euronews

EU budget cuts proposed

Fri, 10 Jul 2009 18:55:35 +0200

Cuts have been proposed in the European Union's budget for next year. Governments want less spent on foreign aid and agriculture. Their demands are…

EP mulls Barroso overture

Thu, 09 Jul 2009 18:28:11 +0200

Jose Manuel Barroso's formal designation by the EU's leaders has moved talks on his future along a notch with the European Parliament. The…

Global airline blacklist unlikely

Thu, 09 Jul 2009 18:28:11 +0200

The idea of creating a global blacklist for unsafe airlines has been given a thumbs down by the International Civil Aviation Organisation. Its…

Fines for gas giants top billion euros

Wed, 08 Jul 2009 20:01:19 +0200

German utility E.ON and GDF Suez of France have been served with fines totalling more than 1.1 billion euros by the European competition authorities…

Ireland's hot date with Europe.

Wed, 08 Jul 2009 20:01:20 +0200

Dublin has announced it will hold a second referendum on the European Union's Lisbon reform treaty on October 2. It failed in the first one, last…

Drug firms warned over generics

Wed, 08 Jul 2009 20:01:20 +0200

An investigation into pharmaceutical companies conducted by the European Commission has followed up a preliminary report made public last November…

Watson won't run as EP president

Wed, 08 Jul 2009 20:01:20 +0200

Graham Watson has pulled out of the running for presidency of the European Parliament. The British liberal says the assembly is more divided than…

Buzek poised for EP presidency

Tue, 07 Jul 2009 19:45:11 +0200

Jerzy Buzek is in position to be the new European Parliament's president. He could be the first from the EU's former-communist states to hold the…

Solana to bow out

Mon, 06 Jul 2009 20:06:12 +0200

European Union foreign policy chief Javier Solana has said he will step down in October when his 10-year mandate expires. This was in an interview…

EP, Stockholm discuss Barroso

Mon, 06 Jul 2009 20:06:12 +0200

The new European Parliament's group heads have made the customary trip to the EU's presiding nation, which is Sweden for the second half of this…

Sarkozy talks Turkey with Sweden

Fri, 03 Jul 2009 19:51:15 +0200

On the first visit by a French president to Stockholm in nine years, Nicolas Sarkozy and host Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt have agreed to…

French call for EU milk help

Fri, 03 Jul 2009 19:51:14 +0200

The new French Agriculture Minister Bruno Le Maire has appealed to European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso to intervene in the falling milk…

EP awaits Council clarity on Barroso

Thu, 02 Jul 2009 19:28:29 +0200

New Liberal leader in the European Parliament Guy Verhofstadt has placed the ball firmly in the EU Council's court over Jose Manuel Barroso's…

Fruit and vegetable rules lifted

Thu, 02 Jul 2009 19:28:29 +0200

The red tape of "unnecessary marketing standards" has fallen -- that is: no more European Union rules on fruit and vegetable size. That is one less…

Swedish EU presidency faces big challenges

Tue, 30 Jun 2009 20:11:44 +0200

Sweden faces some daunting tasks as it assumes the EU's six month rotating presidency. The Nordic country of just nine milion people - home to less…

Czechs bow out of EU presidency to little applause

Tue, 30 Jun 2009 20:11:44 +0200

The stormy six-month boat-rocking Czech presidency of the European Union is at an end. Many - among the 27 nation bloc - are likely to be…

Turkey clears another obstacle on road to EU membership

Tue, 30 Jun 2009 20:11:44 +0200

Turkish Prime Minister Rajab Tayyip Erdogan has inched his country forward in its troubled bid for European Union membership. He has agreed to…

Universal phone charger deal done

Mon, 29 Jun 2009 19:34:07 +0200

The world's leading mobile phone manufacturers have agreed a deal to create a universal charger. Most manufacturers now produce chargers that…

Ukraine seeks help paying its gas bill

Mon, 29 Jun 2009 19:34:07 +0200

Ukraine and Russia are in talks with international lenders and the European Union to hammer out a loan deal to help Kiev pay for Russian gas.…

Turkey's EU ambition still alive

Fri, 26 Jun 2009 19:26:59 +0200

Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has led a delegation to Brussels to give second wind to his country's flagging drive to join the European…

CoE appeal to help internally displaced populations

Thu, 25 Jun 2009 20:17:17 +0200

A call to protect the people displaced within their own countries... the long-term displaced: The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe --…

