European Union

Flybe, a British regional airline, has gone into bankruptcy citing coronavirus as one of the reasons for its demise. "All Flybe flights are cancelled. Please do not go to the airport as your Flybe flight will not be operating," the British civil aviation authority said Thursday. The firm's demise comes after British tour operator Thomas Cook went bust in September, with trade unions saying the government should have recused Flybe.

One of Britain's biggest airlines, Flybe, collapsed Thursday (5 March) with all its flights grounded, the company said, as the coronavirus epidemic takes a heavy toll on airlines around the world.

Two EU officials have tested positive for the COVID-19 virus - amid different efforts by EU institutions to halt the spread of the virus.

The EU's border agency Frontex says Greece may have to wait until next week before receiving any extra border guards.

Turkey has accused Greece of using live ammunition against migrants, killing one man, amid growing violence on the EU border.

"Nature doesn't bargain, and you cannot make deals with physics", activist Greta Thunberg, and a group of 30 youth environmentalists warned, after dubbing the unprecedented EU climate law 'a surrender' for ignoring a carbon budget.

The EU's reluctance to take in hundreds of thousands more refugees means the bloc's best option is to try to renew migration co-operation with Turkey - even if this leaves a bitter taste in its mouth.

Italy shut all schools and universities on Wednesday (4 March) in a bid to stop the deadly coronavirus from spreading, as Germany warned the outbreak had turned into a global pandemic.

Italy adopted on Wednesday new emergency measures to contain the spread of coronavirus, as the country registered over 3,000 cases and 107 deaths. All schools and universities will be closed until 15 March, Reuters reported. The minister for education, Lucia Azzolina, said that she wants to ensure "essential public service, albeit from a distance" to students. Italy, the most-affected country in the EU, followed by Germany, France and Spain.

German chancellor Angela Merkel told German conservative MPs on Tuesday she favoured the creation of safe zones in Idlib, northwest Syria, where Turkish forces and their rebel allies are facing off against the Syrian government backed by Russia, Reuters reports. The Dutch foreign minister went a step further and called in an official statement to "stop humanitarian catastrophe with a no-fly zone over Idlib".

After two rounds of voting in the state parliament, Bodo Ramelow (Linke/Gue) has been elected as the new minister-president of the eastern German state of Thüringen. The former minister-president, the liberal Thomas Kemmerich (FDP/Renew), was elected with the support of CDU, FDP and the far-right AfD, which created a political crisis in Germany and the resignation of CDU party leader Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer. Ramelow will lead now a minority government.

Ukraine's parliament approved on Wednesday Denys Shmygal as the new prime minister, following the resignation of his predecessor Oleksiy Goncharuk after six months in the job after he was caught out criticising the president by a leaked recording, AFP reported. Before the vote, president Volodymyr Zelensky said he hoped that "we will finally have a government for people". Shmygal was previously deputy prime minister and minister of regional development.

Facebook is considering redesigning the Libra cryptocurrency project so that the network also accepts cash issued by central banks, such as the dollar or the euro, in a possible attempt to please regulators, Bloomberg reported on Wednesday. In 2019, the Libra Association project was funded by Facebook to create its cryptocurrency and virtual wallet. According to the report, the launch of Facebook's virtual wallet will now be postponed until autumn.

The former EU commission chief Jean-Claude Juncker told a court on Wednesday (4 March) that he had not authorised illegal wiretapping that forced him in 2013 to resign from his post as Prime Minister of Luxembourg.

Climate activist Greta Thunberg discussed EU plans to tackle the climate emergency with Parliament’s environment committee on Wednesday 4 March.

Source : © European Union, 2020 - EP

Climate activist Greta Thunberg discussed EU plans to tackle the climate emergency with Parliament’s environment committee on Wednesday 4 March.

Source : © European Union, 2020 - EP

Environment and Public Health Committee MEPs will discuss the current Coronavirus COVID-19 outbreak with the European Commission on Thursday morning.
Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety

Source : © European Union, 2020 - EP

Environment and Public Health Committee MEPs will discuss the current Coronavirus COVID-19 outbreak with the European Commission on Thursday morning.
Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety

Source : © European Union, 2020 - EP

Marking Women’s Day 2020, MEPs are looking at achievements and challenges in gender equality since the 1995 adoption of the Beijing Declaration.

Source : © European Union, 2020 - EP

Ahead of International Women’s Day on 8 March, find out how the European Parliament is working to reduce the gender pay gap.

Source : © European Union, 2020 - EP