European Union News

The European Investment Bank (EIB) provided a €150 million loan to the Government of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam with the purpose of part-financing projects that will contribute to the mitigation of climate change.

The European Central Bank published the results of a survey which show that between April and September 2012, the SMEs access to bank loans continued to deteriorate. Moreover, the survey results point to somewhat higher rejection rates when applying for a loan. In addition, the EBRD showed how structural reforms have improved the environment for SMEs in Eastern partner countries.

The last call form the European Research Council (ERC) for junior researchers recorded a total of 3,329 proposals, reaching almost 50% increase in relation to the 2,169 proposals registered for last year's call for proposals. This is the third consecutive year in which there is a significant increase in received applications.

The European Commission has launched a campaign to attract tourists from countries outside the European Union such as Brazil, Russia, India, China, Chile and Argentina. Entitled “Europe – Whenever you’re ready”
, this campaign shows off the diversity and quiality that all member states can offer to international tourists.

An important amount of domestic workers in Europe do not receive the same legal protection as other workers. Although there has been significant legislative progress in this direction, this working activity is quiet often not considered as a real work.

The three films short-listed for the European Parliament's LUX Film Prize will be shown during the autumn of 2011 in all member states and subtitled in 23 languages. It is the first time that finalists are to be pre-screened before jury's decision since the Prize was launched in 2007.

The report presented by the Commission to the European Parliament regarding the activities of the European Union on anti-dumping, anti-subsidy and safeguard measures during 2011 shows that these activities were increased on all fronts during that period. During 2011 the European Commission also initiated a process of review of the Trade Defence Instruments currently in force, and paid special attention to SMEs' conditions to use those instruments.

The next global Internet Governance Forum conference will be held in Baku (Azerbaijan) between 5th and 9th November. The European delegation will be headed by Commissioner Neelie Kroes, who will make a strong defence of the Internet as an essential element in freedom of speech.

The European Environmental Agency has released its first Report on Protected Areas in Europe which shows the development of such environmental areas over the past years. In the occasion of the 20th anniversary of the Habitats Directive and the UN Convention on Biological Diversity, the report highlights that despite the significant increase in the extent of protected areas, there is still little attention paid at this issue at pan-European level.

According to the latest report put forward by the Commission, over 54,000 schools took part in the European School Fruit Scheme during the 2010-2011 academic year, distributing up to 43,000 tons of fruit among their students. This Scheme funded with €90 million is aimed at reducing the increase in childhood overweight and obesity in the European Union.

The European Central Bank's bank lending survey shows the changed on the credit situation in the euro area. The survey was developed by the Eurosystem to bring a better understanding of the behaviour of bank lending for companies, consumers and households. The last issue of the survey includes for the first time a question regarding the impact of financial turmoil in access to retail and wholesale credit and another one regarding the impact of the sovereign debt crisis on banks’ funding conditions and credit standards.

The European Commission announced that from 1 November 2012 on new safety requirements for new types of motor vehicles will be mandatory. The requirements include safety belt reminders, safety requirements for electric vehicles, easier child seat anchorages (ISOFIX), better protection of passengers against the displacement of luggage in case of the accident and tyre pressure monitoring system.