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Europe Daily Bulletin No. 12702

21 April 2021
Contents Publication in full By article 22 / 41
ECONOMY - FINANCE - BUSINESS / Competition
ÖBB, DB and SNCB fined €48.5 million for customer allocation cartel
Brussels, 20/04/2021 (Agence Europe)

The European Commission decided, on Tuesday 20 April, to impose fines of €48.5 million on the railway companies Österreichische Bundesbahnen (ÖBB), Deutsche Bahn (DB) and Société Nationale des Chemins de fer belges/Nationale Maatschappij der Belgische Spoorwegen (SNCB) for breaching EU antitrust rules.

The companies participated in a customer allocation cartel, which concerned cross-border rail cargo transport services on ‘blocktrains’ on key rail corridors in the EU. The three...

Contents

EU RESPONSE TO COVID-19
HEALTH: European Medicines Agency recommends adding unusual thrombosis to list of very rare side effects of Johnson & Johnson vaccine
HEALTH: 651,000 EU-funded Covid-19 vaccines to be delivered to Western Balkans between May and August
HEALTH: Ursula von der Leyen and Mario Draghi want to involve civil society in their ‘global health’ project
TAXATION/TRADE: extension until end of 2021 of exemption from VAT and customs duties on imports of medical equipment
SECTORAL POLICIES
AGRICULTURE: green architecture, targeting of aid and ‘active farmer’ on agenda of 30 April negotiations between EU institutions on CAP
FISHERIES: MEPs call for measures to facilitate ban on discards at sea
CLIMATE: outcome of sixth round of interinstitutional negotiations over ‘Climate Law’ remains uncertain
CLIMATE: European Commission could consider adjacent system for road transport and buildings under reform of ETS
DIGITAL: MEPs want clear guidelines on data transfers to US
DIGITAL: European Commission inaugurates Vega, first of its eight supercomputers
MIGRATION: MEPs concerned about mental health of migrants in Greek island camps
SPACE: response to debris management can only be gradual and pragmatic, experts say
SPACE: EU Council looks at operations from space for Europe’s coastal areas
EXTERNAL ACTION
UNITED KINGDOM: EU Ministers reiterate their support for European Commission’s approach to London
UKRAINE: Mr Kuleba calls on international community to stand firm against Russia
IRAN: members of nuclear deal to continue their work next week
INDO-PACIFIC: EU Council calls for preparation of strategy by September 2021
AUSTRALIA: Valdis Dombrovskis stresses importance of sustainable development in EU-Australia trade agreement
ECONOMY - FINANCE - BUSINESS
FINANCE: European Commission wants to ensure that European financial supervision is still adequate
TAXATION: to be effective, “green” taxation must also be “fair”, warns European Commission
STATE AID: green light for restructuring aid to Polish Regional Railways
COMPETITION: ÖBB, DB and SNCB fined €48.5 million for customer allocation cartel
ECONOMY: euro area inflation confirmed at 1.3% in March
INSTITUTIONAL
RULE OF LAW: exchange of best practices and various remarks to EU Council for second discussion on Commission’s annual report
ENLARGEMENT: EU Council is expected to address this thorny issue in June
EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT: S&D group in European Parliament addresses issue of transnational lists in EU elections once again
MULTILINGUALISM: digital green certificate proposal favours English, criticises GEM+ association
FUNDAMENTAL RIGHTS - SOCIETAL ISSUES
MEDIA: “EU seems powerless” to defend press freedom, says Reporters Without Borders
COURT OF JUSTICE OF THE EU
JUSTICE: Malta’s system for appointing judges complies with EU law, Court confirms
COUNCIL OF EUROPE
COUNCIL OF EUROPE: Angela Merkel tells Parliamentary Assembly that Council of Europe’s role could be decisive in meeting new challenges
COUNCIL OF EUROPE: Parliamentary Assembly contributes to definition of Council of Europe’s ‘strategic priorities’
NEWS BRIEFS
ENERGY: ‘Renovation Wave’ Strategy and integration of energy system on agenda of informal meeting of EU Member States’ ministers
ENERGY: IEA forecasts a major rebound in energy-related CO2 emissions
ENVIRONMENT: European Commission launches consultation to assess effectiveness of ‘INSPIRE’ Directive
SPACE: European Commission and ESA close to finalising agreement on FFPA
INDIA: Prime Minister Modi cancels EU/India summit on 8 May
JUSTICE: EU Council adopts 2021-2027 ‘Justice’ and ‘Rights and Values’ programmes
MIGRATION: more Ukrainians applied for asylum in EU in February
DIGITAL: EU Council gives green light to Cybersecurity Competence Centre in Bucharest
PALESTINE: Mr Borrell calls for elections to be held across Palestinian territory, including East Jerusalem
TERRORISM: European Parliament committee approves agreement on regulation for removal of terrorist content online