The European Commission welcomes the historic agreement of the European Council to for the first ever revision of the Multiannual Financial Framework’s ceilings. The Council’s agreement confirms all priorities of the Commission’s proposal and covers 80% of the requested financing. This reinforcement will allow the EU to continue delivering on our common priorities, benefiting the […]
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New plant breeding techniques to boost resilience of food system
The EU wants to increase the sustainability of its food supply and reduce the need for pesticides with new rules on plant breeding techniques. Plant breeding is an ancient practice used to create new plant varieties from existing varieties to obtain qualities such as higher yields, enhanced nutrition or better resistance to disease. Nowadays, thanks […]
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European Commission welcomes preservation of competition on Amsterdam-US routes
The European Commission welcomes the positive developments at Amsterdam airport enabling new entrant JetBlue Airways Corporation (‘JetBlue’) to continue operating at the airport over the IATA Summer 2024 Season. The Commission has actively and closely monitored the evolution of the market conditions at Amsterdam airport. Specifically, this concerned the degree of congestion of the airport and the […]
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EU and Canada boost strategic digital partnership to meet new challenges
Commissioner for Internal Market Thierry Breton and Canada’s Minister of Innovation, Science and Industry François-Philippe Champagne met on 1 February to begin work on implementing the EU-Canada Digital Partnership, which was concluded at the 23-24 November summit held in Canada. They issued the following joint press release following their virtual meeting: The new Digital Partnership will help the EU and Canada […]
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First evaluation of the Frontex Regulation delivers overall positive assessment despite challenges
On 2 February, the Commission adopted the evaluation of the European Border and Coast Guard Regulation (Frontex Regulation) together with an Action Plan to support its implementation. With this first evaluation of the Frontex regulation, which is a legal obligation, the Commission has assessed the impact, effectiveness and efficiency of Frontex. Ensuring a robust and […]
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Commission calls for eradication of Female Genital Mutilation worldwide
Ahead of the International Day of Zero Tolerance for Female Genital Mutilation on 6 February 2024, the European Commission and the High Representative/Vice-President reaffirm the EU’s strong commitment to eradicate Female Genital Mutilation worldwide: “Female Genital Mutilation is a violation of human rights and a form of violence against girls and women. Let us be […]
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Council and Parliament strike provisional deal on the right to repair directive
The Council and the European Parliament reached a provisional deal on the directive that promotes the repair of broken or defective goods, also known as the right-to-repair (or R2R) directive. The legislation agreed today will make it easier for consumers to seek repair instead of replacement by making the access to repair services easier, faster, […]
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European Commission disburses €1.4 billion in pre-financing to Spain for implementation of its REPowerEU plan
Last Thursday, the Commission disbursed €1.4 billion to Spain in pre-financing grants related to the REPowerEU funds under the Recovery and Resilience Mechanism (RRM). This second and final REPowerEU pre-financing tranche complements the €340 million of loans previously disbursed to Spain on 25 January 2024. This pre-financing will help accelerate the implementation of the key […]
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EU leaders greenlight €64.6 billion in additional funding
EU leaders greenlit additional funding for the multiannual financial framework 2021-2027 and discussed support for Ukraine. They also discussed the situation in the Middle East and agriculture, and paid tribute to former European Commission President Jacques Delors, who passed away on 27 December 2023. Mid-term revision of EU long-term budget 2021-2027 As a follow-up to their meeting in December, EU leaders discussed […]
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