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The Council of the EU last week adopted new rules updating the law on medical devices in order to help prevent shortages and ease the transition to greater transparency and access to information. In 2017, new rules were introduced to modernise and update the EU framework for IVDs, guaranteeing their safety and effectiveness. The amendment adopted last week extends the deadline for transitioning to the new system under certain conditions, to avoid shortages of critical IVDs without compromising on safety.

The Council of the EU last week adopted a regulation to completely ban the use of dental amalgams and to prohibit manufacturing, import and export of other mercury-added products. Current rules already ban the use of dental amalgam for treating teeth in children under 15 years old, and pregnant or breastfeeding women. The new rules will extend the prohibition to include everybody in the EU as of 1 January 2025.

The European Union is giving its full support to the comprehensive roadmap presented by President Biden, that would lead to an enduring ceasefire in Gaza, the release of all hostages and a surge of humanitarian assistance to Gaza. In a statement this week the High Representative, Josep Borrell, said: "The EU urges both parties to accept and fulfil the three-phase proposal and stands ready to contribute to reviving a political process for a lasting and sustainable peace, based on the two state solution, and to support a coordinated international effort to rebuild Gaza".

398 young Irish people are to receive travel passes from the European Commission to travel around Europe this summer under the results of the latest round of the DiscoverEU scheme announced this week. They will also receive a European Youth Card, offering discounts on cultural visits, learning activities, sports, local transportation, accommodation, and food. DiscoverEU is an action of the Erasmus+ programme that offers 18-year-old residents of EU Member States and countries associated to Erasmus+ the opportunity to explore Europe’s diversity, learn about its cultural heritage and history, and connect with people from all over the continent. Applications for the scheme open twice per year, in spring and autumn.

During the first successful year of application of the Unitary Patent system, the European Patent Office (EPO) has already registered more than 27,000 unitary patents. This means that on average, almost one in four (23%) granted European patents apply across all participating Member States. This rate is also steadily increasing. The uptake rate reaches almost 50% among applicants established in Denmark and Poland, and about 40% in Spain. Most patents are awarded for medical technology (31%), civil engineering (6%) and transport (5%).

On the agenda: the state of play of a legislative proposal to combat child sexual abuse; the extension of the temporary protection for persons having fled from Ukraine after the start of the war; the Schengen area; the pact on asylum and migration; progress achieved in the fight against drug trafficking and organised crime; internal security; a proposed regulation to facilitate the recognition in a member state of the parenthood of a child which has been established in another member state; and the update of the directive on combating the sexual abuse and sexual exploitation of children and child pornography.

Information on this meeting will be available shortly at the link below.

The European Commission has formally designated Temu as a Very Large Online Platform (VLOP) under the Digital Services Act (DSA). Temu is an online marketplace with an average of more than 45 million monthly users in the European Union which puts it above the DSA threshold for designation as a VLOP. This means that it will have to comply with the most stringent rules under the DSA within four months of its notification, such as the obligation to duly assess and mitigate any systemic risks stemming from their services, including the listing and sale of counterfeit goods, unsafe or illegal products, and items that infringe intellectual property rights.

The European Parliament Liaison Office in Ireland is hosting a one-hour webinar on EU basics from 12 noon to 1pm on Thursday 13 June. The webinar will offer an introduction into how the European Union works and what role it plays in our lives. Each webinar will start with a presentation followed by a Q&A for participants. There is no prior knowledge required. The topics covered range from the EU’s law making process, to areas where the EU makes rules and where it does not, to how half a century of EU membership have influenced Ireland. Anyone interested to participate can register via the links below.

The G7 Summit will be held in Borgo Egnazia (Fasano) in Apulia, on June 13-15, 2024. The event will bring together the Leaders of the seven member States, as well as the President of the European Council and the President of the European Commission representing the European Union.

Tous unis dans la célébration de ce 20ème anniversaire de l’élargissement de 2004.

Les ambassades des 10 entrants et des mairies se parent des couleurs de l’UE.

