European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen today mapped out in her first annual State of the Union Address to the European Parliament a path for the European Union to overcome the fragility laid bare by the coronavirus crisis and build a union of vitality. The President stressed that with NextGenerationEU, Europe has a once in a…
The Council issued a statement after this week’s EU/China video conference. Council President Charles Michel stated, “I’m pleased that we could speak by video conference with President Xi, with Ursula von der Leyen and Chancellor Angela Merkel. Unfortunately, our physical meeting in Leipzig wasn’t possible. Europe needs to be a player, not a playing field….
In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic and economic crisis, MEPs will take stock of the von der Leyen Commission’s achievements to date on Wednesday 16th September in Plenary.. Ursula Von der Leyen is expected to outline the impact of the Commission’s work in mitigating the COVID-19 sanitary and economic crisis, and to outline her…
Commission President von der Leyen has proposed Mairead McGuinness as candidate to succeed the resigned Irish Commissioner Hogan to the Council and the European Parliament. McGuinness’ portfolio is financial services, financial stability and capital markets union. Commission Vice-President Dombrovskis takes over the trade portfolio from Hogan. The Irish government had proposed to the President of…
The European Commission says it has concluded exploratory talks with CureVac to purchase a potential vaccine against COVID-19. This is following the positive steps with Sanofi-GSK on 31 July and Johnson and Johnson on 13 August and the signature of an Advance Purchase Agreement with AstraZeneca on 14 August. The envisaged contract with CureVac would…
President von der Leyen delivered a press statement following the resignation of Commissioner Hogan as a consequence of the so called Golfgate scandal. Hogan quit his post as EU trade commissioner on Wednesday after he allegely broke quarantine rules during a trip to his native Ireland. He apologised but denied any wrongdoing. “Phil Hogan submitted his resignation from the…
President Ursula von der Leyen has discussed over the phone with the President of the European Parliament David Sassoli and with German Chancellor Angela Merkel, as chair of the rotating presidency of the Council of the European Union, about the next steps in the adoption of the EU’s recovery package NextGenerationEU and the next Multiannual Financial Framework….
Parliament discussed with Chancellor Angela Merkel and Commission President Ursula von der Leyen today the strategy and goals of the German Presidency in the coming six months. Under the motto “Together for Europe’s recovery”, the German Presidency is determined to tackle the huge challenge posed by the pandemic, Mrs Merkel said. She highlighted five areas…
Reaching a swift and ambitious agreement on the European recovery package is the EU’s highest priority for the coming weeks. The Commission has made proposals that respond forcefully to Europe’s recovery needs and will lay the foundations for a more sustainable and resilient economy for future generations. Since the Commission tabled its proposals for NextGenerationEU…
The Socialists and Democrats in the European Parliament have condemned the adoption by China of a highly controversial national security law, a move that undermines the ‘One Country, Two Systems’ principle that followed the end of British rule in 1997, leading to further escalations and endangering the status of the city. Once again, the S&Ds strongly condemn the mass…
