Photo by Markus Spiske on Unsplash New rules are set to be introduced which would protect journalists and activists from abusive lawsuits against public participation. The long-awaited anti-SLAPP directive protects journalists and human rights defenders from strategic lawsuits against public participation that aim to silence them. The new rules contain a set of safeguards to protect victims, such…
Photo by Guillaume Périgois on Unsplash EU auditors say that rule-of-law breaches can now be addressed more effectively since the EU’s legal framework was bolstered in January 2021 by the Conditionality Regulation. In a new report they say that together with other protective mechanisms under the Recovery and Resilience Facility and cohesion policy, the framework provides for the…
Photo by Jeffrey Riley on Unsplash New rules are set to be introduced with the aim of combating the scourge of child abuse. This comes after the European Parliament and the Belgian Presidency reached an agreement that extends a temporary derogation to EU ePrivacy rules by 20 months to allow the detection of Child Sexual Abuse Material online. The…
Photo by Marek Pospíšil on Unsplash The European Parliament has raised “the alarm” over several worrying developments in Greece “threatening the rule of law” and called on the EU Commission to act. In a resolution adopted on Wednesday with 330 votes in favour, 254 against, and 26 abstentions, MEPs express grave concerns about very serious threats to…
Photo by Soundtrap on Unsplash The 27 EU Member State governments have voted unanimously in favour of ‘The EU Artificial Intelligence Act’. This is seen as key legislation for the global music industry. It aims to play a role in ending serious ongoing alleged malpractices such as the illegal acquisition of the world’s music to train what are…
Photo by Joel Fulgencio on Unsplash A senior expert on Chinese-Taiwan relations has told MEPs how he believes Beijing “sought to interfere” in Taiwan’s recent president elections. Speaking in the European Parliament on Wednesday, J. Michael Cole claimed that China used a whole range of measures to try to influence the outcome of the poll at the start of…
Photo by FlyD on Unsplash EU member states have renewed for a further 6 months its restrictive measures against Russia “in view of the Russian Federation’s continuing actions destabilising the situation in Ukraine.” They will last until 31 July. The sanctions, first introduced in 2014 in response to Russia’s actions “destabilising” the situation in Ukraine, were significantly expanded…
Russia will hold another presidential election in March 2024. Given the totalitarian reality of Russia, there is no doubt that Putin will be re-elected for another 6 years, and that this will herald a period of geopolitical turbulence for Europe. Holding such elections in the temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine is a challenge for the…
Photo by Markus Spiske on Unsplash MEPs have approved what is described as a ground-breaking deal on a new EU anti-money laundering law. The deal has been reached by the European Parliament and EU member states. The new legislative package will significantly change the rules of the game and, it is said, help prevent scandals that we have witnessed…
Photo by Markus Winkler on Unsplash The European Parliament has debated what MEPs call the dire situation in Serbia after recent elections were reportedly marred by serious fraud claims. The Socialists and Democrats in the EU assembly requested the debate. They and others called for an independent investigation into “all reported irregularities and to support thousands of Serbs…
