Nick Prag

Europe declares solidarity against attack on fundamental values — 08 January 2015, 17:21 CET

EU flags flew at half-mast on Thursday as officials from the European Council, the Commission and Parliament expressed their solidarity with the victims of this week's murderous attack on the satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo in Paris.

Food labels — 11 December 2014, 18:27 CET

Food labels

Allergy sufferers and fussy eaters to benefit from clearer food labelling from this weekend — 11 December 2014, 18:26 CET

The provision of food information to consumers takes a major step forward in the EU this weekend, with a new mandatory food labelling system heading for Europe's supermarket shelves and restaurants.

Latvia readies for its first EU presidency — 04 December 2014, 20:28 CET

This week Latvia's Prime Minister Laimdota Straujuma and members of the Latvian government visited the European Commission in Brussels to discuss the priorities of Latvia's upcoming Presidency of the EU.

Boost for EU transparency, but the Commission has further to go — 27 November 2014, 22:52 CET

A boost to transparency in the European Union was promised this week, when the European Commission committed to publishing information about its meetings with lobbyists, as well as providing more access to documents relating to the ongoing talks with the United States for the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP).

Transatlantic trade talks: what is the problem? — 20 November 2014, 22:09 CET

This week, Europe's Trade Commissioner Cecilia Malmstroem attempted to breath new life into the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership talks that have run into opposition particularly as regards one of the deal's most controversial components.

Cameron's anti-EU stance gets a bashing — 06 November 2014, 22:31 CET

The gloves came off when the new European Commission took office this week, with Britain, or at least its prime minister David Cameron, taking some hefty blows.

EU budgets a touchy topic — 30 October 2014, 23:47 CET

This week marks the last in the Barroso II Commission, and last week's summit was supposed to be a calm transition summit to a new regime at the EU's helm. Instead the stand-out topic of the summit, and of this last week, has been budgets, EU and national.

The cost of study in Europe — 23 October 2014, 17:28 CET

Students wanting to study in Europe face a wide divergence in the levels of student fees and support, according to the latest report from Eurydice, the network which provides information on European education systems and policies.

Making big data work — 16 October 2014, 16:43 CET

This week the European Commission launched a partnership with Europe's data industry, planning to invest EUR 2.5 bn in a public-private partnership in a bid to put Europe at the forefront of the global data race.

EU's eastward march slows down — 09 October 2014, 17:26 CET

Autumn is traditionally the time for the European Commission's annual strategy paper for enlargement. In a set of annual reports adopted this week, it explained EU policy on enlargement, and assessed progress made over the past year by countries wishing to join the EU in the Western Balkans and by Turkey, and the challenges ahead.

Stefan Fule — 09 October 2014, 17:23 CET

Stefan Fule

EBU - Eastern Partnership agreement to strengthen independence of East European media — 02 October 2014, 23:24 CET

The agreement on 2 October between the European Commission and the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) to work at strengthening the independence of the media in the European Neighbourhood Region (ENP) provides an opportunity to highlight the work of the EBU as well as the key role played by the European Neighbourhood Policy at such a dangerous time in east-west relations.

Hope lies in Generation Erasmus — 24 September 2014, 22:39 CET

Not a huge surprise to learn that graduates with international experience fare much better on the job market. A study on the impact of the European Union's Erasmus student exchange programme, released on Monday by the European Commission, shows that studying and training abroad makes a real difference to employment prospects.

Getting young people into work — 17 September 2014, 23:36 CET

Youth employment was the theme of the week in the European Union. This was despite the postponement of a special EU summit on jobs next month which had been called to boost jobs and jump-start the Union's sluggish economy.

Juncker's new-look Commission - a winning team? — 11 September 2014, 22:16 CET

Last week we learned the names of the new top team for the EU over the next five years. This week Commission President-elect Jean Claude Juncker announced his new Commission team. Is this the start of a new era of policy-making at European level?

Europeans have the right to re-use and exploit public information — 17 July 2014, 18:01 CET

Europeans have a genuine right to re-use open public information. And this week the Commission issued a set of guidelines to help Member States take advantage of the revised Directive on re-use of public sector information.

Italy off to green start — 03 July 2014, 22:09 CET

As Italy took over at the helm of the EU on 1 July, Italian prime minister Matteo Renzi picked out growth as the main objective of his country's six-month stint as EU president.

EU announces plans to get us off our couches with a European Week of Sport — 12 June 2014, 19:10 CET

On the eve of the Brazil World Cup, the EU's Sports Commissioner Androulla Vassilio announced plans for the first European Week of Sport, to take place in September 2015. The aim of the event is to promote exercise and sport at all levels.

Taxing the multinationals — 05 June 2014, 22:22 CET

The issue of transfer pricing may not sound too exciting but it is an important issue of taxation which the European Commission is under increasing pressure to tackle.

The digital economy - opportunities for entrepreneurship and taxation — 29 May 2014, 16:46 CET

The report on Taxation of the Digital Economy, released by a High Level Expert Group on 28 May, presents an important challenge for tax systems and governments: to balance the need to encourage a vital sector of Europe's economy with governments' wishes to crack down and tax avoidance and tax evasion.

Euro-elections 2014 - don't let your vote be a wasted vote — 22 May 2014, 18:08 CET

The challenges faced by the EU following the 2014 European elections will no doubt prove a challenge to many of the new MEPs. Voters should consider which candidates are most qualified and capable of doing this work on their behalf. Don't forget to vote.

1 May: tenth anniversary of the EU's 2004 enlargement — 01 May 2014, 21:57 CET

1 May was a day to reflect on how important the EU's largest expansion, the accession of ten new Member States in 2004, has been to the European Union.

'Final Simplification Scoreboard' heralds simpler EU funding rules — 06 March 2014, 16:49 CET

The European Commission adopted its 'Final Simplification Scoreboard' this week – a review of over 120 measures supposed to simplify EU funding rules for Europe's businesses, regions, scientists and NGOs.

Brazil summit boosts hopes for Mercosur deal — 27 February 2014, 17:01 CET

As football fans look forward to this summer's World Cup in Brazil, the country's president Dilma Rousseff met this week with the EU in Brussels in a meeting which re-affirmed the EU's privileged relationship with an important economic and political partner.