Tag: Pesticides
9 ways Dutch political paralysis hits the EU – POLITICO
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It’s hard to punch above your weight if you’re handcuffed.
In Brussels, the Netherlands is known for its assertive positioning in EU legislation in a wide range of policy files. Despite its relatively small size, the Netherlands has a tendency to get involved, even on files that are not at the core of the Dutch domestic debate.
Its prime minister, Mark Rutte, is the second-longest serving European Union leader
The Potemkin lobby shaping the EU’s agricultural policy – POLITICO
BRUSSELS — The European Union’s biggest farming lobby claims to represent all the bloc’s agricultural workers, but Stela Zămoiu doesn’t believe it speaks for farmers like her.
Zămoiu, 61, remembers when the land around her was full of smallholders. Today, her three hectares in eastern Romania are surrounded by large, industrial farms. When she dies, she expects her property to be swallowed up by one of her neighbors.
“The village has grown old,” she says. “After the elders die, the
How to navigate Spain’s EU presidency policy agenda like a pro – POLITICO
Spare a thought for Spanish diplomats in Brussels. They’re going to be working flat-out until Christmas.
Sweden has spent the last six months trying to process a huge pile of legislative files, many of which were proposed late by a European Commission distracted by COVID-19 and Russia’s war on Ukraine.
Despite commendable progress, many of these files still need a lot of work before being passed into law. Look at the files we’ve laid out below, then look back at
A wonk’s guide to the Swedish EU presidency policy agenda – POLITICO
Sweden’s policy smorgasbord is already groaning with some chewy (and even unpalatable) items — but the Commission keeps adding more to its plate.
By this point in a five-year EU election cycle, the vast majority of new policy proposals have already arrived from the EU executive branch, and are already on their legislative journey. But as Sweden takes over the rotating Council presidency with a year-and-a-half left until the next European election, that’s not the case.
With massive official bandwith
What you need to know (and worry about) – POLITICO
Welcome back! After a scorching summer, Brussels people are trickling back into the office or, for many of you, the home office setup.
A word of warning: It’s going to be an intense rentrée.
From the war in Ukraine to spiking energy prices, EU officials will have their hands full keeping their policy agendas on track amid escalating geopolitical crises. The most obvious field to be disrupted is energy, as leaders scramble to fill up gas reserves and keep
How Romania flouts EU ban on bee-killing insecticides – POLITICO
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Nearly a decade after the European Union first restricted the use of seeds coated with bee-killing insecticides, Romania’s honeybees are still feeling the sting.
In one of the EU’s honey-production capitals, the government has been relying on the banned seeds to prop up its lucrative cash crop exports, something NGOs and beekeepers denounce as an egregious and routine violation of EU laws that is endangering one of the country’s most ancient trades and
A wonk’s guide to the Czech EU presidency policy agenda – POLITICO
This article is part of POLITICO’s Guide to the Czech EU Presidency special report.
The Czech presidency needs to carry the EU through an energy crisis, galloping inflation and a war in Ukraine — all on a shoestring budget.
Call it the crisis presidency.
In the midst of a war and a gathering economic crisis, the small Central European country will be tasked with making sure the EU secures a lasting supply of energy while not letting go of its
The von der Leyen Commission’s half-time scorecard – POLITICO
If Ursula von der Leyen’s five-year term can be likened to a soccer match, her team is heading for the half-time break with the scores even and a few bruised shins (mostly from self-inflicted errors).
It’s been a wild ride.
When they took the field in December 2019, von der Leyen’s squad of commissioners envisioned a diplomatic offensive in which Brussels would sneak a few goals past its chief geopolitical counterparts, China and the United States. Tactically, the formation was