Category Archives: Ursula von der Leyen

Cliff-edge Brexit will hurt UK more than EU, says Von der Leyen

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EU president warns of time running out in the expected 11 months available to strike deal

Ursula von der Leyen has warned that a cliff-edge Brexit at the end of 2020 will hurt the UK more than the EU as she laid out her intentions to “make the most” out of the “extremely challenging” 11 months available to strike a trade deal.

The European commission president acknowledged the danger of time running out during the negotiations, a risk many fear has been amplified by Boris Johnson’s symbolic decision to legislate to block an extension of the transition period.

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EU looks at extending Brexit transition period beyond 2020

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Move is being considered by EU officials in face of Johnson not seeking extension beyond 11 months

EU leaders would take the initiative and request an extension to the transition period, keeping the UK under Brussels regulations beyond 2020, under a plan mooted for getting around Boris Johnson’s stated refusal to seek a delay.

The move is being considered by EU officials as a way out of the problem posed by the short time available to negotiate a new relationship and the prime minister’s insistence that he will not seek an extension beyond 11 months.

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EU leaders meet to try to agree on carbon neutrality by 2050

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Greenpeace activists unfurl climate emergency banner on Brussels venue before event

European leaders meeting at a summit in Brussels will make a new attempt to set the European Union on course for carbon neutrality by 2050, in a test of the bloc’s credibility on the climate emergency.

Hours before EU leaders were due to arrive on Thursday, Greenpeace activists unfurled a banner on the side of the summit venue warning of the climate emergency.

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European Green Deal will change economy to solve climate crisis, says EU

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Everything from travel to air quality has been looked at in order to create ‘a growth that gives back’

Nearly every major aspect of the European economy is to be re-evaluated in light of the imperatives of the climate and ecological emergency, according to sweeping new plans set out by the European commission on Wednesday.

The comprehensive nature of the European Green Deal – which encompasses the air we breathe to how food is grown, from how we travel to the buildings we inhabit – was set out in a flurry of documents as Ursula von der Leyen, the new commission president, made her appeal to member states and parliamentarians in Brussels to back the proposals, which would represent the biggest overhaul of policy since the foundation of the modern EU.

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Suspect in Daphne Caruana Galizia murder says he got tipoffs from official

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Yorgen Fenech tells court Malta PM’s former chief of staff gave him updates on investigation

A wealthy businessman who is the prime suspect in the murder of the journalist Daphne Caruana Galizia has told a court in Malta that he received regular tipoffs about the investigation from the former government chief of staff Keith Schembri.

Yorgen Fenech, who was charged last week for allegedly masterminding the 2017 killing, appeared in court to seek the removal of the police chief leading the case, saying he was too close to Schembri.

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Proposed EU-wide ‘climate law’ would set net-zero carbon target by 2050

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Plan is part of ‘green new deal’ but campaigners say it is not enough to tackle climate crisis

The first EU-wide “climate law” would enshrine a legally binding target of reaching net-zero carbon by 2050, and Europe’s greenhouse gas emissions would be halved by 2030, under a set of proposals being discussed by the incoming European commission.

Cars would be subject to new air pollution standards, following the disastrous cheating that allowed diesel pollutants to be masked, and all vehicles may be brought within the EU’s carbon emissions trading scheme, which would affect drivers across the bloc. Three quarters of road transport would have to be moved to rail and inland waterways, and pricing would have to be adjusted to reflect the carbon output of different modes of transport, which is likely to prove controversial.

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‘We have to follow up’: European parliament declares climate emergency – video

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The European parliament has declared a 'climate and environmental emergency' in a symbolic moment when it promised to urge member states to reach net zero carbon emissions by 2050 and push the climate crisis to the top of the EU’s agenda. 

The parliament voted 429-225 with 19 abstentions to use the term 'emergency'. Ursula von der Leyen, the incoming president of the European commission, declared this week that the EU would lead the fight against 'the existential threat' of the climate crisis

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‘Our house is on fire’: EU parliament declares climate emergency

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Bloc warned against making symbolic gestures not backed up by concrete action

The European parliament has declared a global “climate and environmental emergency” as it urged all EU countries to commit to net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.

