EU lawmakers move to lift immunity of scandal suspects

BRUSSELS (AP) — The European Parliament’s legal affairs committee has voted unanimously to lift the protective immunity of two lawmakers wanted for questioning over a major corruption scandal. Tuesday’s move paves the way for the full house to consider on Thursday whether to remove the protections of Belgian lawmaker Marc Tarabella and Italian Andrea Cozzolino. Both men deny wrongdoing and say they are willing to talk to investigators. Belgian prosecutors want to question the two about a cash-for-influence corruption scandal, one of the worst to have hit the EU. Four people have already been charged with corruption on suspicion that they accepted bribes from Qatari and Moroccan officials to influence decision-making at the assembly.