The National Disability Authority and European Parliament Information Office in Ireland are jointly hosting a conference on the opportunities for people with disabilities to participate in public and political life on an equal basis with others. The event takes place on the morning of Friday 24th May 2013 in the Croke Park Conference Centre and attendance is free of charge.

In the context of the Irish presidency, the European Parliament Office in Ireland, in co-operation with the Centre for Irish and European Security, will host a conference entitled "Securing Europe: Future Threats and Trends". The Conference will take place on 16th May from 9 am-5.00 pm in the European Parliament Office, 43 Molesworth Street, Dublin 2 and speakers will include Emer Costello MEP as well as a range of international speakers.

It was dedicated to you and now it is in Brussels for you to see. The Nobel Peace Prize awarded to the EU last year is on display at Parliament's visitors centre until 6 October. Inaugurating the exhibition, EP president Martin Schulz said: "Understand what kind of precious gift it is for all of us to live in the EU in an era of peace on a continent that was too long, too often, a continent of war, of hate, of racism, of xenophobia, of anti-Semitism."

A cross-party delegation of Irish MEPs including Pat the Cope Gallagher, Gay Mitchell, Emer Costello and Martina Anderson met with the President of the European Parliament Martin Schulz to discuss the absence of an Irish language version of the European Parliament website.

Plenary Session - Employment policy. The economic crisis and the challenges of an ageing population have revealed the vulnerability of both funded and public pension schemes, MEPs say in a resolution passed on Tuesday. They ask EU member states to introduce or maintain diversified pension schemes and highlight the role of public pensions in ensuring decent living standards for all, urging the member states to safeguard them.

Plenary Session - Economic and monetary affairs. EU member states should join forces to halve the €1 trillion uncollected "tax gap" by 2020, says Parliament in a resolution voted on Tuesday. MEPs want governments to agree measures to clamp down on tax havens, close avoidance loopholes and combat aggressive tax planning. Other ways in which EU countries could benefit by better coordinating their tax systems are set out in a separate resolution, also voted on Tuesday, on the annual tax report.