'Aggressive behaviour' in EP 'crossed a line', Metsola chides lawmakers

European Parliament president Roberta Metsola has warned MEPs that “aggressive behaviour" during a fiery plenary session last month “crossed a line”. 

Addressing lawmakers Monday, Metsola said the “aggressive chanting, jeering, finger-pointing and filming of members that took place is not acceptable”, referencing a session last month which saw opposing sides of the house clash during a vote on a controversial new migration package. 

The heated voting session saw right-wing MEPs chant "send them back" and left-wing lawmakers respond with chants of “shame on you” after the EP approved a new package aimed at speeding up the return of irregular migrants.

“Parliaments are the arena of free, tough, and open debates. Discussions and votes can be difficult; they can even be controversial. But they must always be based on mutual respect and tolerance”, she said.  

“There is a line, and that was crossed last plenary.”

Emphasising that “aggressive behaviour” damaged the parliament’s reputation, Metsola warned MEPs that her office would “respond accordingly ... apply our rules fairly and take appropriate action to ensure that the scenes we witnessed last month will never occur again”.

Metsola also stressed that parliament “must remain a place where everyone feels safe”, in an apparent reference to Iraqi-born Swedish MEP Abir Al-Sahlani, who said during last month’s session that she “never felt so unsafe”. 

Two right-wing lawmakers were later accused of directing “racist” comments at Al-Sahlani after Finnish MEP Sebastian Tynkkynen captioned footage of her intervention with the words, “Cry more”, with Danish MEP Kristoffer Hjort Storm commenting that she “should go home”. 

Metsola was drawn into the debate last month, when Renew Europe chief Valérie Hayer wrote to the EP president calling for disciplinary action against Storm and Tynkkynen. 

In her letter, Hayer called the MEPs’ comments “a disgrace to our institution” that had left lawmakers and staff feeling “unsafe within our premises”. 

The comments were “without a doubt of a racist nature and should be firmly sanctioned”, she wrote, adding that her parliamentary group was also considering legal action against the two MEPs.“I count on you. It is high time to restore order and dignity to this house”.

Iraqi-born Swedish MEP Abir Al-Sahlani said she had never felt so unsafe as in the vote on the return regulation. Photo: EP.

Seemingly addressing the issue, Metsola on Monday called on all MEPs to “follow the letter and the spirit of our rules of procedure and remember that there are consequences to breaking them”. 

Disciplinary proceedings could include a reprimand, temporary ban on representing the EP or accessing confidential information, suspension of the daily allowance afforded to MEPs, or restricting participation in parliamentary activities for up to 60 working days, according to Politico.

“I also call on colleagues, all of us together, to reaffirm that political disagreement, however vigorous it may be, never justifies intimidation”, she said. “I count on all of you to show the best of Europe during these sessions and throughout our parliamentary duties”.

Metsola’s remarks drew rounds of applause from MEPs present in the house.

The EP Press Service told Times of Malta last month that the complaint was under investigation but was in the “early stages” of the process.

While controversial, the new ‘Return Regulation’ debated last month has seen support from Maltese MEPs across the political spectrum.

The new law allows for home searches and countries to set up deportation centres outside the EU.