EU Legislation, Initiatives, etc.
EU News: The EU needs to boost its relationships with non-EU States to better reap the mutual benefits migration can bring. The new approach is detailed in a renewed 'Global Approach to Migration and Mobility' which places mobility of third country nationals at its centre and which makes partnerships more sustainable and forward-looking.
EU News: The EC Commissioner for Home Affairs, Cecilia Malmström, has launched the 'EU Immigration Portal', a website with hands-on information for foreign nationals interested in moving to the EU.
EU News: Natura 2000, the EU's network of protected areas, has undergone a significant expansion. Nearly 18,800 square kilometres have been added, including a major addition of marine areas covering 17 000 square kilometres which will increase protection for many endangered marine species.
EU News: The European Commission has proposed to forbid, with no exemptions, the practice of 'shark finning' aboard fishing vessels.
EU News: 9 EU directives covering a wide variety of products will ensure better product safety. The sectors concerned are electrical & electronic products, lifts, measuring instruments, civil explosives, pyrotechnic articles and equipment for use in potentially explosive atmospheres.
EU News: The European Commission has adopted recently the eighteenth update of the list of airlines banned in the European Union.
EU News: The resolution drafted by Mathieu Grosch (EPP, BE) and adopted last week calls for the abolition of all remaining barriers & borders in order to complete the creation of a single transport area for goods & passengers which is competitive, co-modal & resource efficient. Last week’s vote by the transport committee reflects a broad political consensus on the main safety & environmental targets to be reached by 2020.
EU News: The EU patent ‘package’ moved a step closer to final approval last week, when the Legal Affairs Committee approved a mandate to open formal negotiations with national governments to agree to create unitary patent, so as to ‘cut costs for firms & boost the EU's competitiveness. Parliament will strive to adapt the proposed regime to small firms' needs’.
EU News: The European Commission is ‘accelerating its efforts for economic renewal, with moves to address 3 interwoven challenges facing the EU and the euro area in particular: a divergent but generally lacklustre growth and employment performance; insufficiently coordinated and disciplined budgetary policies; and unstable sovereign debt markets suffering from a lack of liquidity’.
The package contains four elements: the 2012 Annual Growth Survey setting out the economic priorities for the coming year; two Regulations to tighten economic and budgetary surveillance in the euro area; and a Green Paper on Stability Bonds.
EU News: The scope for restricting public access to documents held by EU institutions would be severely curtailed by amendments, made by the Civil Liberties Committee last week, to a draft law on public access. The committee's bid to thus enhance transparency, accountability and democracy in the EU will be put to a plenary vote in December 2011.
EU News: MEPs gave a cautious welcome to the 3 options presented by the Commission for introducing Eurobonds when they met Commissioner Rehn last week in the Economic and Monetary Affairs Committee. Press release & links
EU News: Thousands of people working in cinema, TV, culture, music, performing arts, heritage & related areas would benefit from increased EU support under the new 'Creative Europe' programme unveiled by the European Commission last week. With a proposed budget of €1.8bn for the period 2014-2020, it would be a much-needed boost for the cultural & creative industries, which are a major source of jobs & growth in Europe.
EU News: The European Commission recently announced there is currently no need to change the basic concept, principles or scope of EU rules on Universal Service to include mobile telecommunications services & broadband connections at EU level.
The Commission has also concluded that it would not be appropriate, at this stage, to set at EU level a single broadband connection speed under the universal service rules, given the very different stages of development of telecoms networks in the Member States and the potential costs involved.
EU News: A new online portal to help young entrepreneurs start and grow their own business was launched on 17 November 2011 by the Employers' Group of the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC). The website initiative addresses policy failings in the promotion of entrepreneurship, especially among young people and women. The Global Entrepreneur Envoy online portal ‘Entrepreneur Envoy’ will offer tools to foster culture change & promote entrepreneur-friendly policies.
EU News: The EC has stepped up legal action against 6 countries for failing to notify national measures to implement EU rules easing access to justice in cross-border legal disputes. The Mediation Directive applies when 2 parties involved in a cross-border dispute voluntarily agree to settle their dispute using an impartial mediator.
Meanwhile, the Commission has closed infringement proceedings against Finland, Slovakia and the UK after they informed the Commission of their relevant national rules.
EU News: The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) has been given access to over 600 datasets for use in its full re-evaluation of the artificial sweetener aspartame, which is scheduled for completion in September 2012. Reaffirming its commitment to openness & transparency, EFSA has published the full list of studies that have been made available to EFSA.
Recognising the level of interest in this work, EFSA will keep the public informed of progress made at key intervals in the risk assessment process.
EU News: The European Commission has recently proposed to provide further EU assistance of €500m to support the decommissioning in Bulgaria, Lithuania & Slovakia. These funds will contribute to the continuation of safe decommissioning of the nuclear power plants Kozloduy, Ignalina and Bohunice. This new financial assistance should support the efforts of the 3 Member States who are ultimately responsible for nuclear safety, including the financing of decommissioning.
DECC: The UK’s marine energy revolution could be further enhanced by support & cooperation at an international level, Energy Minister Charles Hendry said recently. His call came as EU member states published a report calling for funding & support from the EU Commission to drive forward marine energy.
