European Parliamentary Research Service Blog
Structural and Cohesion Policies
What if we didn’t need cows for our beef? [Science and Technology podcast]
With the help of cells from a single cow, scientists can produce 175 million hamburgers. When fully commercialised, this type of technology could greatly impact the way we produce and consume meat. Continue reading
What if policy anticipated advances in science and technology? [Science and Technology podcast]
What if blockchain revolutionised voting? What if your emotions were tracked to spy on you? And what if we genetically engineered an entire species? Continue reading
EU policies – Delivering for citizens: Regional policy [Policy Podcast]
The principal aim of the EU’s regional policy, also known as cohesion policy, is to address the territorial, social and economic imbalances that exist between the different regions of the EU. Continue reading
How the EU budget is spent: Fund for European Aid to the Most Deprived
In 2014, around 122 million people were ‘at risk of poverty or social exclusion’ (AROPE) in the 28 EU Member States– a quarter of the population. This means they were in at least one of the following situations: at risk of monetary poverty (17.2 % of the total population); living in households with very low work intensity (11.1 %); or severely materially deprived (9.0 %). Continue reading
What if we could fight drug addiction with digital technology? [Science and Technology podcast]
Drug addiction is one of the greatest problems facing European public health authorities. Advances in drug addiction research have focused mostly on the neurobiological aspects of the disease, but now promising new technologies are enhancing our ability to understand and treat drug addiction. Continue reading
EU policies – Delivering for citizens: Youth empowerment [Policy Podcast]
The proportion of young people (15-29 years old) in the general EU population is declining. On the whole, young people have a higher level of education than older adults, and youth unemployment rates have begun to decrease. Continue reading
Plenary round-up – Brussels, April I 2019
Highlights of the April I plenary session included debates on the Future of Europe with Swedish Prime Minister, Stefan Löfven, and on UK withdrawal from the EU. Continue reading
Plenary round-up – Strasbourg, March II 2019
Highlights of the March II plenary session included debates on the conclusions of the 21-22 March 2019 European Council meeting and on recent developments on the Dieselgate scandal. Parliament also debated the situation in Algeria and the illegal occupation of Crimea by the Russian Federation. Important debates also took place on various legislative proposals, including on interoperability between EU information systems. Continue reading
Artificial intelligence in transport: Current and future developments, opportunities and challenges
Artificial intelligence is changing the transport sector. From helping cars, trains, ships and aeroplanes to function autonomously, to making traffic flows smoother, it is already applied in numerous transport fields. Continue reading
EU policies – Delivering for citizens: Agriculture [Policy Podcast]
The common agricultural policy (CAP) is one of the oldest common policies in the EU. Its significance is reflected in the proportion of the EU’s budget devoted to it, representing approximately 40 % of the total. Continue reading
EU policies – Delivering for citizens: Fisheries [Policy Podcast]
The European Union has sole responsibility for the conservation of its marine fisheries resources, and manages them under the common fisheries policy (CFP). Launched in 1983 and reformed every ten years since then, the CFP has come a long way. Continue reading
Farming without plant protection products
Food security and healthy food for 11 billion people by 2100 is one of the biggest challenges of this century. It is one of the most important, if not the most important, human rights, and any agricultural system has to fulfil this requirement within the planetary sustainability boundaries. Continue reading
Measures to advance the realisation of the trans-European transport network: Integrated and faster project procedures [EU Legislation in Progress]
With the trans-European transport network (TEN-T) policy, the European Commission seeks to develop a modern, efficient and climate-friendly network covering all transport modes. Continue reading
Port reception facilities for ship waste: Collecting waste from ships in ports [EU Legislation in Progress]
Marine litter and pollution put the marine environment at risk. While a great proportion of marine litter originates from land-based sources, limiting waste discharges from ships also plays an essential role in efforts to preserve marine and coastal ecosystems. Continue reading
European maritime single window: Harmonised digital reporting for ships [EU Legislation in Progress]
Every time a ship calls at a port, its maritime transport operator has to submit a set of pre-arrival information to a range of entities and agencies. Continue reading
The place of women in European film productions: Fighting the celluloid ceiling
The sexual assault allegations brought against Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein laid bare the painful reality for scores of women working in the film industry around the world. However, sexual harassment is seemingly just the tip of the iceberg in an industry where gender inequalities relating to biased representation and pay are arguably systematic and pervasive. Continue reading
EU policies – Delivering for citizens: Promoting European culture [Policy Podcast]
The concept of cultural diversity lies at the heart of the European project. Recent years have seen renewed interest in the sector’s potential for promoting social cohesion, unity and tolerance, on the one hand, with continued recognition of its valuable economic role, on the other. Continue reading
What if we genetically engineered an entire species? [Science and Technology Podcast]
A gene drive is a technique for manipulating ecosystems by introducing self-propagating custom genes among a population of sexually reproducing organisms, using the CRISPR-Cas9 gene-editing technology. Continue reading
CAP strategic plans [EU Legislation in Progress]
The proposal for a regulation on CAP strategic plans introduces a new delivery model, described by the Commission as a fundamental shift in the CAP, involving a shift from compliance towards results and performance. Continue reading
Discontinuing seasonal changes of time [EU Legislation in Progress]
To end the biannual change of clocks that currently takes place in every Member State at the end of March and the end of October, on 12 September 2018 the European Commission adopted a proposal to discontinue the seasonal changes of time in the Union. Continue reading
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