European Union

This adds to a growing chorus of similar calls in the Commission and Council in recent weeks.

An “unusual coalition” of MEPs rallied behind protein diversification and urged the Commission to take action.

In this episode, host Giada Santana and Paris-based politics reporter Theo Bourgery-Gonse make sense of the French left's fragmentation and Prime Minister Bayrou's latest moves.

Euractiv sat down with Stine Bosse, the vice-president of the Health Committee, to learn about her priorities.

A new report highlights the urgent need for a shift to proactive prevention in youth mental well-being. It advocates for early identification and systemic collaboration to build resilience across Europe.

The Polish Presidency needs to focus on finalising the pharmaceutical package and reducing dependence on medicine imports from Asia, Czech MEP told Euractiv.

Disinformation tactics similar to those used against the United States have been deployed, including using African media outlets for credibility and AI-generated testimonies in influence operations.

The new EU recycling legislation, expected to be proposed next year, will try to close existing loopholes but not overburden businesses with new bureaucracy, says a Commission official.

E-cigarette sales in Poland soared by a staggering 208% in 2023 compared to the previous year.

The ambitious plans aim to secure medicine supply, accelerate innovation, strengthen clinical research, and reinforce IP protections.

What you should have on your radar on anything defence.

The disappearance casts further doubt on the independence of the American institutions tasked with upholding the EU-US Data Privacy Framework.

Never mind the budget: navigating the parliament will be no walk in the park going forward, as critical bills pile up.

Timmermans called on the EPP to "step back a bit" and to "just look at the policies that Europe needs to recreate a solid industrial base."

Written by Pieter Baert.

Value added tax (VAT) is a crucial revenue stream for both EU and national budgets. However, substantial losses resulting from domestic and cross-border VAT fraud make its enforcement an essential priority amid growing financial demands. Fraudsters, who are regularly part of organised criminal networks, exploit weaknesses in the VAT system, causing government revenue losses worth billions of euros.

Over the years, the EU and its Member States have taken a variety of measures to close VAT loopholes, adopting innovative digital tools to facilitate exchange of information and detect and stop fraudulent transactions as fast as possible. Member States have also committed to cooperating more closely, through bodies such as the European Public Prosecutor’s Office and Eurofisc; this has led to the successful dismantling of major VAT fraud networks responsible for billions of euros of damage. While progress has been made, the involvement of multiple actors in combating VAT fraud has raised questions about how to optimise cooperation between these bodies.

European Commissioner for Taxation, Wopke Hoekstra, has been tasked with maintaining ambitious efforts to combat tax fraud in the EU, while the Commissioner for Budget, Piotr Serafin, is leading a review of the EU’s anti-fraud structures with a view to enhancing efficiency and cooperation.

Read the complete briefing on ‘Filling the gap: The EU’s fight against VAT fraud‘ in the Think Tank pages of the European Parliament.

Example of MTIC fraud

The deputy chair of Germany's climate experts council described “a mixed picture”.

There is no information as to whether the ePrivacy regulation will be withdrawn by the Commission.

The British prime minister isn't making waves in Brussels, which is probably for the best.

A leaked document lists all the new EU initiatives slated for 2025, with the final version landing next week.

Under current rules, harming animal species or destroying their habitat is punishable by up to three years in prison and a €150,000 fine.