Croatia, France and Poland join EU’s strategic reserves for chemical, biological and radiological emergencies

This article is brought to you in association with the European Commission. To improve the EU preparedness and response to chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear (CBRN) threats, the Commission is building strategic reserves of response capacities through the EU Civil Protection Mechanism and the Health Emergency Preparedness and Response Authority (HERA). Today, Croatia, France, and Poland […]

EU job-search aid worth €3.7 million for 297 dismissed Airbus workers in France

This article is brought to you in association with the European Parliament. Almost 300 Airbus employees in France who lost their jobs because of the COVID-19 pandemic will receive €3.7 million in EU aid. On Wednesday, Parliament approved France’s request for support from the European Globalisation Adjustment Fund for Displaced Workers (EGF). MEPs acknowledged that “in […]

EU job-search aid worth €3.7 million for 297 dismissed Airbus workers in France

This article is brought to you in association with the European Parliament. Almost 300 Airbus employees in France who lost their jobs because of the COVID-19 pandemic should receive €3.7 million in EU aid. On Tuesday, the Committee on Budgets approved France’s request for support from the European Globalisation Adjustment Fund for Displaced Workers (EGF). MEPs […]

State aid: Commission approves 2022-2027 regional aid map for France

This article is brought to you in association with the European Commission. The European Commission has approved under EU State aid rules the map of France for granting regional aid from 1 January 2022 to 31 December 2027 within the framework of the revised Regional aid Guidelines (‘RAG’). The revised RAG, adopted by the Commission on […]

State aid: Commission approves €5.7 billion French scheme to support production of electricity from small solar installations on buildings

This article is brought to you in association with the European Commission. The European Commission has approved, under EU State aid rules, a €5.7 billion French aid scheme to support renewable electricity production from small solar installations located on buildings. The measure will help France achieve its 2030 target of producing 33% of its energy needs […]

State aid: the Commission authorises the regulatory mechanism for the storage of natural gas in France

This article is brought to you in association with the European Commission. The European Commission has concluded that the regulatory mechanism for the storage of natural gas implemented by France since 2017 complies with EU rules on State aid. The measure will contribute to the security and diversification of the energy supply in France without unduly […]

EU solidarity in action: Commission proposes €86.7 million for the recent natural disasters in France and Greece

This article is brought to you in association with the European Commission. Today, the European Commission is proposing a financial support of €86.7 million from the European Union Solidarity Fund (EUSF) to provide relief to the population of several regions in France and Greece hit by natural disasters in 2020. Commissioner for Cohesion and Reforms, Elisa […]

State aid: the Commission launches an in-depth investigation into the regulation mechanism for natural gas storage in France

This article is brought to you in association with the European Commission. The European Commission has launched an in-depth investigation in order to determine whether the regulation mechanism for the storage of natural gas implemented by France complies with EU rules on State aid. Ms Margrethe Vestager, Executive Vice-President in charge of competition policy, stated: ‘France has […]

Yellow vests, rising violence – what’s happening in France?

This article is brought to you thanks to the collaboration of The European Sting with the World Economic Forum. Author: Clement Le Goff, Senior Reporter, France Télévisions On the street, we see a tendency towards rising extremism across the political spectrum; Macron crystallizes the anger of all protestors and their language is getting more and more violent; Journalists, […]

Can climate change wait for the US to rejoin the Paris agreement?

The US administration informed the United Nations (UN) two days ago that is starting the official process of withdrawing from the Paris Agreement the moment that the whole world is experiencing the warmest October of the last forty years according to a research from a global group of around 11.000 scientists. On the other hand, […]

UN Climate Action Summit concludes with insufficient EU and global pledges

The UN Climate Action Summit took place last Monday in New York but the commitments announced were not enough to counterbalance the devastating effects of climate change which is damaging our planet with high temperatures and tremendous natural phenomena. Although the EU is an ambitious contributor to the global efforts to fight climate change and […]

Record-breaking heatwaves killed about 1,500 people in France

This article is brought to you thanks to the collaboration of The European Sting with the World Economic Forum. Author: Rosamond Hutt, Senior Writer, Formative Content In late July, a heatwave engulfed Europe, breaking temperature records in the UK, France, the Netherlands, Belgium and Germany. It was the second episode of extreme heat to hit the continent since June. […]

G7: A serious setback hardly avoided in iconic Biarritz

The G7 yearly summits are supposed to strengthen the unity of the world’s wealthiest democracies vis-à-vis the rest of the world. Not anymore, many say, but this time there is one important exception: Iran. The leaders of France, Britain, Germany, Italy, Canada, Japan and of course the US, met during the weekend in the coastal […]

The French army is enlisting sci-fi writers to predict the future

This article is brought to you thanks to the collaboration of The European Sting with the World Economic Forum. Author: Dan Salazar, Director, Mastercard & Carlos Monteverde, Product Manager, Mastercard Think the unthinkable. Then write it down. That’s the mission for a new team working inside the French army. The “red team” will be made up of science fiction […]

State aid: Commission approves support for six offshore wind farms in France

This article is brought to you in association with the European Commission. The European Commission has found support to six large offshore wind farms in French territorial waters to be in line with EU State aid rules. The measures will help France reduce CO2 emissions, in line with EU energy and climate goals, without unduly distorting […]

EU-Turkey relations: EU considers imposing sanctions while Turkey keeps violating Cyprus’ sovereignty

Turkey continues violating the sovereignty rights of Cyprus by conducting a new illegal drilling operation on the northeast of the island. The EU had already urged Turkey last month to stop its gas drilling in waters around Cyprus. Thus the EU bloc will now have to intervene to resolve such disputes. However, Turkey kept on […]

