Talks on a trade agreement between Britain and the European Union could continue in the New Year if no agreement is reached, EU sources have cited Michel Barnier as saying.
A European source confirmed to Euronews reports from the AFP that the EU’s chief negotiator said he would not close the door on the United Kingdom and that he remains ready to negotiate even beyond January 1.
Earlier Barnier told reporters in Brussels that European and British teams were giving it a “final push” in their talks for a post-Brexit trade agreement.
The UK leaves the European single market on 31 December, after its European Union membership ended earlier this year.
The two sides continue to disagree on three significant policy areas: European fishing rights in British waters, EU demands for fair competition rules and the question of how trade disputes will be resolved.
Speaking to reporters on Tuesday ahead of a meeting in Brussels with EU ambassadors, Barnier said: “We are really in a crucial moment and we are giving it a final push,” Barnier told journalists on Tuesday.
“In 10 days, the UK will leave the single market and I will continue to work in total transparency with the member states right now and with the [European] Parliament.”
Talks between the two teams were set to continue on Wednesday.
In light of the difficult political context Europe is facing, with COVID-19, Brexit, US tariffs, and trade tensions, more thought should be put into different models of agriculture to address future challenges, the right-wing MEP Mazaly Aguilar (ECR) told EURACTIV in an interview.
“The pandemic has confirmed that agriculture is a strategic sector for European citizens,” Aguilar said, adding that it was not possible to anticipate what would happen in the coming weeks or months.
Given the problems with the pandemic, Brexit, US tariffs, and the Mercosur agreement, there would be many issues touching farmers across the bloc and, according to the Spanish lawmaker, the solution to limit the damages cannot only come from EU’s main farming programme, the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP).
“In a post-pandemic world, we should understand that new green obligations to protect the environment cannot undermine our capacity to produce healthy and safe food at an affordable price for EU citizens,” she said, referring to the strong push on sustainability embedded in European Commission’s flagship food policy, the Farm to Fork strategy (F2F).
For here, the keyword for the future is coexistence. “Different models of agriculture must coexist to meet the challenges ahead. Focusing on organic production and local markets is a very partial response to our needs.”
To this end, Aguilar stressed that “precision farming and new plant breeding techniques should be further developed in a post-pandemic scenario to help organic production achieve sustainability.”
At the same time, she pointed towards the need for a plan to support farmers to overcome the effects of the pandemic.
“We need a plan with additional funding from the EU budget and in coordination with other EU policies, CAP cannot do it alone,” she said.
As the exceptional measures taken by the European Commission have not been deemed adequate to relieve distressed agri-food markets, the idea of deploying the so far unused crisis fund, set up in the 2013 Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) reform, is coming to the fore.
Scrap the CAP?
The possible option of scrapping the proposed CAP reform if it is not in line with the EU’s flagship environmental policy, the European Green Deal, has struck a sour note in the first weeks of negotiations between the European Parliament and the outgoing German EU presidency chairing the EU27 farming ministers.
The European Commission’s threat to withdraw its legislative proposal for the post-2020 EU’s farming subsidies programme has irritated EU lawmakers. EURACTIV.com asked some legal experts to clear the air about the controversy.
Withdrawing the proposal would halt the talks and force the EU executive to re-start the legislative process by tabling a new document.
After Commission Vice-President Frans Timmermans hinted at this possibility, the Commission has tried to tone down the dispute and defuse a potential institutional crisis.
Asked what she thought of this threat, Aguilar said it would not be the first time that the EU executive proposes to revoke its own proposal during negotiations between the Parliament, Commission, and Council representing EU countries, as it is often used as a negotiating strategy.
“I do not take seriously the threats from Timmermans, but I must admit I am very concerned about the prominent role he is taking in the negotiations over a file for which his knowledge and responsibility is very limited,” the MEP added.
For Aguilar, Timmermans is overreacting since, apart from a few issues in the green architecture, she does not see big differences between the positions of the Parliament and the Council.
