European Union

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United Nation Secretary General Ban Ki-moon met with the president of the European Commission, Jean-Claude Juncker, to discuss a number of issues. Several EU Commission Vice Presidents and Commissioners were also present during the June 14 meeting in Brussels, according to Margaritis Schinas, the EU Commission chief spokesperson.

Ban Ki-moon visited European institutions on June 14, holding talks with EU Council President Donald Tusk, European Parliament President Martin Schulz prior to his meeting with Juncker at the European Commission headquarters.

Among the issues that were put on the table were migration and Cyprus. “Τhe UN and EU partnership is an inspiring example of what we can achieve when we work together,” Ban Ki-moon told a joint press conference at the Berlaymont.

As regards the migration crisis, the UN Secretary General appreciated the efforts made on behalf of the EU and underlined the need to support the local communities and address the root causes of the displacement.

Ban Ki-moon also said he looks forward to a peaceful settlement for Cyprus, and appeared to be encouraged from both leaders of the Cypriot community about the steps being taken.

“During many years they have identified the pending issues. All the pending issues are on the table and it is a matter of choice on what measures they would like to take,” said Ban Ki-moon.

“I am strongly encouraging them to make a progress, of course if they can take a good decision until the end of this year it would be most, most welcome,” he added. “I will do my best to encourage them, to support them in the difficult process of making decisions.”

“This is the moment to bring this sometimes painful process to an end. I am personally engaged and involved in that process,” said Juncker on the Cyprus issue. “We are working closely together on the ground with the special en voyeur of the UN. I had the pleasure to receive again the two chief negotiators here in Brussels, I was visiting Cyprus a year ago and my feeling is that the two leaders are doing their best to bring this process to an end.

“I would strongly suggest them to ring this process to an end before the mandate of the Secretary General,” he added. “That would be a marvellous farewell gift.”

Juncker also referred to Ban Ki-moon’s life after the UN, jokingly suggesting that he would make a very good chief spokesperson of the EU Commission.

The post Ban Ki-moon and Juncker encourage Cyprus to conclude negotiations by year’s end appeared first on New Europe.

‘We are inextricably part of Europe.
[No one] will ever be able to take us ‘out of Europe’,
for Europe is where we are and where we have always been.’

These words were pronounced by one of the UK’s most prominent PMs, Margaret Thatcher, on 16 April 1975. This was 2 years after the UK joined the EC: Britain consulted its population by referendum, as a fully sovereign country, seeking voters’ approval for what was a good deal.

In the 1970s when the UK joined the European Community, it was struggling economically Today, after 43 years of belonging to Europe, Britain has a dynamic economy and enjoys nearly full employment,and consults its population again, about the same issue, and again, as a fully sovereign country. The mere fact that this country is able to hold this referendum is a blatant demonstration of British sovereignty. National sovereignty is not incompatible with belonging to Europe. Any political grouping claiming in its acronym that the UK would not be an ‘independent’ country is talking nonsense. The UK expresses its sovereignty in many ways: through its international connections, through its defence, as well as within Europe, where it is in a position to encourage or to block joint decisions.

What does the UK mean for Europe? Some argue that there is incompatibility between the UK and the EU. I would argue that there is complementarity between the UK and the EU. And that each one needs the other.

Debates have focused too narrowly on benefits, from the UK’s point of view, of remaining or leaving. But there is far more at stake in the referendum. What is at stake is the Europe of tomorrow. What is at stake, is peace, democracy, and our common values. 46 million British voters will take a decision that will affect not only their country, but more than 500 million Europeans.

The British decision will occur at the worst possible time, in a context of rapid global geopolitical and technological change, affected by increased economic and financial uncertainty, rising social inequalities, an erosion of middle classes in developed economies, when we are confronted with the need to improve international cooperations in crucial areas such as currency stability, trade relations between blocs, fiscal rules, climate change, transition towards non-fossil energy sources, finance, migrations, the relative decline of Western economies, the shift of economic power towards the Asia-Pacific area. This is a unique combination of substantial challenges.

If you add to this mix the rise of anti-European nationalists, subsidised by Russia’s President Putin, and an arc of instability on Europe’s Eastern and Southern borders, stretching from Murmansk to Morocco… We are dancing on a vulcano. We are wasting time with issues of the past. The world out there is changing rapidly and is not waiting for us.

