Brussels 7-8 October Plenary: Lisbon treaty, economic crisis and Italy's media

MEPs agreed on Wednesday to set up a special committee on the financial and economic crisis with 45 members and a 12-month mandate. It will assess the extent and impact of the crisis on Member States and propose measures to rebuild stable financial markets.

President Jerzy Buzek said: "We should learn the lessons from this economic and financial crisis so as to ensure that it is not repeated. Members of the European Parliament must assess the effectiveness of measures taken by the EU and Member States to alleviate the financial crisis.  The new European Parliament committee will serve as an important forum for this."

The special committee's term of office starts on 8 October 2009. Its findings will be presented in two reports: a mid-term report and a final report containing recommendations on measures to be taken.

The committee will hold hearings with experts, social partners and representatives of industry, governments and national parliaments, and will contribute opinions to the legislative work of Parliament's standing committees.

Parliament voted on Thursday on the membership of the committee (see list below).