The Commission is launching a public consultation on the revision of the Waste Framework Directive (WFD), including setting of EU food waste reduction targets. The revision aims to improve the overall environmental outcome of waste management in line with the waste hierarchy and the implementation of the polluter pays principle. The public consultation is open for […]
Spain will reiterate the need for the Commission to allow greater flexibility for the fruit and vegetable sector
The Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, Luis Planas, advocated last Wednesday to carry out a constant monitoring of the European market situation in all fields in order to know the effect of the measures adopted to mitigate the effects of the war in Ukraine, in case the adoption of new measures is necessary. On […]
New tool to protect internal market against distortive foreign subsidies
To ensure a level playing field for all companies operating in the internal market, member states agreed a negotiating mandate for the regulation on foreign subsidies distorting the internal market. The regulation aims to address the distortions created by subsidies granted by non-EU countries to companies operating in the EU’s single market. It establishes a comprehensive framework for the […]
European Commission and Government of Canada team up with Global Citizen to mobilise support for refugees
March 25, the European Commission and the Government of Canada announced the launch of a global campaign to raise funding in support of people fleeing the invasion of Ukraine, in partnership with international advocacy organisation Global Citizen. The President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy called on the international community on behalf of his citizens who have been displaced […]
Commission aid to Spain for energy consumption
The European Commission has approved, under EU State aid rules, a Spanish scheme to partially compensate energy-intensive companies for higher electricity prices resulting from indirect emission costs under the EU Emission Trading System (‘ETS’). Executive Vice-President Margrethe Vestager, in charge of competition policy, said: “This €2.9 billion scheme enables Spain to reduce the risk of energy-intensive […]
REPowerEU: Joint European action for more affordable, secure and sustainable energy
The European Commission has today proposed an outline of a plan to make Europe independent from Russian fossil fuels well before 2030, starting with gas, in light of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. This plan also outlines a series of measures to respond to rising energy prices in Europe and to replenish gas stocks for next winter. Europe has been facing increased energy […]
Statement by President von der Leyen at the joint press conference with Italian Prime Minister Draghi
A very warm welcome, dear Prime Minister, dear Mario. It is wonderful to have you again here, in the Berlaymont. We are going to discuss, of course, the situation in Ukraine, the atrocious war led by Putin, and we will be discussing the new enforcement package that we are working on right now. As you […]
Commission suspends cross-border cooperation and transnational cooperation with Russia and Belarus
Following the Russian military aggression against Ukraine and in line with the Commission’s decision to fully implement all EU restrictive measures, the Commission has suspended the cooperation with Russia and its ally Belarus in the European Neighbourhood Instrument cross-border cooperation programmes (ENI CBC) as well as in the Interreg Baltic Sea region programme. This means, among others, that no […]
Statement by President von der Leyen at the joint press conference with Slovak Prime Minister Heger
Thank you very much Prime Minister, dear Eduard, I am here really to thank you and to thank the Slovak people for their outstanding effort to support and welcome the people that are fleeing the war in Ukraine. And I think, in this very dark hour, that it is wonderful to see the unity and […]