European Union News

Italian authorities criminal investigation concluded that, on the basis of information and assistance received from OLAF and the European Commission, suspected fraud network in EU-funded research projects. The investigation in Italy concerns 22 projects with a total amount of funding paid of more than 50 million euro and is part of a broader OLAF investigation.

The Governing Council of the European Central Bank (ECB), the European Commission and the International Monetary Fund welcome the economic and financial adjustment programme which was agreed by the Portuguese government.

In particular, EU citizens who have never exercised their right of free movement cannot invoke Union citizenship to regularise the residence of their non-EU spouse.

Austria, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Croatia, Czech Republic, Hungary, Slovak Republic and Slovenia have signed an agreement to create the "Functional Airspace Block – Central Europe" (FAB CE). This is an important step towards achieving the Single European Sky. In fact, the other European Union Member States are expected to sign similar agreements in the coming year.

The EU initiative 'Youth on the Move' is aimed at improving education, tackling youth unemployment and encouraging study and training abroad. The European Commission is organising a five-day programme of events in Florence (Italy) from 6-10 May in order to promote this initiative.

The Euromed Gender Equality Programme (EGEP) concluded a series of national and regional situation analysis reports focusing on the status of women's civil and political rights in southern Mediterranean countries. In the same context, the ETF Women and Work (WOW) project conducted studies on women’s education, training and employment opportunities in Egypt, Jordan and Tunisia. The results of both complete the overview on the status of women and on the possible ways forward to strengthen the role of women in southern Mediterranean societies.

On 4 May 2011, the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) adopted a resolution in which the EU will have its voice at this Assembly. The new status means that it will allow senior EU representatives to present the common positions of the Union to the Assembly.

The European Commission have chosen the six FET contenders at the FET11 conference and exhibition which will receive around €1.5 million each to refine their proposal for one year, after which only two will be selected. FET Flagship contenders will have to look beyond traditional ICT research and link up with specialists in other fields like health, material and neuro-sciences and neuro-robotics.

The initiatives presented by the European Commission cover various aspects of migration, such as strengthened border control and Schengen governance or completion of the Common European Asylum System. These measures come in addition to the urgent short-term measures already taken by the Commission to deal with the migration situation in the Mediterranean and migration pressures on frontline Member States.

The European Commission has delivered a feasibility study on a future initiative on European contract law made by an expert group. The study covers the most relevant practical issues in a contractual relationship, such as legal rights for faulty goods and rules on which contract terms may be unfair.

The EURONEST Parliamentary Assembly, which consists of 60 MEPs and 10 MPs from each of the five eastern partner countries, has been inaugurated by EP President Jerzy Buzek. Among the decisions taken on its constituent meeting, EURONEST adopted and signed its constitutive act.

On 9th of May of 1950, Robert Schuman, French Foreign Minister gave a speech that marked the beginning of the road towards the EU. For this reason, on May 9 we celebrate Europe Day as well as the 61st anniversary of the birth of the European Coal and Steel Community. In order to celebrate this day, the European institutions open their doors to show their work to the citizens.