00:03Hola y bienvenidos a The Cube, Euronews' fact-checking show.
00:07Across social media, users are claiming that paid clacus were hired
00:12to applaud former German Chancellor Angela Merkel
00:14during a speech she gave at the European Parliament.
00:17Merkel was receiving the European Order of Merit,
00:20a newly created award honoring politicians
00:23for their contribution to EU integration and values.
00:26Some MEPs and social media users claim that
00:29because a number of right-wing MEPs boycotted the ceremony,
00:33the European Parliament hired paid applauders
00:35to give the impression that there were more people at the ceremony
00:38than there really were.
00:39So what's true here and what isn't?
00:42Now, several MEPs from the far-right did indeed boycott the ceremony,
00:45including members of Italy's Lega Party,
00:48who said they would be attending a protest organized by Italian farmers instead.
00:52But claims by several MEPs and other social media users
00:55that clacus were hired are false.
00:57Other posts referred to the people attending the session as extras.
01:01But this is not the case,
01:02as a spokesperson from the European Parliament confirmed to us,
01:06adding that the plenary session had been officially suspended
01:08for the duration of the ceremony.
01:10In reality, the people who were present in the chamber were not paid,
01:14but instead the laureates receiving the award,
01:16their family members and staff involved in the event.
01:19The parliament also said that as is customary during such events,
01:23MEPs who wanted to attend still had priority seating in the room.
01:27Footage from the event shows that the far-left section of the chamber,
01:30where the hard-right Patriots for Europe group typically sits,
01:33was mostly empty for much of Merkel's speech and the applause that followed.
01:37There is therefore no evidence that those in the audience
01:40who were not MEPs were paid to attend,
01:42nor that they were there to stage applause for Merkel.
01:50We'll see you next time.
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