European Union News - 14 July 2011

The Polish Deputy Prime Minister, Waldemar Pawlak insisted at the plenary session of the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) on the need for Europe to have its own "transparent, accountable and responsible" rating agency. He also enjoyed the occasion to present the Polish presidency priorities to the EESC members.

According to the Commission's annual report on EU Customs enforcement of intellectual property rights published, the number of shipments stopped by customs were from 43,500 in 2009 to almost 80,000 in 2010. Moreover, the report also indicates the value of the goods detained which is estimated at over €1 billion. China continued to be the main source of IPR infringing products.

'Cravings last less than five minutes on average. To help distract yourself, try sipping a drink slowly until the craving is over' or 'This is it! - QUIT DAY, throw away all your fags. TODAY is the start of being QUIT forever, you can do it!' are some examples of supportive and encouraging messages used as a therapy to help smokers quit this habit. The study, led by the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine in the United Kingdom, shows text messages are a very convenient way for smokers to receive support to quit smoking.

The European Commission presented a proposal with a radical approach to fisheries management in Europe. The reform will introduce a decentralised approach to science-based fisheries management by region and sea basin, and introduce better governance standards in the EU and on the international level through sustainable fisheries agreements. With regard the international fisheries agreements, the EU signed a new protocol with Morocco.

The European Commission published a Green Paper as the basis for a debate on whether and how the regulatory framework needs to be adapted to allow European audiovisual industry to develop new business models, creators to find new distribution channels and European consumers to have better access to content throughout Europe.