European Union

The School Fruit and Vegetables Scheme and the School Milk Scheme are currently separate programmes under which EU aid is allocated to member states. In January 2014, the Commission presented two proposals merging the schemes and amending the new Single Common Market Organisation (single CMO) regulation under the reformed Common agricultural policy (CAP)  and the regulation fixing certain aids and refunds. 

Following the examination of the proposal in the Council, on 12 October 2015 the Special Committee on Agriculture (SCA) granted the Presidency a mandate to enter the first trilogue with the European Parliament on this proposal. The first trilogue took place on 20 October. The main issue at the time was the legal basis of the proposal, on which the mandate prepared for the 2nd trilogue shows some opening.

At the end of the 2nd trilogue on 11 November, while recalling its attachment to reach a positive conclusion of this issue, the Presidency deems that it is appropriate to wait before setting the date of the next trilogue. It considers that further informal contacts in the meantime will allow to clarify some elements discussed and will facilitate those negotiations to resume efficiently as soon as possible.

Plenary sessions : Vice-president Mairead McGuinness drew the House's attention to the nightclub fire in Bucharest on 30 October in which at least 46 people died, with 100 or more still in hospital, and the Russian plane crash in Sinai on 31 October, which killed 224 people. She conveyed the House's condolences to the friends and families of the victims of both tragedies and to the people of Romania and Russia.

Source : © European Union, 2015 - EP

Plenary sessions : Vice-president Mairead McGuinness drew the House's attention to the nightclub fire in Bucharest on 30 October in which at least 46 people died, with 100 or more still in hospital, and the Russian plane crash in Sinai on 31 October, which killed 224 people. She conveyed the House's condolences to the friends and families of the victims of both tragedies and to the people of Romania and Russia.

Source : © European Union, 2015 - EP

Getting the green light for placing novel foods on the EU market will become faster and cheaper while the high level of protection of human health will be preserved. That's the main purpose of a draft regulation that the Council's Permanent Representatives Committee approved on 11 November 2015. The draft regulation was voted by the Parliament on 28 October 2015. Novel foods are foods not consumed in the EU to a significant degree before May 1997. They include for instance foods to which a new production process is applied. 

"The compromise approved today is a needed step towards faster innovation in the novel foods market while guaranteeing high levels of consumer protection for the European citizens", said Lydia Mutsch, member of the Luxembourg government and President of the Council. 

Cutting red tape 

Under the new rules the authorisation procedure for a novel food is expected to take on average around 18 months compared to three years under the current rules. The draft regulation also helps to reduce administrative burdens by switching to an EU-level procedure and providing for generic authorisations. This means that once authorised and added to the EU list a novel food may be placed on the market by any food business operator. This avoids the re-submission of new applications by other companies for the same novel food and should benefit in particular SMEs. Under the current rules, novel foods are authorised at national level and valid only for the applicant.

Easier access for traditional foods

The new rules will also facilitate the access to the EU market for traditional foods from third countries having a history of safe food use. For these foods an applicant must demonstrate that they have been safely consumed by a significant part of a third country's population for at least 25 years. 

Nanotechnology

The scope of the novel food rules explicitly covers food containing engineered nanomaterials. The Commission is mandated to adapt the definition of engineered nanomaterials to technical progress or the definitions agreed at international level. 

Insects

The new regulation provides also clarity that insects are covered and are hence subject to an authorisation procedure. 

Cloning

Food from animal clones will remain subject to the novel food rules. Commission proposals establishing specific rules on cloning are currently discussed in the Council and the European Parliament. 

Next steps

The Council is expected to formally adopt the new regulation on 16 November before it is published in the Official Journal of the EU. It will enter into force 20 days after its publication and will be applicable two years later. 

Background

The novel foods authorised under the current rules in the EU include for instance "rapeseed oil high in unsaponifiable matter", "rye bread with added phytosterols/phytostanols", "milk type products and yoghurt type products with added phytosterol esters", "coagulated potato proteins and hydrolysates thereof" and "phospholipids from egg yolk", "chias seeds" and "baobab extracts".

General : The Lux Prize not only gives recognition to some of the best European films, but also serves as an opportunity to show them to cinema lovers across the EU. Join the conversation on social media, enjoy the films and learn more about the Lux Prize and the people whose creativity and passion brought us this year's finalists: Mediterranea, Mustang and The Lesson.

Source : © European Union, 2015 - EP

General : The Lux Prize not only gives recognition to some of the best European films, but also serves as an opportunity to show them to cinema lovers across the EU. Join the conversation on social media, enjoy the films and learn more about the Lux Prize and the people whose creativity and passion brought us this year's finalists: Mediterranea, Mustang and The Lesson.

Source : © European Union, 2015 - EP

Source : © European Union, 2015 - EP

REPORT on the role of the EU within the UN - how to better achieve EU foreign policy goals
Committee on Foreign Affairs
Paavo Väyrynen

Source : © European Union, 2015 - EP

General : Martin Schulz called for a comprehensive and long-term migration policy in cooperation with African countries in order to tackle the refugee crisis. The EP President made the plea on 10 November at the Maltese Parliament ahead of the Valletta summit on migration taking place today and tomorrow. Schulz said: “As long as war continues, people will continue to flee and won’t be able to return home.”

Source : © European Union, 2015 - EP

General : Martin Schulz called for a comprehensive and long-term migration policy in cooperation with African countries in order to tackle the refugee crisis. The EP President made the plea on 10 November at the Maltese Parliament ahead of the Valletta summit on migration taking place today and tomorrow. Schulz said: “As long as war continues, people will continue to flee and won’t be able to return home.”

Source : © European Union, 2015 - EP

Plenary sessions : Aviation is a key driver of economic growth and jobs, but in order to ensure safety and let European companies maintain their competitiveness, current EU rules need to be updated. The European Commission is working on proposals now, but MEPs have already adopted a resolution on what they would like to see in the aviation package to be announced by the end of the year. Check out our infographic about the EU's largest airports.

Source : © European Union, 2015 - EP

Plenary sessions : Aviation is a key driver of economic growth and jobs, but in order to ensure safety and let European companies maintain their competitiveness, current EU rules need to be updated. The European Commission is working on proposals now, but MEPs have already adopted a resolution on what they would like to see in the aviation package to be announced by the end of the year. Check out our infographic about the EU's largest airports.

Source : © European Union, 2015 - EP

Dyson v Commission
Energy
Dyson’s action for annulment of the regulation on energy labelling of vacuum cleaners is unsuccessful

Pujante Rivera
SOPO
The termination of an employment contract following the worker’s refusal to accept a significant unilateral change to essential elements of the contract which operates to his detriment constitutes a redundancy for the purpose of the directive on collective redundancies