EPRS Keysources are designed to provide Members of the European Parliament with an expert selection of documents on a given topic.
Whilst MEPs can request information and analysis from ERPS at any time – Keysources are put together in anticipation of information needs, and in order to provide a quick overview of documents and discussion of policy relevance. In a Keysource we normally set out the key EU documents underpinning a file, and present EU programmes and activities in pursuit of the policy aims: the recent Keysource on obesity policy is an example. We also profile literature and stakeholder views which contribute to policy making, such as on the topic of extraterritorial asylum claims.
Where necessary, we focus on international law and case law. Sometimes, there may not yet be any EU level legislation. Then we might look at how Member States deal with an issue, such as is currently the case with drones. In each case, we describe the document in a few brief words, to give the reader a good idea of what it contains.
Compiled by EPRS subject specialists, keysources offer an overview, the choice of analysis, legislation, stakeholder views, case law, statistics and national perspectives for the sections that follow depends on the topic itself and the type of information available.
Some of our output even takes on a discursive nature: our focus on development financing and gender equality is a case in point. As you can see from our Keysource back catalogue, we make every effort to point to documents freely available on the internet. However, since our target audience and core clientele are MEPs, we also occasionally refer to books and journals held in the EP library, as can be seen in focus on fundamentalism and radicalisation earlier this year.
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