Asked if she had expected such strong reactions from environmental organisations on the current negotiations, Aguilar said it seems to be “never enough to meet the green expectations”.
“I have experienced myself in some internal negotiations that if green and far-left groups do not get 100% of what they want, the final outcome will be useless despite the integration of many of their concerns and expectations,” she said.
Nutritional labelling
Earlier in December, EU agricultural ministers shelved plans for food labelling in terms of nutrition and origin, a thorny issue which has long been a bone of contention among governments.
One of the major obstacles is the trade-off between nutritional labelling and protection of regional products.
Commenting on member states being stuck on nutritional labelling, Aguilar said consumers simply need the best available information on the nutritional value of the products they buy.
“Unfortunately, the Nutriscore has shown that is not the best tool to help consumers to make the right choice as these sort of labelling schemes can be very harmful in the medium run as they will create the wrong perceptions in consumers about the food they eat,” the MEP said.
Nutriscore is a food-labelling system developed in France, and also used in Spain and Belgium. It is, however, opposed by Italy, which is trying to promote its own scheme called NutrInform.
“What we urgently need is more education and communication campaigns about what a healthy diet means, mandatory origin labelling and a better monitoring on labelling of imported products,” Aguilar added.
“In less than two years, children and families in Cabo Delgado have faced a devastating cyclone, flooding, drought, socioeconomic hardship linked to the COVID-19 pandemic and conflict”, said UNICEF Executive Director Henrietta Fore, on Monday.
Weather-related disasters and conflict over the past two years have contributed to food insecurity and hunger across Cabo Delgado, where two out of every five children are chronically malnourished and severe acute malnutrition are being detected amongst the displaced population.
In less than two years, children and families in Cabo Delgado have faced a devastating cyclone, flooding, drought, socioeconomic hardship linked to the COVID-19 pandemic, and conflict.https://t.co/z4oBwHBRKe
As the rainy season sets in, services must be strengthened for overcrowded temporary accommodation centres and host communities to prevent the outbreak of water-borne diseases, like cholera and the further spread of COVID-19, according to UNICEF.
Health conditions like diarrhoea, which are easily prevented and treated, can be deadly for displaced children without access to safe water and adequate sanitation. This is especially true for children suffering from malnutrition.
“As conditions in the province deteriorate further – especially with the start of rainy season – water, sanitation and health care systems are under increasing strain”, explained the UNICEF chief.
UNICEF’s expanded assistance
In response, UNICEF is expanding its water and sanitation support as well as visiting communities and centers to screen children’s nutritional status and provide lifesaving treatment, including therapeutic food for severe cases.
Mobile teams are also providing regular healthcare to women, mothers and children, ensuring that key services, such as antenatal care and standard vaccination cycles, are observed.
“Humanitarian partners on the ground must shore up these services to protect the lives and wellbeing of the region’s children”, said Ms. Fore.
Traumatized children
UNICEF explained that displaced children who have lost contact with their families or been exposed to physical and psychological violence are especially vulnerable.
Many who have witnessed or experienced extreme brutality – or even lost close family members to vicious killings and abductions – need comprehensive protections, including psychosocial support after suffering such trauma.
UNICEF and its partners are running child-friendly spaces where displaced children can play in a safe environment while trained facilitators can identify those who need more specialized care.
More help needed
There is, however, an urgent need to expand the network of trained case workers to visit surviving children and their families at home to provide psychosocial support and protection and social service referrals.
For 2021, UNICEF is appealing for $52.8 million to respond to the most urgent humanitarian needs across Mozambique, including $30 million as part of the Humanitarian Response Plan for Cabo Delgado.
BRUSSELS: European Union (EU) negotiator Michel Barnier (pix) vowed on Tuesday to continue to push for a post-Brexit trade deal in the last 10 days before Britain leaves the single market.
“We are really in the crucial moment, and we are giving it the final push,” Barnier told reporters as he headed into a meeting with EU ambassadors in Brussels
“In 10 days the UK will leave the single market and I will continue to work, in total transparency with the European Parliament and the member states,” he said.
