Europe Daily News, 29 November 2021

EU CORONAVIRUS RESPONSES

HEALTH

• COVID-19 - Current and future response to the pandemic - Exchange of views
• Answer given by Ms Kyriakides to a MEP written question - Renewal of the conditional marketing authorisation for the four COVID-19 vaccines evaluated by the EMA
• Answer given by Ms Kyriakides to a MEP written question - Corona and potential treatments
• Answer given by the Council to a MEP written question - Paper COVID certificate: preventing a ‘digital lockdown’ for the elderly and disabled people
• Europe dashes for booster jabs amid surge in Covid cases - Continent showing effects of fewer first vaccinations and slow rollout of second doses - Financial Times

STATE AID

• Commission approves EUR 700 million French scheme to compensate for damage suffered by certain companies due to the coronavirus pandemic (SA.64114) - IP/21/6375

INDUSTRY

• Commission hosts second matchmaking event to speed up the development and production of COVID-19 medicines - Midday Express

TRAVEL

• EU countries agree to impose temporary emergency restrictions on all travel into the EU from Southern Africa region

ECONOMY

• NextGenerationEU: Commission receives €7.4 billion payment request from France under the Recovery and Resilience Facility - Midday Express
• ASEM Summit: Europe and Asia reaffirm shared partnership and engagement to a stronger recovery from the pandemic - IP/21/6310

COMPETITION

• Agenda for: Working Party on Competition of 02 December 2021
• Prior notification of a concentration (Case M.10536 - TotalEnergies/Three Gorges Corporation/JV)
• Non-opposition to a notified concentration (Case M.10505 - CKA / CKI / UKPN)
• Non-opposition to a notified concentration (Case M.10474 - Neste / Ravago / JV)
• Non-opposition to a notified concentration (Case M.10461 - OTPP / Brookfield / Omers / SGN)
• Non-opposition to a notified concentration (Case M.10498 - Liberty Global / Infravia / Liberty Networks Germany)
• Commission clears acquisition of joint control of Gastrade by DESFA, Ms. Copelouzou, DEPA Commercial, GasLog and BTG (M.10139) - Midday Express
• Commission clears the creation of a joint venture by Cremer and Clyde Investment (M.10496) - Midday Express
• Competition: EU and China meet during 22nd Competition Week to discuss competition policy priorities - Midday Express
• G7 - Compendium of approaches to improving competition in digital markets
• Vestager urges European legislators to push through rules to regulate Big Tech - EU competition chief argues in favour of getting “80% now than 100% never” - Financial Times

TRADE & CUSTOMS

• Minutes of the Council of the European Union (Foreign Affairs/Trade) of 11 November 2021
• Agenda for: Trade Policy Committee (Generalised System of Preferences (GSP)) of 30 November 2021 
• Agenda for: 226th meeting of the Customs Code Committee - Tariff and Statistical Nomenclature Section (Sub-Section Agriculture/Chemistry) from 01 to 03 December 2021
• Agenda for: 227th meeting of the Customs Code Committee - Tariff and Statistical Nomenclature Section (Sub-Section Mechanical/Misc/Textile) from 06 to 08 December 2021
• European Parliament resolution of 25 November 2021 on multilateral negotiations in view of the 12th WTO Ministerial Conference in Geneva, 30 November to 3 December 2021
• Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2021/2083 of 26 November 2021 suspending commercial policy measures concerning certain products originating in the United States of America imposed by Implementing Regulations (EU) 2018/886 and (EU) No 2020/502
• Report of the 11th round of negotiations for a FTA between the European Union and Indonesia
• Report of the meeting on the SIA in support of negotiations with Angola to accede the EU-SADC EPA - Draft final report
• Answer given by Ms McGuinness to a MEP written question - Protection of EU interests with the application of the Helms‑Burton Law
• WTO Committee on Regional Trade Agreements - FTA between the European Union and Viet Nam - Goods and services - Questions & Replies - Revision
• Brazil hits out at EU ‘protectionism’ behind planned anti-deforestation law - Brussels proposal to halt imports of products from deforested areas angers South American exporter - Financial Times

INTERNAL MARKET & INDUSTRY

• Council stresses the importance of participation of all in the space sector
• Minutes of the Committee on market surveillance & compliance of products of 17 November 2021
• Summary of European Commission Decisions on authorisations for the placing on the market for the use and/or for use of substances listed in Annex XIV to Regulation (EC) No 1907/2006 of the European Parliament and of the Council concerning the REACH (Chromium trioxide) 
• EU high level group agrees on how to make companies comply with chemical laws - See Beuc Statement 

