The People's Party (PP) led by Alberto Nunez Feijoo came out ahead in the Spanish parliamentary elections on 23 July, with 33.05% of the vote and 136 seats (+47 compared with the 2019 elections). He came in ahead of Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez's Socialist Party (PSOE), which won 31.7% of the vote and 122 seats (+2). Vox, led by Santiago Abascal, fell back with 12.39% of the vote and 33 seats (-19). The Sumar (Add) movement, which brings together sixteen left-wing political parties, won 12.31% of the vote and 31 seats. As the PP does not have an absolute majority (176) with Vox, it is not expected to be able to form a government. Pedro Sanchez could also try to form a coalition with Sumar and regionalist parties. If none of them succeed, new elections could be called.

Europe has changed... This is what is shown by the "Schuman Report on Europe, the State of the Union 2023", as it analyses the profound changes that have taken place in Europe, accelerated by the shock of the war in Ukraine. This 17th edition, published by Marie B., includes 19 contributions from leading figures, including Alain Lamassoure on "European identity, history and integration". The book includes 30 original maps and a full set of commented statistics. The book is available in paper and digital versions in French, and in digital format in English. Order your copy now!

On 17 July, the Commission, the Heads of Medicines Agencies (HMA) and the European Medicines Agency (EMA) published recommendations on measures to be taken to prevent antibiotic shortages over the coming winter. The EMA recommends increasing the production of key antibiotics, monitoring supply and demand, and initiatives to raise public awareness.

Meeting in Vigo on 17 and 18 July, the Fisheries Ministers discussed the need to adapt the European fleet and aquaculture to sustainable development and the energy transition.

On 17 and 18 July, the European Union and the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC) held their 3rd summit in Brussels. The leaders discussed economic, trade, environmental and human rights issues. On the sidelines of the event, the European Union signed an agreement on sustainable value chains for raw materials with Chile, and decided to step up its cooperation with Uruguay on the transition to clean energy. Finally, the European Union and the Group of Latin American and Caribbean States also set up a digital alliance.

On 20 July, the Élysée announced a reshuffle of the government, with Élisabeth Borne remaining Prime Minister. Eleven ministries have changed, including Health, Education and Solidarity. Gabriel Attal has been appointed Minister for National Education and Youth, Aurélien Rousseau Minister for Health and Prevention and Aurore Bergé Minister for Solidarity and the Family.

A conference on development and migration was held in Rome on 23 July, with the participation of a number of countries from the European Union (Spain, Italy, Greece, Cyprus and Malta), the southern shores of the Mediterranean, the Sahel, Africa, the Middle East and a number of international organisations. The participants undertook to cooperate on the management of illegal migration, support for refugees and development policy.

The Polish and Czech governments met in Katowice for an intergovernmental consultation. Discussions focused on energy, infrastructure development and defence. The security of the borders of the European Union and its Member States was also discussed. The prime ministers of Poland and the Czech Republic, Mateusz Morawiecki and Petr Fiala, emphasised their shared views on geopolitical issues and their opposition to the mechanism for relocating asylum seekers within the European Union.

On 19 July, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky met Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar in Kyiv. The two leaders discussed security and political cooperation, the implementation of the peace formula and the creation of a compensation mechanism to offset the damage caused to Ukraine. They also discussed the European Union's 12th package of sanctions against Russia to deprive it of the capacity to produce missiles.

The Council of Europe's Commissioner for Human Rights, Dunja Mijatovic, said on 18 July that cooperation between European states and Tunisia in the field of migration should be subject to "clear human rights guarantees". She was responding to the agreement signed on 16 July providing for €105 million to be granted to Tunisia in return for efforts to combat irregular migration to the EU.

The IMF published its report on the economic outlook for the eurozone on 19 July, noting that the eurozone economy showed remarkable resilience following Russia's invasion of Ukraine, thanks to a swift policy response and a strong rebound in services. However, economic activity weakened considerably in the second half of 2022 and entered a mild technical recession in early 2023 as financial conditions tightened, real wages fell and consumer confidence waned. Going forward, growth is expected to pick up gradually in 2023 and 2024.

The OECD has published the SIGI 2023 global report on equality in times of crisis. Based on the Social Institutions and Gender Equality Index (SIGI), this report provides a global overview of discrimination in social institutions, which is one of the fundamental causes of gender inequality. Between 2019 and 2023, a growing number of countries tackled discriminatory social institutions, notably through legal reforms aimed at breaking harmful patterns. Nevertheless, progress is slow and could be hampered by numerous environmental, economic and social challenges.

On 20 July, Eurobarometer published a new survey on the opinions of Europeans on the ecological transition. 93% of those questioned believe that climate change is a serious problem, and 58% think that the transition to a green economy should be speeded up.

In June, annual inflation in the eurozone stood at 5.5%, compared with 6.1% in May, according to figures published by Eurostat on 19 July. A year earlier, it was 8.6%. Annual inflation in the European Union was 6.4% in June 2023, compared with 7.1% in May. A year earlier, it was 9.6%. Compared with May, annual inflation fell in twenty-five Member States.

The 31st Salon-de-Provence International Chamber Music Festival will be taking place from 28 July to 5 August. The festival features some thirty leading soloists in a brand new programme.