If the talks between Barnier and his UK counterpart David Frost fail to reach a breakthrough in the coming days, the UK will leave without a follow-on trade deal.
Tariffs would be reimposed on cross-Channel trade in food and goods, exacerbating the economic shock of a return to a border after 47 years of integration.
But the talks are deadlocked over how to ensure fair trade rules are respected in the future and, especially, over how to assign fishing rights in UK waters.
On Monday, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson and EU chief Ursula von der Leyen held a crisis call to discuss Brexit and the coronavirus crisis.
The call, revealed Tuesday by an EU source, came amid reports that Britain had improved its offer on fish, moving closer to Brussels’ demand for long-term access. But French officials told AFP that the British position had not yet moved far enough.
The two sides are haggling over the cut EU fishermen will take to their catch in British waters and the length of a transition period to phase in the changes.
The eleventh-hour talks have also been overshadowed by the fast-moving crisis over the new coronavirus strain found by London.
Amid reports the new mutation of Covid-19 might spread more quickly than previous ones, 40 countries in Europe and around the world cut travel links to Britain.
The EU is scrambling to come up with a coordinated response after cross-channel traffic was left snarled as France shut down entry for passengers and goods.
Ambassadors from the bloc’s 27 members are to meet later Tuesday to try to hammer out a joint plan to allow cargo to start moving again and EU nationals to return home.
Von der Leyen’s Commission has recommended that blanket bans be discontinued in order to allow essential passenger travel and freight shipments to resume.
But Germany and Ireland have already renewed their precautionary bans and France is in talks with London over instituting virus tests for truck drivers. – AFP
During an audience granted to Cardinal Marcello Semeraro, Prefect of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints, Pope Francis authorized the publication of Decrees regarding:
– the martyrdom of the Servant of God Rosario Angelo Livatino, layman; born 3 October 1952 at Canicatti, Italy; killed, in hatred of the faith, on the highway between Canicatti and Agrigento on 21 September 1990;
– the heroic virtue of the Servant of God Vasco de Quiroga, Bishop of Michoacán, Mexico; born around 1470 in Madrigal de las Altas Torres, Spain; died in Pátzcuaro, Mexico on 14 March 1565;
– the heroic virtue of the Servant of God Bernardino Piccinelli (né Dino), of the Order of the Servants of Mary [Servites], titular Bishop of Gaudiaba and Auxiliary of Ancona; born 24 January 1905 at Madonna dei Fornelli, in the municipality of San Benedetto Val di Sambro, Italy; died at Ancona, Italy on 1 October 1984;
– the heroic virtue of the Servant of God Antonio Vincenzo González Suárez, diocesan Priest; born 5 April 1817 at Agüimes, Spain; died at Las Palmas, Spain, on 22 June 1851;
– the heroic virtue of the Servant of God Antonio Seghezzi, diocesan Priest; born 25 August 1906 in Premolo, Italy; died at Dachau, Germany, on 21 May 1945;
– the heroic virtue of the Servant of God Bernardo Antonini, diocesan Priest; born 20 October 1932 at Cimego, Italy; died at Karganda, Kazakhstan on 27 March 2002;
– the heroic virtue of the Servant of God Ignazio Stuchlý, Priest of the Society of Saint Francs de Sales [Salesians]; born 14 December 1869 in Bolesław, in what is now Poland; died in Lukov, Czech Republic on 17 January 1953;
– the heroic virtue of the Servant of God Rosa Staltari, professed Religious of the Congregation of the Daughters of Mary Most Holy, Co-Redemptrix; born 3 May 1951 at Antonimina, Italy; died in Palermo, Italy, on 4 January 1974.
The European Union (EU) has signed an additional contribution of EUR 4.6 million to the 2020 Programme Budget of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) to help address the needs of Palestine refugees during the COVID-19 pandemic through its health and relief programmes.
