European Union

The European Commission has blocked the recently-created European Public Prosecutor's Office (EPPO) from using their budget to hire the specialised personnel they need. It has not explained why.

Around 90 centre-right European People's Party (EPP) lawmakers abstained in a vote to list gender-based violence a crime under EU law, while almost as many voted in favour.

Climate change has not been slowed down by the pandemic and the world remains off-track to meet 2015 Paris Agreement climate targets, the UN has warned- just weeks ahead of the COP26 summit.

The European Parliament supported the creation of a new EU ethics body to help tackle and prevent conflicts of interest, revolving doors and corruption inside the EU institutions. But Transparency International EU, a Brussels-based NGO, says the body needs to be improved in order to have a real impact, noting that sanctions against MEPs remain "open to political influence and bias." No MEP since 2014 has ever been sanctioned.

The EU is planning to firm up criticism of Russian aggression at its next Ukraine summit, as low-intensity fighting continues to claim lives.

EU commission vice-president Věra Jourová said the commission will pressure member states to do more, but without legal tools, the commission has little say.

Media advisory – Journalists' physical presence in Council press centre, General Affairs Council 21 September 2021

Le Président Charles Michel a donné une conférence de presse suite à sa rencontre avec le Premier ministre luxembourgeois, Xavier Bettel, et à sa visite au centre d'études et de recherches européenne Robert Schuman.

French President Emmanuel Macron hosted Angela Merkel in Paris on Thursday (16 September) for the last time before the German chancellor stands down, spelling the end of a partnership at the heart of the European Union for the last four years.

Gender-based violence should be added to the list of crimes to be tackled across borders and the European Commission must table a proposal for an EU-wide directive on gender-based violence, EU lawmakers stated on Thursday (16 September).

Adding to a long list of concerns on the state of EU values in Poland, MEPs denounce the latest attempts to silence critical voices and undermine the primacy of EU law.
Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs

Source : © European Union, 2021 - EP

Adding to a long list of concerns on the state of EU values in Poland, MEPs denounce the latest attempts to silence critical voices and undermine the primacy of EU law.
Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs

Source : © European Union, 2021 - EP

The European Commission acknowledged for the first time on Thursday (16 September) that it had not done enough to help fight high-level corruption in Bulgaria. EURACTIV Bulgaria reports

Parliament deplores the violent takeover of Afghanistan, calls for more humanitarian aid and a coordinated response to protect those most vulnerable.
Committee on Foreign Affairs

Source : © European Union, 2021 - EP

Parliament deplores the violent takeover of Afghanistan, calls for more humanitarian aid and a coordinated response to protect those most vulnerable.
Committee on Foreign Affairs

Source : © European Union, 2021 - EP

On Thursday, the European Parliament adopted three resolutions on the human rights situation in Kenya, the United Arab Emirates and Cuba.
Committee on Foreign Affairs
Subcommittee on Human Rights

Source : © European Union, 2021 - EP

On Thursday, the European Parliament adopted three resolutions on the human rights situation in Kenya, the United Arab Emirates and Cuba.
Committee on Foreign Affairs
Subcommittee on Human Rights

Source : © European Union, 2021 - EP

With only ten days to go, the German election race is expectedly picking up pace. But just as things are getting heated and — for German standards — dirty, much of the election action might already have been completed.

As Hungarian opposition parties are preparing to elect a single challenger to Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, Budapest's green mayor, one of the prime ministerial hopefuls, is holding a conference on sustainable democracy together with an exiled liberal university and opposition think tank.

The European Parliament has given its green light to a controversial new antimicrobials regulation, dismissing a motion calling for tighter restrictions on antibiotics use in animals and allowing the Commission to move forward on its plans to tackle anti-microbial resistance.