MEP fined for harassment says she’ll take EU Parliament to court

The MEP Monica Semedo, who was sanctioned this week for the second time for bullying staff, said Friday she will take the Parliament to court to overturn the decision.

The Luxembourgish lawmaker, who sits as an independent within the liberal Renew Europe grouping, was handed a fine on Tuesday worth €3,380 by President Roberta Metsola, prompting Luxembourg’s Prime Minister Xavier Bettel — the leader of the political party Semedo quit last year — to condemn Semedo’s behavior.

“Ms Semedo will bring an action for annulment of this decision before the General Court of the European Union,” Semedo wrote in a statement Friday. Semedo said she expects that the court “will recognize both the lack of foundation of the accusations brought against her and the violation of her fundamental rights,” according to the statement.

Semedo also wrote that she “strongly denies” the allegations, which were examined by an internal parliamentary committee on harassment, and said that “substantial evidence” was ignored by the committee, made up in part of fellow MEPs. She also claimed that she was refused the ability to testify in the presence of her lawyer, and that Metsola refused to hear her side of the story.

Metsola said that she made her decision “after taking into account the observations of the member concerned,” when announcing the penalty this week.

A spokesperson for Metsola said: “We don’t comment on these procedures, but she has of course the right to go to court.”