Ensemble, nous sommes plus forts 💪🏼#20YearsTogether pic.twitter.com/E9dBrU2O10

The European Commission’s ‘In Perspective’ garden - a sculptural pavilion, over 10 metres high, created out of a simple and sustainable latticework structure - was awarded a gold medal at the Bord Bia Bloom Festival in Dublin’s Phoenix Park today (Thursday). The garden also won best in category awards for ‘best concept garden’ and for ‘best planting’. Designed for the European Commission by Oliver and Liat Schurmann, the garden articulates the values of the EU’s Green Deal, seeking to make Europe the first carbon-neutral continent by 2050.

The European Union deeply regrets that the Georgian Parliament decided to override the President's veto on the law on transparency of foreign influence, and to disregard the Venice Commission's detailed legal arguments leading to a clear recommendation to repeal this law. The EU has stressed repeatedly that the law adopted by the Georgian Parliament goes against EU core principles and values. Its enactment leads to a backsliding on at least three out of the nine steps (on disinformation; on polarisation; on fundamental rights and involvement of Civil Society Organisations) set out in the Commission's recommendation for candidate status endorsed by EU leaders and will negatively impact Georgia's EU path.

A ground-breaking agri-environment payment scheme for farmers in Natura 2000 areas in Ireland has just won a Natura 2000 award 2024 in the category 'working together for nature'. The Wild Atlantic Nature project, funded by the EU LIFE programme, aims to develop capacity among farmers, farm advisors, policy-makers and scientists to deliver improved ecosystem services – including water quality, biodiversity and climate regulation – by directly linking farmers’ agri-environment payments to the ecological condition of their land.

An Irish project to restore traditional farm buildings was one of the winners of the 2024 European Heritage (Europa Nostra) awards in the category Education, Training and Skills. The Traditional Farm Buildings Scheme is co-funded by the Irish government and the European Union under Ireland’s Rural Development Programme. Its aim is to help farmers recognise the cultural value of traditional Irish farm buildings buildings and to ensure that they are conserved for agricultural use.

The Council of the EU has today adopted a regulation to significantly increase tariffs on imports into the EU of certain products from Russia and Belarus. The measures are designed to suppress imports into the EU of cereals, oilseeds and derived products, as well as beet-pulp pellets and dried peas, while not affecting exports to third countries and preserving global food security. The increased tariffs also apply to Belarus in light of the country's close political and economic ties to Russia.

The European Commission this week adopted a Communication clarifying the use of force majeure and exceptional circumstances for the EU agricultural sector in case of unforeseeable and extreme weather events. The concept of force majeure allows farmers who have been unable to fulfil all their CAP requirements due to exceptional and unforeseeable events outside their control (such as severe droughts or floods) not to lose CAP support.

I am delighted to announce that the European Commission’s ‘In Perspective’ garden was awarded a gold medal at the Bord Bia Bloom Festival in Dublin’s Phoenix Park this morning. The garden also won best in category awards for ‘best concept garden’ and for ‘best planting’. If you're one of the 100,000 visitors to Bloom over the weekend, I would invite you to drop in and experience our rather unique garden which was inspired by the ideals of the European Green Deal. It is the first time that the European Commission has sponsored a garden at Bloom and we are delighted with the feedback it is receiving from visitors. In other good news this week, Irish projects have won Natura 2000 and European Heritage awards (more on all of these stories below).

According to a new Eurobarometer on Attitudes of Europeans towards the environment, 74% of Irish people agreed that environmental issues have a direct effect on their daily life and health, just below the EU average of 78%. And 88% of Irish respondents (above the EU average of 84%) agreed that EU environmental legislation is necessary for protecting the environment in Ireland. When asked if they would be willing to pay more for sustainable products that are easier to repair, recyclable and/or produced in an environmentally sustainable way, 60% of Irish respondents said they would, just above the EU average of 59%.

The European Commission has decided to close the Article 7(1) TEU procedure for Poland by withdrawing its reasoned proposal that had triggered this procedure in 2017. On 6 May 2024, the Commission finalised its analysis on the rule of law situation in Poland in the context of the Article 7(1) TEU procedure. The Commission considers that there is no longer a clear risk of a serious breach of the rule of law in Poland within the meaning of that provision.