European Report back issues from Saturday, November 5:
GHOSTS OF SUMMITS PAST HAUNT BLAIR.(Tony Blair)
Nov 05, 2005 ... After his eight years at Number 10, UK Prime Minister Tony Blair's ambitions of leaving a powerful political legacy at home and in Europe remain undimmed. Ever the consummate political performer, he dominated the European stage in June by blocking a deal on the 2007-13 budget in a ...
GENERAL AFFAIRS AND EXTERNAL RELATIONS COUNCIL: FINANCES, FLU AND FOREIGN AFFAIRS ON MINISTERS' AGENDA.
Nov 05, 2005 ... General Affairs. The UK Presidency is due to brief ministers on its intentions as to further work on the EU's budgetary framework for 2007-13 in the run-up to the December 15-16 EU summit. Following the informal summit of EU leaders at Hampton Court on October 27, ...
EU BUDGET: PROSPECTS RECEDE FOR A FINANCING DEAL IN DECEMBER.
Nov 05, 2005 ... First, at the start of the discussion, in restricted session, the UK Presidency outlined the "difficult" political situation back home, a reference to the growing divisions within the British government as current Prime Minister Tony Blair prepares to step down and hand over power to ...
GERMANY: STOIBER STEPS BACK, LEAVING EU QUESTION OPEN.(European Union)
Nov 05, 2005 ... But Peer Steinbruck, a leading Social Democrat who has been chosen as the nation's next Finance Minister, has said he would not hand over his ministry's EU competences. These were taken over from the Economics Ministry by a former short-lived Finance Minister, Oskar Lafontaine, when the ...
ECOFIN COUNCIL: HUNGARIAN DEFICIT, TAXATION AND BUDGETARY STATISTICS ON AGENDA FOR NOVEMBER 8 SESSION.
Nov 05, 2005 ... Hungary under the spotlight. In accordance with Article 104 s. 8 of the Treaty, the Council is expected on November 8 to endorse the latest report from the Commission on further budgetary slippage in Hungary (see Europe Information 2999). The Commission was anticipating a ...
EMU: HOW THE NEW MEMBER STATES ARE PREPARING TO TAKE ON THE EURO.
Nov 05, 2005 ... Three states are leading the pack. As paradoxical as it might seem, the countries aspiring to join the euro club less than three years after their entry into the EU are precisely the poorest of the ten new member states (Estonia, Lithuania and Slovenia have been participating in the new ...
DECISION ON E.ON BID FOR MOL'S GAS BUSINESS PUT BACK THREE WEEKS.(Brief Article)
Nov 05, 2005 ... The European Commission has given itself a further three weeks to complete its inquiry under the Merger Regulation into the planned acquisition of the Hungarian MOL group's gas business by Germany's leading energy group E.ON. The Commission initially had until November 29 to publish its ...
TAXATION: REFORM OF REDUCED RATES STILL TREADING WATER.
Nov 05, 2005 ... The Presidency's document, obtained by Europe Information, proposes that delegations abandon this flexible mechanism which would essentially consist in permitting member states to request authorisation to apply reduced rates to certain specific services provided at the local level until ...
INTEREST RATES UNCHANGED BUT ECB READY TO ACT AT ANY TIME.(Brief Article)
Nov 05, 2005 ... It came as no surprise that the European Central Bank's Governing Council decided in Frankfurt on November 3 to hold interest rates at 2% for the time being. In response to the question on whether the ECB was preparing to raise interest rates in the near future, Jean-Claude ...
COMPANY TAX: WHY THE SLOVAKIAN SYSTEM IS BEING HELD UP AS A SHINING EXAMPLE.
Nov 05, 2005 ... Cited as a good example, the current Slovakian system is primarily characterised by a very broad tax base but mainly because there are "no exceptions, no exemptions and no special cases", explained Mr Kovacs. Prior to the reform of its corporate tax system in 2003, just before Slovakia ...
GOVERNMENT SUBMITS NEW RESTRUCTURING PLAN FOR CYPRUS AIRWAYS TO EU.
Nov 05, 2005 ... The Cypriot government submitted a revised restructuring plan for national carrier Cyprus Airways to the European Commission on November 3, a spokesman for the troubled airline has confirmed. The plan provides for a bank loan of nearly 60 million Cyprus pounds, guaranteed by the ...
EU JOBLESS RATE STABILISES AT 8.6%.(Brief Article)
Nov 05, 2005 ... The EU unemployment rate was 8.6% in September 2005, unchanged compared to August, according to the latest figures from Eurostat. It was 9% in September 2004. At the same time euro-zone seasonally-adjusted unemployment stood at 8.4% in September 2005, compared to 8.5% in August. It was ...
BANKING: MINISTERS ASKED TO LOOK INTO OBSTACLES TO CROSS-BORDER MERGERS.
