Sunday
18th Aug 2019
The German former secretary-general of the European Commission held some 21 meetings which were registered in the lobby register. But no documents appeared to exist summarising what was said.
The four most powerful EU institutions - Commission, Parliament, Council and Central Bank will all have new leaders in the coming ten months. Here is an overview.
While domestic political parties often use the European Parliament as a dumping ground for unwanted politicians - and a majority of citizens don't bother to vote - the parliament, over the years, has become a dominant force in the EU.
The vote on von der Leyen showed the fundamental change in EU politics. The rise of the European Parliament, the power of political parties, and the fragmentation of politics, are new realities to be taken into account.
Renew Europe MEP Asger Christensen, from Denmark, earns €20,000 per month as a farmer. He became a member of the agriculture committee, which could create a conflict of interest situation.
I will not lament the decision-making process that resulted in a package deal on the new leadership in Europe. I respect this result, which was in accordance with the treaties and therefore not undemocratic, albeit unsatisfactory.
European Commission documents on meeting with Tony Blair describe chances of second referendum have become "credible".
PhD researcher Alexander Hoppe said street protests against the copyright directive came "way too late", because EU institutions had already found a compromise deal on the text.
Christine Lagarde will succeed European Central Bank president Mario Draghi at a time of deepening polarisation among eurozone member states. It will take all of her skills as a leader and communicator to safeguard the institution's independence.
In EU law, it is often left to national governments to set the maximum level of fines. This leads to a patchwork situation which could be exploited by companies concentrating only on profits.
EU citizens filed applications to see documents 6,912 times last year. The commission called this "a striking increase" compared to 2017 - and subtly hints at needing more staff.
The European Parliament questions whether the ombudsman had the right to criticise the institution's "margin of discretion" in deciding on publication of confidential papers about the controversial monthly €4,513 expenses lump sum for MEPs.
London and Washington had been rumoured, but instead the German political mastermind behind the EU commission will now work as a quasi-EU ambassador in Vienna. He irked many in Brussels but also shook things up.
Only half of EU staff claim good knowledge of their workplace's ethics rules, while 82 percent of staff at the European Parliament have never attended any ethics trainings, according to a report by the European Court of Auditors.
Countries who reject non-European migrants or raise concerns on rule of law, such as Poland, can expect sympathetic ear from Ursula von der Leyen, the new EU commission chief indicated.
The first-ever female president of the European Commission wants half of her team of commissioners to consist of women. But most of the commissioners put forward by EU member states so far have been male.
Securing a female German-elect president of the European Commission should have been a major political victory for Berlin. Wrong.
Appalled over Coca-Cola sponsoring the recent Romanian EU presidency, MEPs have asked Finland, the new holders of the rotating post, to put an end to such practices. But Helsinki, whose presidency is sponsored by BMW, has no such plan.
Ursula von der Leyen on Tuesday obtained a narrow majority of support in the European Parliament to become the first-ever female president of the European Commission.
European Commission presidential-hopeful Ursula von Der Leyen delivered her key appeal in the European Parliament to secure the post. Her appeal appeared to appease most of the political groups - but a lack of specifics, and opposition from Greens remain.
Poland's former prime minister, Beata Szydlo, has cried foul after failing to get an EP committee chair a second time, in a fiasco which could spell trouble for the European Commission presidency vote on Tuesday.
The European Parliament's powerful civil liberties committee (Libe) has elected anti-separatist Spanish MEPs for its chair and vice-chair positions. The issue risks complicating efforts by pro-Catalan factions to have the debate on independence raised to the EU level.
Former communication chief of the Hungary's Fidesz party, Balazs Hidvegi, wants a senior spot on the European Parliament committee working on migration and law. His nomination was delayed following a surprise decision by the centre-right EPP group.
Former president of the European Council Herman Van Rompuy warns future president - and fellow Belgian - Charles Michel of a trade war with the United States.
New Brexit Party MEP June Alison Mummery is the director of a company active in the fishing industry. She just joined the EU parliament's fisheries committee as a substitute member.
A majority of the new parliament's 14 vice-presidents are from the centre-right EPP or the centre-left S&D. They also control the Bureau, which decides on crucial internal issues like expenses transparency.
The 63-year-old centre-left Italian MEP was elected president of the European Parliament, with 345 votes. A former journalist, Sassoli has experience as a vice-president of the parliament, but is little known.
The Frankfurt-based European Central Bank is set to get its first female leadership after the EU leaders in Brussels nominated Christine Legarde, who is current managing director of the International Monetary Fund.
Volkswagen Group duped the European Investment Bank, from which it borrowed €400m, by not disclosing it was cheating on emissions tests. Requests by EUobserver to see the anti-fraud report however have been consistently rejected.
The Dutch frontrunner for president of the European Commission is popular at home - but seen as the personification of an unfairly-critical Brussels in some central and eastern member states.
Leaders are to hold a fourth round of talks in the Belgian capital on Tuesday to try to agree the next European Commission president.
A provisional agreement outlining the distribution of committees between political groups has been leaked to EUobserver. It showed the far-right Identity and Democracy (ID) group would 'get' the legal affairs committee and the agriculture committee.
The leadership of the Greens have asked European Parliament president Antonio Tajani to "revoke access badges to Saudi officials and to public relations companies or other entities working for or on the behalf of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia."
