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Tories' draft EU Referendum Bill confirms the poor state of the party
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The UKIP victory in the local elections in England at the start of the month continues to make its impact felt on British politics. After former Tory ministers publicly backed withdrawal, and present Tory ministers indicated that they too would vote...
Europe Day 2013 - European Year of Citizens
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Happy Europe Day! Although clearly the numbers of people happy with Europe have dropped sharply recently, so it's not likely that you will see many events celebrating it.It's Europe Day in the European Year of Citizens, so it's probably appropriate t...
Motion for same-sex marriage fails in Northern Ireland
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Over the past few months same sex marriage has been approved in England and Wales and in France, with a strong recommendation for a constitutional amendment for same sex marriage in Ireland (from the Constitutional Convention). Yesterday a motion cal...
Draft EU PNR Directive voted down at Committee Stage
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The LIBE Committee of the European Parliament has shot down the draft Passenger Name Record Directive by a vote of 30-25, with the Liberal, Green and left wing groups voting against and the conservative groups for the draft law. The Directive concern...
Dalligate scandal deepens in Brussels
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EUObserver is reporting that a confidential and highly damaging report on OLAF’s conduct of the investigation into allegations of corruption against Health Commissioner Dalli - by OLAF's own supervisors - has been sent to the European Parliamen...
Irish President Michael D Higgin's address to the European Parliament
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Yesterday President Higgins of Ireland addressed the European Parliament on the Union and citizenship. (The President of Ireland is a ceremonial head of state that is directly elected, and, sadly, it is difficult to imagine a head of government in Eu...
European Citizens' Initiative and Let Me Vote!
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At the start of the month the European Citizens' Initiative (ECI) turned one year old. The Commission has claimed it a success - Commissioner Maroš Šefčovič noted that:"The Commission has received requests for the registration...
Could Fidesz be expelled from the European People's Party?
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Der Standard reported yesterday on a dinner of leading members of the EPP, including Joseph Daul and Commissioner Viviane Reding, to consider whether the ruling party in Hungary, Fidesz, should be expelled from the party:"In der Europäischen Vol...
SPD Manifesto: A different course for Europe?
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It's no secret that the European left are depending on a victory in Germany in this year's federal election before there can be some change of course on the Eurocrisis. With French, Italian and German elections within 18 months of each other (though...
European Elections in Croatia
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Today Croatia goes to the polls to elect its 12 MEPs - the country will formally join the EU on 1st July this year. Those elected won't have too long to establish themselves with elections for the whole Parliament in 2014, and, on top of that, the nu...
The Eurocrisis and Industrial Relations
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That the Eurocrisis has changed industrial relations in Europe is the understated conclusion of the Commission's new paper, Industrial Relations in Europe 2012. The report comes from the DG for Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion, headed by Comm...
Childers resigns from the EP Irish Parliamentary Labour Party
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The Irish Labour Party has had a rough few weeks. Currently in government with the centre-right Fine Gael, it had finally become the second biggest political party in Ireland after the last election (an achievement for the main centre-left party that...
Economic Union and Cyprus
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The crisis flared up in a shocking manner this week as Cyprus, long on the list of potential bail-out countries, found itself at the centre of the Eurocrisis after the controversial bail-out deal was rejected by the Cypriot parliament. The ECB has ex...
Liquidating Anglo Irish Bank
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Last night the Oireachtas (Irish parliament) held an extended sitting lasting into the night to pass emergency legislation to liquidate the Irish Bank Resolution Corporation, the successor to the Anglo Irish Bank. The legislation was sprung on lawmak...
February to be a big month for same sex marriage in Western Europe
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French deputies voted by 249-97 in favour of redefining marriage as applying to same sex as well as opposite sex couples. The change is not law yet, but the vote represents one of the bill's main hurdles, and it has been passed in a very passionate p...
Collective Management of Music Copyright Directive
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While the internet and digital culture has changed the way we consume media, the internal market hasn't quite kept up. The Commission's approach to extending the internal market online is based on the Digital Agenda for Europe (PDF) and the Single Ma...
A Czech President and a Bulgarian Poll
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Milos Zeman, a former social democrat Prime Minister, won the first direct elections to the office of Czech president at the weekend. The presidency in the Czech Republic is mostly ceremonial, though Vaclav Klaus used the position to great effect in...
Cameronian Europe is a Europe that is "done to people"
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David Cameron's speech on Europe (full text here) didn't reveal much new on his thinking on Europe, but it is an important speech for the stark way in which the political lines are drawn. There may be little that Cameron actually wants or is able to...
The Irish Presidency Work Programme
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Ireland took over the presidency of the Council of the European Union at the start of the year, and last Wednesday Taoiseach Enda Kenny, leader of the Fine Gael-Labour (EPP-PES) coalition government, outlined the priorities of the presidency to the E...
Victory for the German Opposition in Niedersachsen
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The Social Democrats and the Greens won a very tight election in Niedersachsen (Lower Saxony) last night. Together a Red-Green coalition would have 69 seats in the state parliament to the outgoing, Merkel-aligned government's 68. The election was bui...
