European Union

A UK House of Common's committee report released on Sunday described "disinformation", also referred to as fake news, as a potential threat to democracy. The inquiry said the threat arises with the "spread through the deliberate distortion of facts, by groups with a particular agenda, including the desire to affect political elections." The report follows intense debates over the campaign that led to Brexit.

The leader of Italy's Five Star Movement denied in an interview published on Sunday that his coalition government will hold a referendum on Italy's eurozone membership. "This government will not pursue it," deputy prime minister Luigi Di Maio told Corriere della Sera. Last week, Five Star Movement founder Beppe Grillo said Italians should have a referendum on the euro and a debate about a "plan B".

With European elections coming up in May 2019, you probably want to know how the European Union impacts your daily life, before you think about voting. In the latest in a series of posts on what Europe does for you, your family, your business and your wellbeing, we look at what Europe does for transplant patients.

In the European Union, 16 patients die every day waiting for the organs they need. Around 60 000 patients are on waiting lists. Organ transplantation is becoming an increasingly common way to save human lives or to improve their daily life, but its application is limited by the shortage of available organs. Kidneys are the most frequently transplanted organ.

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Transplant patients have been able to rely on EU quality and safety standards since 2010. The European action plan on organ donation and transplantation also strengthened cooperation between EU countries, therefore now those in need of an organ can benefit from the wider range of organs that cross-border donation can provide. Several EU initiatives help increase people’s awareness and willingness to donate. Recently, the European Parliament proposed the EUDONORG pilot project, which organises training for health professionals and other relevant groups, as well as national awareness events in EU countries.

The third EU health programme (2014-2020) funds projects and joint action with national authorities. One EU-funded project is FOEDUS (‘facilitating exchange of organs donated in EU Member States’) on cross-border organ exchange. The EU also finances the HOTT project, investigating the trafficking in human beings for the purpose of organ removal.

The results are encouraging and shows that when Europe pools its resources and expertise, it can deliver real results for patients.

Further information

• European Commission, ‘Journalist Workshop on Organ donation and transplantation. Recent Facts & Figures’, https://ec.europa.eu/health/sites/health/files/blood_tissues_organs/docs/ev_20141126_factsfigures_en.pdf
• European Commission, Health-EU newsletter 183, ‘Organ donation and transplant in the EU – progress but much more to do’, http://ec.europa.eu/health/newsletter/183/focus_newsletter_en.htm
• EPRS | European Parliamentary Research Service: www.epthinktank.eu

Greece this weekend buried the victims of a devastating wildfire near Athens which killed at least 91 people, and has prompted criticism of the government's handling of the disaster.

Zimbabwe goes to the polls Monday (30 July) in its first election since authoritarian leader Robert Mugabe was ousted last year, with alleged ballot fraud and the likelihood of a disputed result clouding voting day.

Malians voted Sunday (29 July) in a crucial presidential election as attacks disrupted polling in areas already beset by deadly ethnic and jihadist violence.

Britain's new foreign minister begins his first major international trip with a visit to China on Monday, bidding to strengthen trade ties with Beijing ahead of Brexit next year.

Italy's far right deputy prime minister Matteo Salvini has accused the European Union of attempting to "swindle" the United Kingdom out of the Brexit people voted for in the landmark 2016 referendum, The Sunday Times reported on 29 July.

Cambodia's ruling party said it had won a landslide in Sunday's one-horse election, an expected outcome after the main opposition was banned paving the way for leader Hun Sen to prolong his 33 years in power.

The trade relationship between the United States and Europe is improving, German Agriculture Minister Julia Kloeckner said on Saturday (28 July), but there is no guarantee the bloc will buy the quantity of soybeans that Washington expects.

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán said on Saturday (28 July) that European parliament elections next year could bring about a shift toward illiberal "Christian democracy" in the European Union that would end the era of multiculturalism.

France, Spain and Portugal agreed on 27 July to build an undersea power line in the Bay of Biscay as they up electricity links aimed at helping the Iberian peninsula out of its energy isolation.

Private passenger jets were exempted from the EU's new Passenger Name Record directive, aimed at combating terrorism, crime and smuggling - despite the concerns of police and MEPs.

The European Commission, as guardian of the treaties, declines to sanction Italy's treatment of the Roma following a forced eviction on Thursday of some 300 from a camp in the outskirts of the Italian capital.

It’s been a busy first half of the year, so as we take a well-earned short break this summer, catch up on some of the timeless stories that already made waves in 2018.

Spain’s socialist government lost on Friday (27 July) a key vote on the revised fiscal path to balance the public accounts, as Pedro Sanchez’s allies abstained calling into question the survival of his fragile minority.

Chad is a country struck by conflict and poverty, yet it has welcomed nearly 400,000 refugees from neighbouring countries, especially from the Central African Republic (CAR). EURACTIV.fr reports.

German Socialist MEP Udo Bullmann praised the EU and US talks on trade relations. But in an interview with EURACTIV media partner Der Tagesspiegel, he also insisted that "we do not live in a command economy" and warned that the European Parliament will have to be involved with any future talks.

The Bulgarian Constitutional Court voted on Friday (27 July) to declare the Istanbul Convention unconstitutional. The Convention is the first instrument in Europe to create a comprehensive framework for the protection of women and girls from all forms of violence.

750,000 Syrians have returned to their homes since the beginning of the year. At the same time, more than 900,000 people have become refugees. An analysis by EURACTIV Germany's media partner Der Tagesspiegel.