The Newsletter n°687 — 12 oct. 2015
La Lettre
Henri Labayle
—
12 October 2015
According to Henri Labayle political asylum in the European Union now has a face. It is that of Aylan, the drowned Syrian child lying alongside his brother on a Mediterranean beach. The macabre reality suffered by the thousands of dead migrants who preceded him heralded a turning point in the existential crisis of the common asylum policy. This has now been brought into the one realm of any worth: that of the Union's values. To form an opinion we have to know what we are talking about. The extent of the crisis explains the difficulty in responding to it.
Elections
General elections in Croatia on 8th November
12 October 2015
On 8th November the Croats are being called to ballot to renew the MPs in the Hrvatski Sabor, the only Chamber in Parliament. Just one month before the election the gap separating the left from the right-wing forces is extremely tight. Consult the Foundation's detailed pre-electoral analysis on this election.
Foundation
23rd Congress of business legal advisors
12 October 2015
On 15th and 16th October the 23rd Lawyers' Congress will take place in Brussels. Jean-Dominique Giuliani, Chairman of the Robert Schuman Foundation will be speaking during the plenary session on the theme of "France in Europe".
Migration
Refugees: EU-Turkey cooperation
12 October 2015
On 6th October 2015 the European Commission published its joint action plan with Turkey to "step up cooperation in support of refugees and migration management."
Decisions on refugees and the return policy
12 October 2015
On 8th October the 28 European Home Affairs Ministers adopted measures on the migrant return policy and approved additional funds released to settle the refugee crisis.
Meeting with the countries of the Balkans and the Eastern Mediterranean on refugees
11 October 2015
The EU committed on 8th October to helping the Balkan countries and Syria's neighbours, who are enduring the refugee exodus towards Europe, and at the same they have been asked to cooperate in sharing the burden.
The Visegrad Group will protect Hungary's borders
12 October 2015
On 8th October the members of the Visegrad Group, i.e Hungary, Poland, Czech Republic and Slovakia agreed to take part in the protection of the EU's external borders and the Schengen Area on Hungary's southern border.
UN gives the EU the greenlight to use force against traffickers
12 October 2015
On 9th October the UN's Security Council adopted resolution 2240, 14 votes in support and one abstention (Venezuela), allowing the EU's Member States to accost ships on the high sea which are being used for migrant and human trafficking from Libya.
Financial Crisis
Euro zone: the IMF is forecasting moderate recovery in 2016
11 October 2015
In its report on the world's economy published on 6th October the IMF maintains its growth forecast for the euro zone at 1.5% with very low inflation and it has revised the rate next year to 1.6%.
Greece: the European Parliament adopts the Commission's position unamended
12 October 2015
On 6th October MEPs adopted the unamended proposal put forward by the Commission on the exceptional measures to help Greece, 586 votes in support, 87 against and 21 abstentions.
Parliament
Angela Merkel and François Hollande speak to MEPs
11 October 2015
German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President François Hollande launched an appeal for unity to the European Parliament on 6th October in the face of crises, like the unprecedented influx of refugees.
King of Spain's speech to the European Parliament
11 October 2015
The King of Spain, Felipe VI, called on Europe on 7th October "not to let the refugees presently travelling across its borders down," as he delivered a speech to the European Parliament in Strasbourg.
Adoption of the proposal on safer, innovative payments
11 October 2015
On 8th October MEPs adopted the Commission's proposal to make European online payments safer and more innovative.
Equal work for equal pay
12 October 2015
On 9th October MEPs adopted a resolution 344 votes in support, 156 against and 68 abstentions asking the Commission to propose "new legislation planning more effective means to supervise the implementation in all Member States" of equal pay between men and women.
Registration for the EYE 2016 now open
12 October 2015
On 9th October Parliament opened registration for the European Youth Event 2016 "EYE 2016" that will provide 7000 young Europeans aged 16 to 30 with an opportunity to exchange ideas and their points of view on a number of issues linked to Europe in Strasbourg on 20th and 21st May 2016.
Council
Agreement onTax transparency of multinationals
12 October 2015
The EU's Finance Ministers adopted an agreement on 6th October on the automatic exchange of information involving the tax agreements made between States and multi-national nearly 11 months after the LuxLeaks scandal.
Transport Council mainly devoted to rail transport
11 October 2015
On 8th October the EU's transport ministers agreed on a general approach to a proposal to "liberalise domestic rail passenger travel" and a proposal to "strengthen the governance of railway infrastructures."
Data protection reform
12 October 2015
On 9th October the 28 Justice Ministers adopted the new rules governing data protection in the police and judicial areas which will enable the EU to finalise reform by the end of this year.
Diplomacy
New EU External Strategy
12 October 2015
On 9th October Federica Mogherini, the EU's High Representative presented the main outline of the EU's overall strategy on external policy issues and security that she is responsible for establishing by June 2016.
Joint press release on UN-Libya negotiations
12 October 2015
On 9th October the German, Spanish, American, French, Italian and British governments declared in a joint press release "their full support to the framework agreement establishing a national unity government in Libya."
Conclusions of the Foreign Affairs Council
12 October 2015
On 12th October the 28 Foreign Affairs Ministers welcomed the framework agreement establishing a national unity government in Libya and the peace agreement in South Sudan. They discussed the situation in Bosnia-Herzegovina and had an in-depth debate about the situation in Syria regarding which they adopted conclusions. Conclusions were also adopted regarding the external aspect of migration.
