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EU budget "own resources" and Commission's proposed changes by EUbusiness — last modified 13 November 2014, 23:31 CET

The EU's Member States invited the Commission on 7 November 2014 to come forward with a proposal for a targeted and limited amendment of the part of the "own resources" legislation implementing the rules of the annual adjustments of Member States' share in the EU budget. This fact sheet aims to provide a comprehensive yet accessible summary of the proposal.

Credit rating agencies: Regulatory Technical Standards to implement stricter new rules by EUbusiness — last modified 30 September 2014, 23:07 CET

The European Commission adopted on 30 September three Regulatory Technical Standards (RTS) needed to implement key provisions of the Regulation on Credit Rating Agencies.

Directive on disclosure of non-financial and diversity information by EUbusiness — last modified 30 September 2014, 22:19 CET

The EU Council adopted on 29 September the Directive on disclosure of non-financial and diversity information by large companies and groups.

EUR 165m package for perishable fruit & vegetable market support by EUbusiness — last modified 30 September 2014, 11:39 CET

The European Commission adopted on 30 September a new programme for emergency market measures for perishable fruit & vegetables in the wake of the Russian ban on imports of certain EU agricultural products.

Annual Report on the Protection of the EU's Financial Interests by EUbusiness — last modified 17 July 2014, 15:45 CET

EU Member States must step up their work to prevent, detect and report fraud affecting EU funds, according to the European Commission's annual report on the protection of financial interests (PIF report). The report sets out detailed recommendations on areas that national authorities should particularly focus on in this respect. The report finds that detected fraud in EU spending accounts for less than 0.2% of all funds. Nevertheless, the Commission believes that greater efforts at national level both on combatting and detecting fraud should be deployed. The annual PIF report therefore recommends, amongst other things, that Member States review their controls to ensure they are risk-based and well-targeted. On the positive side, the report notes that good progress is being made at national level to implement new rules and policies which will strengthen the fight against fraud in the years ahead. Moreover, at EU level, the past 5 years have seen major advances in shaping a stronger anti-fraud landscape. These initiatives can have a marked impact on fraud levels, once they are fully implemented.

European Trust Fund for the Central African Republic by EUbusiness — last modified 14 July 2014, 18:43 CET

The European Commission, Germany, France and the Netherlands are to set up the first European Union Trust Fund, the aim of which is to promote the stabilisation and reconstruction of the Central African Republic (CAR). The Fund has been christened Bêkou, which means 'hope' in Sango, the language of the Central African Republic. The scale of the political and security crisis in the CAR, the difficulties pertaining to infrastructure, the provision of basic services and the functioning of the administration call for international aid that is structured and tailored to situations of fragility and can be organised quickly and efficiently.

Revised guidelines for supporting firms in difficulty by EUbusiness — last modified 09 July 2014, 23:53 CET

The European Commission has revised its rules for assessing Member States' support measures to rescue and restructure companies in difficulty. The new guidelines aim to ensure that public funding is channelled where it is needed most and that investors in failing firms carry their fair share of the costs of restructuring, rather than leaving the burden to taxpayers. The rules adopted apply only to non-financial firms in difficulty; a separate set of rules is in place for banks and other financial institutions. The new guidelines will enter into force on 1 August 2014.

Connecting EU insolvency registers by EUbusiness — last modified 07 July 2014, 17:54 CET

The European Commission launched on 7 July an EU-wide interconnection of national insolvency registers by linking up databases from seven Member States: the Czech Republic, Germany, Estonia, Netherlands, Austria, Romania and Slovenia - with more countries expected to join at a later stage.

Tackling smuggling and fraud in excise goods: EU report by EUbusiness — last modified 17 June 2014, 19:23 CET

Around 816 million cigarettes and 240,000 litres of alcohol were seized by EU customs over a 10 month period in 2013, a report published by the Commission on 16 June reveals.

Reform of the European Anti-Fraud Office (OLAF) by EUbusiness — last modified 11 June 2014, 23:56 CET

The European Commission has proposed measures to further safeguard procedural guarantees in OLAF investigations, in order to complete the already comprehensive reform of the EU's anti-fraud office. The proposal foresees the creation of a new Controller of Procedural Guarantees, who would have two main functions. First, he would be responsible for reviewing and providing recommendations on complaints that might be lodged by anyone implicated in an OLAF investigation. Second, OLAF will have to get authorisation from the Controller before inspecting the offices of members of EU institutions, or taking any documents or data from these offices. Today's proposal is another step to ensure that OLAF can continue to work efficiently and independently in protecting EU financial interests, while also guaranteeing the effective protection of fundamental rights. It complements the proposal for the European Public Prosecutor's Office and the overall improvement of the EU anti-fraud framework in recent years.

Commission steps under the Excessive Deficit Procedure (EDP) by EUbusiness — last modified 02 June 2014, 18:21 CET

The European Commission adopted on 2 June a series of economic policy recommendations to individual EU Member States. As part of this package, the Commission has also adopted several decisions on Member States' public finances under the Stability and Growth Pact.

