Category Archives: European Union

EU companies can ban employees wearing headscarves, court rules

Posted on by

Prohibition can only be implemented against all religious symbols as part of a policy of neutrality

Private employers in the EU can ban people from wearing religious symbols, including headscarves, in order to present an image of neutrality, the bloc’s highest court has ruled.

Companies can ban headscarves provided such a prohibition is part of a policy against all religious and political symbols, the court said on Thursday, reaffirming a 2017 ruling. The latest judgment went further by examining the grounds employers can use when making such prohibitions.

Continue reading...

‘Legal Polexit’: Poland court rules EU measures unconstitutional

Posted on by

European court of justice had demanded suspension of Polish reforms that could lift judges’ immunity

Poland’s top court has ruled that measures imposed by the European court of justice against the country’s controversial judicial reforms are unconstitutional, in a decision that could have far-reaching implications for the bloc’s legal order.

Judge Stanislaw Piotrowicz said on Wednesday that Poland’s constitutional court had reached a majority verdict that EU measures regarding the “system, principles and procedures” of Polish courts were “not in line” with the Polish constitution.

Continue reading...

Von der Leyen pledges fuel poverty help amid EU emissions trading concerns

Posted on by

Commission president moves to assuage fears scheme could lead to higher home energy and petrol bills

The European commission has said it wants a fund to prevent fuel poverty, amid warnings from an ally of France’s Emmanuel Macron that a proposed trading scheme to cut emissions from transport and buildings is “political suicide”.

The commission president, Ursula von der Leyen, is due to unveil the plans for a trading scheme on Wednesday as part of a sprawling set of proposals to get the European Union on track to cut greenhouse gas emissions by 55% by 2030, including goals to increase use of electric vehicles and phase out petrol-powered cars by 2035.

Continue reading...

EU prepares sanctions against Lebanon leaders a year after Beirut blast

Posted on by

Almost one year since Beirut blast, Lebanon is still headed by caretaker government

As the first anniversary of the deadly Beirut explosion approaches, the European Union said on Monday it hopes to develop the legal framework for sanctions targeting Lebanese leaders.

More than 11 months since Lebanon’s government resigned in response to the blast on 4 August 2020, the country is still headed by a caretaker government.

Continue reading...

UK food worker shortages push prices up and risk Christmas turkey supplies

Posted on by

Dearth of delivery drivers, abattoir staff and fruit pickers caused by Covid and Brexit are fuelling wage rises with 5% hike in prices forecast

Food prices could rise by about 5% by the autumn – and turkeys and pigs in blankets could be in short supply this Christmas – as shortages of delivery drivers, abattoir staff and other workers drive up pay and other costs.

Industry insiders say that pay for lorry drivers and other supply chain workers, including abbatoir workers, plus vegetable and fruit pickers and packers have all risen because of difficulties in finding sufficient staff.

Continue reading...

Ursula von der Leyen says EU has reached Covid vaccine target

Posted on by

Commission president says EU has delivered enough vaccine to inoculate 70% of adults in the bloc

The EU has delivered enough coronavirus vaccine doses to member states to reach a target to fully vaccinate at least 70% of adults in the bloc, the European Commission chief, Ursula von der Leyen, said in a statement on Saturday.

Von der Leyen, who had tweeted on 9 May that the EU was on track to meet its goal of inoculating 70% of adults by summer, urged EU countries to increase vaccinations and said about 500m doses would be distributed across the union by Sunday.

Continue reading...

UK at loggerheads with EU again over £41bn Brexit ‘divorce bill’

Posted on by

Brussels’ accounts reveal amount expected, but London says: ‘We don’t recognise that figure’

The government has rejected claims it owes the European Union £41bn for a Brexit “divorce bill”, even as it emerged the first payments have been made.

Brussels and Westminster reopened a dispute about the size of the bill, after the publication of the EU’s 2020 accounts revealed the European Commission expected €47.5bn (£40.8bn) from the UK, a sum higher than British estimates.

Continue reading...

EU votes for diplomats to boycott China Winter Olympics over rights abuses

Posted on by

Non-binding resolution also calls for governments to impose further sanctions on China as tensions rise

The European parliament has overwhelmingly passed a resolution calling on diplomatic officials to boycott the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics in response to continuing human rights abuses by the Chinese government.

In escalating tensions between the EU and China, the non-binding resolution also called for governments to impose further sanctions, provide emergency visas to Hong Kong journalists and further support Hongkongers to move to Europe.

Continue reading...

EU parliament condemns Hungary’s anti-LGBT law

Posted on by

Resolution is passed to launch legal action, but Hungarian prime minister Viktor Orbán remains defiant

The European parliament has denounced a Hungarian law that bans gay people from appearing in educational materials or on primetime TV as “a clear breach” of its principles of equality.

In a resolution voted in Strasbourg on Thursday by a resounding majority, MEPs condemned “in the strongest possible terms” the Hungarian law as “a clear breach of the EU’s values, principles and law”, while urging the European Commission to launch a fast-track legal case against Viktor Orbán’s government.

Continue reading...

EU urged to suspend funds to Hungary over ‘grave breaches of the rule of law’

Posted on by

Action follows Viktor Orbán passing law banning LGBT content in schools and mishandling of EU funds

Ursula von der Leyen is being urged to suspend EU funds to Hungary to force Viktor Orbán to address concerns over politicised courts and corruption.

MEPs who work on the European parliament’s budgetary control committee are calling on the European Commission president to use a newly created EU law to freeze payments to Hungary for “grave breaches of the rule of law”.

Continue reading...

