On 19 and 20 March, the Committee on Culture and Education (CULT) of the European Parliament (EP) held a meeting in which, amongst other matters, two core issues for the current situation of higher education in Europe were discussed. 

One issue regards the Bologna Process: the CULT Committee is working on a motion for a resolution on the state of play and follow-up of the implementation of the Bologna Process, whose rapporteur is Petra Kammerevert (DE/S&D). In this motion, the CULT Committee calls on participating countries, on the European Commission and on the upcoming European Higher Education Area (EHEA) Ministerial Conference in Paris to increase political engagement and foster mutual cooperation in the implementation and consolidation of the Bologna Process. It also calls on strengthening the knowledge triangle among the EHEA, the European Research Area (ERA) and the European Education Area (EEA). 

The other matter concerns the amendment of the Higher Education law in Hungary, adopted in April 2017: the Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs (LIBE) is currently working on a motion for a resolution pursuant to the EP resolution of 17 May 2017. Being one of the appointed Committees for opinion, the CULT Committee is working on a draft opinion, whose rapporteur is, again, Ms Kammerevert. The draft opinion  calls on the LIBE Committee to take into consideration the fact that, although the Hungarian Government has accepted some of the demands in the EP resolution of 17 May 2017, it has not yet rescinded the Act amending the National Higher Education Act, which runs counter to internal market freedoms and the right to academic freedom. The issue of the segregation of Roma children and the restrictions to media freedom are also indicated as matters of concern. 

More information

Photo: www.europarl.europa.eu