In 2023, the number of people travelling abroad for tourism had fully recovered from the impact of the COVID-19 crisis, with restrictions lifted for all destinations. The 3 EU regions at level 2 of the nomenclature of territorial units for statistics (NUTS 2) with the highest number of nights spent by foreign tourists were the Spanish island regions of […]
Independent experts call for increased investment to strengthen Europe’s research and innovation leadership
More excellent research, impactful innovation and technology scale-ups are needed to make Europe more globally competitive, secure and sustainable. These are among the twelve expert recommendations presented today to the Commission to strengthen Horizon Europe, the EU research and innovation programme, and its successor. The recommendations have been drafted by an independent group of 15 […]
EU calls for efforts to limit global warming to 1.5 °C
Climate change is an existential threat to humanity, ecosystems and biodiversity, as well as to peace and security. At the 29th United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP29), the EU will support an effective, achievable and ambitious global goal on climate finance and will call for ambitious climate plans in order to keep the goal of limiting global warming to 1.5°C […]
Are we making progress on ending discrimination in the EU?
In the EU, discrimination based on any grounds is prohibited by law. Yet for many people this is still a daily reality. To tackle this, the Commission has since 2020 put forward novel initiatives against racism, antisemitism, but also for LGBTIQ people and Roma communities. Progress reports on all four have recently been published. The first […]
High Representative, on behalf of the European Union, condemns recent attacks on UNIFIL
The European Union expresses its grave concern about the recent escalation along the Blue Line. The EU condemns all attacks against UN missions. It expresses particularly grave concern regarding the attacks by the Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) against the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL), which left several peacekeepers wounded. Such attacks against UN […]
InvestEU is playing a key role in making the EU more sustainable and competitive
The Commission has presented the mid-term evaluation of InvestEU, the EU’s flagship investment programme to facilitate better access to finance for businesses across Europe, in support of common priorities. Halfway through its duration, InvestEU has already unlocked ¤218 billion in additional investment, and 90% of the EU guarantee has been allocated. The programme consists of […]
Joint statement by the EU and other countries on the situation in Lebanon
The European Union, Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom and the United States have signed a joint statement in the following terms: “The situation between Lebanon and Israel since October 8th, 2023 is intolerable and presents an unacceptable risk of a broader regional escalation. This […]
EU invests €65 million in quantum chips
The Joint Undertaking for Chips has today opened calls to support research and innovation initiatives in semiconductors. This is the first call of its kind in quantum technologies to increase investment in cutting-edge technologies, in particular quantum chips for computing and sensing. The EU funding for this call is €65 million and is expected to […]
Rail market opening: competition leads to lower ticket prices, EU study finds
A study released by the European Commission today highlights the user benefits of competition in both passenger rail and rail freight services. It reveals that increased competition in the EU rail market has resulted in significant reductions in ticket prices for rail passengers and in freight transportation costs. Efficiency gains are evident across all segments – passenger open access, public […]