European Union

A European Court of Justice decision on Germany's controversial motorway toll and a proposed tightening of deportation laws for asylum seekers has stoked the ire of Austrians over the past week. EURACTIV Germany reports.

The EU finally needs to make good on its oft-repeated promise to grant visa free travel to Kosovo, says Behgjet Pachouli.

Germany will put on a show of unity with the United States Tuesday (12 February) in talks on importing natural gas, as Berlin battles accusations an under-construction pipeline deepens European energy dependence on Russia.

The coming into force of the simple, transparent and standardised (STS) securitisation rules in January was intended to mark a fresh start for securitisation within Europe. Richard Hopkin examines the likely effects of the EU's new rules on securitisation across the bloc.

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo voiced hope Monday (11 February) that renewed American engagement with Hungary's Viktor Orbán would help steer the increasingly authoritarian leader away from Russian and Chinese influence.

We are experiencing the most rapid period of technological change since the industrial revolution. It’s being driven by a collection of interrelated technologies - fast communication networks, the internet of things, robotics, cloud computing and artificial intelligence - which are unique in scale, reach and the speed at which they are changing our societies and economies.

Slovenia accused European Parliament president Antonio Tajani and Italy's Interior Minister Matteo Salvini of historical revisionism Monday (11 February) over statements they made at a ceremony commemorating Italian victims of World War II massacres.

Lawmakers need to focus on solving ethical questions and on the robotics technologies that will improve daily life, writes Eva Kaili.

There is a big risk that the European Commission’s proposals on sustainable finance will be watered down when EU member states examine the draft legislation, warn Lis Cunha, Sebastien Godinot and Rachel Owens.

EU institutions still have time for a series of concrete actions to strengthen climate policy before their mandate ends and get their successors off to a flying start, write Sanjeev Kumar and Edward Robinson.

Plenary session, Strasbourg

Source : © European Union, 2019 - EP

Written by Martin Svášek (1st edition),

© iQoncept / Fotolia

On 30 May 2018, the European Commission published a proposal for a regulation establishing an EU anti-fraud programme under the new 2021 to 2027 multiannual financial framework (MFF). The regulation would replace the Hercule III programme currently in force. The European Court of Auditors (ECA) published a special opinion concerning the proposal on 15 November 2018. The BUDG committee adopted its opinion for CONT on 23 November 2018 and the CONT committee issued its draft report on 26 November 2018. More than 30 amendments were tabled ahead of the vote on the report in the CONT committee on 29 January 2019. The vote in plenary is expected to take place in February 2019.

The Commission is proposing to streamline budgetary management in the area of protection of the EU’s financial interests by grouping the Hercule III programme together with Anti-Fraud Information System (AFIS) and Irregularity Management System (IMS) operational activities. However, the proposed EU anti-fraud programme does not specify possible maximum co-financing rates for eligible actions. The proposal has also been criticised for its lack of specific and measurable objectives and its vague performance indicators, as well as for not having indicated the frequency of performance reporting. The amendments proposed by the ECA, and also by the BUDG and CONT committees attempt to tackle these issues. Moreover, both Parliament committees are in favour of increasing the budget for this programme.

Versions

• February 2019: ‘EU anti-fraud programme 2021-2027‘ (1st edition)

Proposal for a regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council establishing the EU anti-fraud programme Committee responsible: Budgetary Control (CONT) COM(2018) 386 of 30.5.2018 Rapporteur: José Ignacio Salafranca Sánchez-Neyra (EPP, Spain) 2018/0211(COD) Shadow rapporteurs: Arndt Kohn (S&D, Germany)
Ryszard Czarnecki (ECR, Poland)
Nedzhmi Ali (ALDE, Bulgaria)
Marco valli (EFDD, Italy) Ordinary legislative procedure (COD) (Parliament and Council on equal footing – formerly ‘co-decision’) Next steps expected: First-reading vote in plenary

Spanish centre-right and far-right parties joined forces on Sunday (10 February) in a demonstration aimed to force Pedro Sanchez’s socialist government to call an election. The protest was far from successful but what should worry all of us in Europe is...

There are increasing calls for unity within the French left, which is divided like never before. But with less than four months to go until the European elections, attempts to bring left-wing groups together are struggling to gain traction. EURACTIV France reports.

Every country in the world has to count its emissions so that global commitments to fight climate change can be kept. Now efforts are underway to ensure that this particular brand of accountancy is as accurate and effective as it can be.

Climate targets can only function if countries, cities and companies report their emissions accurately. A new project hopes to show how reporting should be done, but building trust looks set to play a huge part in overcoming the challenge.

The ink is barely dry on the EU’s revised renewable energy policy and already it is under threat from the aviation sector, warn Jori Sihvonen and Andrew Murphy.

Written by Marketa Pape (1st edition),

© MrPreecha / Fotolia

Marine litter and pollution put the marine environment at risk. While a great proportion of marine litter originates from land-based sources, limiting waste discharges from ships also plays an essential role in efforts to preserve marine and coastal ecosystems. Based on international law, EU legislation requires vessels to bring the waste they generate on voyages to waste-reception facilities in port, and obliges EU ports to provide such facilities to ships using the port.

Despite these developments, discharges at sea continue. In January 2018, the European Commission put forward a new legislative proposal seeking to improve the collection of ship waste while ensuring efficient maritime transport operations in ports. Interinstitutional negotiations concluded on 13 December 2018. The Parliament’s Committe on Transport and Tourism has endorsed the agreed text, which now awaits formal approval in plenary and by the Council.

Versions

• February 2019: ‘Port reception facilities for ship waste: Collecting waste from ships in ports‘ (1st edition)

Proposal for a Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council on port reception facilities for the delivery of waste from ships, repealing Directive 2000/59/EC and amending Directive 2009/16/EC and Directive 2010/65/EU Committee responsible: Transport and Tourism (TRAN) COM(2018) 033 of 16.1.2018 Associated committee: Committee on Environment, Public Health and Food Safety (ENVI) 2018/0139(COD) Rapporteur: Gesine Meissner (ALDE, Germany) Ordinary legislative procedure (COD) (Parliament and Council on equal footing – formerly ‘co-decision’) Shadow rapporteurs: Deirdre Clune (EPP, Ireland)
Maria Grapini (ALDE, Romania)
Peter van Dalen (ECR, Netherlands)
Tania González Peñas (GUE/NGL, Spain)
Keith Taylor (Greens/EFA, United Kingdom)
Rosa D’Amato (EFDD, Italy)
Rolandas Paksas (EFDD, Lithuania) Next steps expected: First-reading vote in plenary

EU lawmakers failed to seal an agreement on the future of the European Defence Fund (EDF) despite a nine hour negotiation session last week.

Ukrainian prosecutors said Monday (11 February) they had charged a high-ranking regional official with organising a deadly acid attack on a prominent anti-corruption activist that prompted widespread outrage.