EU

Retail trade in Malta and euro area shows signs of recovery in May

In May 2020, when Member States began easing the COVID-19 containment measures, the seasonally adjusted volume of retail trade increased by 17.8% in the euro area and by 16.4% in…

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EU support to farmers under current framework extended to end 2022

The European Council and Parliament agreed to extend support European farmers under the current legal framework until the end of 2022 when the new Common Agricultural Policy will enter into…

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Malta: Maltese Government in agreement with a number of European countries to relocate 284 immigrants from Malta

284 immigrants will be transferred towards the EU member states in a relocation exercise co-ordinated by the European Commission. The Maltese Government has begun the process for the first group…

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Banks urge Britain and EU to sort out post-Brexit financial market access

Britain and the European Union need to make progress on EU financial market access given that the coronavirus crisis will make it even harder to cope with potential disruption if there is no…

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EU Council extends mandates of three missions in Libya and Palestine

The European Council extended the mandates until 30 June 2021 of three of its Common Security and Defence Policy (CSDP) civilian missions: the European Border Assistance Mission in Libya (EUBAM Libya), the European…

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EPP calls for EU to step up action on health

The Group of the European People's Party in the European Parliament called for stronger commitment by the European Union with regard to health. In a statement, the Group said that…

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Aid should be targeted and temporary – Dombrovskis

Budget restrictions for EU countries will apply again after the economic recession caused by the coronavirus pandemic is over, said European Commission Vice President Valdis Dombrovskis. "We cannot say when,…

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Greece PM says won’t accept strict EU conditions on COVID-19 aid – FT

Greece will not accept strict European Union conditions on the use of the coronavirus emergency aid, Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis told the Financial Times newspaper in an interview published on…

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UK’s Johnson feels more optimistic than EU officials on post-Brexit deal

Prime Minister Boris Johnson said he was more optimistic than European officials that a post-Brexit trading deal could be struck but said Britain could leave the bloc without a comprehensive agreement…

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EU sues Austria, Belgium, Netherlands over anti-money laundering rules

The European Commission said it was suing Austria, Belgium and the Netherlands because the three countries had not fully integrated EU rules on anti-money laundering into their national laws. The 27-nation bloc's…

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Merkel calls for EU resolve and unity as Germany takes the helm

German Chancellor Angela Merkel has urged European Union leaders to reach agreement on a multi-billion euro coronavirus recovery fund, calling for resolve and saying Europe was facing the most difficult situation in its history. Echoing Merkel's…

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Investment Plan for Europe exceeds €500 billion investment target ahead of time

The European Commission and the European Investment Bank (EIB) Group have delivered on their pledge to mobilise €500 billion in investment under the Investment Plan for Europe. Some 1,400 operations have…

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EU Commission presents European Skills Agenda for sustainable competitiveness, social fairness and resilience

The European Commission has launched the European Skills Agenda for sustainable competitiveness, social fairness and resilience. It sets ambitious, quantitative objectives for upskilling (improving existing skills) and reskilling (training in…

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Euro area unemployment in May rises to 7.4%

In May 2020, a third month marked by COVID-19 containment measures in most Member States, the euro area seasonally-adjusted unemployment rate was 7.4%, up from 7.3% in April 2020. The…

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South American countries push for trade agreement with EU

Mercosur ministers reported progress on the final text of a trade agreement with the European Union on Wednesday on the eve of a summit meeting overshadowed by French President Emmanuel Macron's latest comments…

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EU consumers to achieve broader opportunity for redress

Consumers across the EU are about to be granted broader opportunities for the collective defence of their rights. Member states’ ambassadors have approved a deal concluded between the Croatian presidency…

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Venezuela’s Maduro orders EU envoy to leave the country

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro ordered the European Union envoy to leave the country, hours after the EU announced sanctions against several officials loyal to the socialist leader. The EU subjected 11…

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Coronavirus: EU to allow in visitors from 14 ‘safe’ countries

The EU has announced the 14 countries whose citizens are deemed "safe" to be let in from 1 July, despite the pandemic still raging in parts of the world, but…

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Merkel-Macron insist again for need of effective agreement on European reconstruction plan

German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Emmanuel Macron on Monday called for an "effective" agreement on the European reconstruction plan to deal with the repercussions of the coronavirus pandemic after a meeting at…

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European Socialists reaffirm fight against gender inequality and racism

The fight against discrimination was in focus in the Presidency meeting of the European Socialists, as Presidency members received a campaign update from PES Women and adopted a declaration reaffirming…

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“We can beat cancer together” – EPP

Cancer kills about 9 million people a year in the world. In the European Union alone, 1.3 million people die of cancer every year and 3.5 million new cases are…

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EU mobilises emergency assistance following floods in Ukraine

Intensive rains resulted in the largest flooding in the south-west of Ukraine in the last 50 years, with several casualties and damage to hundreds of homes. To alleviate the first…