UK-EU relations deteriorate again after ‘strange’ David Frost remarks

Posted on by

Irish foreign minister hits out at Brexit minister over provocative article on Northern Ireland protocol

The EU fears that Boris Johnson wants to “dismantle” the Northern Ireland protocol, the Irish foreign minister has said, as relations between Brussels and London deteriorated again after remarks by the Brexit minister David Frost in the past 24 hours.

Simon Coveney told RTÉ on Sunday that EU leaders feared the worst after what he felt was a provocative article written by Lord Frost and the Northern Ireland secretary, Brandon Lewis, in the Irish Times on Saturday.

Continue reading...

UK school skiing trips to EU could be wiped out by Brexit visa rules

Posted on by

Extra cost of permission for British temporary staff to work in resorts likely to be prohibitive for firms

School skiing trips that rely on British personnel to staff their EU winter camps could be wiped out by Brexit after it emerged they are facing the same obstacles as the music and theatre sectors.

Just like rock bands and music artists, instructors who work on the slopes of France, Italy or elsewhere in the EU are now required to have visas if they work in Europe, even if it is for just one week at a time.

Continue reading...

After Brexit, Merkel probably dabbed her eyes – and moved on

Posted on by

Analysis: when the German chancellor steps down in September, her departure will leave a gaping hole

Angela Merkel, now on an affable UK farewell tour including tea with the Queen, leaves a paradoxical legacy for many British.

She is often hailed as the upholder of a liberal Europe that faced a populist onslaught from Donald Trump. But she is also the woman who refused to throw David Cameron a lifeline on immigration ahead of the Brexit referendum, judging it not in the national interest. But for Merkel’s stance then, her jocular host now might not have been Boris Johnson, who leaves her cold, but an ageing Cameron in his 11th year in office.

Continue reading...

Britons with Indian-made AstraZeneca vaccine face extra EU travel hurdle

Posted on by

EU vaccine passport scheme omits Covishield jab, despite it offering same protection as UK-made one

British travellers hoping to visit Europe this summer face an extra hurdle as it emerged that those vaccinated with Indian-manufactured AstraZeneca jabs would not automatically skip quarantine.

Under the EU vaccine passport scheme, people given the AstraZeneca jab produced by the Serum Institute of India (SII) would not automatically avoid quarantine and mandatory testing when travelling in Europe.

Continue reading...

EU Commission urged to reject Hungary’s Covid recovery plan

Posted on by

Cross-party group writes to Ursula von der Leyen over fraud, corruption and LGBTQ+ rights concerns

The European Commission is being urged to reject a coronavirus recovery plan for Hungary over concerns about fraud, corruption and the country’s stance on LGBTQ+ rights.

A cross-party group of left and liberal MEPs have written to the Commission president, Ursula von der Leyen, demanding she send the Hungarian government back to the drawing board over its spending plans for a €7.2bn (£6.19bn) coronavirus recovery grant.

Continue reading...

Over 50,000 EU citizens scramble to beat UK settled status deadline

Posted on by

Exclusive: Home Office receives fivefold daily rise in applications as people tell of fear and anger

There was a fivefold surge in applications by EU citizens for UK settled status on Wednesday, with more than 50,000 scrambling to beat the midnight deadline, it has emerged.

Such was the last-minute rush that the Home Office extended the time applications would be accepted to 9am on Thursday.

Continue reading...

Employers warned not to discriminate amid rush for EU settled status

Posted on by

Citizens told to complain if rights have been breached, as number of applicants surges before deadline

Businesses and public bodies have been warned by the Brexit rights regulator not to discriminate against EU citizens as the new post-Brexit immigration regime enters into force at midnight.

The warnings come as Home Office helplines for EU citizens living in the UK were reported to be “jammed” by a last-minute surge in EU citizens applying to remain in the UK by the midnight deadline. Charity workers helping applicants said they were also struggling to get through to the specialist hotline reserved for advisers.

Continue reading...

Belfast court dismisses legal challenge to Brexit Northern Ireland protocol

Posted on by

Ruling is boost to UK and EU negotiators who are expected to announce new arrangements

The high court in Belfast has thrown out a legal challenge to the Northern Ireland Brexit protocol.

The ruling is a setback for the applicants including the Democratic Unionist Party and a relief for UK and EU negotiators who are planning to announce a package of new arrangements later on Wednesday aimed at taking the heat out of the current dispute over Brexit checks on goods crossing the Irish Sea from Great Britain to Ireland.

Continue reading...

OpenStreetMap looks to relocate to EU due to Brexit limitations

Posted on by

Open-source UK tech company cites copyright issues, rising costs and prospect of more influence in EU

OpenStreetMap, the Wikipedia-for-maps organisation that seeks to create a free and open-source map of the globe, is considering relocating to the EU, almost 20 years after it was founded in the UK by the British entrepreneur Steve Coast.

OpenStreetMap Foundation, which was formally registered in 2006, two years after the project began, is a limited company registered in England and Wales. Following Brexit, the organisation says the lack of agreement between the UK and EU could render its continued operation in Britain untenable.

Continue reading...

‘The anxiety is palpable’: EU citizens face looming settled status deadline

Posted on by

Those submitting last-minute applications for right to stay in UK describe stress of dealing with an overwhelmed system

With just three days to go before the deadline for EU citizens who wish to remain living in the UK to apply for EU settled status (EUSS), applicants have described the stress they are experiencing as they submit last-minute applications or wait to hear from the Home Office about whether their applications have been accepted.

They describe the frustration of trying to get through to a Home Office helpline that is often unable to accept calls because of excessive numbers of people seeking advice; many are worried that they may find themselves in a legal limbo, despite government reassurances to the contrary.

Continue reading...