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EU NEWS YOU CAN USE
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European Commission in Ireland
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Top News
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Brexit: Irish border one of the top EU priorities
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Speaking to the Economic and Social Committee in Brussels this morning, the EU's chief negotiator on Brexit, Michel Barnier, made some points of special interest here in Ireland. He reiterated the primacy of the Irish border issue as one of the top EU priorities: "The best way of reaching an agreement is to create a climate of trust by tackling in the first instance three topics which we regard as priorities and which are inseparable because these are the condition of the orderly withdrawal that the UK has chosen: citizens' rights, the financial settlement and the border issue, especially the Irish border. I hope that rapid and sufficient progress will be made on these three topics together - and I mean on these three topics together."
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EU and Japan trade deal
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In the run-up to the G20 conference in Hamburg on 7 and 8 July, Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker, European Council President Donald Tusk and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe have signed an agreement to go forward with opening up key EU-Japan markets. Ireland's exports to Japan in 2015 were worth over €7 billion, while we imported almost €2.8 billion worth of goods and services (CSO figs). A deal with Japan gives Irish businesses, and agriculture in particular, major new opportunities. For the EU and its Member States, the Economic Partnership Agreement will remove the vast majority of duties paid by EU companies, which sum up to €1 billion annually, open the Japanese market to key EU agricultural exports and increase opportunities in a range of sectors.
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Irish cultural cities outperform EU rivals
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Ireland's cities are ranked better than most of their European rivals in the EU's new "Cultural and Creative Cities Monitor". Of 168 European cities covered, Irish cities are some of the very best in Europe, with Cork coming in top place for "cultural vibrancy" among Small and Medium cities (50,000 to 250,000). In the same category, Galway comes third in Europe and Limerick ranks seventh. In the extra-large cities category (500,000 to 1 million), Dublin in turn does really well across the board. Breaking down the figures further, in the Small Cities category (50 to 100,000), Galway comes top overall in Europe, Limerick came fourth and Waterford in fifth place.
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Unannounced inspections in Irish motor insurance offices
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The European Commission has confirmed that on 4 July 2017 its officials carried out unannounced inspections at the premises of companies active in motor insurance in the Republic of Ireland. The Commission has concerns that the companies involved may have engaged in anti-competitive practices in breach of EU antitrust rules that prohibit cartels and restrictive business practices and/or abuse of a dominant market position (Articles 101 and 102 respectively of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union). The Commission officials were accompanied by their counterparts from the Irish Competition and Consumer Protection Commission.
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Phil Hogan looks for Irish companies for EU Saudi/Iran trade mission
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Agriculture and rural development Commissioner Phil Hogan is continuing his series of missions to open up new markets for EU food and drink producers with visits to Saudi Arabia and Iran on 7-12 November 2017. As usual, Commissioner Hogan will be accompanied by a delegation of senior representatives from European food and drink companies and producer organisations. There will be a special business-to-business programme laid on for accompanying companies with unrivalled opportunities to explore new business. There is still time for Irish companies to apply for a place. See details on the link below.
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Other news
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EU Commission expert report on Irish income tax and USC
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One of an occasional series of papers published by European Commission specialists, this paper was published today in Brussels. Please note the disclaimer: European Economy Economic Briefs are written by the staff of the European Commission’s Directorate-General for Economic and Financial Affairs to inform discussion on economic policy and to stimulate debate. The views expressed in this document are solely those of the author(s) and do not necessarily represent the official views of the European Commission.
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Endocrine disruptors: major step towards protecting citizens and environment
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EU Member States this week approved a Commission proposal on scientific criteria to identify endocrine disruptors in the field of plant protection products. The adopted criteria will provide a stepping stone for further actions to protect health and the environment by enabling the Commission to start working on a new strategy to minimise exposure of EU citizens to endocrine disruptors, beyond pesticides and biocides. The strategy will aim to cover for example toys, cosmetics and food packaging. In parallel, a substantive new research on endocrine disruptors with an important budget of approximately 50 million euro will be allocated in 2018 to around 10 projects in the next Horizon 2020 work programme.