Acidic emission caps tighten

Thu, 25 Jun 2009 20:18:20 +0200

Environment chiefs have agreed new laws to tighten minimum standards on nitrogen oxide and sulphur dioxide emissions in the EU. This is acid…

100% screening for some cancers

Wed, 24 Jun 2009 18:11:42 +0200

Europe must double its cancer screening efforts, to prevent mortality rates climbing as the population ages. The European Commissioner for…

BIRW awarded prize for Northern Ireland work

Wed, 24 Jun 2009 18:11:42 +0200

Monitoring human rights in Northern Ireland goes on. The independent NGO British Irish Rights Watch has been awarded the Council of Europe…

Croatian EU process further delayed

Wed, 24 Jun 2009 18:11:42 +0200

The European Union has called off a round of accession talks with Croatia which had been scheduled for Friday. The reason is Zagreb's continued…

Van Miert, former Commissioner, dies

Tue, 23 Jun 2009 21:10:58 +0200

Former European Commissioner Karel Van Miert has died, apparently from falling from a ladder in his garden in Belgium. The Flemish socialist was 67.…

CoE quarrels over leadership

Tue, 23 Jun 2009 21:10:58 +0200

Internal quarrelling marks the sixtieth anniversary of the Council of Europe, with the mandate of Terry Davis as Secretary-General having only weeks…

Aquaculture expansion call

Tue, 23 Jun 2009 21:10:58 +0200

Europe needs to cultivate more fish, the ministers in charge have decided. Green groups disagree, saying aquaculture creates more problems than it…

Road safety improving across Europe

Mon, 22 Jun 2009 19:53:09 +0200

Road safety across the European Union is improving steadily but not by enough to meet targets set for next year. That is the conclusion the…

British conservatives create new euro group

Mon, 22 Jun 2009 20:04:56 +0200

British Conservative leader David Cameron's efforts to create a new anti-federalist group within the European Parliament appear to have born fruit.…

Bilt pledges to pursue Turkey membership talks

Mon, 22 Jun 2009 19:53:09 +0200

Sweden which takes over the European Union's rotating presidency in July has been setting out its programme for its six month stint. On the…

EU summit finds agreement on Ireland and Barroso

Fri, 19 Jun 2009 20:01:40 +0200

Two of the men who emerged with the most to smile about from the summit of the 27 EU leaders in Brussels were the Irish Prime Minister and the…

Barroso now faces European Parliament approval

Fri, 19 Jun 2009 20:01:40 +0200

There was little hiding Jose Manuel Barroso's emotion after the EU leaders spoke with one voice to endorse him for the Commission's presidency again.…

Farmers protest at EU summit

Fri, 19 Jun 2009 19:55:22 +0200

For a second day running, Europe's dairy farmers have been protesting outside the European Union summit in Brussels. They have used their…

EU aids Pakistan

Wed, 17 Jun 2009 20:01:33 +0200

Pakistan has asked the European Union for help against poverty, extremism and terrorism. At a first EU-Pakistan summit, held in Brussels, visiting…

New MEPs prepare for action

Tue, 16 Jun 2009 19:37:20 +0200

The MEPs have been arriving for registration in Brussels, the re-elected and newly-elected -- a new procedure for many. Their inaugural full…

Far-right Romanian MEP grounded by travel ban

Wed, 10 Jun 2009 20:59:19 +0200

Far-right Romanian politician George Becali may have have enjoyed success in the European elections but legal problems are preventing him taking up…

Barroso gets a German ringing endorsement

Tue, 09 Jun 2009 20:51:27 +0200

The outgoing EU Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso has confirmed he wants another five years in the job. He is expected to be challenged…

Socialists oppose Barroso

Tue, 09 Jun 2009 20:24:55 +0200

Europe's socialists are determined that Barroso's re-election won't be a mere formality. They're expected to field their own candidate for the…

Brown battles on: but for how long?

Tue, 09 Jun 2009 19:39:54 +0200

The British Prime Minister Gordon Brown appears to have snuffed out the mini-mutiny within his own Labour party ranks. An upbeat Brown today held the…

British racist MEP abandons press conference

Tue, 09 Jun 2009 19:39:55 +0200

The leader of the UK's far-Right British National Party has been forced to abandon a news conference in London, after being attacked by anti-fascist…

Barroso seeks another five-year term

Tue, 09 Jun 2009 13:32:29 +0200

The election maybe over, but all eyes are now on who'll become the EU's next Commission President. The current incumbent has confirmed his intention…

