As the official student association of the EPP, EDS continues to increase its presence in Brussels by participating in the Working Groups which are organised on a regular basis by the EPP.

On Monday 2nd October, Vice-Chairs Tommi Pyykkö and Libertas Ezako participated in the EPP Working Group 2 on Economic and Social Policy. On the agenda there was the finalisation of two draft position papers on “Strengthening the “Middle Class” and “The Digital Transformation in Europe: Time to focus on citizens”.

An update on Brexit was also delivered by the Co-Chair and EPP Vice-President Dara Murphy.

“Working Groups are the backbone of the EPP’s political work, where representatives from the EPP member parties develop common positions and strategies on major policy areas and submit specific recommendations to the Political Assembly for final approval. A Working Group can be given a specific mandate for preparative work for EPP Summits and the EPP Congress. Working Groups are also responsible for organising conferences, roundtable discussions and other important events.”

More recently, EDS participated in the Expert Group on Digital Europe. On Thursday 12th October, the theme discussed was “Addressing the Challenges of Fake News”. Vice Chair Libertas Ezako represented EDS on this Expert Group

VC Ezako said that through this meeting, EDS learned more about the dissemination of fake news. Education was highlighted as an important aspect in raising awareness and to develop a critical mindset to people.

? EPP Expert Group on ? #DigitalEU met to discuss the challenges brought by #fakenews and #disinformation to our democracies. pic.twitter.com/9zR3URSUK6

— EPP (@EPP) October 12, 2017