Euractiv.com

After the COVID-19 pandemic shone a spotlight on working conditions in meat plants, Germany is moving to tighten rules in a bid to afford workers more job security, but this has been met with criticism by the meat industry.  EURACTIV Germany reports.

Measures imposed by governments to fight the Covid-19 pandemic have squeezed civil liberties worldwide, with authoritarian regimes seeking to exploit the restrictions as a way to shore up their sometimes shaky control on fast-changing societies, rights groups say.

The European Commission on Tuesday (15 December) proposed rules to restrict EU funding for natural gas infrastructure and instead funnel cash into electricity and low-carbon energy networks to meet climate goals.

In today's edition of the Capitals, find out more about France's culture sector calling for cinemas, theatres and museums to open, a former Romanian prime minister facing trial for abuse of office, and so much more.

The Bosniak and Croat members of BiH’s tripartite Presidency – Šefik Džaferović and Željko Komšić – have refused to meet with visiting Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov on Tuesday because of his statements regarding BiH’s path toward NATO and his...

Moscow supports the Serbian leadership’s balanced policy toward building mutually beneficial ties with all interested states because this principle was in the foundations of Russia’s foreign policy, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said in Belgrade on Tuesday. “We welcome Belgrade’s...

The top bodies of Slovenia’s Pensioners’ Party (DeSUS) will meet on Thursday to discuss whether or not the party should leave the ruling coalition, party leader Karl Erjavec said on Tuesday, noting that there was pressure from the rank-and-file, dissatisfied...

Bulgaria’s grey economy has been declining for five years now, but the lack of reforms in healthcare, competition and justice is slowing the positive trend. The country’s informal economy is estimated at about €60 billion, meaning it corresponds to about...

The Czech health ministry has commissioned consultancy company Ernst & Young to devise a vaccination strategy against COVID-19. The company has been asked to come up with a strategy on distribution, a massive IT system to control the vaccination, as...

Poland’s State Assets Minister Jacek Sasin will soon “file a motion” for the removal of the Secretary of State in the Ministry, Janusz Kowalski, a source in the ruling Law and Justice (PiS) party told the national press agency PAP....

Athens has welcomed US sanctions against two Turkish ministries and three officials over Ankara’s purchase of the Russian S-400 anti-aircraft system. The US Ambassador to Greece, Geoffrey Pyatt, briefed Greek Foreign Minister Nikos Dendias on Tuesday about Washington’s sanctions. Read...

The whole government is “pushing in the same direction” for the economic relaunch of the country, said Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte, though coalition partner Italy Alive, led by former PM Matteo Renzi, has asked for a meeting to discuss...

After a year on a short leash, Finnish Foreign Minister Pekka Haavisto (Greens) retained the confidence of parliament after MPs voted in favour of him staying in office on Tuesday morning, with 101 in favour and 68 against. In the...

Various actors from the world of entertainment and culture in France protested on Tuesday, calling on the government to “lift the lockdown on culture” after it decided to lift the country’s second lockdown as of Tuesday but announced that venues...

After the European Medicines Agency (EMA) said it will meet next Monday to assess the approval of the Pfizer / BioNTech vaccine, Belgian Prime Minister Alexander De Croo said Belgium could be ready to start vaccination sooner if the first...

The Christian Democratic Union (CDU) could be taking aim at Germany’s public broadcasting networks ahead of the 2021 election, following a proposal from the party’s “Federal Committee of Experts on the Economy, Jobs, Taxes”, calling for their privatisation – a...

French and Dutch securities regulators called on Tuesday (15 December) for European Union rules to prevent "greenwashing" or inaccurate claims that investments are sustainable and climate-friendly.

The Hungarian parliament approved on Tuesday amendments to the constitution that proclaim, among other things, that “the mother is a woman, the father is a man.” It also now states that “Hungary protects the right of children to self-identity according...

The Spanish government will draft a list of “safe” mobile technology suppliers for the future local 5G mobile network to assess their level of risk, allowing the government to avoid issuing an explicit veto against Chinese giant Huawei or any other mobile operator, EFE reported.

A two-day conference of the 54 parties to the Energy Charter Treaty, opening on Wednesday (16 December), will attempt to move forward in reforming the little-known charter, decried by environmentalists for protecting fossil fuel investments and blocking international efforts to curb global warming.