European Union News

Compared with May 2012, the production in construction sector fell by 0.5% in the euro area and by 1.7% in the EU in June 2012. The largest decreases were registered in Romania, the United Kingdom, Poland and Germany.

The European Commission tabled its proposal on fishing opportunities in the Baltic Sea for 2013 in which it proposes higher Total Allowable Catches (TACs) for sprat, for the stocks of Central and Western herring and for plaice. The overall aim of the Commission's proposal is to make fisheries in the Baltic Sea environmentally and economically sustainable by following scientific advice.

The European Commission is supporting a project that is expected to accommodate 150,000 women to access to safe delivery and emergency obstetric and neonatal care services in Zimbabwe. The project's overall objective is to contribute to the reduction in maternal mortality through the revitalization of maternity waiting homes which will improve access to skilled attendance at delivery for high risk pregnancies.

The figures published by an European Commission's survey show the importance that top EU businesses companies place on R&D as a key factor for their future growth and prosperity, despite the current economic difficulties. In fact, it is expected that their investments in research and development grow by an average of 4% annually over the period 2012 to 2014.

The European Commissioner for International Cooperation, Humanitarian Aid and Crisis Response, Kristalina Georgieva paid solemn tribute to all humanitarian personnel who have worked in promotion of the humanitarian cause and lost their lives following that call, in a statement made on the World Humanitarian Day last 19 of August.

The awards which celebrates exemplary restorations and initiatives of the many facets of Europe’s cultural heritage in four categories each year, is now open to submissions until 1 October 2012. Therefore, it will be awarded outstanding achievements in the field of heritage conservation and enhancement in Europe.

The LEPAS collaborative project, which has tackled the urgent need to better understand how an ageing population is likely to influence the economy and whether or not those changes will be sustainable, found out that Europe’s population is ageing at an unprecedented rate, faster than any other continent, and is economically unsustainable.

The European Commission takes stock of the results achieved so far on the online consultation launched in May 2012 on the Future of Europe. Until 9 September, all Europeans can share their views to help set the policy agenda for the years to come and shape the future of Europe. The Commission's consultation 'Your rights, your future' also asks the public about the very practical obstacles citizens face in daily life.

The European Agency Eurofound published a study which shows that the actual working week for full time workers stood at 39.7 hours across the 27 EU Member States in 2011. This means an average of 1.6 hours more than the agreed working hours. In addition, the latest annual update of working time developments also shows that men continue to work longer hours than women on paid work, on average 2.1 hours more per week.

RegioStars' 2013 awards have already finalists. The most innovative projects which have received investment from EU Cohesion Policy are divided in five different categories. The Award ceremony will take place in Brussels on 7th February 2013.　

The joint proposal from the European social partners to extend the negotiating period on reviewing the Working Time Directive to 31 December 2012 has been agreed by the European Commission. The review of this legislation is aimed at updating EU working time rules to take account of profound changes in the world of work and to better meet the needs of employers and workers in the 21st century.

The European Commission announced that it will allocate €34 million for an environmental programme in Algeria. This programme will focus on protecting the Algiers coastal region, and aims to put the environment and efforts to tackle the impact of climate change at the heart of the country’s development policies.