Nov 05, 2005 ... The Commission working paper, which forms the basis of the report which Internal Market Commissioner Charlie McCreevy is due to present to the Council, is based on responses submitted by some 360 financial sector stakeholders. "More than 90% have identified difficulties in recovering fixed ...
ENVIRONMENT: REPORT FLAGS UP DELAYS IN IMPLEMENTING INDUSTRIAL POLLUTION LAW.
Nov 05, 2005 ... The report covers the 2000-2002 period and thus only the EU15, where 45,000 installations fall under the scope of the Directive (96/61/EC), regulating harmful emissions into the atmosphere, water and soil by large installations (factories, energy-generating plants, large farms, etc.) ....
GENETIC ENGINEERING: COMMISSION APPROVES IMPORT OF GM-MAIZE 1507.
Nov 05, 2005 ... With the ever-lengthening list of genetically-modified organisms authorised by the Commission itself in the absence of an agreement in Council, the member states are increasingly questioning the decision-making structures. Luxembourg has requested an in-depth discussion on the subject at ...
SOCIAL AFFAIRS: EXPERTS BACK GLOBALISATION FUND AND NORDIC MODEL.
Nov 05, 2005 ... Each of the six papers, which were published as a complement to the summit, were penned by individual experts. One focuses on climate change, another on immigration (see last two issues of Europe Information), with a call to "rapidly" lift temporary work bans imposed by all the 'old' ...
ROCHE PLEDGES TO BOOST PRODUCTION OF ANTIVIRAL DRUGS.(Brief Article)
Nov 05, 2005 ... Swiss pharmaceuticals group Roche has pledged to increase production capacity for antiviral drugs in response to the threat of a flu pandemic. CEO Franz Humer, who met Health Commissioner Markos Kyprianou on November 3, has also indicated that patents will not obstruct production and that ...
HUMAN RIGHTS: COMMISSION LOOKS INTO CIA EUROPEAN PRISON CLAIMS.(European Commission)
Nov 05, 2005 ... Poland, Romania, Slovakia and Bulgaria have all denied hosting secret prisons. "There are no CIA bases in Romania", Romanian Prime Minister Calin Tariceanu said. Former Polish Defence Minister Jerzy Szmajdzinski also denied the report as did a senior security official from the new ...
AIR POLLUTION MONITORING STATION INSTALLED ON MEDITERRANEAN CRUISE SHIP.(Brief Article)
Nov 05, 2005 ... An automatic air pollution monitoring station has been placed on board the Italian cruise ship Costa Fortuna which follows a regular route in the western Mediterranean basin during Spring, Summer and Autumn. The monitoring station will provide new information on over-sea measurements, ...
ELECTRICITY AND GAS: EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW WITH DG COMPETITION OFFICIAL ON SECTORAL INQUIRIES.(Interview)
Nov 05, 2005 ... Q: Where do you stand with the sectoral inquiries on electricity and gas? A: The preliminary findings will be discussed with national authorities (competition authorities and regulators) on November 15. The European Commissioner for Competition Mrs Kroes will then present them ...
TRANSPORT: SAFETY AT THE CENTRE OF EU ACTION UNTIL THE END OF 2005.
Nov 05, 2005 ... Safety at sea. Having been subjected to repeated postponements, the Erika III package of seven legislative proposals should finally see the light of day on November 23. Despite the mountain of legislation produced by the EU after the Prestige and Erika disasters, there ...
EU/AFRICA: CONFERENCE ON MIGRATION TO BE STAGED IN EARLY 2006.(Brief Article)
Nov 05, 2005 ... These countries "jealously guard their independence" and are not well disposed towards EU interference in their affairs, according to the Commissioner, who argues that human rights condemnation simply risks rendering these countries deaf to the EU's interests. Following the drama of Ceuta ...
EU/WTO: LONDON MEETING TO CHEW OVER EU FOOD TARIFF OFFER.
Nov 05, 2005 ... The FIPs leaders meet in London before regrouping the following day at the Geneva headquarters of the WTO. The world trade watchdog's 148 member governments are struggling to prepare for a December top-level meeting in Hong Kong, where they hope to approve the broad outlines of a ...
EU/RUSSIA STEEL TRADE AGREEMENT FOR 2006 SIGNED.(Brief Article)
Nov 05, 2005 ... The European Union and Russia signed on November 3 a steel trade agreement for 2006. The deal fixes quantities for exports of Russian steel products to the 25-member bloc until the end of 2006 or the date of Russian accession to the World Trade Organisation (WTO), should this take place ...
EU/UNESCO: NEW REPORT CALLS FOR KNOWLEDGE, NOT INFORMATION, SOCIETIES.
Nov 05, 2005 ... The report attempts to draw a distinction between information and knowledge societies. While information societies are based on scientific breakthroughs that improve access to technology, knowledge societies are more concerned with the content of the information provided, as affected by ...
