Written by Marcin Cesluk-Grajewski On 18 February, the European Commission unveiled further details of its proposed Capital Markets Union (CMU), its flagship plan to strengthen the economy of the euro area and the European Union by making it easier for companies to raise money on stock and bond markets. Publishing a Green Paper, the Commission… Read More Capital Markets Union [What Think Tanks are thinking]
Written by Christiaan van Lierop Launched in 2014, the FEAD helps support Europe’s most vulnerable citizens. Worth a total of €3.5 billion for the 2014-20 period, this assistance includes food, clothing and essential goods along with activities promoting social inclusion. Background With one in ten Europeans suffering from severe material deprivation in 2012, the FEAD was… Read More Fund for European Aid to the Most Deprived (FEAD)
Written by Manuel Manrique Gil (Directorate-General for External Policies). Graphics and statistics by Eulalia Claros (European Parliamentary Research Service) Access to quality education is essential for development. Not only does education provide children, youth and adults with the knowledge and skills to be active citizens and to fulfil themselves as individuals, literacy in particular contributes… Read More The European year for development : Education
The negotiations for the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) continue to be of major concern to many citizens. MEPs have already warned that they would not approve the agreement at any cost and are currently working on recommendations to the European Commission on the negotiations for the EU-US trade deal. Update Please have a… Read More TTIP: EP reviews EU-US trade negotiations
Last update 17/03/2015 The jihadist group that has declared itself ‘the Islamic State’ (known variously as IS, ISIS or ISIL, and by the Arabic acronym ‘Daesh’ or ‘Da’esh’), seized large portions of Iraqi territory in a matter of days in summer 2014. It is also in control of a third of Syrian territory (most of… Read More ISIL/Da’esh (the ‘Islamic State’): background information
Written by Jan Baeverstroem The Cuban release of USAID subcontractor Alan Gross on December 17, 2014 established a new phase in the relation between the two countries as noted in President Obama’s statement that day. Economic policy reform in Cuba and a lowering support in the US for the embargo that has lasted for more… Read More Change in US-Cuba relations
Written by Marcin Cesluk-Grajewski Each year, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), a group of 34 major economies, publishes its Going for Growth report recommending reforms to bolster economic growth and create jobs. This is a flagship publication for the Paris-based organisation released early in the year at meetings of G-20 Finance Ministers… Read More EPRS hosts debate on OECD’s flagship report on growth on 4 March 2015
Written by Irmgard Anglmayer Revised in April 2015 The European Citizens’ Initiative (ECI) has been in operation since April 2012. Observers have identified a number of shortcomings in its implementation, which impact negatively on the effectiveness and acceptance of this relatively new instrument of transnational participatory democracy. Against this background, stakeholders are calling for simplification and… Read More Implementation of the European Citizens’ Initiative: The experience of the first three years
Written by Eva-Maria Poptcheva In the aftermath of the ‘LuxLeaks’ scandal relating to tax evasion by multinational companies through Luxembourg, Ireland, Belgium and the Netherlands, Parliament decided to set up a ‘special committee’ to look into unfair tax practices in the EU. 188 MEPs had originally requested a committee of inquiry be established, but the… Read More Parliament’s investigative powers – Committees of inquiry and special committees
Written by Angelos Delivorias According to Article 127(1) of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, ‘the primary objective of the European System of Central Banks [i.e. the European Central Bank and the national central banks of all EU Member States] shall be to maintain price stability.’ To pursue that objective, the European… Read More The monetary policy of the ECB: Strategy, conduct and trends