European Union

At the instigation of Iratxe Garcia Perez (S&D Group President) and Eric Andrieu (S&D Group Vice-President), Progressive Society will now re-launch its work in this new parliamentary term in order to offer renewed support for the S&D Group’s parliamentary work and to reinforce the Group’s political impact on and influence over future European policy-making and progressive political thinking.

The Spanish economy’s woes will worsen as GDP is expected to fall by 12.4% this year, according to the European Commission’s latest forecast to be published on Thursday, EU officials told EURACTIV.

Republicans appeared poised to retain control of the US Senate on Wednesday (4 November), after Senator Susan Collins defied political odds to win re-election in Maine and other Republican incumbents led Democrats in a handful of undecided races.

The EU on Wednesday (4 November) launched a procedure to sanction Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko, his son Viktor and 13 others held responsible for a post-election crackdown in the former Soviet state, diplomatic sources in Brussels said.

Member states' EU ambassadors agreed the Council's partial mandate on a revised proposal for the InvestEU programme.

The Council adopted its position at first reading on a draft directive on representative actions for the protection of the collective interests of consumers within the EU.

The modernised regulations seek to improve the efficiency and speed of cross-border judicial proceedings by taking advantage of digitalisation and the use of modern technology.

Weekly schedule of President Charles Michel 2 - 8 November 2020

Declaration by the High Representative on behalf of the European Union on the alignment of certain third countries with Council Decision (CFSP) 2020/1310 of 21 September 2020 implementing Decision (CFSP) 2015/1333 concerning restrictive measures in view of the situation in Libya.

Written by Maria Niestadt,

© Fabio / Adobe Stock

The coronavirus pandemic has had an unprecedented impact on air transport in the European Union and the rest of the world. During the first wave, most Member States imposed entry or flight bans and other travel restrictions, bringing passenger flights almost to a standstill. However, many airports serving major cities stayed open for limited scheduled, humanitarian, repatriation, and cargo flights, and for aircraft parking. The drop in passenger flights has meant that the air freight sector has had to adjust to the situation by occasionally carrying cargo in passenger compartments. As the industry looks for ways to cut costs, it has announced job cuts and/or reduced work patterns, wage reductions and hiring freezes. A number of airlines have already declared bankruptcy.

With the public health situation improving in the EU by the summer of 2020, Member States started to lift some travel restrictions, allowing airlines to slowly resume operations while leaving in place numerous inconsistent and constantly changing travel rules and guidelines, limiting air travel significantly. In addition, airlines and airports apply strict health and sanitary measures that entail higher costs both for the industry and passengers. The International Air Transport Association (IATA) forecasts that airlines would lose about 66 % of their passengers and see total revenues drop by US$419 (€357) billion in 2020. The final impact of the crisis on air transport will depend on factors such as its duration and magnitude, the level of consumer confidence, and the stringency of the containment measures. In all likelihood, the sector will feel the effects well beyond 2020.

The EU has worked on several levels to help the sector meet the challenge, whether by publishing guidelines (e.g. on passenger rights) and recommendations, or by legislative work. One of the first measures it took was to change EU rules on the allocation of airport slots, so as to help airlines avoid flights with very low load factors. However, a lot of work still lies ahead, in particular regarding the coordination of travel restrictions. The European Commission has also authorised several national aid schemes for airlines and airports. However, this raises questions about fair competition and whether the aid should be linked to environmental considerations.

Read this complete briefing on ‘Air transport survival during the pandemic‘ in the Think Tank pages of the European Parliament.

Faced with rather chaotic and thriller-like proceedings in the US presidential election night, most of Europe practised radio silence. All, except one leader. Incumbent President Donald Trump brazenly declared victory on Wednesday morning although results in several states are yet...

The fight against cancer remains a cross-cutting priority for the EU although COVID-crisis has understandably diverted attention over the past few months.

With the advent of the Commission's long-awaited cancer plan rapidly approaching, now more than ever, the impetus is there for EU lawmakers to drive change in Europe's cancer care.

Aviation is one of the fastest-growing sources of greenhouse gas emissions. Direct emissions from aviation account for about 3% of the EU’s total greenhouse gas emissions and more than 2% of global emissions. The EU is taking action to reduce...

Climate neutrality translates into commitments undertaken by various industries, communities and other stakeholders. The European energy sector is already committed to be carbon neutral before 2050. However, some countries are already fully decarbonised in terms of power generation, while others...

Stakeholders have strongly criticised a recent EU study on novel tobacco products for being selective in its findings when it comes to their health implications. The European Commission, though, insists that the study was based on the latest and up-to-date evidence.

Since the publication of the Sustainable Finance Package in 2018, the European Commission has sent clear messages to investors in Europe that the financial sector must not harm the planet and its citizens, and must avoid green washing. The objectives...

Remarks by Paschal Donohoe following the Eurogroup video conference of 3 November 2020 on the latest health and economic developments in view of the COVID-19, the ECB’s report on digital euro and the Banking Union.

The Eurogroup today adopted a statement on COVID-19 developments in the autumn, in view of the recent acceleration in the spread of the virus.

The EU institutions discussed with the social partners the economic situation and outlook and the role of the Recovery and Resilience Facility in employment and economic growth in Europe.