Friday

16th Dec 2022

Metsola pledges EU parliament reforms after bribe allegations

The plans include strengthening whistleblower protection, a ban on all unofficial parliamentary friendship groups (groups of MEPs discussing relations with non-EU countries), reviewing enforcement of code of conduct rules for MEPs, and new rules interactions with officials from non-EU countries.

Opinion

EU couldn't handle a million refugees, how will it handle a billion?

The evidence shows the 'next Afghanistan' is not in the Middle East but in Africa, specifically West Africa, where religious violence, political corruption, weak states, and the devastating impacts of climate change have combined to create an unprecedented crisis.

News in Brief

  1. Denmark forms new grand coalition government
  2. Eva Kaili is no longer EU parliament vice-president
  3. 'Pro-Kremlin group' in EU Parliament cyberattack
  4. Ukraine will decide on any peace talks, Borrell says
  5. Germany blocks sale of chip factory to Chinese subsidiary
  6. Strikes and protests over cost-of-living grip Greece, Belgium
  7. Liberal MEPs want Musk quizzed in parliament
  8. Bulgarian policeman shot dead at Turkish border

Opinion

Italy's criminalisation of migrant rescue: the luventa case

Italy's new government has launched a fresh assault on non-governmental rescue groups that save lives. While the rhetoric is sharper and some tactics are new, successive Italian governments have tried to block maritime rescue groups — including with criminal charges.

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Over 4,000 Frontex documents published by German NGO

Over 4,000 documents from the EU's border police agency Frontex, including freedom of information request responses, are now public. The files were uploaded and published by German-based transparency group FragDenStaat.

EU negotiators agree on historic carbon tariff

After 10 gruelling hours of overnight negotiations that lasted until five in the morning EU negotiators reached a deal on a border tariff for carbon-intensive goods, ending 20 years of discussions.

Column

Why it's harder than ever to chase autocrats from power

Modern dictators wear suits instead of uniforms. They hold referendums and opinion polls, and chat with citizens. This democratic façade allows them to mingle with the Davos crowd, keep foreign investors onboard, and, crucially, deliver economic growth for their citizens.

Agenda

Pre-Xmas EU summit push on This WEEK

This week officials from the parliament and council are also set to try and find an agreement on three major bills which are part of the Fit for 55 initiative to make the EU climate neutral by 2050.

EU parliament suspends Kaili's VP 'duties' over Qatar scandal

European Parliament vice-president Eva Kaili has had her tasks suspended but retains her seat until a formal vote is taken. The move follows allegations of corruption as well as a spate of arrests by the Belgian police, involving €600,000 cash.

Opinion

A plea to the EU from inside Tehran's Evin jail

As a result of my peaceful civil activism, I have been arrested 13 times, undergone five trials, and been sentenced to 34 years of imprisonment and 154 lashes in total. I am currently in Evrin prison, without the slightest regret.

Illegal pushbacks happening daily in Croatia, says NGO

More than 1,600 testimonies of alleged illegal pushbacks of migrants and refugees throughout the EU has been published, collated by the Border Violence Monitoring Network and the Left party — adding to the mounting evidence of abuse.

Opinion

No, Bosnia and Herzegovina is not ready for the EU

The European Commission has asked the member states' leaders assembling in Brussels next week for the customary end-of-year European Council to approve EU candidate status for Bosnia and Herzegovina. Doing so would be a mistake.

Opinion

The military-industrial complex cashing-in on the Ukraine war

From the outset, arms manufacturers eyed this war as a profitable business opportunity. Structural changes took place across the EU, not only to fast-track arms to Ukraine, but also to make more public finance available to the highly-lucrative arms industry.

Column

Autocrats make us all less secure

How should democratic states co-operate with authoritarian governments in the future? My organisation, Democracy Reporting International, has studied the security strategies of 13 democratic governments to understand how they see this relationship.

Opinion

Big Agri's lies: green EU farming not to blame for food insecurity

The agribusiness narrative is a masquerade. A smokescreen to water down environmentally-friendly reforms and maintain industrial agriculture. A smokescreen to which a majority of European policy-makers, including member states, are dangerously buying into.

EU countries struggle to crack Hungary's vetos

Hungary will be in the spotlight on Tuesday as EU governments struggle over suspending EU funds to prime minister Viktor Orbán's government — despite rule of law concerns — and unlock key EU policies which Budapest has been blocking.

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