Country-specific recommendations 2014 by EUbusiness — last modified 02 June 2014, 18:47 CET

The European Commission adopted on 2 June a series of economic policy recommendations to individual EU Member States to strengthen the recovery that began a year ago. The recommendations are based on detailed analyses of each country's situation and provide guidance on how to boost growth, increase competitiveness and create jobs in 2014-2015. The emphasis this tear shifts from addressing the urgent problems caused by the crisis to strengthening the conditions for sustainable growth and employment in a post-crisis economy. As part of this package, the Commission has also adopted several decisions on Member States' public finances under the Stability and Growth Pact. Taken together, they represent an ambitious set of reforms for the EU economy.

Economic review of the financial regulation agenda by EUbusiness — last modified 15 May 2014, 17:48 CET

The European Commission has today published a first comprehensive review of the financial regulation agenda as a whole. This economic review sets out how financial reform measures - most of which are now adopted - will deliver a safer and more responsible financial system by enhancing financial stability, deepening the single market for financial services and improving its efficiency whilst improving market integrity and confidence. Evidence suggests that the total expected benefits of the financial regulation agenda will outweigh the expected costs, both on a rule-by-rule basis and when considering the reforms as a whole. Many rules create considerable positive synergies, e.g. between the capital requirements package in banking and the reform of derivatives markets. The financial system is already changing and improving. This change will continue as the reforms take effect.

Single-Member Companies Directive by EUbusiness — last modified 10 April 2014, 16:20 CET

Today, SMEs face too many obstacles that hamper their economic activities within the Single Market. From the perspective of company law, they often find it costly and difficult to do business across borders. Only a small number of SMEs (2%) invest and establish subsidiaries abroad. The proposal for a Directive on single-member private limited liability companies tackles these obstacles as it would standardise requirements for the creation of companies with a single shareholder. It would remove the burdensome process of registering subsidiaries and make it easier for SMEs to operate across the EU.

Corporate governance package by EUbusiness — last modified 10 April 2014, 16:03 CET

The European Commission has today adopted measures to improve the corporate governance of around 10 000 companies listed on Europe’s stock exchanges. This would contribute to the competitiveness and long-term sustainability of these companies. Other proposals would also provide cost-efficient company law solutions for SMEs which operate across borders. The package of measures implements key actions identified in the Communication on the long-term financing of the European economy of 27 March.

Reform of the EU Statutory Audit Market by EUbusiness — last modified 03 April 2014, 15:52 CET

The European Parliament on 3 April endorsed a draft agreement with the Council of Ministers on legislation to open up the EU audit services market beyond the dominant "Big Four" firms and remedy auditing weaknesses revealed by the financial crisis. The draft also aims to improve audit quality and transparency and to prevent conflicts of interest.

Long-term financing of the European economy by EUbusiness — last modified 27 March 2014, 23:44 CET

The European Commission adopted on 27 March a package of measures to stimulate new and different ways of unlocking long-term financing and support Europe's return to sustainable economic growth. Significant long-term investment will be needed under the Europe 2020 strategy and the 2030 climate and energy package, in infrastructure, new technologies and innovation, R&D and human capital. Investment needs for transport, energy and telecom infrastructure networks of EU importance alone are estimated at €1 trillion for the period up to 2020 as identified by the Connecting Europe Facility.

European Commission support to Ukraine by EUbusiness — last modified 05 March 2014, 22:23 CET

The European Commission agreed on 5 March a package of support identifying a number of concrete measures to assist Ukraine economically and financially. These measures should be seen as the Commission's contribution to a European and international effort to support Ukraine's economic and political reforms, and will be presented to the EU Heads of State and Government ahead of their extraordinary meeting on Thursday 6 March.

In-depth reviews of 17 Member States to check for macroeconomic imbalances by EUbusiness — last modified 05 March 2014, 18:33 CET

The European Commission published on 5 March its conclusions emerging from the in-depth reviews (IDRs) carried out into 17 Member States' economies In the same document, the Commission assessed progress in the correction of fiscal deficits in the Member States concerned, updating its opinions on Draft Budgetary Plans from last year. This is a key step in the now well-established European Semester of economic policy coordination, the yearly economic governance cycle through which the Commission works with the Member States to create the conditions for sustainable growth and employment based on sound public finances, in line with the Europe 2020 growth strategy.

Cooperating against VAT Fraud by EUbusiness — last modified 06 February 2014, 19:52 CET

As part of an intensified battle against tax fraud, the European Commission on 6 February 2014 launched the process to start negotiations with Russia and Norway on administrative cooperation agreements in the area of Value Added Tax (VAT). The broad goal of these agreements would be to establish a framework of mutual assistance in combating cross-border VAT fraud and in helping each country recover the VAT it is due. VAT fraud involving third-country operators is particularly a risk in the telecoms and e-services sectors. Given the growth of these sectors, more effective tools to fight such fraud are essential to protect public budgets. Cooperation agreements with the EU's neighbours and trading partners would improve Member States' chances of identifying and clamping down on VAT fraud, and would stem the financial losses this causes. The Commission is therefore asking Member States for a mandate to start such negotiations with Russia and Norway, while continuing exploratory talks with a number of other important international partners.