They are not eligible to vote and most of them live thousands of miles away from the nearest EU country, so there was no reason for MEPs to even take an interest. Still the European Parliament took a key role in preventing thousands of seals being killed for use in luxury products.

Despite their political differences, there is something that binds Boris Johnson, Nick Clegg and former French president Nicolas Sarkozy: they all descend from refugees.

The fate of the controversial ACTA anti-counterfeiting agreement will finally be decided during the July plenary when the European Parliament puts it to a vote. Without the Parliament's approval, it will not be able to enter into force in the EU.