European Parliamentary Research Service Blog
briefings
Drinking Water Directive
Written by Ivana Kiendl Kristo, The Drinking Water Directive (DWD) sets quality standards for drinking water and requires that Member States ensure monitoring and compliance with these standards. By and large, it has been successful, best exemplified by the high, and increasing, levels of compliance across the European Union (EU) with the microbiological, chemical and … Continue reading
Money Market Funds: Measures to improve stability and liquidity [EU Legislation in Progress]
Written by Marcin Szczepański (3rd edition), Money Market Funds (MMFs) are a type of collective fund that invest in short-term debt and provide financing for financial institutions, corporations and governments. During the financial crisis their liquidity and stability were challenged, which prompted the Commission to propose a regulation on MMFs, in 2013. Its proposal aimed … Continue reading
EU and UK positions on citizens’ rights: First phase of Brexit negotiations
Written by Eva-Maria Poptcheva and Laura Tilindyte, Negotiations on the arrangements for the United Kingdom’s withdrawal from the EU started on 19 June 2017, with citizens’ rights being one of the top priorities. However, the EU and the UK positions differ considerably. The EU aims at a withdrawal agreement which safeguards the existing right to … Continue reading
Culture in EU-US relations
Written by Ivana Katsarova, North America and Europe dominate the global trade in cultural goods. Together they account for 49 % of exports and 62 % of imports. However, there is a significant cultural divide between the EU and USA, which is reflected in contrasting policy approaches towards culture. Under the 2005 Unesco Convention – not signed … Continue reading
US development policy: New priorities under President Trump
Written by Michael Kaczmarek with Graham Scott, The new administration of US President Donald Trump has put forward an ‘America First’ vision in the field of development policy. In his 2018 budget proposal, President Trump requests the US Congress to scale back and refocus US political commitments and financial contributions in the areas of economic … Continue reading
Euro area recovery and reform [What Think Tanks are thinking]
Written by Marcin Grajewski, The euro area’s economic recovery has gained pace as investor confidence has strengthened. The election of the reform-minded Emmanuel Macron as French President in May reignited the debate on overhauling the euro area’s economic governance. This note offers links to recent commentaries and studies on the economic situation of the euro … Continue reading
Single market information tool (SMIT) [EU Legislation in Progress]
Written by Cemal Karakas (1st edition), Competition and consumer protection in the single market are often undermined by measures such as price discrimination based on residency, geo-blocking of online audio-visual content, or limited cross-border parcel delivery. While many businesses do not cooperate with the Commission by e.g. disclosing their pricing structure, Member States often do … Continue reading
EU certification of aviation security screening equipment [EU Legislation in Progress]
Written by Ariane Debyser (1st edition), On 7 September 2016, the European Commission adopted a proposal for a regulation establishing a certification system for aviation security screening equipment. The proposal seeks ‘to contribute to the proper functioning of the EU internal market and to increase the global competitiveness of the EU industry by establishing an … Continue reading
Effort sharing regulation, 2021-2030: Limiting Member States’ carbon emissions [EU Legislation in Progress]
In July 2016, the European Commission presented a proposal for a regulation to limit post-2020 national emissions of greenhouse gases (GHG) in sectors not covered by the EU emissions trading system (ETS). These include transport, buildings and agriculture. Continue reading
Russia and security [What Think Tanks are thinking]
Written by Marcin Grajewski, Relations between the European Union and Russia remain strained after the EU extended its sanctions against the country late in June until 31 January 2018, citing a lack of progress in the implementation of the Minsk agreements aimed to end of the Russian-Ukrainian conflict. Russia’s annexation of Crimea and its conflict … Continue reading
Wholesale roaming regulation: A precondition for ‘roam like at home’ [EU Legislation in Progress]
Written by Mar Negreiro (3rd edition), In 2015 the Council and European Parliament agreed in Regulation 2015/2120 that on 15 June 2017 roaming charges for mobile phone use would be abolished in the EU. After that date, ‘roam like at home’ (RLAH) would become a reality for all Europeans. The regulation did not, however, address the wholesale … Continue reading
New radio frequencies for mobile internet services [EU Legislation in Progress]
Written by Marcin Szczepański (4th edition), While radio spectrum management is predominantly a national competence, EU policy plays an increasingly important role in its coordination and harmonisation. The EU actively seeks ways to harmonise use of the different bands of the spectrum to meet the ever-growing demand for wireless mobile broadband. Nevertheless, spectrum allocation in … Continue reading
How the EU budget is spent: European Maritime and Fisheries Fund
Written by Magdalena Sapala, Jean Weissenberger, The €6 396.6 million European Maritime and Fisheries Fund (EMFF) may be the smallest of the European Structural and Investment Funds for the 2014-2020 period, but it is the principal financial tool supporting the EU common fisheries policy (CFP). Governed by Regulation 508/2014, (the EMFF Regulation), the Fund aims at providing the … Continue reading
Public country-by-country reporting by multinational enterprises [EU Legislation in Progress]
Written by Cécile Remeur (2nd edition), Tax transparency has gained particular importance as a tool in the fight against tax avoidance and tax evasion, particularly in the field of corporate income tax and aggressive tax planning. Cooperation between tax authorities aims at allowing them to obtain information covering the global business of multinational enterprises (MNEs), … Continue reading
Migration into the EU [What Think Tanks are thinking]
Written by Marcin Grajewski, At the European Council meeting of 23 June 2017, European Union Heads of State or Government agreed to strengthen efforts to reduce irregular migration flows on the central Mediterranean route, notably by speeding up training, equipping the Libyan coast guard and improving cooperation with countries of migration origin. However, the European … Continue reading
Double taxation dispute resolution mechanisms in the European Union [EU Legislation in Progress]
Written by Cécile Remeur (2nd edition), Double taxation happens when two (or more) tax jurisdictions impose comparable taxes on the same cross-border taxable event. This can happen since taxation is a sovereign right for individual countries. The proposal for a directive on double taxation dispute resolution mechanisms in the European Union is instrumental to reducing … Continue reading
Outcome of European Council meeting of 22-23 June 2017
Written by Ralf Drachenberg and Suzana Anghel, The main results of the European Council meeting of 22-23 June 2017 include the ‘historic step’ of agreeing to set up ‘permanent structured cooperation’ in European defence, the commitment to implement the Paris Agreement on climate change in all its aspects, and the extension of sanctions against Russia. … Continue reading
The Audiovisual Media Services Directive [EU Legislation in Progress]
Written by Ivana Katsarova (4th edition), On 25 April 2017, the European Parliament’s Committee on Culture and Education voted to amend the proposal for an updated EU Audiovisual Media Services Directive, presented by the Commission in May 2016. MEPs also voted to open interinstitutional trilogue talks, with a view to finalising the legislation on the … Continue reading
How the EU budget is spent: Macro-financial assistance
Written by Ana Claudia Alfieri, One important European Union (EU) objective is to achieve macroeconomic and political stability in its neighbourhood by ‘developing a zone of shared stability, security, and prosperity’ through a set of policies that help to bring candidate, potential candidate, and neighbourhood countries closer to the EU. One of these policies is … Continue reading
Start of Brexit negotiations [What Think Tanks are thinking]
Written by Marcin Grajewski, Formal negotiations on the United Kingdom’s withdrawal from the European Union under Article 50 TEU got under way on 19 June, as both sides agreed in principle how to organise the talks and underlined their mutual goodwill. The talks began nearly a year after the U.K. referendum to leave the EU … Continue reading
