Why Ursula von der Leyen won't go
Ursula von der Leyen appears secure in her job as president of the European Commission. That's despite a troubled vaccine rollout in which delayed deliveries can cost lives and livelihoods.
News in Brief
- Israeli rockets kill 20 people in Gaza retaliation
- No more EU expulsions likely over Russia bomb attacks
- EU ready to ignore Hungary veto on Hong Kong
- Borrell admits EU neglect of Western Balkans
- Macron accused of 'cowardice and deceit' in military letter
- EU citizens in UK applying for settled status face legal limbo
- Netherlands gives €2bn to offshore carbon storage project
- Germany will allow Johnson & Johnson vaccine for all ages
Keeping the Red Flag flying
The hard-left is often associated with the colours red for revolution, and black for anarcho-syndicalism. But the movement is more and more green these days too.
Taking Brexit personally
James Crisp has Boris Johnson's old job in Brussels covering EU affairs for The Daily Telegraph. He often writes with that jaundiced eye on the European project you'd expect from a correspondent on a venerable Conservative UK newspaper.
When Conservatives endanger democracy
In this episode Daniel Ziblatt discusses the dilemmas facing Europe's modern-day conservative parties - including the German Christian Democratic Union and the European People's Party.
Honesty is the best policy
Politicians mostly talk about shutting migrants out. That endangers migrants' lives and obscures an important truth: that Europe already relies on large numbers of migrants for farming and manufacturing.
Showdowns over the rule of law
Brussels is increasingly expected to serve as the European Union's sheriff on rule of law - but its ability to enforce adherence to democratic norms and values remains weak.
Apostles of intersectionality challenge Europe
Intersectionality is the concept that overlapping identities - disability, gender, race and sexual-orientation for example - create forms of discrimination that can go unaddressed. But many EU leaders are wary of the kind of identity politics that intersectionality implies.
Online violence: Stories from Bulgaria and Spain
Bigots and far-right extremists are using online violence to try to silence feminists and LGBT people. It's a cowardly tactic since perpetrators don't even have to meet their targets. We hear stories from two Europeans on the receiving end
Ylva Johansson on Migration and Drama Queens
Commissioner for home affairs, Ylva Johansson, would like to win the approval of all EU member states for a new proposal for a common asylum and migration policy - something her predecessors failed to do.
Race and the von der Leyen Commission
With no non-white commissioners, just how well-equipped is the EU Commission to tackle race?
Data and Dystopia
Despite concerns about civil liberties and activities of companies like Clearview AI and Palantir, EU authorities are shaping a new industrial policy around artificial intelligence.
Standing up to bullies with Frans Timmermans
To succeed Timmermans needs to stand up to governments and vested interests rushing to reboot economies crashed by the coronavirus. That means ensuring the trillions of euros the EU and its member states spend transform rather than entrench polluting industries.
Angst over 'Italexit'
Italians were hit hardest when the coronavirus landed in Europe but the European Union was slow to help the country. The president of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen has apologised — twice.
The high price of muzzling media
The coronavirus outbreak has been a pretext for government censorship and a crackdown on journalists, who have been exposed to new criminal charges as well as violent attacks.
Crisis communications
When journalists were barred from the EU commission press room in March because of coronavirus, the relatively-new chief spokesperson, Eric Mamer, amiable Frenchman, had to improvise.
Věra Jourová on surveillance and Covid-19
Commissioner for values and transparency, Věra Jourová, says Brussels will vet moves in Hungary to give prime minister Viktor Orbán scope to rule by decree and urges Facebook and Google to push official health advice to WhatsApp and YouTube.
Coronavirus vs Democracy
Concern is growing that emergency powers deployed to control the coronavirus pandemic will be used to erode democracy and civil rights.
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Latest News
- Russia penetrated Merkel's 'inner circle', Khodorkovsky says
- First recovery euros could be paid out in July
- Commission wants help for Italy after weekend's migrant arrivals
- Mercosur trade deal will fuel 'poison pesticides' back into EU
- Can new Iran talks avoid mistakes of the original JCPOA?
- EU and US urge Israel to defuse Jerusalem violence
- Frontex 'mislabelling minors as adults' on Greek islands
- Has Albania really met the 15 tests to join the EU? No
A Field Guide to Autocrats
Beware the modernisers and saviours - autocrats often play the 'saving democracy' card as they undermine it.
Campaigning in the Age of Bigots
How are campaigners winning progressive victories in the age of bigots and bullies?
Macron's ugly side
For many people, Emmanuel Macron still represents the great hope for an open and liberal Europe. So what to make of the French president's growing preoccupation with Islam, terror and security?
Don't Fall For Fascist Porn
Far-right trolls commonly target women and minorities and seek to subvert the work of politicians, journalists and activists. But technology platforms and their supporters tend to resist legislation that could help tame the trolls.
A World We Have Lost
Ahdaf Soueif, who recently resigned from the British Museum, talks about the persistence of racist thinking, EU-funded authoritarianism in Egypt, and the Cold War roots of terror.
Cultural Battlefield
Marta Keil knows firsthand the pressure on culture from Poland's ruling Law and Justice party. Her overview begins at the Polski theatre in the city of Wrocław, and describes an epic clash as the Polish museum sector is steadily hollowed-out.
Not That Ambassador
Gordon Sondland, Donald Trump's ambassador to the EU, is due to appear before the House impeachment inquiry in Washington on Thursday. His predecessor as ambassador, Anthony Gardner, talks about the role, and his successor, on our EU Scream podcast.
Tiptoeing Around the Far Right
Should lobbyists engage with far-right and extremist lawmakers?
Trumpworld In Europe
Pastors and plutocrats are sponsoring an ultra-conservative agenda in Europe. Many of them have links to Donald Trump.
Bianca's Story
Women in Romania have had a legal right to an abortion since 1990. But many seeking care find themselves in a Kafkaesque trap.
Abortion Wars
Pressures on women to avoid terminating unwanted pregnancies have been growing in countries including Croatia, Poland and Romania.
