Albania moves closer to EU membership as Socialists win new mandate
13 May Foreign & Security Policy

Albania moves closer to EU membership as Socialists win new mandate

Prime Minister Edi Rama’s victory will consolidate Albania’s pro-EU trajectory, but rule of law deficits still pose hurdles to accession.
by Arno Van Rensbergen
Interview: Clean Industrial Deal puts EPP’s Ehler in the driving seat
14 May EU Institutions
Interview: Clean Industrial Deal puts EPP’s Ehler in the driving seat
The end of encryption as we know it?
12 May EU Institutions
The end of encryption as we know it?
Op-ed: Concrete action needed to stop Orbán’s EU abuse
12 May EU Institutions
Op-ed: Concrete action needed to stop Orbán’s EU abuse
COVID-19: Towards a resilient agriculture model in Africa Partner Content
14 Jul
COVID-19: Towards a resilient agriculture model in Africa
OCP Africa is helping African farmers cope during the COVID-19 crisis, explains Colin Mackay.
Europe's innovation strength: Standards Partner Content
13 Jul
Europe's innovation strength: Standards
Don Rosenberg explains why the key to Europe's technology sovereignty in the age of 5G is open standardisation.
Issue 519 | 13 July 2020
13 Jul
Issue 519 | 13 July 2020
Ursula von der Leyen graces the cover of this issue, our final before the summer break, as the European Commission President looks to galvanise the support of EU heads of state and Government behind her revised EU budget and Coronavirus recovery plan. Ahead of this week’s special summit of EU leaders in Brussels on 17-18 July, she argues, in an exclusive article for The Parliament Magazine, that, “Europe’s citizens have high expectations, and rightly so. This is the moment to meet their expectations - with a strong budget, with the Next Generation EU recovery instrument and with sustained leadership in the world. This is Europe’s moment.”
New AMR Action Fund could be ‘game changer’ in battle against antimicrobial resistance
10 Jul
New AMR Action Fund could be ‘game changer’ in battle against antimicrobial resistance
Fund’s launch comes with warning that up to ten million lives could be lost globally each year by 2050 to antimicrobial resistant ‘superbugs’.
Development policy: engaging the world on equal footing
10 Jul
Development policy: engaging the world on equal footing
Development is not something achieved through economic means alone, it’s about learning from each other’s experiences, argues Norbert Neuser.
Names of MEPs who will sit on European parliament’s new committees announced
10 Jul
Names of MEPs who will sit on European parliament’s new committees announced
Parliament has set up a subcommittee on taxation, three special committees - one on cancer, another on artificial intelligence and a third on foreign interference - and a committee of inquiry on animal transport.
Charles Michel tables plan to break impasse on EU’s Coronavirus recovery fund and next long term budget
10 Jul
Charles Michel tables plan to break impasse on EU’s Coronavirus recovery fund and next long term budget
European Council president’s ‘new’ proposal focuses on funding elements around climate change, the rule of law and Brexit.
Why Green mobility needs the right infrastructure
10 Jul
Why Green mobility needs the right infrastructure
A comprehensive network of publicly accessible charging points is essential for the successful decarbonisation of the EU’s transport sector, argues Ismail Ertug.
An EU citizens’ budget
10 Jul
An EU citizens’ budget
The views of European citizens are conspicuously missing from the EU budget talks, yet they should be at the centre of them, argues Victor Negrescu.
Why the EU needs pharmaceutical independence
10 Jul
Why the EU needs pharmaceutical independence
The Coronavirus outbreak has shown why the EU must address medical shortages and re-establish its position as a world leader in the pharmaceutical field, argues Tomislav Sokol.
Senior MEP ‘pessimistic’ about progress in latest Brexit talks
09 Jul
Senior MEP ‘pessimistic’ about progress in latest Brexit talks
Bernd Lange, a member of Parliament’s UK Coordination Group, told this website that he hopes the continuing talks, being held for the first time in London, will “unlock the UK’s negotiating position.”
