In the letter, S&D vice-president and shadow rapporteur in the environment committee, Simona Bonafè, and S&D shadow rapporteur in the economic affairs committee, Paul Tang, expressed their opposition to the labelling of gas and nuclear-based energy production as taxonomy compliant. While recognising the role played by gas and nuclear to meet the energy needs nowadays towards the transition to a…
With the recovery beating expectations and market conditions easing, European firms expect to increase investment again. Financial support for firms during the lockdowns was crucial in keeping the economy afloat: more than half (56%) of EU firms have received some form of financial support in response to COVID-19. Moreover, despite difficult circumstances, four out of…
The European Investment Bank (EIB) – the financial arm of the EU – has approved a new Transparency Policy that will allow the bank to keep hiding information on projects it finances despite their potential impacts on people and the environment. The new policy, it is claimed, “further deteriorates” transparency conditions at the EIB…
BusinessEurope, the General Confederation of Moroccan Enterprises (CGEM) and EuroCham Maroc have adopted a “Modernisation Pact on Trade and Investment between the European Union (EU) and the Kingdom of Morocco”. The document calls for a long overdue modernisation of the framework for EU-Morocco trade and investment relations to unleash the untapped economic potential of this…
The European Investment Bank (EIB) has approved EUR 10.2 billion of new financing to support business investment and strengthen economic resilience to COVID-19, accelerate the green energy transition, expand sustainable transport and improve health, education, social housing and urban development. “The COVID-19 pandemic is not yet over, and economic consequences continue to be felt around…
Today, the European Commission has presented its criteria for sustainable investments, following the Taxonomy Regulation that was negotiated by Greens/EFA MEP Bas Eickhout in late 2019 and approved by the Parliament in June 2020. The criteria released today provides more insight into how sustainable financial products can be labelled and allows the EU to set…
Vodafone has announced an investment of €20 million by the Vodafone Foundation to expand Foundation digital skills and education programmes by funding local initiatives in Albania, Czech Republic, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Portugal, Romania, Spain, Turkey, and the UK. This investment is expected to reach 16 million learners by 2025. The programmes delivered…
Finnish interest groups say the EU sustainable financing package threatens to raise emission-free electricity generation costs and therefore erode export industry competitiveness. The European Commission will publish in the coming days a draft of sustainability criteria for climate-critical investments. The sustainability criteria will be the subject of an extensive round of consultations over the next…
The Commission on Monday adopted its 2021 work programme, designed to make Europe healthier, fairer and more prosperous, while accelerating its long-term transformation into a greener economy, fit for the digital age. It contains new legislative initiatives across all six headline ambitions of President von der Leyen’s political guidelines and follows her first state of the union…
Much ink has been spilled on the topic of the relationship between the European Union and the People’s Republic of China over recent weeks; from imbalanced trade to values and principles, writes Ming-Yen Tsai. As the EU recalibrates its policy towards China, it is worth remembering the position of strength the EU finds itself in…