The vote came as scientists warned that the world may have already crossed a series of climate tipping points, resulting in “a state of planetary emergency”.

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Ursula von der Leyen: hard Brexit would be massive blow for both sides

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Exclusive: newly elected EU chief suggests there could be emergency help for Ireland

The European commission’s new president has said a hard Brexit would have “massively negative consequences” for both Britain and the EU, and said Brussels could provide emergency help for nations such as Ireland that bear the brunt of such an outcome.

In her first interview since narrowly being approved for the post by the European parliament on Tuesday, Ursula von der Leyen said the withdrawal deal concluded between Theresa May and the commission’s chief Brexit negotiator, Michael Barnier, would remain the basis of any future talks.

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EU nations to be vetted on their adherence to the rule of law

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Policy comes as incoming president seeks to tackle claims she would be beholden to Poland and Hungary

EU nations are to be vetted annually on their adherence to the rule of law, in a renewed attempt from Brussels to stop governments from firing independent judges and packing courts with pliable supporters.

In an effort to stop democratic backsliding, all EU countries will be subject to annual monitoring on the rule of law, the European commission announced on Wednesday, one day after its incoming president, Ursula von der Leyen, sought to assuage critics of her appointment with a pledge to uphold democratic values.

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Ursula von der Leyen elected first female European commission president

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German minister wins narrow backing of MEPs to succeed Jean-Claude Juncker

Ursula von der Leyen has been confirmed as the European commission’s first female president and the first German in the job for more than 50 years.

In a secret ballot, MEPs voted narrowly to support the German defence minister as a replacement for Jean-Claude Juncker when he steps down on 31 October.

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Ursula von der Leyen booed by Brexit party MEPs over Brexit extension – video

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The EU commission president candidate Ursula von der Leyen was booed by Brexit party MEPs as she spoke of her openness to extend the UK’s membership of the EU after 31 October. Speaking in Strasbourg before a vote on Tuesday evening to confirm her position, the outgoing German defence minister said: 'I stand ready for a further extension of the withdrawal date, should more time be required for a good reason.' The leader of the Brexit party, Nigel Farage, accused Von der Leyen of wanting to build 'a centralised, undemocratic, updated form of communism where nation state parliaments will cease to have any relevance at all'

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Ursula von der Leyen makes final pledges to secure EU’s top job

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Candidate to lead European commission seeks to win over MEPs and seal knife-edge vote

The woman seeking to replace Jean-Claude Juncker as the European commission president has made last-minute pledges on the climate crisis, Brexit, an EU minimum wage and gender quotas for company boards as she faces a knife-edge vote on her candidacy.

In leaked letters to the leaders of two of the EU parliament’s main political groups, Ursula von der Leyen, who was nominated two weeks ago by the heads of state and government for the top EU post, has sought to win over critical left-leaning MEPs at the risk of alienating some on the right.

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Ursula von der Leyen signals she will not reopen Brexit talks

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Nominee to lead European commission also says ‘precious’ backstop must be defended

Ursula von der Leyen, the nominee to lead the European commission, has signalled she will not reopen Brexit talks with the next British prime minister and stressed the “precious” Irish backstop must be defended.

She said she still hoped the UK would remain in the European Union, while indicating she had no intention to renegotiate the withdrawal deal agreed by Theresa May and EU leaders.

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With Brexit just one of EU’s headaches, Merkel avoids rocking the boat

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As another five-year term begins, the bloc is straining for unity across a range of issues

When the German chancellor was asked this week why she would not railroad Italy and the so-called Visegrád group of countries – Poland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary – into accepting the former Dutch foreign minister Frans Timmermans, a critic of populist governments, as European commission president, Angela Merkel’s answer was telling.

“The Brexit is looming on the horizon,” Merkel said in reference to the need to avoid tensions when appointing the next head of the commission. “Other important issues are on the table. I think we need to treat each other with care.”

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