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31st Jan 2019

Irish MEP Mairead McGuinness handled hecklers in the European Parliament like a pro

Olivia Hayes

She held her own in the best way possible.

Mairead McGuinness is Vice President of the European Parliament and was chairing the European Parliament’s debate on the latest Brexit developments yesterday evening.

Throughout the debate, Independent MEP David Coburn interrupted the proceedings to shout at speakers and at one point shouted “auf wiedersehen” at German MEP Elmar Brok. He then shouted “good” as MEP Guy Verhofstadt spoke out about the uncertainty of Brexit.

Mairead McGuinness addressed the repeated outbursts by saying to the crowd: “This is a very difficult issue for all of us. The least we can do is respect the person who has the microphone.

“There are too many on my right intervening with the debate. Please listen, it is far too serious of issue to play out in parliament.

“This is not the House of Commons colleagues, it’s the European Parliament.”

She was then met with clapping from the attendees of the European Parliament debate. We have to say, she held her composure throughout and didn’t become emotional or flustered while speaking – like a true pro.