The European Parliament and Council have reached a provisional agreement on Thursday to make the European Medicines Agency more effective in tackling shortages of medicines and medical devices. The European Medicines Agency’s (EMA) capacity to manage the availability of medicinal products and medical devices will be strengthened with the creation of two “shortages steering groups”,…
The COVID-19 pandemic has exposed weaknesses in Europe’s economic landscape, notably regional inequalities, skills gaps and risks to the single market and supplies of strategic goods. In the light of these lessons, the European Commission has updated its blueprint for a greener, more digital and competitive industrial landscape, the New Industrial Strategy for Europe. In…
EU council president Charles Michel has said the virus exposed “the gaps in our national preparedness.” In a speech at the world health summit, he said, “just last week we had our latest European Council meeting. I have now chaired over 16 meetings where the 27 EU Leaders have addressed COVID-19. And I can tell you…
A leading ferry operator is honouring the “forgotten angels” who have been at the sharp end of the ongoing health crisis. Nurses worldwide have been acclaimed for their sterling efforts to help the needy during the near-two year pandemic that has cost tens of thousands of lives and devastated economies. DFDS has now decided to…
The EPP Group says it has “fought tooth and nail” for €20 billion in public-private partnerships to tackle global challenges. “We all know the kind of challenges that planet earth, and indeed humanity, are facing today. Innovation holds the promise to overcome them”, declared Maria da Graça Carvalho MEP, the European Parliament Rapporteur on nine…
Commission President Ursula von der Leyen says more than 75 per cent of Europeans have received vaccinations. On Monday, she said, “We have reached an important milestone in the delivery of COVID-19 vaccines to the world. The European Union has exported over 1 billion vaccine doses worldwide, over the past ten months. Vaccines produced in the…
Mobility, education, housing and active inclusion in public life are key areas where disabled Europeans would benefit from reform, say MEPs. The EU should have a common definition for the disabled and introduce a European Disability Card to mutually recognise disability status across the EU, argue MEPs in a resolution approved with 579 votes in…
No one is safe until everyone is safe, according to the Socialist group in the European parliament.It says this was supposed to be the lesson the world drew from the Covid-19 pandemic, especially towards developing countries and low income countries, which have been unable to afford and access vaccines. Reality, unfortunately, looks different, says the group….
In June 2020, members of the European Parliament endorsed, by a vote of 378-255, a report on women’s sexual and reproductive health and rights prepared by Croatian MEP Predrag Fred Matić. The “Matić Report” called for the universal access to safe and legal abortion throughout the European Union. The Forum for Religious Freedom Europe (FOREF) takes no position regarding…
The European Parliament’s employment committee will this week vote to reduce the exposure of workers to asbestos, a number one substance known to cause cancer. The Commission is expected to present a legal proposal in 2022. The Socialists and Democrats call on the Commission to update, as a matter of priority, asbestos exposure limits by…
