On 15 July, the Council and the European Parliament reached a provisional political agreement on the proposal to establish a Programme for Agile and Rapid Innovation in Defence (AGILE), a new €115 million instrument designed to provide rapid, agile and targeted financial support to small and medium-sized enterprises – including start-ups and scale-ups – that […]
The Commission and the United Kingdom sign the EU–UK Agreement on Gibraltar
The European Commission and the United Kingdom have signed on July 14th the EU–UK Agreement on Gibraltar. This Agreement, which will enter into force provisionally on 15 July 2026, is the result of more than four years of negotiations and completes the legal framework for relations between the EU and the UK following the UK’s […]
The Commission is updating the scope of digital products and tools to support the implementation of the EU Regulation on deforestation
On 13 July, the Commission adopted two measures to support the implementation of the EU Deforestation Regulation (EUDR), which will begin to apply by the end of December. A Delegated Act updates and simplifies the list of products covered by the Regulation, while an Implementing Act sets out the functioning of the Information System for submitting due diligence statements […]
Digital euro: green light for negotiations
On July 18th, the European Parliament backed the start of talks with the Council on the proposal for a digital euro, to ensure secure payments and reduce reliance on providers outside the EU. With 416 votes in favour, 169 against and 22 abstentions, Parliament authorised the opening of interinstitutional negotiations on the creation of the […]
Serbia and enlargement: MEPs expect a genuine commitment to EU values
The Serbian government continues to assert that EU accession is its strategic objective, but MEPs warn that this is often not reflected in its actions. Progress towards EU accession involves not only adopting reforms, but also their thorough and comprehensive implementation, MEPs warn in a report on Serbia adopted on Wednesday with 468 votes in […]
Enlargement: Parliament commends Ukraine’s progress despite the war
On 8 July, MEPs called for a constructive debate on how to take Ukraine’s European integration forward, taking into account the European Union’s strategic interests. In its annual assessment of Ukraine’s progress on reforms related to the EU accession process, the European Parliament welcomed the opening, in June 2026, of the first chapter in the […]
8th edition of the Madrid Summit, an international conference on the challenges facing the LGBTIQ community
On 3 July 2026, Madrid hosted the 8th edition of the Madrid Summit, a conference focusing on the main challenges currently facing the LGBTQIA+ community in Europe and internationally. Launched in 2017 during WorldPride Madrid, the Summit has established itself as a leading forum for analysing the challenges affecting LGBTIQA people around the world. This […]
EU institutions receive the Ombudsman’s award for their tool for tracking EU legislation
The EU institutions have been awarded the 2026 Ombudsman’s Prize for Excellence in Open Government for their user-friendly tool, the EU Law Tracker. On Tuesday 30 June, the European Parliament, the Council of the EU and the European Commission won the award for ‘excellence in open administration’ at the 2026 Ombudsman’s Award for Good Administration […]
The Council and the Parliament reach an agreement to strengthen the European Chemicals Agency
The Council of the European Union and the European Parliament have reached a provisional agreement to strengthen the management and funding of the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA). The new rules will create an independent legal framework to help ECHA manage its growing number of responsibilities efficiently. Since its establishment in 2007, ECHA and its scientific […]