Britain has brought a lot to the European Union not just by being a net contributor to the modest EU budget. Britain has been a force for extending the Single Market, and for striking free trade agreements between the EU and other regions of the world. Britain encouraged the push for enlargement to the East and contributed to the democratic transition of these countries after the demise of soviet communism. The EU has been a springboard for the UK to promote important values which are as much British as European: parliamentary democracy; the rule of law; open markets. (Some of my fellow country citizens would even argue that the EU has become ‘too British’…’, that ‘too much English is spoken in Brussels!’) As Barack Obama put it: ‘The European Union does not moderate British influence – it magnifies it.’ In other words the UK has more impact and sovereignty as one of the three most important member states than it would on its own.

An EU without Britain would be likely to drift in a more protectionist direction. It would be a much smaller player in global affairs. It would lose one of the two countries that count in terms of defence policy. It would lose a positive force for liberalism. There is a serious risk that the European motto United in Diversity becomes Disunited in Adversity. Is this what we want at Britain’s doorstep? A fragmented mosaic of little nation-states which could so easily be bullied by Russia? Instead of having the EU as a soft power using its economic clout to put sanctions on Russia for aggressing Ukraine?

In the economic domain we have what Mario Monti calls a two-belief Europe: a group of European countries geared towards the market; and another group geared towards the consolidation of the euro area. Those believing in the market; and those believing in currency integration. Market, money. This is not incompatible: the volume of everyday transactions in euro at the City is higher than in any other international financial centre. I would daresay that the UK has the euro not as a single, but as a common currency, that de facto the euro is the second currency of the UK. This shows the extent to which we are interdependent. The challenge is to bring closer together those who believe in the market and those who believe in the currency project.

The European project, despite its shortcomings, remains the most advanced example of an economic community of countries. And it is regarded as a model in many parts of the world involved themselves in a process of regional integration. It is also envied all around the Globe by people striving for peace and democracy. Admittedly it is a ‘work in progress’ with many imperfections, but this is the best shelter that Europeans have, at a time when there is a multiplication of external and internal threats.

Who would have grounds to rejoice if, the Day After the referendum, the UK opted for a Brexit?

• A viscerally anti-European media mogul.
• A few sorcerer’s apprentices gambling on their country’s future to gain a personal political advantage.
• Unscrupulous populists.
• And Putin, who subsidises extremist parties across Europe to exacerbate its divisions.

If, however, the UK opted to remain a member of the European Union, this choice would send an unequivocal message to all the populists and new extreme-right parties across Europe - from France to Poland, from Germany to Sweden, from Hungary to the Netherlands, from Austria to Belgium – that despite disappointment about the way the Union works, and despite the UK’s relentlessly Europhobic press, even in the most Eurosceptic member state of the Union, there is no majority to abandon the acquis of the last six decades, which has become a matter of course for two generations.

One last word:

European integration is far from perfect, but it has been the indispensable cement between a huge diversity of nations and cultures which have been able to live in peace for six decades. If the gap between Europe and its citizens continues to be exacerbated by populists whose ultimate aim is the disintegration of Europe, our democracies will be threatened in their core. We take it for granted since 1945 that the ‘Never again’ of post-War times will always apply to Europe, that there will never be a war again in Europe. If the EU was disappearing tomorrow, what certainty would we have that a war between Europeans, between France and Germany, would still be unthinkable? Who would have imagined in the former Yugoslavian Federation of 1987-88, that its populations would endure ten years of civil wars, massacres and dreadful atrocities, on European soil, for absolutely nothing?

Let us not play with fire. We are in the same boat: let us not saw the boat into two!

Jean-Marc Trouille is Jean Monnet Chair
in European Economic Integration
at Bradford University School of Management, UK.

This is the text of a speech given at a public debate
held on 7 June in Ilkley.

The post Some thoughts on sovereignty, and on ‘The Day After’ appeared first on Ideas on Europe.

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In a statement published today by the office of Gérard Deprez, a Belgian MEP and President of the Friends of a Free Iran group in the European Parliament, more than 270 MEPs call into question the democratic reforms in Iran.

“We are extremely worried about the rising number of executions in Iran. Since the ‘moderate’ President Rouhani took office in August 2013, several thousand people have been hanged in Iran. Moreover, in a public speech on Iranian television, President Rouhani described executions as a “good law” and “the law of God!” the statement says.

