European Union News

The Regional Policy DG of the European Commission announced the launching of the 2014 RegioStars Awards. In addition, the Award Ceremony of the 2013 RegioStars awards will take place the 31 January 2013 at the Palais des Beaux-Arts, Brussels.

The European Commission welcomed the presentation of two draft reports on the reform of the EU's data protection rules proposed by the European Commission just a year ago by two MEPs. These two MEPs stress in the reports the need for a high level of protection for all data processing activities in the European Union to ensure more legal certainty, clarity and consistency.

The European Commission adopted its plan for the allocation of over €661 million in humanitarian aid funding for 2013. The largest portion of aid will go to sub-Saharan Africa that will receive €344.5 million. Moreover, part of the budget is dedicated to forgotten crises – populations that receive little media attention.

On 9 of January, it entered into service the high speed section between Barcelona and Figueres, which represents the completion of a project, the high speed line Madrid-Barcelona-French border. This section has had a significant involvement and support of the European Union.

European Commission Vice-President responsible for the Digital Agenda Neelie Kroes underlinded that the top priorities for 2013 are to increase broadband investment and to maximise the digital sector's contribution to Europe's recovery. Cloud computing is also expected to accelerate through public sector buying power.

On the 8 of January, the Board of Governors of the European Endowment for Democracy (EED) decided to appoint Mr Jerzy Pomianowski, currently State Secretary in the Government of Poland, as the Executive Director of European Endowment for Democracy (EED). The Board also discussed the strategic vision and mandate for this new instrument.

The 27 EU Member States approved a €10 billion capital increase to the European Investment Bank. The capital increase will allow Europe’s long-term lending institution to provide up to €60 billion, over a 3 year period, in additional lending for economically viable projects across the European Union.

The European Commission announced that on 11 of January it will take place the official opening of the European Cybercrime Centre established at the European Police Office, Europol in the Hague (the Netherlands). Investigations will focus into online fraud, child abuse online and other cybercrimes that regularly involve hundreds of victims at a time, and suspects in many different parts of the world.

The new action plan to support entrepreneurs and revolutionise entrepreneurial culture in the EU presented by the European Commission stresses the key role of education and training to nurture new generations of entrepreneurs, and includes specific measures to help budding entrepreneurs among young people, women, seniors, migrants, and the unemployed.

The European Commission published a survey results which show that a majority (56%) of Europeans believe that air quality has deteriorated in the last 10 years. With regard to the EU air quality standards and national emission ceilings, more than half of the respondents were of the view that these instruments should be strengthened.

The European Commission presented a strategy which involves more rational use of resources, better quality and availability of trade data, and deeper partnership with trade and international partners in order to enable customs to better tackle risks associated with goods being traded in international supply chains. In 2011, EU customs processed nearly 300 million customs declarations.

The European Commission published a report that highlights that unemployment is hitting new peaks not seen for almost twenty years, household incomes have declined and the risk of poverty or exclusion is on the rise, especially in Member States in Southern and Eastern Europe, after five years of economic crisis and the return of a recession in 2012.