European Parliament - Eprs Policy Podcasts

While many of the operations and missions the EU supports have military and defence implications, the EU cannot finance activities with military or defence implications from the EU budget. EU Member States therefore have mechanisms to fund expenditure with military and defence implications directly from national budgets. A new one is the European Peace Facility, an off-budget fund with a financial ceiling of €5.692 billion financed by Member State contributions. Learn more about it in our podcast! http://www.europarl.europa.eu/thinktank/en/document.html?reference=EPRS_BRI(2021)690641 https://youtu.be/Ew7H3-KLSwg Source: © European Union - EP

Over the past two decades, the European Union (EU) has been entrusted with a growing number of objectives and responsibilities. However, ensuring financing of related activities through the EU budget has often proven problematic, as this has long been capped at around 1 % of the Union's gross national income (GNI). During the preparation of the post-2020 EU multiannual financial framework (MFF), climate action, migration and border management were identified among the emerging priorities that required increased joint action and funding. http://www.europarl.europa.eu/thinktank/en/document.html?reference=EPRS_BRI(2021)690586 https://youtu.be/URWEBGtfF0I Source: © European Union - EP

The social pillar is to be the fifth pillar of the economic and monetary union. It is to serve as a compass for updating the EU's welfare states and labour markets to the new realities of life and work in the 21st century. At the Porto Social Summit held on 7-8 May 2021, European leaders and stakeholders reaffirmed their pledge to work towards a social Europe that leaves no one behind, prioritising support for young people and focusing on reducing inequalities, defending fair wages, fighting social exclusion and tackling poverty. http://www.europarl.europa.eu/thinktank/en/document.html?reference=EPRS_BRI(2021)690591 https://youtu.be/5YzTIBlSKDI Source: © European Union - EP

In December 2020, the European Commission published a proposal for a regulation on contestable and fair markets in the digital sector, otherwise referred to as the digital markets act (DMA). The proposed legislation lays down harmonised rules aimed at regulating the behaviour of digital platforms acting as gatekeepers between business users and their customers in the European Union. This approach entails a shift from ex-post anti-trust intervention to ex-ante regulation, and would enshrine within EU law a set of ex-ante rules that would radically change how large digital platforms are allowed to operate in the EU. While there seems to be strong support for this approach in the EU, a number of issues regarding the designation of gatekeepers, the design of ex-ante obligations and prohibitions, and enforcement mechanisms have already been raised. http://www.europarl.europa.eu/thinktank/en/document.html?reference=EPRS_BRI(2021)690589 https://youtu.be/1p6vZsVQP6o Source: © European Union - EP

In its Europe's Beating Cancer plan, published in February 2021, the European Commission suggests several actions concerning alcoholic beverages. One of them is mandatory labelling of ingredients and nutrient content on alcoholic beverages by the end of 2022. Health warnings on labels should follow by the end of 2023. https://www.europarl.europa.eu/thinktank/en/document.html?reference=EPRS_BRI(2021)690563 https://youtu.be/Qlzyp6QiUyA Source: © European Union - EP

The challenges posed by migration have put EU Member States' solidarity to the test. Responding to a European Council request, in September 2020 the European Commission proposed a new pact on migration and asylum. The proposed pact has an external aspect: it aims to reinforce international partnerships with a view to ensuring effective returns, combating migrant smuggling more effectively, and developing legal migration channels. https://www.europarl.europa.eu/thinktank/en/document.html?reference=EPRS_BRI(2021)690535 https://youtu.be/ILZlpokWyxM Source: © European Union - EP

Coronavirus has accelerated the rise of digital health, a broad concept that includes solutions for telemedicine and teleconsultation, remote monitoring, connected devices, digital health platforms and health apps. The concept also covers the related health data analysis and application in systems based on big data, for instance for epidemiological research and AI-enabled diagnosis support. Nevertheless, there are many challenges to overcome: a widening 'digital divide', data protection, privacy, etc. But what can the EU do about it? Listen to learn more! https://www.europarl.europa.eu/thinktank/en/document.html?reference=EPRS_BRI(2021)690548 https://youtu.be/pfmZN14O7vI Source: © European Union - EP

Serbia and Kosovo have both declared their intention to join the EU. However, despite some initial successes, such as the Brussels Agreement of 2013, the dialogue facilitated by the EU and initiated in 2011 has stalled. The reasons for the very limited results are multiple, ranging from the internal political situation in both countries, to ambiguous and asymmetrical expectations of the normalisation agreement. Currently, the most sensitive issue, the setting-up of the association/community of Serbian municipalities in Kosovo, agreed in 2013, shows that the challenges are rooted deeply in history and have a much broader regional context. https://www.europarl.europa.eu/thinktank/en/document.html?reference=EPRS_BRI(2021)689371 https://youtu.be/VAfRu0DlMks Source: © European Union - EP

What is a smart village? The concept implies the participation of local people in improving their economic, social or environmental conditions, cooperation with other communities, social innovation and the development of smart village strategies. This concept is gaining traction on the rural development agenda, coinciding with the ongoing reform of the common agricultural policy (CAP). A key element of this reform will be a new delivery model based on each Member State developing a CAP strategic plan. https://www.europarl.europa.eu/thinktank/en/document.html?reference=EPRS_BRI(2021)689349 https://youtu.be/5LL7seLyMTM Source: © European Union - EP

