European Union News - Internal Market

The European Parliament adopted a resolution which calls for future EU rules to make paying cheap, easy and safe card payments. According to MEPs, common EU technical and security standards would make card payments easier to handle, and fees charged for handling them should reflect real costs.

The Steering Board that brings together tech Chief Executive Officers and government representatives with responsibility for IT procurement met for the first time in Brussels. With this meeting, it was launched a process where public authorities and industry work together to help building the EU Digital Single Market for cloud computing pursuant to the European Cloud Computing Strategy.

The European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) approved an opinion supporting the Commission's initiative on the current negotiations on the Banking Union and the planned regulation to set up a European Supervisory Authority. Another opinion approved by the EESC has highlighted the need for proper regulation of the shadow banking system, so that its business is conducted in keeping with the requirements applied to the rest of the sector.

The European Commission called on member states in a Communication to step up their efforts to transpose and implement the existing EU internal energy market rules. Furthermore, the European institution announced that it will work with Member States to empower consumers and to reduce state interventions which distort markets.

The European Commission announced the winner of the Enterprise Promotion Awards 2012. According to the Commission, the UK organisation Outset has been awarded for creating a unique approach to supporting start-ups by helping society’s most vulnerable groups to find work through self-employment and enterprise. Cyprus, Sweden, Italy, Portugal and Turkey also received prizes for driving enterprise with new and innovative local solutions.

The European Commission announced that on behalf of the EU and its member states it signed the Protocol on the Elimination of the Illicit Trade in Tobacco Products. It was adopted by the Conference of the Parties to the World Health Organization Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) with the EU acting as one of the Parties. The Protocol contains provisions on the control of the supply of tobacco products, and is an important part of a comprehensive tobacco control policy.

Members of the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) called for better access to public procurement and more flexible state aid rules in the November plenary session. One of the opinions adopted highlights that some of member states are reluctant to cooperate and open up the public procurement market to competition, despite the EU efforts to promote e-procurement.