Five years after its adoption, the European Commission is preparing to review the controversial REACH regulation, which for the first time required chemical manufacturers to justify that their products are safe for consumers before placing them on the market.

Cyber security, intellectual property piracy and regulatory reach from the telecommunications industry are all putting the free online space under threat, Vinton Cerf, one of the inventors in the epoch-changing technology, told EurActiv, underscoring  that there is a danger of killing off the innovation that underpins it.

The EU has established resource efficiency as one of its seven flagship initiatives for the 2020 agenda, and its roadmap is supported by many programmes and initiatives on the ground. Yet, it is a tiger without teeth, claims the latest report by the Transatlantic Academy, a research institution that aims to create common approaches for the long-term challenges faced by Europe and North America.