsuits
Brand new security footage has just been released to the public showing the Active shooter Audrey Elizabeth Hale drove to Covenant Church School in her Honda Fit this morning, parked, and shot her way into the building
AMERICA, 2023
U.S. charges FTX's Bankman-Fried with paying $40 million bribe
Fallen 'Crypto King' Who Owes Millions to Investors Was Kidnapped and Tortured
Regulators blame social media for SVB's rapid collapse: 'Complete game changer'
AOC explains why she opposes banning TikTok
UK: Humza Yousaf replaces Nicola Sturgeon as SNP leader and first minister in Scotland
In a dramatic U-turn against His Government: Judicial Reform Legislation Must Be Halted, Says Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant
Gordon Moore, a co-founder of Intel Corporation, died at 94
Powell: Silicon Valley Bank was an 'outlier'
Donald Trump arrested – Twitter goes wild with doctored pictures
NYPD is setting up barricades outside Manhattan Criminal Court ahead of Trump arrest.
Credit Suisse's Scandalous History Resulted in an Obvious Collapse - It's time for regulators who fail to do their job to be held accountable and serve as an example by being behind bars.
Home Secretary Suella Braverman tours potential migrant housing in Rwanda as asylum deal remains mired in legal challenges
Paris Rioting vs Macron anti democratic law
'Sexual Fantasy' Assignment At US School Outrages Parents
Credit Suisse to borrow $54 billion from Swiss central bank
Russian Hackers Preparing New Cyber Assault Against Ukraine
Jeremy Hunt insists his Budget will get young parents and over-50s back into work
If this was in Tehran, Moscow or Hong Kong
TRUMP: "Standing before you today, I am the only candidate who can make this promise: I will prevent World War III."
Mexican President Claims Mexico is Safer than the U.S.
A brief banking situation report
Lady bites police officer and gets instantly reaction
We are witnessing widespread bank fails and the president just gave a 5 min speech then walked off camera.
Donald Trump's asked by Tucker Carlson question on if the U.S. should support regime change in Russia?.
Silicon Valley Bank exec was Lehman Brothers CFO
In a potential last-ditch effort, HSBC is considering a rescue deal to save Silicon Valley Bank UK from insolvency
BBC Director General, Tim Davie, has apologized, but not resigned, yet, following the disruption of sports programmes over the weekend
Elon Musk Is Planning To Build A Town In Texas For His Employees
The Silicon Valley Bank’s collapse effect is spreading around the world, affecting startup companies across the globe
City officials in Berlin announced on Thursday that all swimmers at public pools will soon be allowed to swim topless
Fitness scam
Market Chaos as USDC Loses Peg to USD after $3.3 Billion Reserves Held by Silicon Valley Bank Closed.
Senator Tom Cotton: If the Mexican Government Won’t Stop Cartels from Killing Americans, Then U.S. Government Should
Banking regulators close SVB, the largest bank failure since the financial crisis
The unelected UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, an immigrant himself, defends new controversial crackdown on illegal migration
Man’s penis amputated by mistake after he’s wrongly diagnosed with a tumour
In a major snub to Downing Street's Silicon Valley dreams, UK chip giant Arm has dealt a serious blow to the government's economic strategy by opting for a US listing
It's the question on everyone's lips: could a four-day workweek be the future of employment?
Is Gold the Ultimate Safe Haven Asset in Times of Uncertainty?
×