Photo by Christian Wiediger on Unsplash The European Parliament has issued its Spring 2023 Eurobarometer survey showing citizens’ “strong support” for democracy and a high awareness of the upcoming European elections. One year ahead of the next European elections, public interest in these elections has measurably increased. A clear majority of citizens (56%) are interested in the next…
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Service? Or Self-Service?
Photo by Zachary Kadolph on Unsplash The first three initials of Boris Alexander De pfeffel Johnson badged him as BAD at birth, but few could have imagined the damage he would inflict on the country as a whole and on trust in politicians in particular. His sudden resignation as an MP was triggered by receipt of the report…
Hello Sunshine
Photo by Vivint Solar on Unsplash It is good news that the UK should have plenty of sunshine this summer – potentially more than much of southern Europe. The European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts suggests that June, July and August should each be hotter than average. This should be a great opportunity to harness more solar power:…
Ukraine Will Soon Join NATO
A senior NATO official told a Brussels conference she is confident war-torn Ukraine will soon join the western alliance. Burcu San, Deputy Assistant Secretary General, NATO, said the country was under a “brutal, unprovoked attack” and it was in the interests of the West to help Ukraine.” “It very much feels threatened so we must help Ukraine…
Moldova: The New Heart of Europe
Photo by Tyler Nix on Unsplash The Republic of Moldova is a small faraway country facing many challenges. Today it no longer faces them alone. Economically it is fragile, with its main exports being insulated wire, wheat, wine and sunflower seeds – not the most promising foundation for long-term prosperity. Climate change is also a major issue: in…
The Civilised World Must Ostracise Russia
Photo by Max Griss on Unsplash The callous barbarity of Russia’s blitz of civilian targets in Ukraine surpasses even the terror of the London blitz by Hitler. Putin has copied the Nazi strategy and developed it to new levels of depravity. Russia is continuing the genocide of Ukrainians and intensifying its missile terror. The only way to stop…
Gene Editing Next Steps
Photo by National Cancer Institute on Unsplash Today there are rapid advances in Artificial Intelligence, changing the way we work. With an increasing population and a warming climate, technology is also potentially helping how the world feeds itself. Selective breeding of crop varieties as practised in the past can now be accelerated by planned genetic enhancements, replacing the…
G7 Statement on Ukraine
Photo by Viktoria Evseenkova on Unsplash Ukraine remains firmly on the EU agenda, both with EU leaders and for MEPs. The ongoing war in the country will be the subject of a week of special events in the European Parliament next week, back after its recess. Before that, though, at their meeting in Hiroshima, we, the leaders of…
Right is Wrong
Photo by Roger Bradshaw on Unsplash The next General Election in the UK is likely to be at least a year away, but already the two major political parties are moving into overdrive with national conferences and pronouncements from senior party figures. After their successful local Council election results in early May Labour is increasingly occupying the centre…
Annual EBRD Meeting in Samarkand
Photo by Ildar Garifullin on Unsplash The annual meeting of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development will be held in Uzbekistan On May 16-18, the 32nd Annual Meeting of the Board of Governors of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) will be held in Samarkand, under the general main theme – “Investing in Resilience”. The…










