Justice & Home Affairs
Gibraltar eyes joining Schengen to ease post-Brexit border fears
Gibraltar is considering becoming part of the Schengen zone as a way of ensuring fluidity of movement on its border with Spain after Britain leaves the European Union, its Chief Minister Fabian Picardo has said.
In defence of democracy to save Europe
Europe has an opportunity and must intervene in the political conflict between Spain and Catalonia, writes Oriol Junqueras.
Europe has an Islamophobia problem. Who’s going to stop it?
It is time to acknowledge that Europe has an Islamophobia problem - perpetuated by a poorly regulated media and sustained by agenda-driven think-tanks - and to act on it, writes Magid Magid.
UK minister defends EU settlement scheme as applications surge
The United Kingdom on Thursday (16 January) defended its much-criticised scheme to guarantee the rights of EU nationals after Brexit, as the country’s Home Office announced that a vast majority have already applied for settled status.
Swiss to vote again on EU migrant curbs
The Swiss will in May vote on a proposal that could dramatically limit immigration from the EU, six years after a similar referendum nearly destroyed relations with the bloc.
Greek PM Mitsotakis nominates first-ever female president
Greece's conservative Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis nominated on Wednesday (15 January) judge Ekaterini Sakellaropoulou to become the first-ever female president of the Hellenic Republic, saying it was a “progressive proposal” that should be approved by all Greek lawmakers.
European Parliament calls on member states to act on Poland and Hungary
The EU must set out concrete demands and deadlines for Poland and Hungary over their rule of law and judicial independence situation, lawmakers in the European Parliament demanded in a Strasbourg debate on Article 7 on Wednesday (15 January). In...
New Malta PM reshuffles ministers, shuns controversial names
New Maltese Prime Minister Robert Abela reshuffled his cabinet on Wednesday (15 January), sidelining some of the politicians who had faced fierce criticism from an anti-corruption journalist before her murder in 2017.
Italy smashes mafia racket defrauding EU agriculture funds
Italian police arrested 94 people in pre-dawn raids on Wednesday (15 January) as part of an investigation into an alleged Mafia scam that defrauded European Union agriculture funds of millions of euros. Prosecutors said they believed the fraud was orchestrated...
MEPs express ‘grave concern’ about Brexit citizens’ rights regime
Lawmakers in the European Parliament have urged the UK government to overhaul its regime for EU citizens’ rights after Brexit, expressing ‘grave concern’ about its EU Settlement Scheme.
NGOs hail opinion urging EU court to annul Hungary’s restrictions on foreign financing
Human rights watchdogs hailed on Tuesday (14 January) an opinion from the advocate general of the EU's top court which said restrictions imposed by Hungary on the financing of civil organisations from abroad breach EU law.
Police bust ring smuggling Moroccans to Spain via Gibraltar
Police in Spain and Gibraltar have smashed an unusual migrant-smuggling network which flew Moroccans into the tiny British territory then sneaked them over the border to Spain, arresting 47 people.
EU judges join Polish colleagues to protest ‘muzzle law’
Hundreds of Polish judges dressed in formal black robes marched in Warsaw on Saturday (11 January) to protest a draft law aimed at punishing justices who question the government's controversial court reforms.
Minister arrested following investigative report by EURACTIV Bulgaria
Bulgaria's minister for environment and water resources was placed in 24-hour custody, the office of the Prosecutor General said on Thursday. The development took place after an investigative report by EURACTIV Bulgaria exposed mismanagement that left the city of Pernik without drinking water.
Croatia highlights its Schengen and Eurozone ambitions
Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenković made it clear that Croatia, the latest EU newcomer, wants to join as soon as possible the Union’s inner circles – the borderless Schengen space and the Eurozone.
UN official ‘concerned’ about denial of access to asylum procedures in Croatia
The Croatian government must ‘urgently’ address reports suggesting it is denying access to asylum procedures in the country, a high-ranking official from the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) told EURACTIV Croatia in an interview.
‘Free Courts’ activists: Poland makes another big step towards Polexit
The Free Courts initiative is the last barricade that keeps the ruling PiS party from acquiring the absolute power in Poland, activists Sylwia Gregorczyk-Abram and Michał Wawrykiewicz said in an interview with EURACTIV Poland’s editor-in-chief Karolina Zbytniewska.
EU Court: imprisoned Catalan-MEP elect had right to inmmunity
Catalan leader Oriol Junqueras, who has been in provisional detention for over two years, had the right to immunity the moment he was elected as MEP, European Court of Justice (ECJ) ruled on Thursday (19 December).
UN hails ‘decisive shift’ in refugee assistance at global meet
The UN hailed Wednesday (18 December) a "decisive shift" in the approach to helping surging numbers of displaced people, after a summit ended with billions in donations and concrete promises to simplify refugee integration.
Poles protest bill aimed at punishing judges
Thousands of people took to the streets across Poland Wednesday (18 December) to protest government proposals aimed at punishing judges critical of controversial judicial reforms.
Poland could end up leaving the EU, Supreme Court warns
Poland could end up leaving the European Union because of plans by the ruling nationalists that would allow judges to be fired if they question the legitimacy of the government's judicial reforms, the Supreme Court said on Tuesday (17 December).
European rights watchdog: Greece is too lax against bribery
More work is needed by Greece to restore the ability of its criminal justice system to counter corruption, Europe's main rights watchdog said on Tuesday (17 December).
The Brief, powered by Eurogas – Where is Malta’s Article 7?
If you thought Poland and Hungary were a tough nut to crack when it comes to rule of law, brace for more: Malta could become Europe's next biggest headache.