Six out of 10 Europeans are “not that interested” in the European Parliament elections later this month, according to a poll released ahead of Friday's Europe Day events and despite huge efforts by campaign managers to make the ballot more relevant.
A member from the European parliament, Jean Pierre Audy who headed a mission to Brazil last week said he was confident that next year the long standing negotiations for a free trade and cooperation agreement between the European Union and Mercosur could be concluded.
The European Parliament voted Wednesday to reject most new subsidies for the saltwater fishing industry and provide financial support for new ecologically friendly measures meant to prevent overfishing. But in a nod to commercial fishing fleets, the lawmakers did maintain some handouts to the industry.
European Commission said that it had received no “official, specific” complaint alleging tax fraud in Gibraltar, despite Spain’s repeated accusations against the Rock. Commission spokesman Olivier Bailly made the clear statement as he reminded reporters that allegations of tax evasion had not formed part of Wednesday’s fact-finding mission to the border.
Credit rating agencies (CRA) such as Moody’s, Fitch or Standard & Poor’s will have to work under more strict regulations in the European Union where they could face claims if investors suffer a loss due to an infringement committed by the agency intentionally or with gross negligence, according to a European Council directive approved on Monday.
A senior British member of Parliament blasted as ‘outrageous’ claims that the European Parliament does not recognize British sovereignty over the Falkland Islands. The case first surfaced when MercoPress reported that a Spanish member of the European parliament on a recent visit to Argentina said that “British sovereignty over the Islands as such is not accepted”.
Members of the Cuban dissident group Ladies in White collected Tuesday the Sakharov Prize that the European Parliament awarded them in 2005, and in the process had harsh words to say about the situation in their homeland.
Europe's fisheries ministers may dilute plans for a total ban on the practice of discarding fish at sea, as they meet in Brussels. An outright discards ban was widely welcomed when backed by the European Parliament last month, but it is being resisted by France, Spain and others.
After lengthy talks in Brussels European leaders have reached an agreement on the budget for 2014-20 with a ceiling of 960 billion Euros, the first time the EU multi-annual budget has been reduced.
French President François Hollande called on the Euro zone on Tuesday to develop an exchange rate policy to help protect the common currency from “irrational movements”. His comments came amid growing concern that the Euro, now trading around 1.35 to the US dollar, is too strong and could undermine the country’s exporters and hence wider economic growth.