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The EU, the Vaccine Dispute – and a Medical Sensation
Sometimes it is worth taking a step back when looking at the Corona crisis. No question: procurement of the vaccine has not been the EU’s finest hour. Brussels hasn’t half made a mess of it. As a result, the public is getting the Corona vaccine late and in minute quantities. This is unforgivable when one remembers that each day costs lives.
The EU Commission wanted to pre-empt Member States from going it alone and in doing so got bogged down in the small print and ended up putting cost-cutting above healthcare. This is all the more embarrassing since it is the populist British Prime Minister Boris Johnson and former US President Donald Trump , of all people, who have demonstrated what go-to vaccine management can and must look like.
Nevertheless, we should not forget one thing: on 26 December, hardly eleven months after the first Corona case came to light in Germany, 101 year-old Edith Kwoizalla was the first German to be vaccinated. Only last summer, many experts agreed that it would be years before we would find an effective vaccine against COVID-19. The fact that it has happened so fast is good reason, despite all the justifiable criticism, for humility and gratitude.
Dr. Jörg Köpke
Head of Communications
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The "EU Plastic Tax" introduced in 2021 to finance the EU budget is neither an EU tax nor does it oblige member states to levy a national tax on plastic waste. A cepInput takes account of the legal and financial circumstances of the planned instrument.
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Illegality of Data Transfers to the USA
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Numerous companies from the EU are still illegally transferring personal data to the USA. This is the result of a study by the Centre for European Policy (cep), which examines the consequences of the ECJ ruling of July 2020.
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In Favour of a Legal Obligation to Use Contact Tracing Apps
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Despite various lockdowns, the number of COVID-19 infections in the EU remains very high. In order to break the chains of infections and to end the restrictions on the free movement of people, services and goods, the use of contact tracing apps should be made mandatory. The positive effects prevail over data protection concerns.
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“Europe invested billions to help develop the world’s first COVID-19 vaccines to create a truly global common good. And now, the companies must deliver.”
Commission President Dr. Ursula von der Leyen's Speech at the World Economic Forum’s Davos Dialogue
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“Lapsing into regional protectionism must, I believe, be prevented, if we truly aim to bring the world back on track for growth.”
Speech by Federal Chancellor Dr. Angela Merkel at the World Economic Forum’s Davos Dialogue
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“To avoid a further slump in economic activity, access should only be barred to those who pose a risk of infecting others.”
cep Chairman Prof. Dr. Lüder Gerken
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"Contrary to the impression given by the EU, the main purpose of the planned EU Plastic Tax is not to reduce plastic waste, but to provide the EU with a new source of revenue. The label of environmental protection serves the purpose of greenwashing an unpopular budget measure."
cep Head of Division Dr. Götz Reichert
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EU citizens restrictive in protecting personal data on the internet
About half of internet users in the EU block the use of advertising on websites they visit. This is the result of a recent Eurostat publication. According to the report, about 46 percent of adult EU citizens also limit access to their geographical location while surfing. The Netherlands and some Scandinavian countries have the highest percentage of people who reject the use of their personal data for advertising purposes. The highest rate of consent is registered in eastern European countries.
Source: Eurostat
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