EU leaders tell Member States it is ‘essential’ to agree on budget and recovery plan at summit
09 Jul
EU leaders tell Member States it is ‘essential’ to agree on budget and recovery plan at summit
At least four Member States, “the Frugal Four”, remain opposed to the package, but the leaders of the main EU institutions have ratcheted up the pressure to reach an agreement in a week’s time.
New challenges, old threats
09 Jul
New challenges, old threats
As the world deals with the economic fallout from COVID-19, new European Defence Agency chief executive, Jirí Šedivý, tells Rajnish Singh that previous security threats have not gone away and therefore defence funding should remain a key EU priority.
Trade Commissioner: EU will ‘act decisively’ if US slaps fresh tariffs on goods
09 Jul
Trade Commissioner: EU will ‘act decisively’ if US slaps fresh tariffs on goods
Phil Hogan’s stark warning follows the US threat to put duties on EU goods such as beer, gin and olives, intensifying a long-running row over aviation subsidies between the two sides.
Cyber defence in the ‘New Normal’
08 Jul
Cyber defence in the ‘New Normal’
The Coronavirus crisis has increased the risk exposure of being targeted by sophisticated threats, warn Wolfgang Roehrig and Mario Beccia.
Resumed Brexit talks have ‘not lived up to’ call for more urgency to reach deal
07 Jul
Resumed Brexit talks have ‘not lived up to’ call for more urgency to reach deal
Luxembourg MEP Christophe Hansen, a member of Parliament’s UK Coordination Group, said the meetings between the two sides have, so far, “not exactly lived up to the expectations of fresh momentum.”
Work-life balance in the Coronavirus era
07 Jul
Work-life balance in the Coronavirus era
The global pandemic has proven that people can achieve a healthy work life balance while working from home through the use of technology already at their disposal, writes David Casa.
LNG is a key component of the EU’s energy mix
07 Jul
LNG is a key component of the EU’s energy mix
The EU will not achieve its long coveted goal of energy sovereignty without the inclusion of natural gas, writes Carlo Fidanza.
Commission admits ‘series of mistakes’ made after von der Leyen Croatia election video
06 Jul
Commission admits ‘series of mistakes’ made after von der Leyen Croatia election video
In an unusual intervention in domestic politics, Commission President Ursula von der Leyen publicly voiced her support for Croatia's Prime Minister Andrej Plenkovic ahead of Sunday’s parliamentary elections.
5 Questions with... Henna Virkkunen
06 Jul
5 Questions with... Henna Virkkunen
Henna Virkkunen (FI, EPP) is a member of Parliament’s Industry, Research and Energy Committee
Anders Fogh Rasmussen: Frugal Four will back EU budget and recovery plan ‘subject to concessions’
06 Jul
Anders Fogh Rasmussen: Frugal Four will back EU budget and recovery plan ‘subject to concessions’
The former Danish Prime Minister’s comments come ahead of a key meeting on Wednesday, where EU leaders hope to break the current impasse over the €750bn Recovery Plan and the next long-term budget.
Spate of burglaries hit European Parliament during Coronavirus lockdown
06 Jul
Spate of burglaries hit European Parliament during Coronavirus lockdown
The crime spree appears to have taken place mainly while the building was effectively empty, with thieves accessing “sensitive” papers and breaking into secure cupboards in MEPs’ offices.
A history of violence
06 Jul
A history of violence
Sharing her own recent experience of police harassment, Pierrette Herzberger-Fofana says there is an urgent need to address police brutality, accountability and over policing.
French Armed Forces Minister makes plea for ‘properly financed’ European Defence Fund
06 Jul
French Armed Forces Minister makes plea for ‘properly financed’ European Defence Fund
Speaking to MEPs, Florence Parly said the EDF, a new EU defence initiative, could be “an important tool for economic recovery” from the pandemic.