European Union

Canon v Commission
Competition
The General Court dismisses the action brought by Canon, which was fined € 28 million by the Commission for failure to comply with merger control rules in its acquisition of Toshiba Medical Systems Corporation

Wednesday, 18 May

Source : © European Union, 2022 - EP

Wednesday, 18 May

Source : © European Union, 2022 - EP

Minister Donohoe, in his role as President of Eurogroup, will meet the Dutch Minister for Finance and First Deputy Prime Minister, Sigrid Kaag, in The Hague on 18 May. He will then travel to Petersberg, Bonn to participate in the meeting of G7 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors chaired by the German Presidency of the G7.

The press briefing ahead of the General Affairs Council will take place on 19 May 2022 at 14.00. The briefing will be "off the record".

Press briefing ahead of the Economic and Financial Affairs Council will take place on 19 May 2022 at 13:30.

Faced with war, high energy prices and a climate crisis, Europe needs to untangle itself from Russian fossil fuels asap. But ultimately, it needs to reduce its reliance on all fossil fuels as much as possible.

The head of French nuclear regulator ASN said on Tuesday (17 May) that fixing corrosion problems at some of state-controlled utility EDF's nuclear reactors would require a "large scale" plan and "several years" as he warned of a risk more reactors could be halted.

Written by Stefano Spinaci (1st edition).

Companies can play a key role in building a sustainable economy and society, and in furthering environmental goals. At the same time, their global value chains may pose risks to human rights and the environment. Civil society, governments and companies are increasingly aware of the issue.

A growing number of EU companies have taken initiatives to deploy due diligence processes, often using the existing international voluntary standards on responsible business conduct. Some Member States have started developing their own legal frameworks on corporate due diligence.

To avoid fragmentation and to provide legal certainty to business and citizens, the Commission has proposed a directive laying down rules on corporate due diligence obligations (including on climate change), directors’ duties, civil liability and protection of persons reporting breaches. Supervisory authorities designated by the Member States would be in charge of enforcing the new directive. It would be aligned with international standards on human rights and environmental protection. The Parliament had already called on the Commission to introduce mandatory due diligence legislation in a legislative-initiative resolution of March 2021. It will now examine the Commission proposal following the ordinary legislative procedure.

Versions

• May 2022: Corporate sustainability due diligence: Could value chains integrate human rights and environmental concerns? (1st edition)

Proposal for a directive of the European Parliament and of the Council on corporate sustainability due diligence and amending Directive (EU) 2019/1937 Committee responsible:Committee on Legal Affairs (JURI)COM(2022) 71
23.2.2022Rapporteur:Lara Wolters (S&D, the Netherlands)2022/0051(COD)Shadow rapporteurs:Axel Voss (EPP, Gemany)
Adrián Vázquez Lázara (Renew, Spain)Ordinary legislative procedure
(COD) (Parliament and Council
on equal footing – formerly ‘co-decision’) Next steps expected: Publication of draft report

Germany could shift all of its current electricity demand onto solar, wind and batteries within the next 10 years for just €35.2 billion per year and could be completely energy self-sufficient by 2035 for less than it currently spends on fossil fuels, writes Nafeez Ahmed.

In today’s edition of the Capitals, find out more about the Hungarian president travelling to Warsaw in a bid to reinforce relations, Slovenia being unhappy about the continuation of Austrian border controls, and so much more.

The EU will leave its military training mission in Mali suspended, but will not terminate it for the time being, the bloc’s top diplomat Josep Borrell said on Tuesday (May 17). “We decided to reaffirm our decision of suspending operational...

Allowing Kosovo to join the Council of Europe (CoE) is contrary to international law, the UN Security Council Resolution 1244 and human rights, Serbian National Assembly Speaker Ivica Dačić said in a discussion with Tiny Kox, president of the parliamentary...

Eyeing Turkey’s pressure on the US to unlock a deal for the delivery of F-16 jet fighters, Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis told the US Congress in a speech that Washington should mind the consequences of such decisions. Referring to...

Slovenia is dismayed over Austria’s decision to extend police control at its borders despite a recent EU Court of Justice ruling saying that Austria’s justification for introducing border controls has been unsatisfactory since 2017. “We very much regret this move,”...

Croatia currently meets only 21% of its energy needs and is moving towards increasing its own production capacities, Energy Minister Davor Filipović told state broadcaster HRT on Tuesday. Croatia has decided to start filling its only underground gas storage, Okoli in...

Romania’s economy posted a surprising 6.5% growth rate in the first quarter, but economists predict a significant slowdown for the rest of the year. Romania’s GDP grew 6.5% in the first quarter of 2022 compared with the same period of...

Over half of Bulgarians believe Bulgaria cannot guarantee its national security and territorial integrity outside NATO, while one in four think it can, a national survey by the agency Market Links has found. Against this background, 36% of respondents said that...

The ACER report on wholesale electricity markets makes the case for the status quo despite evidence that these same markets have delivered massive and unnecessary electricity price rises for EU citizens, writes Mike Parr.

Katalin Novák, Hungary’s newly appointed president, on her first trip abroad to Poland on Tuesday, attempted to reinforce relations as the traditional alliance between Budapest and Warsaw weathers Russia-policy divisions. After the parliamentary elections on 3 April, re-elected Prime Minister...