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UL researcher awarded €1.5m ERC grant for pioneering solar energy research
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University of Limerick electrochemist, Dr Micheál Scanlon has been awarded a €1.5m European Research Council (ERC) Starting Grant. Dr Scanlon is the only ERC award recipient in Ireland in physical sciences and one of only 3 Irish based researchers to be awarded an ERC Starting Grant this year. Based in the Bernal Institute and the Department of Chemical Sciences at the University of Limerick, Dr Scanlon is working on a pioneering experimental approach that seeks to imitate photosynthesis in the leaves of plants, with the goal of efficiently generating clean electricity or solar fuels (such as hydrogen gas).
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Doubling of new complaints against Ireland
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The Annual report on the Application of EU law 2016, published this week, shows that new complaints against Ireland more than doubled in 2016 and open infringement cases at year-end jumped to a five-year high. New infringement cases for late transposition of directives also more than doubled to the highest level for 5 years. Across the EU, there was an overall increase (up 21%) of open infringement cases. The Annual Report sets out how the Commission monitored and enforced EU law during the previous year.
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ATLAS maps the deep blue Atlantic
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There are three Irish partners (NUI Dublin, NUI Galway and AquaTT UETP Ltd) in an EU-funded project to is shedding more light on the darkest depths of the North Atlantic maritime region. A better understanding of deep-sea habitats will inform the sustainable management of this vital resource. The ATLAS project Research activities will focus on waters 200-2000 metres deep, where the greatest gaps in our understanding lie and certain animal and plant populations and ecosystems are known to be under pressure.
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2017 European Destinations of Excellence Network (Eden) competition launched
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The Eighth European Destination of Excellence (EDEN) competition has been launched. This year’s theme of excellence is Tangible Cultural Tourism. Failte Ireland is inviting entries to the competition from emerging destinations that promote sustainable tourism as well as having well developed cultural tourism assets that are
characteristic of their region. The closing date for entries is July 31st 2017. Ireland already has 8 EDEN destinations: The Burren Food Trail, Cavan Town and Environs, The Great Western Greenway, Loop Head Peninsula, Sheep's Head Peninsula, Carlingford and the Cooley Peninsula, and Clonakilty District.
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Social security goes digital
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The Commission has launched a new IT platform to electronically connect around 15,000 social security institutions in the EU plus Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland. The Electronic Exchange of Social Security Information system (EESSI) will make it easier to combat fraud and error, as national social security institutions will use standardised electronic documents in their own language, ensuring that the data they exchange is correct and complete. The new tool will also benefit citizens who have lived and worked in several of the participating countries, and who will see their social security benefits calculated quicker and more efficiently. Countries have until July 2019 to connect their national systems to the central IT platform.
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President Juncker pays tribute to Germany's former Chancellor Kohl
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On Saturday 1 July, leaders from all over the world gathered in Strasbourg to pay tribute to former federal Chancellor of Germany, Helmut Kohl. Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker addressed the event. He said: "Helmut Kohl was not only the architect of German unity. He contributed fundamentally — more than others — to reconciling European history and European geography. He was one of those who brought an end to the separation of East and West decreed at Yalta. Eastern and central Europe – and southern Europe incidentally – have much to thank Helmut Kohl for."
Farewell messages were also given by former President of the United States Bill Clinton, former Spanish Prime Minister Felipe González and Russian Prime Minister Dmitri Medvedev. French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Angela Merkel delivered the closing speeches.
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Simplified rules for farmers come into force
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New rules came into force on 3 July that will make it easier for EU farmers to comply with several obligations under the so-called 'greening' in order to receive direct financial support. The new rules also aim to further increase the environmental performance of farming.
The greening rules oblige farmers to farm in accordance with three main practices that are considered beneficial to the environment, including diversifying crops, maintaining permanent grassland and dedicating a minimum of 5% of arable land to so-called 'ecological focus areas' (EFAs).
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European Citizens' Initiative: Commission registers 'Stop TTIP' Initiative
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The European Commission has registered a European Citizens' Initiative inviting the Commission "to recommend to the Council to repeal the negotiating mandate for the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) and not to conclude the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA)" ('Stop TTIP' Initiative). The formal registration of this Initiative on 10 July 2017 will start a one-year process of collection of signatures of support by its organisers.
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Agenda
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Friday 7 and Saturday 8 July: G20 summit in Hamburg, Germany
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G20 leaders will meet in Hamburg, Germany, on 7 and 8 July 2017. The theme of the German presidency of the G20 is 'Shaping an interconnected world'. The leaders will discuss the main topics of economic, financial, climate, trade, employment and development policy. Migration and refugee flows and counter-terrorism are other key issues of global significance that will appear on the summit agenda. The President of the European Council and the President of the European Commission will represent the EU at the summit.