The announcement was made during a virtual meeting on 11 November between UNRWA Commissioner-General, Philippe Lazzarini, and the EU Commissioner for Neighbourhood and Enlargement, Olivér Várhelyi. This contribution comes in addition to the disbursement earlier this year of EUR 82 million to the UNRWA Programme Budget.
The UNRWA Commissioner-General expressed his deep appreciation for the continued EU trust and support: “I am very grateful for the European Union’s partnership with UNRWA and commitment towards Palestine refugees. This additional contribution is highly valued at a time when the Agency is facing an unprecedented financial crisis, exacerbated by the Covid-19 pandemic”.
The European Union Representative in Jerusalem, Sven Kühn von Burgsdorff, said “I’m very pleased that we could pay this additional allocation still this year. 2020 has been a very difficult year for Palestine refugees, who are not only badly affected by the COVID-19 pandemic and UNRWA’s serious financial crisis but also political tensions and the economic downturn in Palestine. This support will help address the much needed services for Palestinians in refugee camps, and notably in the health sector. UNRWA’s work remains crucial for all Palestinian refugees and the viability of the two-state solution, as well as for the stability and security of the region.”
The partnership between the European Union and UNRWA – which will next year mark its 50th anniversary – has evolved with the EU and its Member States becoming the largest multilateral provider of international assistance to Palestine refugees. This steadfast support has enabled UNRWA to provide frontline services to Palestine refugees across the Middle East, in the absence of a just and lasting solution to the plight of Palestine refugees.
Background Information:
UNRWA is confronted with an increased demand for services resulting from a growth in the number of registered Palestine refugees, the extent of their vulnerability and their deepening poverty. UNRWA is funded almost entirely by voluntary contributions and financial support has been outpaced by the growth in needs. As a result, the UNRWA programme budget, which supports the delivery of core essential services, operates with a large shortfall. UNRWA encourages all Member States to work collectively to exert all possible efforts to fully fund the Agency’s programme budget. UNRWA emergency programmes and key projects, also operating with large shortfalls, are funded through separate funding portals.
UNRWA is a United Nations agency established by the General Assembly in 1949 and mandated to provide assistance and protection to some 5.7 million Palestine refugees registered with UNRWA across its five fields of operation. Its mission is to help Palestine refugees in Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, West Bank, including East Jerusalem and the Gaza Strip achieve their full human development potential, pending a just and lasting solution to their plight. UNRWA services encompass education, health care, relief and social services, camp infrastructure and improvement, protection and microfinance.
EU AND UNRWA: TOGETHER FOR PALESTINE REFUGEES
Since 1971, the European Union and UNRWA have maintained a strategic partnership governed by the shared objective to support the human development, humanitarian and protection needs of Palestine refugees and promote stability in the Middle East. Today, the European Union is the largest multilateral provider of international assistance to Palestine refugees. This reliable and predictable support from the European Union enables UNRWA to provide core services to more than 5.7 million Palestine refugees in Jordan, Syria, Lebanon, the West Bank and Gaza, including quality education for roughly half a million children and primary health care for more than 3.5 million patients. Collectively, the EU and its Member States are also among the largest contributors to the Agency’s humanitarian emergency appeals and projects in response to various crises and specific needs across the region. The partnership between the European Union and UNRWA has allowed millions of Palestine refugees to be better educated, live healthier lives, access employment opportunities and improve their living conditions, thus contributing to the development of the entire region.
2020 was an unprecedented year for WHO/Europe. COVID-19 dominated WHO’s work around the world, including the European Region, with support and cooperation taking place across countries. Dr Hans Henri P. Kluge was also officially appointed WHO Regional Director for Europe, and at the 70th session of the WHO Regional Committee for Europe, the European Programme of Work was endorsed by all 53 Member States. We look back on some of the key moments over the past 12 months.
The film industry, for instance, could lose about 10 million jobs this year, while a third of world’s art galleries could cut their staffing by half, data collected by the agency shows. Similarly, a six-month closure could cost the music industry over $10 billion in lost sponsorships, while the global publishing market could shrink by 7.5 per cent.