DEVELOPMENT COMMISSIONER URGES EUROPEAN BUSINESSES TO INVEST IN AFRICA.(Louis Michel)(Brief Article)
Nov 05, 2005 ... EU Development Commissioner Louis Michel is urging European companies to invest more in Africa. Presenting his strategy for Africa at a meeting with the French business confederation MEDEF in Paris on November 3, he pointed out that the continent represents "a potentially gigantic market" ...
EIB BOOSTS EFTA LOAN FACILITY TO EURO 2.5 BILLION.(European Investment Bank and European Free Trade Association)(Brief Article)
Nov 05, 2005 ... The European Investment Bank has added euro 800 million to its loan facility for the European Free Trade Association member countries, boosting the overall facility to euro 2.5 billion, and extending it until December 31, 2009. Set up by the EIB back in 1994, this loan facility aims to ...
EU/CHINA: MANDELSON PROMISES NEW TRADE STRATEGY.
Nov 05, 2005 ... Mr Mandelson said the Commission plans to produce a Communication on Europe's trading relationship with China early in 2006. At the same time, the Commission and China will look at ways in which a new framework agreement between them could better reflect the economic and strategic changes ...
EU/WTO: WORLD TRADE WATCHDOG ORDERS EU TO LIMIT SUGAR EXPORTS BY MAY.
Nov 05, 2005 ... The WTO's arbitration panel had been asked by major sugar exporters Australia, Brazil and Thailand to decide when the EU would have to comply with the WTO's May 2004 ruling that European sugar exports are illegally subsidised (see Europe Information 2958). Reacting to the new ...
ENVIRONMENT: EUROPE MUST SPEED UP IMPLEMENTATION OF WETLANDS CONVENTION.
Nov 05, 2005 ... Convention member countries will assess progress with implementation since their previous meeting on the basis of national and regional activity reports. These reports cover the period 2003-2005 and implementation of the strategic plan adopted at the COP8 (Ramsar, 2002). The conference ...
EU SIGNS TARIFF PACT ON MULTI-CHIP CIRCUITS.(Brief Article)
Nov 05, 2005 ... The European Commission has welcomed a deal negotiated with the United States, Japan, South Korea and Taiwan on duty-free treatment of multi-chip integrated circuits. The deal, signed on November 3, will scrap tariffs on multi-chip packages (MCPs) used in increasingly ubiquitous gadgets ...
EU/TURKEY: PROGRESS REPORT SET TO POINT TO ECONOMIC PLUSES AND POLITICAL MINUSES.
Nov 05, 2005 ... In its 2004 progress report, the Commission found only that Turkey had made "further considerable progress towards being a functioning market economy". The actual attainment of the status would be a significant achievement for Ankara. To join the EU, a country must fulfil both economic and ...
PHASE TWO OF EU/WEST AFRICA ECONOMIC PARTNERSHIP AGREEMENT TO BEGIN IN 2006.(Brief Article)
Nov 05, 2005 ... The second phase of the Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) between the EU and West Africa will get underway in 2006. During a meeting in Brussels on October 27, the European Commission, represented by EU Trade Commissioner, Peter Mandelson, and Trade Ministers from West Africa agreed on ...
EU/IRAN: EU LOOKING TO RUSSIA FOR WAY OUT OF NUCLEAR DEAD-END.
Nov 05, 2005 ... Since negotiations with Iran were broken off in August, the EU has entered a phase of "reflection and contacts", according to one diplomat. However, in view of the increasingly hard line taken by Iran's leaders, the Europeans are now putting greater emphasis on intermediate contacts, first ...
EUROPEAN COMMISSION: AGENDA FOR WEEK BEGINNING NOVEMBER 7.
Nov 05, 2005 ... *Weekly Meeting: on Wednesday November 9 in Brussels. Points on the agenda - Communication on the launch of a European transparency initiative; - Communication on "A modern policy for SMEs to promote growth and employment; implementation of the Lisbon Strategy" ...
COUNCIL OF MINISTERS: SCHEDULE OF SESSIONS IN NOVEMBER AND DECEMBER.
Nov 05, 2005 ... November 7 General Affairs and External Relations Council 7-9 Ministerial Conference on Equality (Birmingham) 8 EcoFin Council 14-15 Education, Youth, Culture Council 21-22 General Affairs and External Relations Council ...
ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL COMMITTEE HEARING ON THE LISBON STRATEGY.
Nov 05, 2005 ... The European Economic and Social Committee (EESC)is to stage a hearing on implementation of the Lisbon Strategy on November 8 and 9 in Brussels. Due to be attended by Maria Joao Rodrigues, special advisor to the European Commission on the Lisbon Strategy, and Steven Effigham, representing ...