Brown battles on as new cabinet meets

Tue, 09 Jun 2009 13:32:29 +0200

The British Prime Minister Gordon Brown appears to have survived calls for him to quit, quelling for the moment a mutiny within his Labour party.…

Celebrity winners and losers at the European elections

Tue, 09 Jun 2009 13:32:29 +0200

Elections like the European elections are usually the domain of big parties, their candidates normally characterised by formal suits and demeanour.…

BNP hopes for extra funding from Europe

Tue, 09 Jun 2009 08:41:06 +0200

The British National Party is hoping for a four million euro windfall over ten years if it can patch together enough support to form a far-right…

Europe leans to the right

Mon, 08 Jun 2009 08:41:14 +0200

The centre-right has come out on top in Europe after EU elections marked by a record low turnout and harsh lessons for ruling parties in some…

Greens break out of minority ghetto

Mon, 08 Jun 2009 12:47:51 +0200

The European Green parties are celebrating gains which have given the ecology block more than 50 seats in the European parliament so far. The…

Far-right makes hay with fear factor

Mon, 08 Jun 2009 16:23:26 +0200

Gains for the far-right were scattered across the continent without any unified trend emerging. In the Netherlands Geert Wilders's Freedom Party came…

EU elections put Lisbon Treaty on hold

Mon, 08 Jun 2009 11:38:49 +0200

The unfolding story of the Euro elections leaves the Lisbon Treaty with an uncertain future. The Czech Republic's right-wing Civic Democrats took a…

Turnout hits new low

Mon, 08 Jun 2009 09:11:30 +0200

It was a quiet day at the office for staff at some polling stations across the EU. From an early stage it became clear that predictions of a low…

Dismal night for Brown and Labour

Mon, 08 Jun 2009 09:32:45 +0200

Not a good night for Britain's Gordon Brown. Support for the prime minister's ruling Labour party has fallen to 15%, its lowest level in a century.…

Electors prick Berlusconi bubble

Mon, 08 Jun 2009 10:00:30 +0200

Partial results and projections are now giving Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi between 35% and 35.5% of the vote in the elections for the…

Night of a thousand cuts for French left

Mon, 08 Jun 2009 09:48:05 +0200

Nicolas Sarkozy and his ruling Conservative party in France, the UMP, have triumphed by stealing the left's clothes and calling for a "new kind" of…

German EU vote points to black September for left

Mon, 08 Jun 2009 10:59:22 +0200

In Germany, Chancellor Angela Merkel's conservatives remain the nation's strongest party despite registering losses in European polls on Sunday,…

Spanish Socialists wounded in Euroelection

Mon, 08 Jun 2009 09:28:55 +0200

Reversing nine years of national election defeats Spain's Conservative party has beaten the ruling Socialist party in the European Parliamentary…

Portuguese Socialists fail to escape swing to the right

Mon, 08 Jun 2009 11:58:19 +0200

At the finishing post of the Portuguese EU elections, the governing Socialists have fallen behind the opposition conservative Social Democrats.…

Electors savage Irish coalition

Mon, 08 Jun 2009 09:53:57 +0200

Incoming results in Ireland deem it unlikely that Libertas leader Declan Ganley will win his EU parliament seat, and just across the water in the UK…

EU's two newest members vote with little enthusiasm

Sun, 07 Jun 2009 18:57:01 +0200

Bulgaria's European election was overshadowed by allegations of vote-buying, at 20 euros a pop reported state radio. It was estimated parties gave…

Benelux: extreme right advances in The Netherlands

Sun, 07 Jun 2009 20:26:00 +0200

The extreme right party the PVV (The People's Freedom Party), led by Geert Wilders, has polled 17% in The Netherlands coming second in the European…

Opposition parties clean up in Greece, Cyprus, & Malta

Sun, 07 Jun 2009 19:07:18 +0200

The ruling party in Greece has lost ground in the elections for the European Parliament as voters punish the national government for perceived…

Northern lights dimmed by rise of the far-right

Sun, 07 Jun 2009 21:32:55 +0200

Scandanavian nations, for so long held up as examples of tolerant and successful left-leaning societies had mixed fortunes in the European elections.…

Mixed fortunes in Central Europe

Sun, 07 Jun 2009 18:38:45 +0200

The centre-right People's party has polled 29.7 of the vote in the Austrian elections for the European Parliament. This is down from the last…

Beleaguered Brown faces his longest weekend

Sat, 06 Jun 2009 07:08:29 +0200

Britain's Gordon Brown is clinging on to his premiership after a wave of top level resignations, but the next 48 hours could tell a different…

