A New Democracy official said the party would appeal the decision to Greece’s highest administrative court, the Council of State. Asimakopoulou emailed Greeks living abroad on March 1, the same day a separate message from the Interior Ministry informed expats they could cast their votes by post in the next election. Failing to explain how … Read more
The standard playbook calls for a healthy dose of government spending that would inject money into the economy to fight the ongoing recession. In theory Berlin has plenty of fiscal room, with low debt compared to its European peers. But the rules it introduced — European and national — tie its hands. A slower rate … Read more
Now the balance of power has reversed. Macron has lost influence in Brussels following defeats in European and national elections, while Barnier’s government faces an immediate challenge to rein in the public debt and could be toppled by Marine Le Pen of the far right at any time. The freshly-reappointed von der Leyen is, meanwhile, … Read more
“To be clear: the regulation must be practicable,” Scholz said on Thursday. Scholz is the first head of government to call for delaying the new rules. This comes after a group of agriculture ministers, as well as center-right politicians like German MEP Peter Liese of the European People’s Party — the political family of von … Read more
In a report unveiled today, Draghi proposed assessing existing EU rules at the beginning of each European Commission mandate to ensure that European companies aren’t penalized by excessive regulation. “This process should include simplifying and removing overlap and inconsistencies across the whole ‘legislative chain,’ with priority given to those economic sectors where Europe is particularly … Read more
Governments doing the right thing Signs are starting to emerge of policymakers moving in the right direction. Over the past year, there has been growing acceptance of the need to address the challenges facing the sector. Enrico Letta, former Italian prime minister, has called for the completion of the single market for telecoms, and asked … Read more
China is a major consumer of vegetable oil and has a great need for oil transport, according to the draft. In 2023, the entire country consumed a total of 39 million tonnes of oil. In the wake of the scandal, the State Council, China’s cabinet, has asked for timely industry regulations, it said. The draft … Read more
California lawmakers passed a hotly contested artificial-intelligence safety bill on Wednesday, after which it will need one more process vote before its fate is in the hands of Gov. Gavin Newsom, who has until Sept. 30 to decide whether to sign it into law or veto it. Tech companies developing generative AI – which can respond … Read more
Surprising? Not really. While the EU accounted for over 27 percent of the world’s GDP in 1990 — more than the U.S. at the time — today, its share is a little over 17 percent. And as Europe’s economic strength shrinks, the less it can project regulatory power on the world stage — a fact … Read more
The coffee bush likes tropical climates and elevation, and grows in a belt around the equator. It is the cherries of the plant, which turns bright red when ripe, that are used to make the hot drink. They’re gathered, stripped, dried, roasted and finally ground and ready to use. Sounds like hard work, doesn’t it? … Read more
