EU Legislation, Initiatives, etc.

EU News: The European Commission has taken an important step in preparing for the full inclusion of aviation in the EU's emissions trading system (EU ETS) from 1 January 2012.  The EC has decided on the historical aviation emissions which will be used to calculate the number of aviation allowances to be available from 2012.
Press release and related links
 
EU News: The EU should promote the introduction of a financial transaction tax, even if it is alone in doing so ‘as a first step’, says Parliament in a resolution on innovative financing voted in plenary on last week.  A second resolution called for more EU tax-related assistance and clamp downs on tax evasion & tax fraud to boost revenue & efficiency in the developing countries.
 
The innovative financing resolution argues that the tools proposed can yield a ‘double dividend’ by not only generating more funds, but also making the financial sector safer and society greener. 
Press release and related links ~ CBI comment ~ PCS union comment
 
EU News: The European Commission has adopted a Roadmap for transforming the European Union into a competitive low carbon economy by 2050. It describes the cost-effective pathway to reach the EU's objective of cutting greenhouse gas emissions by 80-95% of 1990 levels by 2050. The EU needs to start working now on long-term strategies, and the Roadmap provides guidance on how this transition can be achieved in the most cost-effective way.
Press release and related links
 
DH: The Human Tissue Authority (HTA) has been selected as the body that will set standards for the quality & safety of transplant organs across the EU, the Department of Health said last week.  The HTA has been named as the competent organisation for England & Wales for the EU Organ Directive and will take the lead on developing a regulatory framework and implementation into legislation by August 2012.
Press release ~ Directive ~ Human Tissue Authority (HTA)
 
EU News: 12 projects have been shortlisted for the European Enterprise Awards (EEA) 2011. A total of 399 projects competed in national competitions in 29 European countries (24 EU Member States and Croatia, Iceland, Norway, Serbia & Turkey) for the EEA this year.

A high-level jury representing business, government & academia reviewed 54 entries and established a shortlist of 12 nominees in 5 categories.  The winners will be announced at the 5th award ceremony at the Hungarian National Gallery in Budapest on 24 May 2011, to which all nominees will be invited.
Press release and related links
 
EU News: The European Commission has published its first Trade and Investment Barriers report which singles out important barriers in the markets of 5 strategic economic partners and proposes specific actions to remove the barriers.
Press release and related links
Spotlight on women at Serco – Anita’s story