The end of Spitzenkandidat: EU leaders concluded unexpectedly on EU top jobs

The EU leaders finally came to a conclusion after three long days of tough negotiations where German Chancellor’s suggestion to appoint Frans Timmermans as next European Commission president has been turned down by Italy and eastern countries. The solution was given with the nomination of a woman and particularly German Defence Minister Ursula von der […]

France and Germany can’t reach consensus regarding EU’s top jobs

The EU leaders are expected to meet again on Sunday to discuss about who will be taking over the EU top jobs, while France and Germany seem unable to agree who will be the successor of Jean-Claude Juncker. Last week’s EU summit didn’t conclude on the matter, something that exerts extra pressure onto the bloc’s […]

Disillusioned young people – France thinks it has a solution

This article is brought to you thanks to the collaboration of The European Sting with the World Economic Forum. Author: Johnny Wood, Senior Writer, Formative Content France is trialling a new national service programme for 15 and 16-year-olds, twenty years after the country phased out conscription for men. Called the “service national universel” (SNU), the scheme was proposed by […]

EU elections 2019: Trump’s share in the support of populism

It was last Monday when the US President Donald Trump met the Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán at the White House. Both leaders had the beautiful chance to praise each other at a gathering which lasted less than an hour. Only a few days ahead of the EU elections, the US President clearly shows his […]

EU elections 2019: Rise of nationalist trends and populism in Europe challenges the EU edifice

The European elections are going to be held in just two weeks’ time and far-right propaganda is gaining momentum creating concerns to everyone regarding the future of the EU, which is at stake. Populism and nationalism have dramatically risen in the EU during the last years menacing democratic institutions within a number of European member […]

France is about to start giving free breakfasts to disadvantaged schoolchildren

This article is brought to you thanks to the collaboration of The European Sting with the World Economic Forum. Author: Kate Whiting, Senior Writer, Formative Content Growing minds need fuel, but 1 in 8 children in certain French schools are starting a day off learning on an empty stomach. So France has become the latest country to introduce a […]

Can the Notre-Dame fire freeze the ‘Yellow Vests’ uprising?

Can the fire that partially destroyed Notre-Dame act as a game changer in the French socio-political scene? Probably yes, but let’s see to the forces in motion, the national grief and the anger of the left behind. Luckily on the Seine river islet, in the heart of Paris, the eight hundred year monument still stands. […]

US-EU trade negotiations: pointless tariffs against real economic growth

The European Council approved last Monday the European Commission’s proposals authorizing the latter to start negotiating with the US in order to eliminate industrial goods tariffs and reach an agreement on conformity assessment. Most of the member states were in favour of the commencement of the bilateral trade negotiations except for France. However, the fact […]

Further reforms in France can drive growth, improve public finances and boost social cohesion

This article is brought to you in association with OECD. The French economy has slowed, with weaker growth and employment prospects weighing on living standards and well-being. Policy should focus on long-term strategies to revitalise growth, improve public finances, create more and better jobs and ensure a more inclusive and cohesive society, according to a new […]

The EU might as well go down the drain if foreign meddling corrupts May’s elections

The EU elections will take place in about two months’ time but anti-European together with foreign parties are most likely going to try to exert influence on the upcoming outcome. Anti-establishment parties are expected to change the current balance and status quo if the two mainstream parties, the conservative EPP (European People’s Party) and the […]

Siemens-Alstom merger: Can Germany and France lobby to circumvent EC’s rejection, against EU consumers’ interests?

The European Commission (EC), after months of investigation and discussions, came to the independent conclusion to refuse the merger of the rail companies Siemens and Alstom despite the improvements provided by the two firms together with the continuous pressure by the French and German governments. Nevertheless, France and Germany still believe that the EU has wrongly […]

Davos on Climate Change: citizens demanding more actions while CEOs tried to balance profit with sustainability

Climate change was one of the hot topics during the annual World Economic Forum which took place in the Swiss Alps last week. Sir David Attenborough, English broadcaster and natural historian, outlined the serious impact that humanity is causing to the environment and underslined the urgency of immediate action in order to reverse the ongoing […]

EU Copyright Directive: Google News threatens to leave Europe while media startups increasingly worry

The European Copyright Directive negotiation meeting, which was supposed to take place last Monday regarding the finalization of Article 13 and Article 11, was cancelled due to the fact that eleven out of 28 EU countries voted against the text. The text is expected to be altered by the Romanian Council presidency in order to […]

Brexit: Is there anybody supporting a non-violent separation?

Like Christopher Clark’s ‘Sleepwalkers’, Britain alone on the one side and the European Union led by Germany and France on the other are walking apart, without a deal to jointly settle their future relations. One and a half years have elapsed since the 23 June 2016 referendum, with endless talks and self-complacency. Still, neither side […]

The ‘yellow vests’ undermined Macron in France and the EU

Paris was a blockaded city this weekend. The government was forced to close down all the main tourist sites in the French capital. The Eiffel Tower, the Opera of Paris, the Louvre museum and tens of other sites which may attract the fury of the ‘yellow vest’ movement are closed and heavily guarded. Galerie Lafayette […]

Postal workers in France are helping elderly people fight loneliness

This article is brought to you thanks to the strategic cooperation of The European Sting with the World Economic Forum. Author: Kate Whiting, Senior Writer, Formative Content While we’re living longer, not everyone is living healthier and happier lives – and many countries are struggling to look after an increasingly lonely, ageing population. By 2050, it’s predicted that more […]

France, Germany challenge Trump’s America on Iran and the reign of the dollar

Last week, the French President Emmanuel Macron and the German Chancellor Angela Merkel challenged the US President Trump by deciding to create a real European army. This week, the two European leaders said they are seriously working on the project to build a financial/trade-clearing mechanism, meant to override the American sanctions against Iran. In both […]