As of today, Booking Holdings Inc. (BHI), designated as gatekeeper on 13 May 2024, must ensure that its online intermediation service, Booking.com, complies with all relevant obligations of the Digital Markets Act (DMA). Concretely, this means hotels, car rental companies, and other providers of travel services that depend on Booking.com to reach their customers can begin to […]
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European Investment Bank mobilised €900 to back recovery and reconstruction after floods in Spain
On 6th November, the European Investment Bank (EIB) activated financial instruments to back recovery and reconstruction in areas affected by the recent devastating floods in Spain. The EIB is putting together an initial €900 million response package to speed up the rollout of existing initiatives and thereby support the rebuilding of critical infrastructure by regional authorities […]
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EU adopts rules to better measure the environment’s contribution to the economy
On 5 November, the Council formally adopted the amended regulation on European environmental economic accounts, the EU’s common statistical system which brings together economic and environmental information. The new rules extend the scope of the European environmental economic accounts, introducing forest accounts, ecosystem accounts, and environmental subsidies accounts. The amended regulation aims to provide better information for the […]
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Council reaches agreement on VAT package for the digital age
The Council reached agreement today on new measures to make EU VAT rules compatible with the digital age. This legislative package, with new rules on e-invoices and real-time data reporting and on business activities carried out through digital platforms, will combat tax fraud, support businesses and promote digitisation. Mihály Varga, Hungarian Minister of Finance, said: […]
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EU budget for 2025 to focus on research, health, education, and climate action
Parliament demands an EU budget for 2025 that focuses on improving people’s lives, boosting competitiveness, and addressing current challenges. MEPs set the overall level of commitment appropriations for the 2025 draft budget at almost €201 billion, €1.24 billion more than the Commission’s proposal from last June. Parliament wants to boost programmes vital in addressing health challenges, supporting young […]
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EU invests €4.8 billion of emissions trading revenues in innovative net-zero projects
The Commission has today selected 85 innovative net zero emission projects to receive €4.8 billion in grants from the Innovation Fund to help deploy cutting-edge clean technologies across Europe. The 2023 call for proposals awards for the first time projects of various sizes (large, medium and small, as well as pilot projects) focusing on clean […]
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Parliament approves up to €35 billion loan to Ukraine backed by Russian assets
On Tuesday, MEPs gave their green light to an extraordinary loan of up to €35 billion to Ukraine, to be repaid with future revenues from frozen Russian assets. With 518 votes in favour, 56 against and 61 abstentions, Parliament endorsed the new macro-financial assistance (MFA) to help Ukraine against Russia’s brutal war of aggression. This […]
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Commission joins forces with venture capital to support deep tech innovation in Europe
The Commission has launched a Trusted Investors Network bringing together a group of investors ready to co-invest in innovative deep-tech companies in Europe together with the EU. The Union’s investment comes from the European Innovation Council (EIC) Fund, which is part of the EU research and innovation programme Horizon Europe. The first group comprises 71 investors […]
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Cooperation on screening of foreign direct investments strengthens EU security
EU Member States and the Commission are strengthening their cooperation on identifying and addressing investments from third countries that threaten EU security or public order, according to a Commission report published today. The 4th Annual Report on the screening of foreign direct investments (FDI) into the Union observes that the number of notifications to the EU cooperation mechanism increased by 18% since the […]
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