European Union

General : Young people who make a difference deserve recognition. That is why the European Parliament and the International Charlemagne Prize Foundation award the Charlemagne Youth Prize every year. Today we open applications for the 10th edition. If you are between 16 and 30 years old and run a project with a European dimension, do not hesitate to apply for our competition. The winning projects will benefit from recognition and media coverage as well as prize money to further develop the initiative.

Source : © European Union, 2016 - EP

General : Young people who make a difference deserve recognition. That is why the European Parliament and the International Charlemagne Prize Foundation award the Charlemagne Youth Prize every year. Today we open applications for the 10th edition. If you are between 16 and 30 years old and run a project with a European dimension, do not hesitate to apply for our competition. The winning projects will benefit from recognition and media coverage as well as prize money to further develop the initiative.

Source : © European Union, 2016 - EP

On 28 October 2016, the Council adopted by written procedure a package of decisions on the comprehensive economic and trade agreement with Canada (CETA), including:

• a decision on signature of the agreement
• a decision on the provisional application of the agreement
• a decision to request the consent of the European Parliament for theconclusion of the agreement

The representatives of the member states also adopted a joint interpretative instrument. This instrument, which is a joint  text with Canada, will provide a binding interpretation of CETA´s terms on specific issues. 

"I am delighted to confirm that the EU is ready to sign the comprehensive economic and trade agreement with Canada. It represents a milestone in the EU's trade policy and our commitment to it" said Robert Fico, Prime Minister of Slovakia, currently holding the EU Council presidency. "The CETA represents a modern and progressive deal, opening the door to new opportunities, while protecting important interests. Moreover, it has the potential to set the way forward for future trade deals." 

CETA will remove more than 99% of tariffs that are currently imposed on trade between the EU and Canada. It sets high standards for consumer, environmental and labour protection.

The agreement includes provisions on market access for goods, services, investment and government procurement, as well as on intellectual property rights, sanitary and phytosanitary measures, sustainable development, regulatory cooperation, mutual recognition, trade facilitation, cooperation on raw materials, dispute settlement and technical barriers to trade.

The negotiations with Canada were conducted on the basis of a mandate agreed by the Council in 2009. Following a Council decision in September 2011, talks on investment protection were also started within the CETA framework.

On 5 July 2016, the Commission proposed that the deal be signed and concluded as a "mixed" agreement. This means that on the EU side, it must be signed by both the EU and the member states, and ratified by all relevant national and regional parliaments.

The agreement will be applied on a provisional basis once the European Parliament has consented to its conclusion, pending ratification by all of the member states. Provisional application will concern essentially the provisions of EU exclusive competence.

Strategic partnership agreement

The Council  has also adopted a decision on the signing and provisional application of a strategic partnership agreement between the EU and Canada. This agreement seeks to deepen political dialogue and cooperation between the EU and Canada and will strengthen relations in fields such as human rights, international peace and security, economic and sustainable development, justice, freedom and security.

The EUPOL police mission in Afghanistan is a major and long-standing contribution of the European Union to the rebuilding of the Afghani state. However, its current mandate will expire in December 2016 and discussions are currently ongoing about the possible future modalities of EU engagement to which the hearing on 9 November could make a valuable contribution.
Further information
Draft programme
Background documents
Source : © European Union, 2016 - EP

What does Brexit mean for the UK?

The results of Brexit has been shocking to say the least because the polls were revealing a tougher battle, with hopes that the United Kingdom would choose to remain in the European Union. But the 23 June result was a clear signal that the 52-48 win for the Leave camp, has highlighted many underlying problems with UK: Scotland and Northern Ireland overwhelmingly voted to remain in the United Kingdom, but the slim margins for England and Wales decided it for the UK that it should opt out of the European Union.

Many Britons are greatly worried that remaining would mean millions of Turkish people could soon cross shores and end up in the United kingdom; indeed, immigration was a key concern-point that in all likelihood has influenced votes in favour of leaving the EU for the country because people would forsake freedom of movement if it meant that immigration numbers from Europe could be brought down. The economic status quo of Britons wishing to remain was inclusive of middle classes and the youth. It is widely expected that Turkey will soon join the European Union, and another major concern in the aftermath of the Brexit is how the economy is expected to perform – there might be a further downturn than the days leading upto the referendum.

A Good Economy

Financial markets felt the impact of Brexit immediately, followed by shaky stock market performances, as international markets experience a frenzy of sorts that is set to affect United Kingdom, much like China, but this is not relative to the Eurozone because the UK leaving the EU is only going to affect it in a minor sense. In addition, the UK lost it’s AAA credit rating, which is expected to spike up government spending, so it is hoped the latest Tory cabinet reshuffle, which has brought in a whole host of ”Tory Leave” figureheads into the spotlight, from Boris Johnson to Liam Fox, manage to maintain the single market at least, with the European Union.

Export figures are expected to increase for the United Kingdom as the economy manages to steer through troubled waters to next year, and this is happening as manufacturing exports peak but exports for capital goods suffers. There is no denying that export trade with the EU will get tougher for the UK post-Brexit, and a significant portion of the trade for it was with the EU so it is hoped that trade barriers will now be individually established with fellow European nations, as well as selected nations all over the globe. Trade deals between the UK and European countries should be redrafted to include possibilities of trade for the country following Brexit, and a country elsewhere that would also be a relatively good and faster option, given what’s in the pipeline about trade for the EU, is Canada.

The Problem with Immigration

A very small percentage of people in the United Kingdom are against the idea of welcoming skilled workers into the country; in fact, for skilled workers the most demand is for professions such as IT, science, business and medicine (which would classify it as pro-migration topics for the United Kingdom) and less for engineering but most Britons are against the idea of creating a safety haven for refugees in the country. It is a growing worry that despite the scrapping of freedom of movement that membership of the EU had granted the UK, the country will be unable to meet it’s migration targets; most European citizens in the United Kingdom are expected to not be affected by it but it is anticipated that fresher such prospective candidates (and vice versa) will be governed by a new set of rules. It would be important to note that figures for net European migration to the United Kingdom had consistently been on a high for the period of 2013-2014, and the British identity is a lot more important to Britons than the European identity, which in the context of the United Kingdom, seems dispassionate and remote.

The post The Aftermath of the Brexit appeared first on Ideas on Europe.

Shortly after the cancellation of the EU summit with Canada, Belgium on Thursday reached a consensus on the free trade agreement. This has stopped Ceta falling through for now. Some commentators see no cause to celebrate an agreement that they believe undermines national sovereignty. Others praise Canada’s conduct during the altercation as exemplary.

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