Dutch right unnerving

Fri, 05 Jun 2009 19:39:06 +0200

Netherlands far-right politician Geert Wilders, wielding an anti-immigration, anti-Islam and anti-EU bouquet, packs a punch that is making Europe's…

EP candidates with a difference

Thu, 04 Jun 2009 20:23:34 +0200

Not all European Parliament candidates are created equal. Here are some of the most out of the ordinary. Elena Basescu is running as an…

The UK gets ready for big European vote

Wed, 03 Jun 2009 20:47:24 +0200

The UK is one of the first countries to kick off voting in the European elections on Thursday and the embattled prime minister Gordon Brown and his…

Voter apathy in Normandy

Tue, 02 Jun 2009 19:51:49 +0200

The village of la Croix-Avranchin, in France's Normandy region, has 504 voters. But in the last European Parliamentary elections less than a quarter…

Brown warns against BNP in EU election

Mon, 01 Jun 2009 19:31:49 +0200

Gordon Brown and the UK Labour Party are bracing for humiliation in this Thursday's European election. The Prime Minister's popularity is…

Catholic Polish voter appeal

Fri, 29 May 2009 21:13:43 +0200

The high priests of Poland are urging the faithful to vote in the European parliamentary election for persons who "fully represent the point of view…

Star voter appeal

Fri, 29 May 2009 21:13:43 +0200

Star footballers have been recruited by the European Parliament in its campaign to encourage people to use their votes in the upcoming election. A…

German low-key EU campaigning

Thu, 28 May 2009 21:08:21 +0200

Election campaigning in Germany... A poster here, a poster there... Relatively little is wholly targetting the European vote; The parties are taking…

Bulgarian vote as corruption verdict

Wed, 27 May 2009 21:19:36 +0200

A growing desire to claw down corruption is expected to bring higher-than-average numbers of Bulgarians out to vote in the European Parliamentary…

Election interest rising!

Tue, 26 May 2009 20:38:04 +0200

As more and more campaigns get under way ahead of the European Parliamentary elections from the 4-7 June, a new survey shows interest picking up.…

Portugal little aware of election date

Tue, 26 May 2009 20:38:04 +0200

Portugal has begun its campaigning for the European Parliamentary elections. Only eight percent of the Portuguese know the ballot for them will be…

French EU campaigns launched

Mon, 25 May 2009 20:51:57 +0200

France's campaigning for the European Parliamentary elections has begun. But, as in other countries, national politics is the main attention-getter,…

Immigration big issue in EU election in Italy

Sat, 06 Jun 2009 11:56:05 +0200

Immigration and Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi's private life are dominating the European elections in Italy. Here, as in many member…

Czech anti-Roma scandal

Thu, 21 May 2009 18:57:24 +0200

Czech television has stopped broadcasting anti-Roma political advertising by the far-right National Party, ahead of the European elections. The…

Spanish left acerbic campaign launch

Thu, 21 May 2009 19:03:07 +0200

Spain's ruling Socialists have set a caring tone for launch of their European Parliament election campaign: Care about voting or watch out for the…

Bulgaria in half-swing for EU elections

Tue, 19 May 2009 20:39:28 +0200

Campaigning in Bulgaria has officially begun for the European Parliament elections, coming up in little more than two weeks. The Gallup institute…

What you are about to see is fictional

Tue, 12 May 2009 19:32:42 +0200

But this footage of Europeans voting in a previous round of elections for their Parliament, is real, even though turnout has been poor, and is…

VoteWatch, MEPs and transparency

Tue, 12 May 2009 19:32:42 +0200

Some praise it on transparency grounds while others say it misrepresents them. The website VoteWatch.eu was launched this week, casting light on…

People power in Brussels ahead of vote

Tue, 12 May 2009 07:41:32 +0200

Scores of citizens from across the EU have met top policy-makers in Brussels to hand over their recommendations for tackling the economic and social…

Leaders on European election campaign trail

Mon, 11 May 2009 13:43:08 +0200

Campaigning for the European elections got underway in earnest with leaders of France, Germany and Spain all involved in lavish events. In Berlin,…

LePen honour forestalled

Wed, 06 May 2009 20:24:17 +0200

Jean-Marie Le Pen cannot preside at the new European Parliament's first session, as custom would have it, because the rules have changed. The…

Reprieve for illegal downloaders

Wed, 06 May 2009 20:24:17 +0200

A victory which makes it harder for authorities to cut off Internet service, say when a subscriber may have downloaded copyright material illegally:…

French posters supressed in Belgium

Tue, 05 May 2009 22:04:18 +0200

Tension is mounting in Belgium between French and Dutch speakers ahead of regional and European elections. Several towns on the outskirts of…

Anti-semitic lists in EU poll?

