The list of 28 new European Parliament Intergroups for the period 2015-2019 includes at least four directly related to rural development concerns.
The creation of an Intergroup on ‘Rural, mountainous and remote areas’ was supported by a joint initiative of rural NGOs. There are also intergroups on ‘Biodiversity, countryside, hunting and recreational fisheries’, ‘Climate change, sustainable development and biodiversity’ and ‘Seas, rivers, islands and coastal areas’.
Intergroups are informal cross-party bodies to exchange views between MEPs, often in co-operation with civil society organisations. They can provide a useful point of contact for understanding and influencing the work of the European Parliament.