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Europe Daily Bulletin No. 12491

21 May 2020
Contents Publication in full By article 22 / 42
EXTERNAL ACTION / Trade
Trade treaties must not impede access to Covid-19 treatment for poorest countries, warns Parliament
Brussels, 20/05/2020 (Agence Europe)

MEPs are concerned that certain provisions in the EU's free trade agreements and the WTO's Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) could hinder access by the poorest countries to treatments and vaccines to combat Covid-19.

In a letter sent on 15 May to Trade Commissioner Phil Hogan, MEPs on the European Parliament Committee on International Trade called for the rights of developing countries to be guaranteed "in particular to get access to any breakthrough...

Contents

ASCENSION DAY: our offices are closed on Thursday 21 and Friday 22 May. EUROPE 12492 will be dated 26 May 2020
SECTORAL POLICIES
BIODIVERSITY: mandatory restoration of 30% of terrestrial and marine ecosystems by 2030 at heart of EU strategy proposed by Commission
FOOD: Commission proposes a 50% reduction on use of chemical pesticides in its 'Farm to Fork' strategy
AGRICULTURE: European Parliament committee supports Covid-19 emergency aid from second pillar of CAP
COHESION: European Parliament Regional Development Committee pushes for cohesion to be focus of European Recovery Plan
TRANSPORT: road charges - Croatian Presidency of EU Council proposes that only those states that wish to do so should abandon ‘EURO’ emissions classes
CUSTOMS: Paolo Gentiloni announces postponement of package of new customs initiatives until autumn
JUSTICE: Member States validate appointment of Richard Sonnenschein as Acting Administrative Director of European Public Prosecutor's Office
JUSTICE: Council of Bars and Law Societies calls on EU and Member States to facilitate reactivation of judicial systems
EQUALITY: S&D, Greens/EFA and Renew Europe condemn Hungarian Parliament’s vote banning legal recognition of transgender and intersex people
DIGITAL: General Data Protection Regulation is two years old
ECONOMY - FINANCE - BUSINESS
ECONOMY: socio-economic policy recommendations addressed to Member States take into account Covid-19 crisis
GREECE: European Commission paves way for new tranche of aid to alleviate Greek debt servicing
EU RESPONSE TO COVID-19
TOURISM: faced with continuing uncertainties and divergences, bilateral agreements could be key to recovery of tourism in EU this summer
YOUTH: EU Council banking on digital technologies as crisis ends
TRANSPORT: temporary measures regarding port infrastructure charges and certificate extensions adopted permanently
SOCIAL: for European Commission, classifying Covid-19 as a group 4 biological agent could have consequences on development of a vaccine
STATE AID: Commission endorses five national support schemes for companies in context of pandemic
CITIZENSHIP: Commission proposes adjusting some deadlines for European citizens’ initiatives due to Covid-19 pandemic
FINANCE: ESMA calls for transparency regarding effects of Covid-19 pandemic in half-yearly financial reports
EXTERNAL ACTION
UNITED KINGDOM: mood swings between London and Brussels 10 days before new round of talks
TRADE: trade treaties must not impede access to Covid-19 treatment for poorest countries, warns Parliament
COURT OF JUSTICE OF THE EU
ENERGY: EU General Court rules that Gazprom’s actions against EU rules revising Gas Directive are inadmissible
INSTITUTIONAL
RULE OF LAW: European Parliament Civil Liberties Committee chairman calls on EU Council to take next step in procedure against Poland
PARLIAMENT: European Parliament’s Committee on Foreign Affairs blocks allocation of an own-initiative report to ID group
COUNCIL OF EUROPE
HEALTH: Commissioner for Human Rights says member states must “shed light” on pandemic deaths in long-term care facilities
HEALTH: Stella Kyriakides announces unprecedented budget for European Commission's future 'Health' programme at Assembly of Council of Europe
NEWS BRIEFS
HOME AFFAIRS: European Parliament postpones vote of resolution on state of Schengen zone
BELARUS: according to Mr Várhelyi, Covid-19 crisis brought country closer to EU
CLIMATE: EU Council discussions on ‘climate law’ to resume on 25 May
TRADE: trade in goods figures are in the red
EUROPEAN COMMISSION: appointment of two new Directors-General and transfer of one Deputy Director
HUMAN RIGHTS: MEPs and Sakharov Prize winners call for release of prisoners of conscience and human rights activists
ECONOMY: euro area inflation at 0.3% in April
ENERGY: Commission will publish results of its assessment on use of forest biomass by end of 2020
ENERGY: Luxembourg Government adopts its Energy/Climate Plan
COMPANIES: Member States give green light to written procedure for adoption of deadline extension for general meetings of ‘European companies’
TAXATION: member States give green light to conclusions on revision of Administrative Cooperation Directive
RESEARCH: Commission will fund around 30 research projects on cyber security for a total of €49 million
HEALTH: ban on mentholated cigarettes now applicable throughout EU
CALENDAR
Main activities of European Institutions: from 25/05 to 31/05/2020
CALENDAR EXTRA
Other Events: until 31 May 2020