The MEPs urge the EU and member states “to condition any further relations with Iran” until progress on human rights improvements is reached there. Deprez, commenting on the letter from Brussels, added that “it will be a great damage to the European credibility, if EU does not insist publicly and seriously on improvement of human rights.”

“This statement as well as the support of MEPs of the Iranian opposition leader, Maryam Rajavi, shows that the elected representatives of the European people have rightly put human rights and democratic values before economic interests and ‘business as usual,” Firouz Mahvi, a representative of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the National Council of Resistance of Iran said.

Amnesty International in its report on Iran harshly condemned the situation with Human Rights in the country saying that: “torture and other ill-treatment of detainees remained common and was committed with impunity, whereas women and members of ethnic and religious minorities faced pervasive discrimination in law and in practice.”

 

 

The post European Parliament calls to put relationship with Iran under condition appeared first on New Europe.

Two UK groups have been honoured today in the 2016 European Citizen’s Prize. Every year a panel of judges chooses laureates from across the member states who have made outstanding contributions to the promotion of cooperation and a better mutual understanding between the citizens of the Member States.

Source : © European Union, 2016 - EP

 On Sunday morning we learned with deep sadness of the horrifying tragedy in Orlando, Florida that has claimed some 50 lives and has left indelible scars on so many more.  This was an attack on all Americans who share the values of equality and freedom; this was an attack on the very way of life which we treasure on both sides of the Atlantic. 

We express our deepest condolences to the families, friends and community of the victims as well as to the population of Orlando and all those further afield affected by this terrible event.

The United States and Europe have during the last months repeatedly been attacked. But each time we have stood up again and reached out to each other in solidarity, as true allies. In these challenging times we would like to assure you, Mr President, of the European Union's continued support, assistance and cooperation in combatting those who seek to challenge the common values we hold dear.

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The European Commission has unveiled measures aimed at helping the EU member states to prevent the radicalisation that leads to violent extremism. A Communication paper was tabled to the European Parliament, the Council, the European Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions on June 14.

To address the root causes of today’s radicalisation, the EU Commission has proposed a combination of actions that span across several policy areas, bringing together competent authorities and societal and community actors at all levels (local, regional, national and European).

The Communication paper focuses on seven specific areas. These include: supporting research, evidence building, monitoring and networking; countering terrorist propaganda and hate speech online; addressing radicalisation in prisons; promoting inclusive education and EU common values; promoting an inclusive, open and resilient society and reaching out to young people; the security dimension of addressing radicalisation; and the international dimension.

To ensure the implementation of these proposals, the EU Commission has committed a budget of €25m over the next four years.

Teachers and youth workers will be key to transmitting the EU’s shared values and to building relationships with young people so they become engaged citizens, according to Tibor Navracsics, Commissioner on Education, Culture, Youth and Sport.

Navracsics announced the creation of a network that will organise visits of local role models, entrepreneurs and athletes, as well as former radicalised people to schools, prisons and sports clubs.

“We also want to support those working in prisons, so that they have the knowledge and skills to deal with radicalisation,” he said. Detainees will also be reintegrated by supporting education and training programmes in prisons.

For instance, the Erasmus+ exchange programme is one of the EU programmes to be used in de-radicalisation efforts. This programme will also expand to cover people outside the EU, aiming to bring 200,000 persons together in total, in online discussions by 2020.

“While prevention and avoiding that people becoming radicalised in the first place is our priority, in parallel, our core security approach needs to be reinforced,” said Dimitris Avramopoulos, EU Commissioner in charge of Migration, Home Affairs and Citizenship. This will be achieved by enhanced information sharing on suspected individuals.

“Those returning to Europe from conflict areas are a particular concern and that is why we will propose a review of the Schengen information system,” he said.

As regards the internet, Avramopoulos said he considers it be the “most important battleground to counter radicalisation,” because it is where youth are “exposed to the poison of terrorist content and recruitment”.

“The recent attack in Orlando, perfectly demonstrates it. The perpetrator was strongly radicalised on his own, purely by using the internet.”

A database of deleted terrorist content will be also built as a joint referral mechanism developed with internet companies. “Alongside this mechanism, we will intensify work with civil society,” added Avramopoulos.

He also referred to the Radicalisation Awareness Network Centre of Excellence, which is part of the EU Radicalisation Awareness Network (RAN) that was launched in October 2015. He said that the group can organise local events at a Europe-wide level.

