Every month, after each plenary session in Strasbourg, this page is updated with the votes that mattered — the votes come with explanations: what was decided, by what margin, and (where the record allows) how the story broke down.
Parliament's consent to the revamped EU–Mexico Political, Economic and Cooperation Strategic Partnership Agreement — the first major overhaul of the EU–Mexico relationship since 2000.
The subject: The "Modernised Global Agreement" updates a 2000-era framework covering trade, political dialogue, and cooperation between the EU and Mexico. Parliament's accompanying resolution frames the partnership around democratic principles and the rule of law, including dialogue on the protection of journalists and human rights defenders, judicial independence, and anti-corruption cooperation.
Who voted how, and why: The agreement passed with support spanning the EPP, S&D, Renew, and the sovereigntist right (PfE, ECR) — the latter generally favorable to bilateral trade deals negotiated outside multilateral frameworks. According to reporting on the debate, only the Greens and The Left voted against; both groups have historically pushed for human-rights and environmental clauses in trade deals to be enforceable rather than declaratory, which is the most likely explanation for their dissent here.
A companion vote allowing the trade provisions of the modernised partnership to take effect early, while the full agreement completes ratification in all member states.
The subject: Interim trade agreements let the trade chapters of a broader partnership apply before every member state has ratified the full deal — a mechanism the EU uses because full ratification (needing all 27 national parliaments) can take years, while businesses want tariff and market-access changes sooner.
Who voted how, and why: The vote split almost identically to the companion Global Agreement vote — the same coalition of EPP, S&D, Renew, PfE and ECR in favor, with the Greens and The Left opposed on the same human-rights-enforceability grounds.
Final approval of updated rules clarifying which country's social security rules apply to EU workers living or working across borders, including new criteria for unemployment benefits and rules to curb "letterbox company" abuse.
The subject: When an EU citizen works across borders, which country's social security rules apply — and who pays what — has historically been a legal grey zone exploited by "letterbox companies" that exist on paper in one country to dodge another's labour rules. This revision (agreed with the Council in April 2026) sets clearer criteria for determining the applicable country, adds mandatory prior notification for postings in construction, and tightens rules on cross-border unemployment benefits.
Who voted how, and why: The margin (511–87–61) suggests broad cross-group support — the reform was backed by the European Trade Union Confederation and had already cleared a Council–Parliament trilogue deal in April. The against/abstain votes most likely came from the more sovereigntist right, generally wary of any EU-level coordination of national welfare and labour systems — but the exact group-by-group breakdown for this vote wasn't available in the public sources checked.
Parliament's consent to EU ratification of a new Council of Europe convention setting minimum EU-wide standards for criminalizing environmental offences — pollution, biodiversity destruction, and illegal handling of hazardous waste. The Legal Affairs Committee (JURI) recommended ratification ahead of the vote.
The subject: The convention sets EU-wide minimum standards for criminalizing serious environmental harm — illegal pollution, destruction of protected habitats, and mishandling of hazardous waste — and pushes member states toward comparable minimum penalties, part of a broader European push (also visible in the EU's own revised Environmental Crime Directive) toward treating large-scale ecological damage as a criminal, not just administrative, matter.
Who voted how, and why: The Legal Affairs Committee's (JURI) pre-vote recommendation held — the convention passed with a broad cross-group coalition backing it: EPP, Renew, S&D, The Left, and Greens/EFA all voted mostly in favor, consistent with the vote's framing as a consensus technical ratification rather than a left-right fight. The opposition came almost entirely from the sovereigntist right — ECR, Patriots for Europe, and ESN voted mostly against, wary as ever of EU-level criminal-law harmonization reaching into national justice systems — with a large share of ECR splitting off into abstention rather than a straight "no."
Parliament backed opening interinstitutional negotiations with the Council on the creation of a digital euro — a new, ECB-issued electronic form of money designed to work both online and offline, alongside cash.
The subject: The digital euro would be issued directly by the European Central Bank rather than by private payment processors (Visa, Mastercard, and large non-EU tech platforms) — framed explicitly as a way to reduce Europe's dependence on foreign-owned payment infrastructure. Parliament's negotiating position includes built-in privacy safeguards, a cap on how much any individual can hold (to protect commercial banks from a sudden flight of deposits), free basic services, and a legal obligation for euro-area countries to keep cash accessible. Fernando Navarrete Rojas (EPP, Spain), the MEP behind Parliament's report on the file, leads Parliament's negotiating team into talks with the Irish Council Presidency.
Who voted how, and why: The PfE, ECR, and ESN political groups had formally challenged the Economic and Monetary Affairs Committee's 23 June decision to open talks at all, and provided most of the "against" votes — their objection centers on giving the ECB a direct retail role many on the sovereigntist right see as federalizing overreach. The EPP, S&D, Renew, and Greens/EFA backed proceeding to negotiations.
Next update: after the next plenary session — the European Parliament is in recess in August, so the next entries will follow the September 2026 session.