The plenary session of the European Parliament in Brussels voted earlier on Thursday in favor of lifting the immunity two Greek MEPs: Alexis Georgoulis from SYRIZA and Maria Spyraki from New Democracy.
Georgoulis has been facing charges for alleged sexual abuse, while Spyraki is under investigation for alleged
Georgoulis, an actor by profession, resigned from SYRIZA in April right after the European Parliament received a request to lift his immunity, as part of an investigation into the alleged sexual abuse three years ago. He denied the allegations
Georgoulis’ lawyer Stamatia Malla said that Georgoulis had personally proposed to the competent Belgian judicial authorities that he appear and provide explanations, but this was not possible as the process of waiving his immunity had not been concluded.
Spyraki is being investigated for alleged fraud against the EU budget. The New Democracy membership of journalist Spyraki was suspended during the investigation.
On her part, Spyraki had said: “I did not ‘hide’ behind my immunity. Instead, in a letter to the chairman of the Legal Affairs Committee (JURI), I asked for my immunity to be lifted and the process to be expedited. I have never been accused of taking the remuneration of my assistants or the illegal disbursement of budget funds. I have no financial differences with the European Parliament. I have complete faith in Justice.”