“Through this network, more than 2,400 local practitioners are working together and learning from each other on addressing the root causes of radicalisation,” said Avramopoulos.

The post EU Commission to combat violent radicalisation appeared first on New Europe.

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Oscar Pistorius, 29, is to be sentenced on Friday for the murder of his partner Reeva Steenkamp.

He was found guilty in March for her murder, as the court overturned a manslaughter verdict after prosecutors appealed.

The Supreme Court finally ruled that Pistorius murdered Mrs Steenkamp on Valentine’s Day of 2013, with four shots. This was barely a year from the peak of his career, when he became the first amputated athlete to compete with able-bodied athletes in the London 2012 Olympics.

South African paralympic and Olympic sprinter, Oscar Pistorius (R) posing with his girlfriend, Reeva Steenkamp (L) at the South African sports awards ceremony in Johannesburg 04 November 2012. EPA/FRENNIE SHIVAMBU

The South African Paralympic gold medalist Oscar Pistorius faces at least 15 years in jail without the right to appeal.

On Tuesday, the court heard Barry Steenkamp, that is, the 73-year old father of the victim. He asked that images of his daughter’s body be made public so people could see the wounds. He said he thought of his daughter “morning, noon and night… every hour.”

Barry Steenkamp, father of Reeva Steenkamp, gives evidence in the Oscar Pistorius sentencing hearing at the high court in Pretoria, South Africa, 14 June 2016. EPA/DEAAN VIVIER / POOL

The murder of his daughter triggered a stroke the day she was found and he is now facing a severe heart condition. After his daughters’ passing away, the family was also faced with financial ruin. Pistorius offered money, allegedly in confidence, using it later as a legal argument for his defense.

The State Prosecutor Gerrie Nel is seeking a maximum sentence, suggesting Pistorius has shown no remorse.

Pistorius’ defense wants the leniency provided by South African law in special circumstances, which in this case would be his disability, in combination with the fact that the former athlete is a first-time offender. They also argue Pistorius is suffering from depression and should be in a psychiatric facility rather than a prison.

A file picture dated 08 September 2008 shows Oscar Pistorius of South Africa in action during the men’s 100m – T44 heat at the Beijing 2008 Paralympic Games in Beijing, China. EPA/DIEGO AZUBEL

 

(BBC, DW)

The post Oscar Pistorius to be sentenced on Friday appeared first on New Europe.

If Turkey goes on undermining rule of law principles and stripping Members of the Turkish Parliament of their immunities, then it should not expect to be granted an EU visa-free regime, said Foreign Affairs Committee MEPs on Tuesday in a debate with Selahattin Demirtaş, co-chair of pro-Kurdish Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP). They also voiced solidarity with Mr Demirtaş’ efforts to revive the Kurdish peace process talks.
Committee on Foreign Affairs

Source : © European Union, 2016 - EP

If Turkey goes on undermining rule of law principles and stripping Members of the Turkish Parliament of their immunities, then it should not expect to be granted an EU visa-free regime, said Foreign Affairs Committee MEPs on Tuesday in a debate with Selahattin Demirtaş, co-chair of pro-Kurdish Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP). They also voiced solidarity with Mr Demirtaş’ efforts to revive the Kurdish peace process talks.
Committee on Foreign Affairs

Source : © European Union, 2016 - EP

If Turkey goes on undermining rule of law principles and stripping Members of the Turkish Parliament of their immunities, then it should not expect to be granted an EU visa-free regime, said Foreign Affairs Committee MEPs on Tuesday in a debate with Selahattin Demirtaş, co-chair of pro-Kurdish Peoples' Democratic Party (HDP). They also voiced solidarity with Mr Demirtaş’ efforts to revive the Kurdish peace process talks.
Committee on Foreign Affairs

Source : © European Union, 2016 - EP

Circular Economy aficionados are busy in June. Both the legislative proposals on waste and the broader circular economy action plan are on this month’s institutional agenda!

Today the Industry Committee (ITRE) discussed the draft opinions on the waste proposals. Tomorrow, the Environment Committee (ENVI) will discuss the draft reports. Next week, the action moves to the Council where Member States will discuss and adopt conclusions on the Circular Economy Action Plan on Monday 20 June. If you have had your ears open, you’ll have an idea of what is in those conclusions.

Make sure to follow our blog and @fleishman_eu Twitter stream

And of course, take a look at our Circular Economy Timeline and let us know whether you have any questions!