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Friday 7 July: "The CAP: Have your say" conference, Brussels
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The Commission's Directorate General for Agriculture and Rural Development is hosting a conference on Friday 7 July to look at the results of a recent consultation on the future of the common agricultural policy. The conference will be opened by EU Commissioner for Agriculture and Rural Development Phil Hogan. The event will be live streamed.
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Monday 10 July: Eurogroup meeting
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The agenda for this meeting will be available in due course at the link below.
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Tuesday 11 July: Economic and Financial Affairs Council, Brussels
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The agenda for this meeting will be available shortly at the link below.
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Wednesday 12 July: ICEL Brexit Series – Implications for fisheries, Royal Irish Academy
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This half-day conference, organised by the Irish Centre for European Law, will run from 2-5pm and will examine the distinct legal and regulatory challenges that Brexit poses for fisheries on the island of Ireland and seeks to address some of these vital topics, with the assistance of a panel of expert speakers from industry, policy, academia and practice.
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Monday 17 July: Foreign Affairs Council, Brussels
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The agenda for this meeting will be available in due course at the link below.
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Monday 17 July: Commissioner King to address the MacGill Summer School, Glenties
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On Monday afternoon 17 July the EU Commissioner for the Security Union, Julian King, will address the MacGill Summer School on Responding to the Security Threats against Europe, its Democracies and its Citizens. Prof Ben Tonra of UCD and Michael C. Murphy, Security Analyst, will also speak on the same subject. An Open Forum, moderated by Lucinda Creighton, former Minister of State for European Affairs, will follow. For more information click on the link below.
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Monday 17 and Tuesday 18 July: Agriculture and Fisheries Council, Brussels
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The agenda for this meeting will be available in due course at the link below.
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Tuesday 18 July: Training session on Horizon 2020 organised by The Wheel, Dublin
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The Wheel is organising a training session on "Horizon 2020: The European Union’s Programme for Research and Innovation (Opportunities for Voluntary Organisations)" on Tuesday morning 18 July. The event takes place at the Carmelite Centre, 56 Aungier Street, Dublin 2, starting at 9.30 am. The training session aims to provide Irish civil society organisations with an overview of opportunities under Horizon 2020 and the proposal process. The facilitator is Sean McCarthy, one of Europe’s leading consultants on Horizon 2020.
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Friday 21 July: Creative Europe Mini-Showcase = What will the European Capital of Culture mean for Galway?, Galway
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Galway’s hard work was rewarded last year when it was announced that it had won the bid for hosting the European Capital of Culture in 2020. Creative Europe is organising a special event during Galway International Arts Festival to showcase Ireland’s involvement in European culture projects. Representatives from three Irish projects will speak about their experiences of transnational culture projects, the joys, the pitfalls and why they do it. This mini-showcase will be followed by a panel discussion hosted by Benita Lipps of the DaVinci Institute followed by a networking reception.
The event takes place on Friday evening 21 July from 4 to 6 pm at Galway City Museum, Spanish Parade, Galway. Anyone interested in attending is asked to register in advance via the link below.
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Competitions
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Applications open for the Access City Awards 2018
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European cities over 50,000 inhabitants are invited to participate in the eight edition of the Access City Award - The European Prize for making cities more accessible to people with disabilities and older people. At a ceremony during the annual European Day of People with Disabilities Conference in Brussels on 5 December 2017, the European Commission will hand over awards to five EU cities. There will be first, second and third prize plus special mentions. The deadline to apply is 11 September 2017.
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Public consultations
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Publication consultation on EU consumer law
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The European Commission has launched a public consultation to gather opinions from consumers, businesses and associations on how to improve EU consumer law. The consultation will provide valuable information to the Commission on the areas that require changes. This includes the rights that apply for online marketplaces and "free" online services where consumers provide their personal data instead of paying, the way consumers can seek redress or remedies when harmed by unfair commercial practices. It also explores the introduction of penalties, in case of consumer law breaches, and how these penalties could be made more effective. All citizens and organisations are welcome to respond by 8 October 2017.
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This is the Newsletter of the Representation of the European Commission in Ireland.
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