FINANCIAL SERVICES

• Agenda for: Financial Services Committee of 8 December 2021
• Agenda for: Working Party on Financial Services and the Banking Union - CMU legislative package (AIFMD and ELTIF) of 02 December 2021
• Proposal for a Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council amending Regulation (EU) No 1286/2014 as regards the extension of the transitional arrangement for management companies, investment companies and persons advising on, or selling, units of undertakings for collective investment in transferable securities (UCITS) and non-UCITS - Outcome of the EP's first reading (Strasbourg, 22-25 November 2021)
• Proposal for a Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council amending Directive 2009/65/EC as regards the use of key information documents by management companies of undertakings for collective investment in transferable securities (UCITS) - Outcome of the EP's first reading (Strasbourg, 22-25 November 2021)
• Draft - Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) …/... amending Delegated Regulation (EU) 2019/815 as regards the 2021 update of the taxonomy laid down in the regulatory technical standards on the single electronic reporting format
• ESMA continues to see risk of market corrections amid elevated valuations
• Brussels criticised over plan for capital markets databases - Overhaul aims to make EU more attractive to investors but finance sector concerned about implementation - Financial Times

TAXATION

• Code of Conduct Group (Business Taxation) - Report to the Council = Approval 
  - Italy's introduction of tax credit to the Budget law (IT022) 
  - Lithuania's new corporate income tax for companies implementing large projects (LT009) 
  - Romania’s tax measures to support the maintenance/increase of own capitals (RO011) 
  - Lithuania’s Special economic zones and intra-group services (IP component) (LT005) 
  - Italy's Rollback of the old IP regime (IT017) 
  - Greece's Patent tax incentive (EL015)  
  - Lithuania’s Extension of CIT incentive for the SEZ (LT006) 
  - Luxembourg’s Intra-Group Financing - safe harbour rule (LU016) 
  - Portugal’s Notional interest deduction regime (NID) (PT018) 
• Resolution on a revised Code of Conduct - Approval

EMPLOYMENT & SOCIAL

• Drawing lessons from the pandemic, Council adopts recommendation on blended learning
• Brussels considers more rights for gig workers - Ride-hailing groups claim EU draft proposals could lead to job losses and create legal uncertainty - Financial Times

ENERGY

• Opening keynote by President von der Leyen at the European Hydrogen Week 2021
• Recent developments in the field of external energy relations - Information from the Commission

ENVIRONMENT & CLIMATE CHANGE

• Agenda for: Working Party on Environment of 02 December 2021
• Agenda for: Working Party on International Environment Issues (Int. Chemicals / Synergies) of 02 December 2021
• EU on the brink of ‘greenwashing’ fossil fuel in Taxonomy fiasco - See T&E Statement

HEALTH, FOOD & PRODUCT SAFETY

• Remarks by President Charles Michel at the Special session of the World Health Assembly
• Speech by President von der Leyen at the World Health Assembly
• EFSA - Scientific Opinion - Pest categorisation of Crisicoccus pini
• EFSA - Reasoned Opinion - Modification of the existing MRLs for dodine in citrus fruits
• EFSA - Technical Report - Outcome of the consultation with Member States and EFSA on the basic substance application for approval of Yucca schidigera extract to be used in plant protection as fungicide and bactericide in arable crops, (leaf) vegetables crops, fruit crops, head brassica crops and seed potatoes
  

DIGITAL & INFORMATION SOCIETY

• Proposal for a Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council on a Single Market For Digital Services (Digital Services Act) and amending Directive 2000/31/EC - General approach - Statements
• Commission announces European Newsroom project at the European News Media Forum - Midday Express 

AREA OF FREEDOM, SECURITY & JUSTICE

• Successful taking down of criminal network committing high-volume cargo thefts from lorries - See Eurojust Statement
• Migrant smuggling in focus: Judicial use of information following the debriefing of migrants at external borders - Booklet by Eurojust
• Report by the EU Agency for Fundamental Rights (FRA): "Directive (EU) 2017/541 on combating terrorism - Impact on fundamental rights and freedoms"
• EU ministers call for deal with UK to tackle migrant crisis - Proposal from Calais meeting comes days after 27 die in small boat trying to reach England - Financial Times

DATA PRIVACY

• Agenda for: Horizontal Working Party on Cyber Issues of 30 November 2021
• Proposal for a Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council on measures for a high common level of cybersecurity across the Union, repealing Directive 2016/1148 - General Approach

ECB, EURO & ECONOMY

• ECB Survey of Monetary Analysts (SMA), December 2021
• Eurogroup President, Paschal Donohoe, travels to France on 29 November 2021
• Presentation by Isabel Schnabel, Member of the Executive Board of the ECB, at a meeting organised by Bundesverband der Deutschen Industrie (BDI)
• Commission launches the resilience dashboards: a new digital tool to help EU countries monitor their resilience - Midday Express

FUTURE OF EUROPE

• Agenda for Meeting of the Coreper (Part.1 & Part.2) of 01 December 2021
• Minutes of the Meeting of the Coreper of 05 November 2021

EXTERNAL RELATIONS

• Declaration by the High Representative on behalf of the EU on the alignment of certain countries concerning restrictive measures in view of the situation in Venezuela
• Statement by President von der Leyen at the joint press conference with NATO SG Stoltenberg and Lithuanian President Nausėda in relation to the situation in Belarus and at its border with the EU
• Statement by President von der Leyen at the joint press conference with NATO SG Stoltenberg and Latvian Prime Minister Kariņš in relation to the situation in Belarus and at its border with the EU 
• The role of international humanitarian law (IHL) in the protection of water infrastructure and access to water in crises and conflicts: practices and lessons learnt - presentation by Geneva Water Hub