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Oil prices fell on June 14 as traders worried over the referendum on June 23 when Britons will vote whether to remain or leave the European Union.

“I think they [traders] are nervous because a few days ago it would see as it was quite possible that ‘Remain’ was going to be there and there was no weakness [in oil price],” Justin Urquhart Stewart, director at Seven Investment Management, told New Europe on June 14.

“Now we have had a couple of polls saying the other way around. And even though the betting companies, who I tend to trust more than the polls, tend to say ‘Remain’ the markets are being reflecting more the nervousness of the polls so if that carries on like that we will see more nervousness in the market over the next few days,” he added.

Brent crude oil futures fell by 69 cents to $49.66 a barrel by 0842 GMT, dropping for a fourth day in a row, while US crude futures lost 77 cents to $48.11 a barrel, Reuters reported, noting that Britain’s “Out” campaign has increased its lead over the “In” camp before the referendum, according to two opinion polls published by ICM on June 13.

Urquhart Stewart noted that a Brexit is a broader issue that goes beyond the UK. “If there is a vote to leave, then that could have a material effect on the rest of the EU in terms of confidence of trade. Any failure in confidence to trade could actually then weaken the oil price – the fear of falling demand,” he told New Europe. If it seems to be an interruption in trade in UK and Europe or take it a step further, the Brexit seen as an opportunity for the Dutch to have a referendum or other concerns about the EU that would be detrimental on the overall EU confidence level and that could impact on the oil price,” the London-based expert said.

The oil price fall on June 14 came despite a US government forecast on June 13 that shale oil output is expected to fall in July.

Oil prices have been on a climb recently due to supply problems across the globe, including Canada, Nigeria and Libya.

According to the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), the world oil market would be more balanced in the second half of 2016 as outages in Nigeria and Canada help to speed the erosion of a supply glut.

The post It’s Elementary: Brexit fears, nervous polls drop oil prices appeared first on New Europe.

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Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders are expected to meet on Tuesday to discuss the road to a unified Democratic front before next month’s party convention in Philadelphia, AP reports.

Washington DC goes to the polls on Tuesday, June 14, in what is the last encounter in a primary that has already yielded Hillary Clinton as a presumptive nominee.

The Vermont senator is committed to preventing Donald Trump from becoming the next President but his endorsement of Clinton will have policy strings attached. Sanders wants from Clinton an unequivocal commitment to his policy agenda.

Speaking to NBC, the Vermont Senator says the meeting will allow him to explore her commitment to “working families and the middle class, moving aggressively in climate change, health care for all, making public colleges and universities tuition-free.”

Hillary Clinton has good reasons to heed the Vermont Senators’ agenda.

On the one hand, Sanders earned nearly 10 million votes and 22 states during the nominating process. On the other, many of the demographic groups to whom he is appealing have turned their backs on Clinton, especially young and first time voters; being seen to take on his agenda on income inequality, campaign finance reform and Wall Street excesses is key to unifying the electorate in what has been a highly polarized 13 month campaign.

Several polls, including an Ipsos/Reuters one in May, suggest that 59% of Sanders’ followers are unwilling to “convert” to Clinton. Last week Sanders met President Barack Obama and Vice President Joe Biden who have already endorsed Clinton. Until last week the Occupy DNC Convention Facebook group was planning to contact superdelegates to convince them to switch allegiance; the platforms has 25,000 members.

Meanwhile, Sanders has begun deploying some of his crowdfunded money and national attention to boost the chances of progressive liberals campaigning to gain the nomination for a Democratic ticket to contest Senate seats. He is starting with $2,4 million.

In doing so, he remains true to his initial commitment to lead a “political revolution” in a system of nominations within the Democratic Party he has time and again called “rigged.”

Sanders’ is testing his muscle, supporting his own candidates in primaries beginning this Tuesday in Nevada, in a three way primary. Control of the Senate will be key for major reforms pushed by a Democratic President, that is, an advantage that Barack Obama did not have.

An early test of his clout will come Tuesday in Nevada, where a Sanders-backed congressional candidate, Lucy Flores, competes in a three-way primary. An e-mail by the Sanders campaign yielded $390,000 for Mrs Flores, while the Senator has already contributed to her campaign.

(AP, NBC, CNN)

The post Sanders meets Clinton to discuss the policies of unity appeared first on New Europe.

