European Union

With 15 votes in favour, nine against and no abstentions, MEPs agreed to introduce concrete sanctions for any elected office-holder who fails to complete mandatory anti-harassment training within the first six months of their mandate.

Bulgaria has introduced the special gas tax on the transmission of Russian gas through Turkish Stream to punish Austria for its Schengen opposition, the leader of Bulgaria's largest party GERB Boyko Borissov announced on Wednesday (3 April).

The European Union has launched a probe into whether subsidies allowed Chinese firms to submit unfair bids for the construction of a Romanian solar panel park, in the second application of a new trade protection law in one week. 

As we approach the beginning of a new EU institutional cycle, marked by the election of a new European Parliament and the start of a new Commission mandate and European Council Strategic agenda for 2024-2029, the future of healthcare in Europe is at a crossroads.

It is critical that the European Union Cybersecurity Certification Scheme for Cloud Services (EUCS) remains technology-neutral, risk-based, and focused on concrete cybersecurity outcomes, writes Pascal Kerneis.

The draft law on agricultural sovereignty and the renewal of generations in agriculture, presented to the government on Wednesday (3 April), makes sovereignty a "structuring" element of public policy, on a par with the environment.

The Committee on Constitutional Affairs endorsed changes to internal rules to tackle workplace conflicts and promote good office management.
Committee on Constitutional Affairs

Source : © European Union, 2024 - EP

The Committee on Constitutional Affairs endorsed changes to internal rules to tackle workplace conflicts and promote good office management.
Committee on Constitutional Affairs

Source : © European Union, 2024 - EP

European Union member states have spent billions of euros supporting agricultural and food industries over the past two years, following a temporary relaxation of the bloc's state aid rules to help businesses cope with the impact of Russia's war in Ukraine.

After a case of transmission from cattle to a dairy worker in the US, the risk of infection for humans remains low but vigilance must stay high, the European Commission and EU agencies on health and food safety told Euractiv.

Source : © European Union, 2024 - EP

The example of Germany, which has recently legalised cannabis, remains rather rare in Europe: Only Malta and Luxembourg have also legalised cannabis, while other countries such as Portugal and the Netherlands have preferred to decriminalise it.

As EU transport ministers gather for an informal meeting in Brussels on Wednesday (3 April), the sector remains the "problem child" of the bloc's climate efforts and could account for 44% of all greenhouse gas emissions by 2030, according to latest projections.

Hello and a big welcome to our new subscribers from EuropaBio, Astrazeneca, ITAB, and more. Euractiv’s Green Brief brings you a roundup of energy and environment news from across Europe. You can subscribe here. Even as the Green Deal stutters...

In today's edition of the Capitals, find out more about US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken calling on the EU to up its defence industrial base for the long term, Poles being less enthusiastic about the EU compared to 2020, and so much more.

Kyrgyz President Sadyr Japarov on Tuesday (2 April) signed into law a bill tightening state control over foreign-funded non-governmental organisations (NGOs), which human rights bodies and groups have criticised as restrictive.

A Ukrainian drone struck Russia's third-largest oil refinery on Tuesday (2 April) about 1,300 km from the front lines, hitting a unit that processes about 155,000 barrels of crude per day, though an industry source said strike caused no critical damage.

Traffic jams and border queues continue at the Danube border crossings because, although Romania and Bulgaria have joined the Schengen area for their air and sea borders, most border crossings on the Danube are still considered land borders and are subject to border controls.

Bulgarians over 65 currently make up 23.5% of the country's population and are expected to rise to 27.6% by 2034 and 31% by the end of 2060, according to data on the share of people of retirement age published by the National Statistical Institute. 

Slovakia’s ruling coalition party has proposed an amendment to the country’s NGO law that would introduce the labelling of organisations receiving more than €5,000 a year in foreign funding as ‘organisations with foreign support’ – a move criticised by Slovak NGOs, who are urging the government not to follow Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán’s lead.