site.btaEP to Lift Immunities of Nikola Minchev and other MEPs at Request of Belgian Authorities

On Wednesday, the European Parliament (EP) will begin a procedure at the request of the authorities in Belgium to lift the immunity of Bulgarian MEP Nikola Minchev and several of his colleagues in connection with an investigation into suspicions of corruption, the EP told BTA. The Belgian authorities are checking data that the Chinese company Huawei has provided gifts to MEPs and their associates in order to secure influence.

Minchev said at the end of last week that he is giving up his immunity. “”I will cooperate one hundred percent and I will ask the EP to lift my immunity as soon as possible, because I have nothing to do with any illegal activity of these people, nor anything to worry about,” he added.

The issue will be examined by the European Parliament's Committee on Legal Affairs, chaired by Bulgarian MEP Ilhan Kyuchyuk. The Belgian authorities' request is expected to be examined in substance in September.

Parliamentary immunity is a guarantee that MEPs can freely exercise their mandate without being subjected to arbitrary political persecution, according to EP rules. MEPs cannot be subjected to any form of investigation, detention or legal proceedings in connection with opinions expressed by them or their votes. They have dual immunity, in their own country and in all other EU countries, and are protected from any form of detention or legal proceedings. Immunity cannot be claimed when an MEP is caught committing a crime, the rules state.

At the request of the national authorities to the EP, immunity can be waived, after which the parliamentary legal affairs committee can ask for information or explanations, and the MEP concerned is given the opportunity to be heard in private. The committee draws up a report and adopts a recommendation to approve or reject the request for waiver of immunity. The EP then votes on a decision in plenary by a simple majority.

Waiving an MEP's immunity does not mean a conviction, but allows national judicial authorities to proceed with an investigation or trial. Since MEPs are elected under national electoral law, if an MEP is found guilty of a crime, the authorities of the EU country concerned decide whether their mandate should be terminated.

In 2022, the EP rejected the Bulgarian authorities’ request to lift the immunity of MEP Elena Yoncheva. The Bulgarian prosecution service requested Yoncheva’s immunity in 2019 on money laundering charges.