The Evangelical churches should pull out of being part of a moral locomotive for the European integration process. These churches may in the long run hold the moral upper ground if they manage this, writes LENE SJØRUP, a Danish Lutheran pastor and independent researcher, with reference to the on-going debate in the European Convention on whether to include a reference to religion in a future European Constitution.

With the European elections just three weeks away, the EU-27 will try to set the agenda for the next years for the EU institutions. But with persisting divisions on key issues, unity will be an achievement in itself.

A new study ranks EU countries according to the influence they try to exert through the size and expertise of their "permanent representations". Finland and Ireland come out on top.

The European Parliament should have granted access to documents on a decision about how transparent MEPs should be in future with their office expenses, says EU Ombudsman.

EU institutions want Facebook to relax its rules, to allow pan-European political groups to carry out EU-wide campaigns. Facebook has yet to implement the demands - posing questions on the extent to which Europe relies on the US tech firm.

A political deal reached behind closed doors included MEPs giving up the right to veto how the subsidies from the European Defence Fund will be spent.