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Image header Agence Europe
Europe Daily Bulletin No. 13825
Contents Publication in full By article 38 / 40
NEWS BRIEFS / European parliament

Two Dutch MEPs in European Parliament leave EPP group for ECR group

10/03/26 (Agence Europe) – The European Conservatives and Reformists (ECR) Group in the European Parliament welcomed MEPs Sander Smit and Jessica van Leeuwen, members of the Dutch ‘Farmer–Citizen Movement’ (BoerBurgerBeweging - BBB), as new members on Tuesday 10 March. This admission follows the BBB’s decision to leave the European People’s Party (EPP) group, the largest political force in the European Parliament. “As BBB, we do not allow our representatives to be silenced in Parliament. That is why, after two years, BBB has decided to leave the EPP Group of von der Leyen in the European Parliament”, explained the leader of the BBB parliamentary group in the Dutch Second Chamber, Henk Vermeer, in a press release. As a result, the ECR Group will go from 79 to 81 MEPs, compared with 186 to 184 for the EPP. (AD)

Contents

SECTORAL POLICIES
ENERGY: clean energy investment strategy aims to reduce EU’s dependence on imported fossil fuels
ENERGY: European Commission presents its ‘Citizens Energy Package’
INDUSTRY/ENERGY: European Commission rolls out strategy to help ‘nuclear’ countries produce Small Modular Reactors more quickly
ENERGY: Ursula von der Leyen highlights “strategic error” of reducing share of nuclear power in Europe’s energy mix
DIGITAL: Cyprus Presidency of EU Council includes ban on AI that generates sexual deepfakes in revision of AI Act regulation
DIGITAL: EDRi believes YouTube is abusing personalisation of its interface and contravening European Digital Services Act
DIGITAL: young Europeans are more exposed to radical right-wing political content on social media, according to a study
FOOD SAFETY: European Commission launches an AI tool to fight food fraud
MIGRATION: “political strategy” and “unnatural alliance” - EPP criticised for its report on Returns Regulation, adopted by parliamentary committee
EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT PLENARY
HOUSING: tax incentives, flexible rules on short-term rentals, renovation funds - European Parliament adopts its message on housing crisis
INTERNAL MARKET: MEPs call on EU27 to make further efforts to remove persistent barriers to single market
RESEARCH: European Parliament votes to strengthen private participation in EU research and innovation ecosystem
TRANSPORT: European Parliament uses urgent procedure to amend CO2 emission standards for new heavy-duty vehicles
WOMEN'S RIGHTS: Irena Joveva and Mirosława Nykiel warn about impact of women’s unpaid work on pay and pension gaps
BUDGET: Nils Ušakovs defends 2027 budget combining “economic resilience and social cohesion”
JUSTICE: European Parliament approves provisional agreement with EU Council on directive aiming to harmonise several aspects of insolvency law
JUSTICE: European Parliament confirms choice of Andrés Ritter as EU’s next chief prosecutor
INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY: MEPs want to protect and remunerate copyrighted works used by generative AI
ECB: European Parliament approves appointment of Boris Vujčić as Vice-President of Frankfurt Institute
BANKS: European Parliament approves Frenchman François-Louis Michaud’s appointment to head European Banking Authority
FISHERIES: European Parliament calls for stronger action against invasive marine species
DEVELOPMENT: European Parliament approves European Parliament-EU Council agreement on increasing efficiency of External Action Guarantee
TRANSPARENCY: European Parliament calls for “ambitious” revision of rules on access to documents held by EU institutions
ECONOMY - FINANCE - BUSINESS
FINANCE: ‘MISP’ package - EU countries differ on role of European Securities and Markets Authority
FINANCE: ‘Competitiveness Lab’ - eight volunteer EU countries support creation of securitisation platform
ECONOMY: deadlock persists over EU loan to Ukraine for 2026 and 2027
WAR IN MIDDLE EAST
MIDDLE EAST: differences of opinion in European Parliament on response to Iran crisis
HUMANITARIAN AID: more than 400 tonnes of food already delivered to Lebanon thanks to EU emergency funding
CIVIL PROTECTION: more than 4,400 European citizens repatriated urgently from Middle East, EU-coordinated flights still under way
EXTERNAL ACTION
FOREIGN AFFAIRS: António Costa calls for a multidimensional foreign policy
UNITED STATES: EPP group proposes new clause to break deadlock in negotiations in European Parliament on bilateral trade commitments
INSTITUTIONAL
EUROPEAN COUNCIL: initial draft conclusions deplore catastrophic situation in Gaza and sets deadlines for deepening EU’s single market
EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT: Angela Merkel, Volodymyr Zelensky and Lech Wałęsa, first recipients of new European Order of Merit
FUNDAMENTAL RIGHTS - SOCIETAL ISSUES
WOMEN’S RIGHTS: International Women’s Day - Jackie Fox calls on EU to draw inspiration from ‘Coco’s Law’ against cyberbullying
NEWS BRIEFS
ECONOMY: EU Council approves Ireland’s revised multiannual budget programme
ECONOMY: Belgium’s Draft Budgetary Plan for 2026 is “compliant” with commitments made at European level, says Eurogroup
ECONOMY: green light from EU Council for revision of Estonia’s post-Covid-19 recovery plan
EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT: two Dutch MEPs in European Parliament leave EPP group for ECR group
CSDP: Italy’s Milos Argenton, new EU Force Commander for Operation ASPIDES
CORRIGENDUM
ENERGY: European Court of Auditors audits energy communities in Italy, Netherlands, Poland and Romania