“The sector, which accounts for 30 million jobs, is struggling to survive and needs our help,” UNESCO Director-General Audrey Azoulay said on Monday.
Culture has helped us out of the crisis. Now we have to help culture and support the diversity to which culture owes its strength – UNESCO chief Audrey Azoulay
“Culture has helped us out of the crisis. Now we have to help culture and support the diversity to which culture owes its strength,” she added.
It is not only the sector itself that has been hit hard, people have also lost access to cultural events.
Since COVID-19 hit, concerts, art events and festivals have been taking place online. However almost one in two people globally cannot access them due to issues such as lack of internet connectivity, according to UNESCO estimates.
Targeted policies
In response, UNESCO developed a practical guide to help governments and policy makers address the challenges artists and cultural professionals are facing during the pandemic. Culture in Crisis: A Policy Guide for a Resilient Creative Sector also offers advice on strengthening resilience of the creative industries in the future.
The agency is also urging specific action to address the gender dimensions of COVID-19 impact on the culture sector, as women – who hold a higher proportion of precarious jobs in sector – are particularly vulnerable to social and economic insecurity.
The guide presents three key actions for governments: direct support to artists and cultural professionals; indirect support to cultural and creative industries; and strengthening the competitiveness of cultural and creative industries.
Specific measures outlined in the policy guide include commissioning and purchase of works; providing compensation for loss of income; promoting programmes to develop new skills; providing temporary relief from regulations and tax incentives; promoting national content; stimulating demand; and making available preferential loans.
The guide also includes best practice examples from numerous countries.
The European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA), the EU’s securities markets regulator, has today updated its Questions and Answers on the implementation of investor protection topics under the Market in Financial Instruments Directive and Regulation (MiFID II/ MiFIR).
The Q&As on MiFID II and MiFIR investor protection and intermediaries’ topics includes one new Q&As on ‘Information on costs and charges’ that aim to give guidance on how firms can present ex-post costs and charges information to clients in a fair, clear and not misleading manner.
In particular, the information should be presented:
through a standalone document (which could still be sent together with other periodic documents to clients); or
within a document of wider content, provided that it is given the necessary prominence to allow clients to find it easily.
The purpose of the MiFID II/MiFIR investor protection Q&As is to promote common supervisory approaches and practices in the application of MiFID II and MiFIR.
ESMA will continue to develop this Q&A document on investor protection topics under MiFID II and MiFIR, both adding questions and answers to the topics already covered and introducing new sections for other MiFID II investor protection areas not yet addressed in this Q&A document.
EIB signs €100 million (DKK 745 million) loan with Novozymes A/S to further support its research, development and innovation activities regarding biological solutions
The research focuses on biological solutions that can have a positive climate impact, such as in industrial, household and agrifood applications
The European Investment Bank (EIB) has signed a €100 million (DKK 745 million) loan with Novozymes, the Danish-based world leader in biological solutions. The financing will support the company’s R&D investment plans for the coming years, and will mainly benefit R&D activities for discovering and producing enzymes that can be used in both industrial and home activities, reducing the need for traditional chemical products.
Demand for biological solutions is growing due to their potential for replacing less environmentally-friendly chemicals or more energy-intensive processes. They can, for example, be used to wash clothing at lower temperatures, thus saving energy, or reduce CO2 emissions in agriculture by adding enzymes to animal feed.
EIB Vice-President Christian Kettel Thomsen stated: “The EIB and Novozymes go back a long way, and we’re glad to continue our support. By bringing down the climate impact of everyday things, the enzymes that Novozymes researches can open the door to new, more climate friendly ways of going about our lives, something that the EIB – as the EU’s climate bank – supports wholeheartedly. Denmark can be proud of having such a world-leading company, and safeguarding this kind of in-house EU-knowledge is very important for us.”
The research, development and innovation activities supported under this financing will be carried out at Novozymes’ R&D facilities in Bagsværd and Lyngby in Denmark. Since 2004, the European Investment Bank has made available €740 million to support Novozymes’ research and development activities and the previous loan was signed in early 2019.