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For the first time in history, investors are willing to pay Germany for the privilege to lend it money. Germany’s benchmark 10-year Bund yields reached minus 0.005% on Tuesday; they stood at 0.6% at the start of this year.

German negative yields is a sign of market panic.

Despite negative yields, demand for German Bunds surges as the world fears Brexit and US unemployment figures signal the economy is not growing as fast as it was hoped.

Both bookmakers and polls suggest on Tuesday that a Leave vote is increasingly more likely on June 23rd, a sentiment bolstered as The Sun tabloid openly endorsed the campaign with a headline reading “BeLeave in Britain.”

The European Central Bank will by such bonds until its breaks even with its own deposit rate of -0.4%. Swiss and Japanese bonds are also in negative yield territory.

Japan is also following a quantitative easing program and despite the fact that it is expected to reach a 250% debt-to-GDP ratio, the country continues to sell its bonds at subzero yields.

Meanwhile, despite the ECB’s €80bn-a-month bond-buying programme, inflation in the 19-country eurozone is at record-low levels. Figures indicate particular deflationary pressure across Europe, including Italy, Switzerland, Britain, but also Poland.

A prolonged period of zero-interest rate environment across the developed world has hurt savers, the insurance sector, banking, and all the so-called fixed income sectors. It is feared Brexit would spur market panic and a broader banking crisis, reigniting recession in Europe and beyond.

(Reuters, Wall Street Journal, FT)

The post Fearing Brexit markets flock to German Bunds appeared first on New Europe.

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There has been a reported increase in cases of young refugee girls being forced to marry before their arrival in Germany. It’s a phenomenon that has German lawmakers thinking about tightening legislation against child marriages.

As reported by Germany’s international broadcaster, Deutsche Welle (DW), Chancellor Angela Merkel’s government has expressed its concern that migrant children who entered into marriages abroad may be forced to continue living in such marriages upon arrival in Germany.

“We need a clear law,” Thomas Kutschaty, a Social Democrat (SPD) and justice minister for the state of North Rhine-Westphalia told the daily Bild newspaper.

According to the report, there are hundreds of child brides living in Germany. The recent wave of migration to Europe has seen that number of minors married to each other or to adults increase significantly. In May, a judgment by a court in the Bavarian city of Bamberg made it clear that these marriages are not valid in Germany.

In Germany, the age of majority is 18. The youngest age allowed for marriage is 16, and then only if the other partner is a legal adult, and parents or a family court has granted permission.

The post Germany considers stricter legislation against child marriage appeared first on New Europe.

This is a day of reckoning for France’s union barons. Thousands of protesters are expected to take to the Paris streets again today, seeking to shame politicians into dumping already watered-down plans to reform labour laws. But all that noise may belie a more uncomfortable reality for Philippe Martinez, the union ringleader for the strike. He may have badly overreached.

The gruff, mustachioed boss of the General Confederation of Labour (CGT) said the demonstrations would be “massive”. His reputation is on the line in what Le Journal du Dimanche has dubbed the “final round” of his battle with the government. The New York Times does a smart job of looking at the stand-off. The piece highlights the complex undercurrents in the French labour movement – notably a bloody succession battle to lead the CGT as its fortunes have waned – that are driving militant action in what is ironically “one of the least unionised countries in Europe”.

And here lies the danger for Mr Martinez. The CGT-led strikes have been a costly nuisance but the disruptions don’t seem quite as bad this week. The rubbish in Paris is finally being collected again. The government seems to be standing its ground (albeit to protect far weaker reforms). Public patience is wearing thin. And most importantly, attention has turned to the football – and France won its first game. If turnout is mediocre on Tuesday, what Mr Martinez described as a protest airplane “just taking off” in late May could appear to be running low on fuel.

Read more

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Litter is on the European Parliament’s agenda for June 15. MEPs will debate the definition of litter and proposals aimed at achieving the 50% reduction target of land-based litter by 2030.

Last month, Czech MEP Miroslav Poche called for the definition of littering to be clarified as “any action or omission by the waste holder, whether wilful or negligent, that results in litter”.

The European Parliament is also proposing that EU countries restrict single-use products for the sake of litter prevention.

According to the Clean Europe Network (a Europe-wide platform where organisations share experience, expertise and best practice), the current discussions in the European Parliament are “one step in the legislative process – but a very important step”.

The post MEPs debate how to reduce litter by 2030 appeared first on New Europe.