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Next up, MEPs are debating the wildfires in Greece over the summer. The debate was added to the agenda earlier today at the request of the conservative ECR group.

Greece has appointed new heads of key emergency services following the deadly fires in July. The country's civil protection minister has also resigned.

The government has said the fires were started by arsonists and blamed illegal construction for blocking escape routes.

However, a catalogue of errors in the authorities' handing of the fires emerged last month.

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Greek MEP Maria Spyraki, from the centre-right New Democracy party, says the early release of funding was necessary but she hopes it will "never be necessary again".

Another Greek MEP Notis Marias, who sits in the conservative ECR group, says the 2015 exception made it possible to provide liquidity to Greece when so-called "co-financing" with the Greek government was impossible.

Such an exception "has to be made" when governments are in such a position, he adds.

Image source, EBS

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MEPs are now debating a report from the regional affairs committee about early increased payments for investment projects in Greece.

In 2015 the EU amended legislation governing investment spending to allow Greece to receive a greater share of investment spending as early payments.

The proposal was made given a lack of public funds in Greece to support investment projects during the country’s bailout crisis.

The report says that “flexibly” spending EU investment cash “mitigated the impact of the financial crisis” in the country.

Last month Greece completed its third eurozone bailout programme to tackle its debt crisis – although unpopular cuts to public spending, a condition of the bailout, are set to continue.

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Regional Policy Commissioner Corina Cretu tells MEPs that EU-supported projects have had a "key importance" for economic and social progress for Northern Ireland.

Peace in Northern Ireland should "not be taken for granted", she says.

Labour MEP Derek Vaughan, whop drafted the report, says the EU, UK and Ireland should commit to continuing funding for the PEACE and Interreg projects irrespective of what happens with Brexit.

He says he does want to suggest that discontinuing funding will lead to a return to the Troubles, but says the projects have made a "valuable contribution" to reducing tensions.

Apologies again - our stream is now back.

MEPs are now debating a report from the regional affairs committee about the impact of EU cohesion spending in Northern Ireland.

The report calls for the EU to continue support for territorial cooperation and cross-community projects after 2020, “without prejudice” to the ongoing Brexit talks.

It adds that the EU’s PEACE and Interreg projects in particular are “particularly important for the stability of the region”.

European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker indicated earlier this year that funding for cross-border projects will continue after Brexit.

Our stream from the European Parliament is not working at the moment - as also appears to be the case for the feed into the assembly's own website.

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Green Terry Reintke criticises the allocation of funding for the scheme in the deal the European Parliament has already agreed with national ministers.

In particular, she says she disagrees with the decision to find extra funding by redeploying up to €40m from the agriculture and natural resources budget.

Her group will not be able to support the deal at the vote tomorrow, she adds.

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Education Commissioner Tibor Navracsics tells MEPs the European Commission's scheme has supported reform implementation since 2014.

"Growing demand" for advice from national governments means the programme requires more funding, he says.

The "swift adoption" of the new funding arrangement would allow the Commission to assist with changes for next year, he adds.

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MEPs are now debating plans to extend the remit of an EU programme which assists national authorities in implementing “structural reforms” to promote economic growth.

The European Commission wants a further €80m from the EU budget to be allocated to the programme over the next two years.

It also wants the scheme to be able to help countries preparing to adopt the euro.

Tomorrow, MEPs will hold a final vote on a deal reached with national ministers which would approve the changes, with some additional reporting requirements.

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UKIP's Patrick O'Flynn says the scheme will fail to promote "European consciousness", which he claims is the main motivation behind the scheme.

"It was always more about propaganda than public spiritedness," he says.

He says the European Commission is "making up programmes on the hoof", and calls for the scheme to be scrapped.

Austrian MEP Franz Obermayr, from the nationalist Freedom Party, says the scheme should not be allowed to fund schemes to replace normal jobs, at the expense of the European taxpayer.

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Education Commissioner Tibor Navracsics says the programme is a key part of the European Commission's plans to "invest in young people".

More than 75,000 have already registered for the scheme, he says, with over 8,000 having already started activities.

Backing an "ambitious" funding package for the scheme will "send an important signal" ahead of the European Parliament elections next spring, he says.

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German Green MEP Helga Trupel, who has been the assembly's lead negotiator on the legislation, says the scheme's objective is "very positive".

She adds that the system should not however be "abused" by companies, or replace paid jobs.

The European Parliament has "improved" the original proposal through better definitions of volunteering, she says.

"Young people deserve this, and so does the European Union," she adds.

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MEPs are now debating legislation on the financing of an EU volunteering scheme for young people which was launched in 2016.

The EU Commission hopes the so-called European Solidarity Corps, external will provide volunteering placements and job training to 100,000 young people by 2020.

Tomorrow MEPs will hold a final vote on an agreement their negotiators reached with national ministers on how the scheme will be funded up until that point.

Under the deal, 20% of the €376m budget will come from redeploying unspent EU funds earmarked for education and training. The rest will come from diverting money from existing programmes.

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MEPs also decide to add a debate to tomorrow afternoon's agenda on the demolition of a Bedouin village in the occupied West Bank.

Judges at Israel's Supreme Court recently upheld an order to raze Khan al-Ahmar, where about 180 people live in shacks between two Jewish settlements.

The debate will also be followed by a vote on a motion.

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Strasbourg

MEPs decide to add a debate to this evening's agenda on the wildfires in Greece over the summer, at the request of the conservative ECR group.

At the request of the left-wing GUE group, they also decide that the debate will be followed by a vote on a motion.

Hello and welcome to coverage of today’s plenary sitting of the European Parliament in Strasbourg, the first after the summer recess.

The sitting will be getting underway shortly, when MEPs will hear administrative announcements and approve the agenda.

Proposals to add debates have to be made to the President at least one hour before the sitting opens.

They can be tabled by one of the Parliament’s committees, one of its political groups, or a group of 40 MEPs – it must then be approved by a simple majority.