On 3 and 4 February, the Representative Office of the Order and the Sisters Hospitallers in Brussels received a visit from Brother Joaquim Erra, the General Councillor with responsibility for the Order’s Europe Region, and President of Hospitality Europe.

Dr Carlo Galasso accompanied Brother Joaquim on a visit to the European office and the ‘European Quarter’ in Brussels, in which the European Union Institutions are located, and to meetings with the new COMECE General Secretary, Father Manuel Barrios Prieto, and with the Apostolic Nuncio to the EU, H.E. Mgr Alain Paul Lebeaupin.

On the afternoon of Tuesday 4 February, Brother Joaquim also took part in the launch of the EU's ‘Europe Beating Cancer Plan’, held during a conference at the European Parliament plenary hall, attended by MEPs, Health Commissioner Stella Kyriakides, and the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen.

Brother Joaquim congratulated the Hospitality Europe office for the work it has been driving forward with the European Union, particularly for the collaborative ventures and synergies it has established in recent years with numerous strategic partners in Brussels.

It is hoped that the good work of the Brussels Office can be further exploited in the coming years to further step up the Order's regional work within Europe.