Court of Justice
European court of justice invalidates the legal framework of personal data transfer between the US and the EU
11 October 2015
On 6th October the European Court of Justice (ECJ) declared that the legal framework covering the transfer of personal data from the EU to the USA was invalid in a case that involved the giant Facebook. In a judgment the Court invalidated the Commission's decision that declared that the USA guaranteed an adequate degree of protection to transferred personal data.
Koen Lenaerts elected the new President of the ECJ
12 October 2015
On 8th October Belgian Koen Lenaerts was elected President of the European Court of Justice for the period 8th October 2015 to 6th October 2018.
ECB
Interview with the ECB President on Greece
12 October 2015
In an interview in the Greek daily Ekathimerini published on 11th October ECB President Mario Draghi said that Greece must first implement vital reform before devoting itself to debt restructuring.
Germany
Angela Merkel meets David Cameron in London
12 October 2015
British Prime Minister David Cameron hosted the German Chancellor on 9th October for an informal meeting in during which they addressed the Russian military intervention in Syria, the situation in Ukraine, the migratory crisis and the British referendum on the EU.
Austria
Greek and Austrian heads of government meet on Lesbos
12 October 2015
On 6th October Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras hosted Austrian Chancellor Werner Faymann on the island of Lesbos, one of the main points of refugee entry into Europe. They visited refugee reception centres and discussed European cooperation.
Greece
The Greek government wins Parliament's confidence
11 October 2015
On 8th October Alexis Tsipras' government won Parliament's confidence taking 155 votes out of the 300 MPs present to introduce the reforms promised to the country's creditors in exchange for rescue.
Luxembourg
Luxembourg-Russia Summit in Sochi
12 October 2015
On 5th and 6th October Luxembourg Prime Minister Xavier Bettel travelled to Sochi in Russia to discuss cultural and economic exchange between the two countries and to discuss the situation in Ukraine and Syria.
Ukraine
Postponement of the pro-Russian separatist elections
12 October 2015
The pro-Russian separatists in the East of Ukraine announced on 6th October that the local elections in the territories under their control were to be postponed until 2016 in line with requests put forward by the Europeans.
NATO
NATO Defence Ministers meeting
12 October 2015
On 8th October Defence Ministers of NATO's member countries set out new measures that aim to strengthen their collective defence. These measures include the opening of two new NATO HQ's in Hungary and Slovakia.
OECD
Reform to counter tax fraud
11 October 2015
On 5th October the OECD presented a reform of all international tax rules in view of countering the erosion of tax bases and the transfer of profits. This reform was accepted by the G20 Finances on 9th October.
Eurostat
Eurostat Regional Yearbook 2015
12 October 2015
On 9th October Eurostat published its 2015 Annual Regional Yearbook. The latter is a precious tool in terms of understanding regional diversity within the EU.
Studies/Reports
Improvement in the EU's Employment and Social Situation
11 October 2015
According to conclusions in the special September 2015 edition of the Quarterly Employment and Social Situation Review published on 8th October "indicators pertaining to the labour market and the social situation in the EU are continuing to improve progressively especially for older and young workers."
Culture
Picasso Mania Exhibition at the Grand Palais in Paris
12 October 2015
The Grand Palais is showing around 100 of Picasso's works along with those of his contemporaries Hockney, Johns, Lichtenstein, Warhol, Basquiat, Kippenberger and Koons until 29th February 2016.
International Alba White Truffle Fair
12 October 2015
The town of Alba in Italy is celebrating its well loved product, the white truffle until 15th November with many events like the "World White Truffle of Alba Market", the "Alba Truffle Show."
Nobel Prize 2015
12 October 2015
Several Europeans were amongst the laureates this year of the Nobel Prize: Irishman William C Campbell (Medicine), Swede Tomas Lindhal (Chemistry). The Nobel Prize for Literature was awarded to Belarus Svetlana Alexievich and Briton Angus Deaton received the prize for Economics.
Frieze Art Fair London
12 October 2015
From 14th to 17th October the Frieze Art Fair will be taking place in London, attracting more than 160 contemporary art galleries from the world over, hosting over 1000 artists.
Exhibitions at the Beyeler Foundation Basel
12 October 2015
The "Black Sun" and "In Search of 0,10" exhibitions are open to the public at the Beyeler Foundation in Basel until 10th January 2016. "Black Sun" is devoted to Kasimir Malevich's influence and is celebrating the 100 years of his iconic Black Square. "In search of 0,10" is a reconstruction of the 1915-16 exhibition of the Russian avant-garde.
Agenda
12th October 2015
"Foreign Affairs" Council (Luxembourg)
13th October 2015
"General Affairs" Council (Luxembourg)
15th and 16th October 2015
European Council (Brussels)
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The Editors of the Newsletter :
Charles de Marcilly, Helen Levy ,Morgane Humbert, Nelson Pajot, Joséphine Staron, Frédéric Strack,Orsolya Topa, Hyung Jun Yoon, Maximilian Zielke
N°ISSN : 2729-6482
Editor-in-Chief :
Eric Maurice
Director of Publication :
Pascale Joannin
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