Tripped up by Parliament When, on 10 September, Ursula von der Leyen presented her candidates to make up the new EU Commission, the word was that she had managed to nearly square the circle. She had to take account of the political majorities within the European Parliament, ensure geographical equilibrium and meet her own commitment to achieving gender balance. Added to this, of course, is the professional aptitude and experience of the candidates proposed by the national governments. And this is where she has now been tripped up. Two of her nominees cannot even take part in the hearings in Parliament that began this week because the Legal Affairs Committee of the EP has rejected them. Further prospective Commissioners - if they get through being questioned by the members of Parliament - are also at risk of becoming a burden to von der Leyen’s Commission. Now is the time to pull the plug if she wants to avoid being blamed for this at a later date. Better to replace a dodgy candidate now than carry this little scandal around with her for the next five years.
Harald Händel
Head of Communications cep
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The EU Commission wants to promote the development of "trustworthy" and "human-centric" artificial intelligence (AI) in the EU. Therefore, AI should - inter alia - comply with ethical principles. To ensure this, an independent "High-Level Expert Group" has developed non-binding "Ethics Guidelines" (guidelines) on behalf of the EU-Commission which should be followed by developers and users of AI across the EU....read more |
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| Coordination of Social Security Systems |
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There is a dispute in the EU regarding the reform of the rules on the coordination of social security systems. The reform includes the rules on unemployment benefits, which the cep evaluates in an input....read more |
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| European Electronic Health Record Exchange Format |
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A voluntary exchange format for electronic health records should facilitate cross-border healthcare in the EU. The EU Commission has drawn up a recommendation to this end....read more |
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| "Germany is by far the most pro-European country in the EU."
EU-Commission President Claude Juncker |
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| "Except for the fact that it is still based in Frankfurt, there is nothing recognisably German about the ECB."
Professor Jürgen Stark, Board of Trustees of the Stiftung Ordnungspolitik |
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| Italy's former Prime Minister Gentiloni, who did not exactly stand out for his willingness to reform, or for his budgetary discipline, has been given responsibility for monitoring national budgets in the new EU Commission, which is something akin to sending the fox out to mind the geese. "
cep-Chairman Professor Lüder Gerken |
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| The German government's climate package is a sham, a mishmash of inefficient regulations, bans and subsidies, and hardly a paradigm shift in climate policy."
Dr. Martin Menner, cep |
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Lowest unemployment rate in Euro Area since 2008
The unemployment rate in the EU as a whole and in the Euro Area is at its lowest level since 2008. According to the latest figures from Eurostat, the seasonally adjusted unemployment rate in the euro area was 7.4% in August 2019 compared with 7.5% in July 2019 and 8.0% in August 2018.
The EU 28 unemployment rate was 6.2% in August 2019, down from 6.3% in July 2019 andfrom 6.7% in August 2018. This isthe lowest rate recorded in the EU 28 since the startof the EU monthly unemployment series in January 2000.(Source: Eurostat) |
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#Johnson #Brexit Prime Minister Boris Johnson is trying to mislead the queen with the grandson scam!
https://twitter.com/cicero_online/status/1178215627628142593/photo/1
Cicero Magazine, "Cartoon of the day", 29 September 2019 |
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