European Parliament President Antonio Tajani wants to open plenary debates to "high-profile" figures | Sean Gallup/Getty Images Tajani wants to turn European Parliament into a global stage The Parliament president wants to allow ‘high-profile’ figures to debate with MEPs in Strasbourg plenary sessions.

European Parliament President Antonio Tajani wants to open plenary debates to “high-profile” political figures in an effort to boost the assembly's standing and enhance European democracy.

“President Tajani would like the European Parliament to be at the heart of the debate on the future of Europe,” an official in Tajani's Cabinet said. “Holding frank, open exchanges with other leaders would be a way for this house to bring Europe closer to its citizens, helping to fulfill one of the president's commitments for his mandate.”

Accepted practice at present is that only heads of state can be invited by the president to speak to MEPs at the full session of Parliament in Strasbourg. But recently, MEPs have begun to bend their own unwritten rules and have allowed religious leaders and prime ministers such as Hungary's Viktor Orbán to come and speak to MEPs.

In November 2014, Pope Francis made headlines when, in a speech in the Strasbourg hemicycle, he likened Europe to a grandmother who is “no longer fertile and vibrant.” In a further departure, Orbán was allowed to debate with parliamentarians rather than just delivering a speech.

Tajani wants to encourage this trend and expand the group of people permitted to speak and debate with MEPs to include EU leaders such as Council President Donald Tusk or European Central Bank President Mario Draghi — in effect turning the Parliament into “the center of the debate” on the future of Europe, according to a document obtained by POLITICO. Crucially, he also wants MEPs to be able to quiz their guest speakers rather than just listening passively.

Another senior Parliament official said Tajani wants to choose guests who can address MEPs on topics relevant to the EU.

According to other documents obtained by POLITICO, Tajani’s conservative European People’s Party and the Greens group proposed in a recent meeting of the Conference of Presidents (the Parliament's decision-making body) to invite Jerry Brown, the governor of California, to speak and debate with MEPs.

Though the format of the debate remains to be confirmed, MEPs say they would like Brown to address the plenary on energy issues and the upcoming United Nations Climate Change Conference in Bonn. Without a change of current practice, he would be unable to address a plenary debate. Tajani will seek other ideas for guest speakers at the Conference of Presidents meeting Thursday morning.

The Parliament has sent out plenary debate invitations to British Prime Minister Theresa May, French President Emmanuel Macron and Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar. Several Parliament officials said Macron will address the plenary and debate with MEPs in November but no date has been set.

But Tajani's proposal has already attracted criticism among lawmakers who believe that expanding the list of high-profile speakers will turn the Parliament into what Udo Bullmann, a Socialist German MEP, called a “random talking shop.”

"We don't want an inflation of speakers," said Jo Leinen, a German member of the Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats. "We want to invite people who fit into our main debates and concerns."

MEPs have come in for criticism for not turning up in sufficient numbers when the Parliament has had high-profile speakers. In July, Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker called the Parliament “ridiculous” because the hemicycle was close to empty during a speech by Malta’s Prime Minister Joseph Muscat.