European Union

Jean-Claude Juncker's last State of the Union speech before the next European elections turned into a stocktaking of his mandate and a platform for political groups to set up their priorities for the electoral campaign.

The European Parliament has called for an international ban on lethal autonomous weapons, known colloquially as 'killer robots'. A non-binding text, adopted on Wednesday with 566 MEPs in favour, 57 against, and 73 abstaining, said that the 28 EU member states should have a common position on autonomous weapons by November and "speak in relevant forums with one voice".

The European Parliament backed the controversial copyright bill on Wednesday (12 September), drawing cheers of jubilation and howls of disapproval from MEPs in the Strasbourg hemicycle.

Written by Martin Russell and Ionel Zamfir,

© Lisa F. Young / Fotolia

Digital technology brings greater efficiency in many walks of life, and elections are no exception. Online databases hugely facilitate the task of creating and managing accurate and up-to-date electoral rolls. In less developed countries, whose citizens often lack reliable identity documents, biometric technology can help to identify voters, thus preventing fraud in the form of multiple voting.

However, for some aspects of election management, digitalisation is more controversial. Electronic voting machines count votes quickly and accurately. First used in the United States, they have spread to several Latin American and Asian countries. However, the intangible nature of digital processes makes detecting tampering more difficult; as a result, most European countries are sticking to tried-and-trusted conventional paper ballots.

Even more controversial is the idea of internet voting. On the one hand, allowing citizens the convenience of casting their vote online without the need to visit polling stations could help to reverse a worrying decline in voter turnout across the world. On the other hand, current technology does not allow internet voting systems to be fully secured against hackers, a major concern given the growing sophistication of cyber-attacks (for example, from Russia). To date, only Estonia gives all voters the option of online voting in national elections.

Read the complete briefing on ‘Digital technology in elections‘.

Countries that use electronic voting

Countries that use internet voting

Bulgaria and Croatia should join the EU's passport-free Schengen area immediately, EPP group leader Manfred Weber said on Wednesday (12 September), in a friendly gesture to two Eastern European governments from his political family.

"World" and "time" are the words the European Commission chief used the most in his last State of the Union address on Wednesday, amid a far-right surge and Trump's isolationism.

MEPs voted en masse to trigger Article 7 proceedings against Hungary on Wednesday (12 September), although Jean-Claude Juncker's early morning Strasbourg speech failed to send much of a clear signal against Budapest's alleged rule of law violations.

The Visegrad Four, as well as Bulgaria, Romania, Croatia and Slovenia, have warned about “disproportions” in the food supply chain if large suppliers are not covered by the European Commission’s proposal on unfair trade practices (UTPs).

The European Commission wants more border controls, detentions and returns for rejected asylum seekers. The harsh tone is part of a broader anti-migrant mood. "We are treated like rats," one asylum seeker stuck on a Greek island told this website.

Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker stayed away from major legislative proposals in his annual address to Parliament, preferring to focus on the “big picture” of how the EU can assert its power in a hostile international environment.

In his final State of the Union address, Jean-Claude Juncker warned of "exaggerated nationalism" in Europe - and said the EU should play a more dominant role in shaping world events, as the US withdraws from the global stage.

The European Parliament on Wednesday adopted triggering the so-called Article 7 procedure against Hungary, calling on EU member states to examine the state of Hungary's democracy, warning there is a "clear risk" of breaching EU values by the government of prime minister Viktor Orban. The move was adopted by two-thirds of MEPs, 448 for, 197 against and with 48 abstentions.

The European Parliament adopted on Wednesday a reform of copyright on the internet, with 438 MEPs voting in favour of the latest proposal and 226 against. "This is an excellent message sent to the European creative industries," said Axel Voss, the German centre-right MEP who steered the text. The reform, which was first rejected by MEPs in July, was opposed by internet companies and supported by many artists and journalists.

European Commission chief Jean-Claude Juncker held out the promise of an EU-Africa trade pact on Wednesday as part of a ‘partnership of equals’ between the two continents, signalling Europe's stronger involvement in Africa, where Chinese influence is rapidly spreading.

The European Commission is set to pursue a crackdown on the spread of online terrorist content and disinformation, its president Jean-Claude Junker announced in his State of the Union address on Wednesday (12 September). 

The EU Parliament will vote today on opening legal proceedings against Hungary. Whether this course of action will gain a two-thirds majority will depend largely on the EPP group, of which Viktor Orbán's party Fidesz is also a member. Hungary's prime minister on Tuesday harshly criticised the report by MEP Judith Sargentini calling for the activation of Article 7 proceedings. How should the parliament decide?