Politics
Report: UK must replace €2bn EU cash with new regional funding
The UK government needs to provide £1.8 billion (€2.1 billion) per year to the poorest regions of the country to mitigate the loss of EU Cohesion funds, as part of a new Shared Prosperity Fund, according to a new report published on Friday (17 January).
Greece ready to send ‘forces’ to Libya to monitor ceasefire
In today's edition of the Capitals, find out about the issues the V4 and Austria agreed to cooperate on, Greek PM Mitsotakis' reaction to not being invited to the Berlin summit on Libya, the Serbian president being sued, and so much more.
Austria and V4 agree on everything but nuclear
The leaders of the V4 group met on Thursday (16 January) in Prague’s renovated national museum to discuss migration, border security, competitiveness, enlargement and climate. The newly appointed Austrian chancellor Sebastian Kurz, also in attendance, said he wanted to “fight”...
Italy’s constitutional court rejects League’s bid to change electoral law
Italy's Constitutional Court on Thursday (16 January) rejected a request by the hard-right League party to hold a referendum to introduce a first-past-the-post electoral system, triggering the ire of League chief Matteo Salvini and relief in government ranks.
Pantomime, travel and rest: What comes next for Britain’s MEPs
Britain's 73 EU lawmakers packed up their offices in Strasbourg on Thursday (16 January): for some a moment of triumph, for others, disaster.
LEAK: Commission considers facial recognition ban in AI ‘white paper’
The European Commission is considering measures to impose a temporary ban on facial recognition technologies used by both public and private actors, according to a draft white paper on Artificial Intelligence obtained by EURACTIV. If implemented, the plans could throw...
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.
Nicolas Schmit: ‘The first dignity of work is to pay people a fair wage’
Nicolas Schmit will have a busy 2020. The EU Commissioner for Jobs and Social Rights outlined on Tuesday (14 January) a comprehensive agenda to beef up the EU’s social policies. He discussed the details in an interview with EURACTIV.
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.
Portugal eyes more immigrants to mitigate low-birth rate
In today's edition of the Capitals, find out more about the nomination of Greece's first female president, how day one of the Irish election campaign started, Croatian MP calling for PM Plenkovic to resign, MEPs wanting to hold PM Babis accountable at EU level, and so much more.
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.
In blow to Eurogroup head, EU Commission criticises Portugal’s budget
The European Commission said on Wednesday (15 January) that Portugal's draft budget for 2020 was at risk of breaking European Union fiscal rules because of insufficient progress in reducing its structural deficit.
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...
Could FPÖ’s new ‘modern’ strategy save Austria’s populist party?
Austria's right-wing populist party FPÖ has launched a rebranding exercise with the aim of becoming a "modern right-wing conservative party", EURACTIV Germany reports.
The Brief, powered by Orgalim – Historical revisionism on steroids
In 2020, Europe will mark the 75th anniversary of the end of the Second World War and of the liberation of German Nazi concentration camp Auschwitz. But as the commemorations draw closer, we may see the manipulation of history for political ends return with a vengeance.
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.
Parliament kicks off debate on the Future of Europe conference
The European Parliament launched on Wednesday (15 January) the debate on the Future of Europe conference, expected to begin in May, and outlined its position ahead of talks with the Commission and Council.
Indiscriminate data retention ‘incompatible’ with EU charter, ECJ says
Cases of 'general and indiscriminate' data retention by EU national security authorities seriously interfere with the privacy protections enshrined in the EU Charter of Fundamental Rights, according to a non-binding opinion from the European Court of Justice delivered on Wednesday.
The investigative story that brought down a minister in Bulgaria
EURACTIV.com publishes the full video, with subtitles, by Valia Ahchieva for EURACTIV.bg, which led to the arrest and resignation of Neno Dimov, the minister of environment and water, following a water crisis in the city of Pernik that exposed the government's inaction.
‘Green’ alert: environmental risks top Davos report
For the first time in the 15-year history of the Davos risk report, the top five global risks are all environmental, according to the latest survey published on Wednesday (15 January) ahead of the World Economic Forum next week.
Spanish far-right sues European Parliament
In today's edition of the Capitals, find out about far-right VOX suing the European Parliament for accepting Catalan separatist leaders as MEPs, how Poland's PiS fared in the polls, the climate action call to the Croatian government made by scientists, and so much more.