The newly elected European Parliament holds its constitutive session in Strasbourg this week, with the election of the new Commission president top of the agenda. The first session of the new Parliament after the recent EU elections will be opened on Tuesday. Parliament’s first act after its constitution is to elect its President for the…
Regions
So Who Is Sir Keir Starmer?
Britain’s new Prime Minister is today the most solidly implanted leader of the left in Europe, and has the same age as Clement Attlee when he became Labour’s most famous premier (1945-51), writes Denis MacShane. It was Attlee who transformed Britain by nationalising most industries, creating a health service which even today is free for every…
EU Auditors Criticise EU Cohesion Policy
Photo by Sara Kurfeß on Unsplash They say that the EU has not managed to significantly reduce persistent spending errors in cohesion policy, whose aim is to reduce social and economic disparities within the EU. European Commission and member state controls are still lacking at every level, according to a review by the European Court of Auditors. While…
Promoting Regional Interests in the EU
An interview with Albert Castellanos, the President of the Assembly of European Regions (AER). Q). What are the main priorities of your Presidency of AER? A). As President of AER, my main priorities are to serve as a strong advocate for regional interests in Europe, especially during this new legislative term. We aim to address…
SNP Campaigns on Rejoining the EU
Photo by Adam Wilson on Unsplash The SNP says it is the only party offering Scotland a route back into the European Union. Energy Secretary Mairi McAllan also accused the Conservatives and Labour of having “utterly abandoned Scotland’s European future”. Her comments just ahead of the UK general election this Thursday 4th July. Both the Conservatives and Labour…
Hungary’s Presidency of EU is Worrying
Photo by Eugene Zhyvchik on Unsplash Hungary has taken over the Presidency of the Council of the European Union at one of the most difficult periods for the EU and rest of the world in recent times. It took charge of steering the EU for the next six months on July 1. Belgium had been in holder of the…
More than 100 000 Overseas UK Voters
Photo by Chris Boland on unsplash.com Some 111,384 Britons residing overseas have submitted their applications to vote in the UK election, according to the Electoral Commission. This covers the period since the announcement of the UK General Election on 22 May, and until the deadline to register to vote passed (18 June). The largest number…
World’s first “AI MP” standing in UK General Election
This year’s UK general election has at least one highly unusual candidate running for office….. “AI Steve.” If elected, it would be the world’s first elected AI politician. “SmarterUK” is a new AI-powered political party in Britain which has put forward AI Steve as a candidate to fight in next week’s general election to be…
What Will Brexit Look Like in 2026?
Since 2020, when the UK left the European Union, British public opinion has moved in only one direction. More and more British voters are coming to realise that Brexit was a major error. The promises of its advocates remain undelivered and will continue remain undelivered in any foreseeable future, writes Brendan Donnelly. This radical shift…
Do Postal Votes Work?
Photo by Glenn Carstens-Peters on Unsplash Campaign groups New Europeans UK and Unlock Democracy have teamed up with the British Overseas Voters Forum for an investigation into how well the postal system will perform for Britons abroad voting in the UK General Election on 4 July. It comes after the head of the British Overseas Voters Forum, Bruce…