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EU home affairs chief praises Croatia’s handling of border violence scandal
EU Commission home affairs chief Ylva Johansson has welcomed Croatia's handling of media revelations showing border officers beating migrants despite NGO reports of continuing violence at the border with Bosnia.
The Brief, powered by ELF — EU summit scoop
We live in frustrating times. As we face a powerful new COVID-19 wave, despite the relatively high vaccination rates in Europe, the EU Commission chief has proposed making jabs mandatory. An EU summit is likely to take place in the...
CAP eco-schemes: Not all that glitters is gold, warn NGOs
Fewer than a fifth of eco-schemes, designed to reward environmentally-minded farmers in the EU, are likely to deliver on their stated environmental objectives according to a new report by prominent European NGOs which analyses member states' green plans for the agricultural sector.
Consumer groups could sue Facebook, EU advocate general says
Consumer protection associations can bring representative actions for infringement of EU privacy rules against data processors such as Facebook, before national courts, according to an Advocate General of the EU Court of Justice.
BioNTech founder receives European women leaders award
Özlem Türeci, BioNTech's chief medical officer, was among the four winners in the sixth edition of the Women of Europe Awards held on Wednesday (1 December) by the European Movement International and the European Women's Lobby (EWL).
Austria’s Kurz quits politics, stirring political turmoil
Former chancellor Sebastian Kurz announced his departure from the political stage on Thursday (2 December) by resigning from all his political posts. His resignation will lead to a cabinet reshuffle, and potentially, a new chancellor.
EU’s upcoming gas reform to address storage, joint procurement
A planned revision of EU gas market legislation, expected on 14 December, will seek to improve access to gas storage facilities and include provisions enabling the joint purchasing of gas stocks, the European Commission has said.
Adviser says court should dismiss legal challenge to linking EU money with rule of law
The legal adviser of the top EU court said on Thursday (2 December) Budapest and Warsaw's legal challenges to the EU law that links disbursement of bloc funds to rule of law standards should be dismissed.
Reporters without borders calls out EU over silence on Greek media law
Amid continuing silence from the European Commission, international media freedom organisation Reporters Without Borders has asked both the EU executive and the European Parliament to “firmly denounce” Greece’s new defamation law as “an attack on press freedom.”
MEPs push for broader scope on common charger proposal
The first hearing in the European Parliament on the proposal for standardising electric chargers brought about a cross-party consensus to also include wireless chargers, laptops, smartwatches and other electronic devices. However, the European Commission stood its ground on technical reasons.
Regulators should walk the talk on non-animal methodologies
With different chemical-related proposals on the table, it is crucial to ensure that EU legislation is adapted to not include testing on animals, according to an industry expert.NewsPromoted content
One Free Press Coalition – ’10 Most Urgent’ List of December 2021
To close out 2021, the monthly “10 Most Urgent” list from the One Free Press Coalition presents “the year in press freedom.” The 10 cases encompass concerning trends in threats to journalists—from impunity to imprisonment, surveillance to harassment.
€2 billion ‘Clean Hydrogen Partnership’ signals move away from hydrogen cars
Fuel-cell cars and trucks once looked to be the future of green mobility, but with electric cars now set to dominate the market, the EU’s hydrogen joint undertaking was rebranded this week to signal a shift in priority towards the production of low-cost green hydrogen from electrolysis.
Omicron variant: Hope for the best, be prepared for the worst, says von der Leyen
Although more research is needed into the COVID-19 Omicron variant, Europe knows "enough to be concerned," according to European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.
Lithium from German geothermal plants could supply a million electric vehicles a year from 2025
Batteries made with zero-emission lithium from geothermal plants in Germany could power one million vehicles per year by the mid-2020s, according to Vulcan Energy, a company setting out to produce climate neutral lithium in Europe.
How the EU law on online services wants to restore trust in the digital sphere
The general approach to the Digital Services Act (DSA) has been one of the major achievements of the Slovenian Presidency and on 25 November, EU ministers unanimously adopted the mandate to initiate the interinstitutional negotiations on it. The agreement was reached just 11 months after the presentation of the proposal under the leadership of the Slovenian Presidency.
Timmermans: Gene editing ‘clear part’ of sustainability action in agrifood
European Commission Vice President Frans Timmermans added his voice to the growing list of those in the EU executive advocating for gene editing, a move condemned by campaigners who accuse the Commission of already making their mind up on the technology.
Energy efficiency law ‘too ambitious’ for some EU member states
Just four months after the European Commission tabled its revised Energy Efficiency Directive, campaigners said they were “extremely worried” about attempts by some EU countries to dilute the proposal.
Data governance: new EU law for data-sharing adopted
EU co-legislators found a middle ground on the Data Governance Act (DGA) by adopting new rules for data sharing, marking the first step of the European data strategy.
The Green Brief: Hat-trick for the German Greens
After 16 years in opposition, the Germans Greens are back in government, taking the reins of three powerful ministries – an unprecedented feat, which also strengthens their hand in Brussels as they now have a direct link to the new government in Berlin.
EU ponders 20% hydrogen-ready standard for gas boilers
New gas boilers placed on the European market could soon be required to operate with “at least 20% hydrogen” under new standards being envisaged at EU level.
Fight for workers’ rights in Brussels intensifies ahead of French EU presidency
The fight for workers’ rights in Brussels is intensifying: the European Parliament is now ready to begin negotiations on a minimum wage directive and to vote on a new report putting pressure on the European Commission to legislate.
EU Council presidency pitches significant changes to AI Act proposal
The Slovenian Presidency circulated a compromise text on the EU's draft AI Act, including major changes in the areas of social scoring, biometric recognition systems, and high-risk applications, while also identifying future points for discussion.