Main news from Brussels this week
date: 01/12/2017
African Union – European Union Summit
EU and African Union (AU) leaders met for a 5thsummit on 29-30 November in Abidjan, Côte d'Ivoire. They agreed to put in place a joint EU-AU-UN task force to save and protect lives of migrants and refugees along the routes and in particular inside Libya.
The EU is Africa's main partner and the summit was an opportunity for both sides to scale up their partnership, in particular focussing on youth. In their political declaration the European and African leaders set out their joint commitment to invest in youth for a sustainable future committing to direct their work on four strategic priorities: mobilising investments for African structural and sustainable transformation; investing in people through education, science, technology and skills development; strengthening resilience, peace, security and governance and managing mobility and migration.
Intellectual property: protecting Europe's IP rights and boosting innovation for connected devices
The European Commission clarified on 29 November existing legislative measures which ensure all EU countries apply effective, dissuasive and proportionate remedies against those involved in counterfeiting and piracy. Furthermore, the Commission issued guidance to make sure that basic standards for technologies like WiFi, GSM or 4G and 5G, indispensable for smart-phones, connected vehicles or remote operations, are agreed in a transparent way that fosters innovation for the Internet of Things.
Commission proposes measures to combat VAT fraud in the digital age
On 30 November, the European Commission proposed new rules to boost efforts to tackle VAT (Value Added Tax) fraud by allowing member states to exchange relevant information more quickly online and to share information between tax authorities and law enforcement services. The most cautious estimates show VAT fraud can lead to lost revenues of over €50 billion a year for EU member states – money that should be invested in hospitals, schools and roads.
The future of food and farming – for a flexible, fair and sustainable Common Agricultural Policy
Simpler rules and a more flexible approach are the cornerstone ideas outlined in the Commission's policy document "The Future of Food and Farming" adopted on 29 November. It marks a significant step change in the implementation of the CAP and will mean member states have greater responsibilities to choose how and where to invest their CAP funding in order to meet ambitious common goals on environment, climate change and sustainability.
Payment services: Consumers to benefit from safer and more innovative electronic payments
On 27 November, the Commission adopted rules that will make electronic payments in shops and online safer. They will also allow consumers to access more convenient, cost-effective and innovative solutions offered by payment providers known as FinTech companies, whilst maintaining rigorous data protection and security for EU consumers and businesses. These rules implement the EU's recently-revised Payment Services Directive (PSD2) which modernises Europe's payment services so as to keep pace with this rapidly evolving market and allow the European e-commerce market to blossom.
Erasmus+ in 2016: another record year
As the celebrations for the 30th anniversary of Erasmus came to an end yesterday (30 November), the European Commission published a report on the achievements of the Erasmus+ programme during 2016.
All this week's key European Commission announcements can be found here