Mon, 04 May 2009 20:36:01 +0200

The French authorities want to ban a stand-up comic turned "anti-Zionist" activist from fielding lists of candidates in European elections next…

EPP backs Barroso mandate II

Thu, 30 Apr 2009 20:09:16 +0200

The center-right European People's Party has given public backing to the re-appointment of Jose Manuel Barroso for a second term as the president of…

Politicians urged to talk more

Wed, 29 Apr 2009 19:40:43 +0200

Expectations are high for the European institutions, but just a few weeks before voting time for a new parliament, two out of three people eligible…

EPP's EP presidential contenders

Wed, 29 Apr 2009 19:40:43 +0200

Warsaw is hosting a meeting of the European People's Party, centre-right, which is launching its campaign for this June's EU elections. The EPP forms…

PES demands respect for democracy

Mon, 27 Apr 2009 20:13:59 +0200

Urging Europe to change course... That is how the Party of European Socialists, PES, has launched its campaign for this June's European elections.…

Aubry aims smack at Molex

Mon, 27 Apr 2009 20:13:59 +0200

The French Socialist Secretary-General Martine Aubry and the President of the PES Poul Nyrup Rasmussen conferred with angry workers near Toulouse…

Consumer focus close to elections

Tue, 21 Apr 2009 19:42:32 +0200

A minute of silence in memory of the victims of the recent earthquake in Italy - That was how the European Parliament opened its next but last full…

European Liberals launch election campaign

Thu, 16 Apr 2009 19:48:54 +0200

The European Liberals have launched their election campaign putting the fundamental civil liberties and freedom at the heart of their battle. They…

EU officials face battle to avoid election washout

Wed, 15 Apr 2009 20:06:35 +0200

June's European elections are being billed by EU officials as a chance for the bloc's citizens to make their choice. However, recent polls suggest up…

Most Europeans set to shun EU elections

Mon, 13 Apr 2009 21:00:51 +0200

Two out of three European voters will not cast a ballot in this June's elections, says French newspaper Liberation. That is according to a…

How can the EU improve your life?

Fri, 10 Apr 2009 17:21:08 +0200

You are invited to look down on the President of the European Commission, on the new website called 'tellBarroso.eu'. No, really, it's true! He's…

MEPs are Twittering too

Fri, 10 Apr 2009 17:04:00 +0200

Call someone a 'twit' these days and it might just mean 'modern'. Politics, communication and electronics come together at the new 'europatweets.eu'…

Sex trafficking enters European election scene

Fri, 10 Apr 2009 17:07:23 +0200

The Paris-based Scelles Foundation has called on the candidates in the European elections to give urgent attention to fighting forced prostitution…

I want my voter turnout - MTV! Help!

Wed, 08 Apr 2009 20:34:39 +0200

In 1979, the European elections saw 63 percent voter turnout. By 2004, the rate for 18-24-year-olds had fallen to around 40 percent. So, once…

Predicting same left-right balance in next EU parliament

Tue, 07 Apr 2009 19:43:58 +0200

The colouring of the European Parliament is not expected to change much after this June's voting. An online prediction of the results,…

Working week talks at breaking point

Thu, 02 Apr 2009 20:24:42 +0200

Talks are on the brink of collapse over whether to impose a strict limit on the length of the working week in Europe, or to allow people to work…

Determination builds not to let Le Pen preside at EP session

Wed, 25 Mar 2009 20:32:48 +0100

The main groups in the European parliament have agreed to prevent French far-right leader Jean-Marie Le Pen from presiding at the assembly's next…

Le Pen calls intent to strip him of parliament privilege 'idiotic'

Tue, 24 Mar 2009 19:34:17 +0100

Proposing a rule change to prevent French far-right leader Jean-Marie Le Pen from presiding over the European Parliament's inaugural session after…

EP invites voters to record views

Tue, 17 Mar 2009 20:01:35 +0100

Europe's voters are invited to step into room-sized cubes in urban centres and record their views. Some recordings will be screened daily outside…

French socialists in disarray with Euro elections approaching

Mon, 23 Mar 2009 14:06:34 +0100

Three months before Europe votes in its next parliament, there is concern among socialists that their French contingent is letting the side down.…