European Union News - European Union

The Official Journal of the European Union has published on the 4th July 2008 the Regulation (EC) No 593/2008 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 17 June 2008 on the law applicable to contractual obligations (Rome I) to be applied to all contracts to be signed after 17th December 2009. The EC Regulation harmonise the regulations in this area in order to maintain and develop an area of freedom, security and justice in the European Union.

On July 4th, the Council published the Joint Action 2008/550/CFSP of June 23th, establishing a European Security and Defence College (ESDC) and repealing Joint Action 2005/575/CFSP.  The ESDC will provide training in the field of the European Security and Defence Policy (ESDP) at the strategic level in order to develop and promote a common understanding of ESDP among civilian and military personnel.

The European Commission has presented its Communication “Report on Implementation of the Hague Programme for 2007” COM(2008) 373 final of 2nd July 2008.

A new version of the "Guide to Cost-Benefit Analysis of Investment Projects" has been published by the DG Regional Policy. The guide has been prepared by the Commission and it is particularly addressed to people working on cost-benefit analysis of "major projects" co-financed by EU funds in the framework of Cohesion Policy. It provides useful methodological guidance to project promoters in the Member States and candidate countries. At the same time, it serves as a reference to Commission officials involved in the appraisal of "major projects".

The Commission adopted on July 2nd, a proposal for a directive which provides for protection from discrimination on grounds of age, disability, sexual orientation and religion or belief beyond the workplace. This new directive would ensure equal treatment in the areas of social protection, including social security and health care, education and access to and supply of goods and services which are commercially available to the public, including housing.

Following Slovenia in the first half of the year, France takes over the Presidency of the Council of the European Union from 1 July to 31 December 2008.

On the 23rd of June 2008, the European Commission presented proposal for a decision from the European Parliment and of the Council amending Council Decision 2001/470/EC establishing a European Judicial Network in civil and commercial matters.

The European Commission has recently published an online public consultation to gather information from stakeholders on the implementation, impact and scope of the Public Sector Information Directive of 2003, previous to the exam of this Directive. The consultation is open until 31 July 2008 and its results will feed into the review of the Directive.

The European Commission has filed cases with the Tribunal de Commerce in Brussels seeking compensation from four lifts companies for damages suffered from inflated prices for the installation and maintenance of lifts and escalators. In 2007 these companies were found by the Commission to have operated illegal cartels in several countries, in breach of EC Treaty rules on cartels and restrictive business practices. No final amount of the damage can yet be calculated, given the complexity and variety of contractual relations, but it is expected that expert assessments in the context of the court cases will help identify the total amount of overpayment suffered. The Commission's action covers claims for its own buildings and those of other EU institutions, both in Brussels and Luxembourg.

Standard Eurobarometer 69, Spring 2008: Inflation and unemployment are major concerns for European citizens. Levels of trust in the EU Institutions remains stable, as does support for membership of the EU.

Margot Wallström, Vice-President of the European Commission, responsible for Institutional Relations and Communication Strategy, said: "These results reflect the current economic difficulties and show the need for the EU to continue with its policy agenda aimed at improving the quality of people's daily lives. Nonetheless, I am reassured that the level of trust in the EU remains high."