European Union News - 14 March 2011

In order to attract the very best talent to work at the EU Institutions, the European Personnel Selection Office (EPSO) will accept for the first time in this annual recruitment drive applications from candidates who are still in their final year of undergraduate study, allowing the EU to compete with top recruiters from across the public and private sectors. This process launched on 16 March, sees the opening of the second annual EU Careers 'Administrator' recruitment drive, for candidates in fields such as law, economics and policy development.

European Commissioner for Education and Culture Androulla Vassiliou and the Hungarian Minister of State for Culture, Géza Szöcs participated in a conference on the contribution of culture to the Europe 2020 Growth Strategy. The conference highlighted the economic impact of the cultural and creative industries and the link between culture, creativity and innovation.

The European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions (Eurofound), has released a study focused on local employment initiatives involving the cooperation of various public and private stakeholders. The report, entitled “Joint public-private local partnerships for employment to cope with the recession” examines how such local partnerships have been and are being used across the EU and Norway to prevent or counteract the effects of the economic crisis on labour markets, concluding that in many European countries LPPPs still represent untapped potential.

The spring Consumer Scoreboard published by the European Commission shows a clear recovery in consumer conditions in nearly all EU countries after the steep decline in 2009. The annual index of consumer conditions is measured e.g. by consumer trust in authorities, NGOs and retailers and the effectiveness of handling disputes.

Immediately after the earthquake and tsunami which devastated Japan on March 2011, President Barroso and President Van Rompuy expressed the European Union's solidarity and condolences to the people and government of Japan, and to the families of the victims at this difficult time. Further to it, and given the worrying situation caused by damages in Japan's nuclear plants, the Commission established contacts with Japanese sources, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), and the established emergency networks in Europe, like ECURIE.