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EU: Average CO2 emissions from new cars and new vans increased again in 2019

The EEA has published the provisional data for the average CO2 emissions from new passenger cars and vans registered in the EU, Iceland, Norway and the UK in 2019. The provisional 2019 data on new registrations can be…

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EU countries agree their green transition fund will not pay for move to nuclear or fossil gas

European Union countries agreed that the bloc's flagship fund to wean regions off fossil fuels should not finance nuclear or natural gas projects, despite calls from some Eastern countries for gas…

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EP insists Green Deal is key to a climate-neutral and sustainable EU

. During the coronavirus pandemic economic activity slowed, causing a reduction in carbon emissions but leaving the EU facing recession. In a resolution adopted on 15 May 2020, Parliament called…

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Britain, EU to miss deadline for future financial market access

Britain and the European Union are set to miss their end-June deadline for assessing future cross-border trade in financial services, leaving just six months before a potentially messy UK exit,…

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EU leaders to meet in Brussels on 17-18 July in hope to finalise economic stimulus plan

European Union leaders will meet in Brussels on July 17-18 to haggle over a proposed COVID-19 economic stimulus and their next joint budget, a spokesman said, the first such in-person talks in…

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New rules allow EU consumers to defend their rights collectively

The European Union introduced a harmonised model for representative action in all member states that guarantees consumers are well protected against mass harm, while at the same time ensuring appropriate…

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EU and Japan sign agreement on civil aviation safety

The European Commission and Japan have signed an agreement on civil aviation safety, which will further boost the EU's already strong cooperation with Japan and reinforce the competitiveness of the…

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EU becoming safer, better-off and healthier – but less gender-equal

Crime, violence, poverty, ill health and air pollution have all declined in the European Union over the last five years - but gender inequality has worsened and efforts to fight climate change have…

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Europe’s recovery needs solidarity and smart spending – EPP

The centre-right EPP Group in the European Parliament is insisting that solidarity and responsibility go hand in hand by addressing both the economic recovery as well as by ensuring Europe…

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EU and China to seek to cool tensions at video summit

The European Union and China will seek to cool tensions on Monday at a video summit, their first formal talks since ties soured over European accusations that Beijing has spread disinformation about the novel coronavirus.…

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EU leaders agree to ambitious common response but again fail to iron out details

EU leaders agreed on Friday that urgent action was needed to haul their coronavirus-hit economies from the deepest recession since World War Two, but made no progress on a massive…

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Parliament condemns all forms of racism, hate and violence and calls for action

In a resolution adopted on Friday with 493 votes to 104 and 67 abstentions, the Parliament “strongly condemns the appalling death of George Floyd” in the US, as well as…

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EU seeks unity over coronavirus stimulus in virtual meeting this morning

European Union leaders hope to unite behind an unprecedented stimulus to inject billions of euros into their coronavirus-ravaged economies at a virtual meeting this morning - but many fights still separate…

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MEPs will not back Brexit deal at any cost

Parliament will not back a Brexit deal at any cost, warned several MEPs commenting on the ongoing negotiations about the future relationship between the EU and the UK. They…

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EU Council calls for further improvements in the fight against serious and organised crime

The Council of Ministers of the European Union has pushed for a stronger legal framework in the fight against serious and organised crime. According to estimates, the proceeds of organised…

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EU Commission launches European strategy for development of vaccines against COVID-19

The European Commission has launched a European strategy to accelerate the development, manufacturing and deployment of vaccines against COVID-19. In a statement, the Commission said that "an effective and safe…

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Merkel expects decisions on future EU finances in July

German Chancellor Angela Merkel does not expect European Union leaders to reach an agreement on the bloc's future finances at a summit on Friday, participants at a meeting of her conservative parliamentary bloc…

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No breakthrough expected in Brexit talks today

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson will join a video-conference with EU leaders on Monday, keen to make headway in negotiations on a future EU-UK relationship, but officials in Brussels expect…

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Malta: Malta’s spatial data makeover possible through EU funds

Malta’s spatial data got a makeover through an EU-funded integrated information system project which extends from a new base map, last drafted in 1988, to the launching of an online…

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Today marks the 35th anniversary of the Schengen Agreement

35 years ago, five EU countries agreed to abolish their common borders in the Luxembourgish town of Schengen granting freedom of movement for millions of citizens. Today, Schengen allows 420…

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Visegrad Four countries call for a “fair” allocation of EU’s €750 billion Coronavirus recovery fund

The Prime Ministers of the Visegrad Four (V4) countries have called for a “fair” allocation of EU’s €750 billion Coronavirus recovery fund, known as “Next Generation EU”, following a meeting…

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EU adopts €55 million package for Syrian refugees and local communities in Jordan and Lebanon to mitigate coronavirus pandemic

As part of the EU's global response to the coronavirus outbreak, the EU Regional Trust Fund in Response to the Syrian Crisis has mobilised an additional €55 million for refugees…

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