Racial and ethnic minorities face discrimination and its consequences on a daily basis. The exact scale of the problem is hard to gauge owing to a lack of data and general under-reporting of racist incidents. The pandemic has seen a major increase in reports of racist and xenophobic incidents, however, while racial and ethnic minority groups have been disproportionately affected by the crisis, with higher death and infection rates. Although since 2000 the European Union has introduced legislation to combat racial and xenophobic discrimination, the problem persists, with the need for new measures recently highlighted by the global Black Lives Matter protests. https://www.europarl.europa.eu/thinktank/en/document.html?reference=EPRS_BRI(2021)690525 https://youtu.be/hEr0w6t_cwc Source: © European Union - EP

In her first State of the Union speech, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen called for the use of qualified majority voting (QMV) in areas such as sanctions and human rights. The crises and security challenges accumulating in and around the European Union have added to the urgency of having a more effective and rapid decision-making process in areas pertaining to the Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP) and Common Security and Defence Policy (CSDP). https://www.europarl.europa.eu/thinktank/en/document.html?reference=EPRS_BRI(2021)659451 https://youtu.be/aX2wstKIi6Y Source: © European Union - EP

The arrival of the Covid-19 vaccines marks a turning point in the fight against the coronavirus pandemic. According to estimates, coverage of at least 60 % to 75 % is needed to establish population immunity through vaccination. But, as regards Covid-19 vaccination, surveys suggest that Europeans are among the most sceptical in the world. https://www.europarl.europa.eu/thinktank/en/document.html?reference=EPRS_BRI(2021)679063 https://youtu.be/Twavrn0NucU Source: © European Union - EP

The dramatic consequences of climate change and environmental degradation have brought the need for a more sustainable economy to the top of the agenda. Transforming the EU economy to make it more sustainable requires large investments, especially for enabling a green and low-carbon transition. Given that the public sector alone cannot cover this financial need, solutions have been sought to bring the private sector on board. https://www.europarl.europa.eu/thinktank/en/document.html?reference=EPRS_BRI(2021)679081 https://youtu.be/VUrVv9Ud-7o Source: © European Union - EP

International law imposes an obligation to render assistance to persons and ships in distress at sea, which must be provided regardless of the persons' nationality or status or the circumstances in which they are found. Nevertheless, over the last couple of years, the Mediterranean Sea has been the backdrop for the largest number of casualties and missing people. One solution, proposed by academics, could be the harmonisation of the fragmented legal regime for maritime interceptions. https://www.europarl.europa.eu/thinktank/en/document.html?reference=EPRS_BRI(2021)659442 https://youtu.be/AHIZAuPJ2g8 Source: © European Union - EP

The public sector loan facility is the third pillar of the Just Transition Mechanism (JTM), along with the Just Transition Fund and just transition scheme under Invest EU. The facility will consist of a grant and a loan component. With the contribution of €1.525 billion for the grant component from the Union budget and EIB lending of €10 billion from its own resources, the aim is for the public sector loan facility to mobilise between €25 and 30 billion in public investment over the 2021-2027 period. https://www.europarl.europa.eu/thinktank/en/document.html?reference=EPRS_BRI(2020)659428 https://youtu.be/DOLdqWSPgH8 Source: © European Union - EP

The pandemic has highlighted the risk involved, including for the EU, in relying heavily on external suppliers. The EU's 30 critical raw materials (CRMs) combine two characteristics: they are strategically important for its industry and economy, and there are high risks associated with securing their supply. The twin transition to a green and digital future relies particularly on the safe and diverse supply of CRMs. https://www.europarl.europa.eu/thinktank/en/document.html?reference=EPRS_BRI(2020)659426 https://youtu.be/kAEdvuDqmd0 Source: © European Union - EP

The EU has unveiled an ambitious plan to regulate online platforms, and the European Commission is proposing to introduce ex ante regulation to ensure that markets characterised by large platforms acting as digital gatekeepers remain fair and competitive for innovators, businesses, and new market entrants. https://www.europarl.europa.eu/thinktank/en/document.html?reference=EPRS_BRI(2020)659397 https://youtu.be/liEPW20_lYc Source: © European Union - EP

The EU climate target plan proposes to increase the 2030 target from a 40 % emissions reduction to a 55 % net emissions reduction, compared with 1990 levels. https://www.europarl.europa.eu/thinktank/en/document.html?reference=EPRS_BRI(2020)659370 https://youtu.be/i6h6f6whtdg Source: © European Union - EP

The EU adopts restrictive measures – mostly in the form of travel bans and asset freezes – against individuals and organisations responsible for some of the worst human rights violations. Until now, the EU has mostly adopted sanctions targeted at individual countries. However, the EU is now shifting to a more thematic approach, under which sanctions focus on a particular type of problem rather than a country. https://www.europarl.europa.eu/thinktank/en/document.html?reference=EPRS_BRI(2020)659402 https://youtu.be/nuyFLBjZ4nY Source: © European Union - EP

Listen to Madeleine Albright, the first ever female United States Secretary of State from 1997 to 2001 under President Bill Clinton, give her opinion about the current state of democracy in the West as well as global international relations. https://youtu.be/C3j6oq_SCds Source: © European Union - EP