COMPETITION

  • According to Advocate General Kokott, a concentration between undertakings that has not been the subject of any ex ante assessment under merger control law may be assessed ex post on the basis of the prohibition of abuse of a dominant position under primary law (See CPR No.168/2022, Advocate General’s Opinion in Case C-449/21, Towercast)
  • Initiation of proceedings (Case M.10658 - Norsk Hydro / Alumetal )
  • Prior notification of a concentration (Case M.10638 - ALD / Leaseplan)
  • Prior notification of a concentration (Case M.10895 - Athora / AXA Customer Solutions)
  • Non-opposition to a notified concentration (Case M.10872 - Geely / Renault / Korea Motors )
  • Non-opposition to a notified concentration (Case M.10766 - Danske Bank / Lansforasakringar Bank / Nordea / Sbab Bank / SEB / Handelsbanken / Swedbank / JV)
  • Commission clears acquisition of sole control of NLMK DanSteel by NBH (M.10847) - Midday Express
  • Commission clears creation of joint venture by 3DS and Dussur (M.10852) - Midday Express
  • Sweden - Arla Foods is not granted leniency in a case on unlawful cooperation

STATE AID

  • Judgment of the Court of 13 October 2022 in Joined Cases C-164/21 and C-318/21, 'Baltijas Starptautiskā Akadēmija' SIA (C-164/21), 'Stockholm School of Economics in Riga' SIA (C-318/21) Vs. Latvijas Zinātnes padome
    Re: Reference for a preliminary ruling - Regulation (EU) No 651/2014 - Article 2(83) - Direct and unconditional reference to Union law - Admissibility of questions - Aid for research, development and innovation - Concept of 'research and knowledge dissemination organisation' - Higher education establishment carrying out economic and non-economic activities - Determination of the primary purpose
  • Commission approves €10 million Slovak scheme to support food producers in context of Russia's war against Ukraine (SA.104395) - IP/22/6129
  • Commission approves €220 million Spanish measure to support COBRA in production of renewable hydrogen (SA.104361) - IP/22/6017
  • Commission approves public funding for a project to develop a rail freight service between Perpignan and Ile-de-France (SA.64373) - Midday Express
  • Commission approves €25 million Italian scheme to support haulage operators using liquefied natural gas as fuel in context of the Russia's war against Ukraine (SA.103752) - Midday Express

TRADE & CUSTOMS

  • Agenda for: Trade Policy Committee (Deputy Members) - 19 October 2022
  • Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council establishing the European Union Single Window Environment for Customs and amending Regulation (EU) No 952/2013
  • Council Decision (EU) 2022/1932 of 29 September 2022 on the position to be taken on behalf of the European Union within the EU-CTC Joint Committee established by the Convention of 20 May 1987 on common transit procedure as regards amendments to that Convention
  • Mr Leopoldo Rubinacci has been appointed as new Deputy Director-General for DG TRADE - Midday Express
  • WTO - The third review of the trade policies and practices of Djibouti - 12 & 14 October 2022
  • WHO, WIPO, WTO to hold workshop on innovation and access to COVID-19 diagnostics

INTERNAL MARKET & INDUSTRY

FINANCIAL SERVICES

  • Agenda for: Working Party on Financial Services and the Banking Union (financial services) - anti-money laundering - 25 October 2022
  • Sustainable finance: Commission launches call for applications for new Platform on Sustainable Finance mandate - Midday Express
  • Eurobarometer survey highlights how Europeans interact with the financial services world - IP/22/6162
  • AFME comments on Commission report on functioning of the Securitisation Regulation

TAXATION

  • Opinion of Advocate General Mr Athanasios Rantos of 13 October 2022 in Case C-571/21, RWE Power Aktiengesellschaft Vs. Hauptzollamt Duisburg
    Re: Reference for a preliminary ruling - Directive 2003/96/EC - Taxation of energy products and electricity - Article 14 - Exemption for electricity used to generate electricity and to maintain the capacity to generate electricity - Open-cast mines
  • Judgment of the Court of 13 October 2022 in Case C-431/21, X GmbH & Co KG Vs. Finanzamt Bremen
    Re: Reference for a preliminary ruling - Freedom of establishment and freedom to provide services - Corporation tax - Determination of taxable income of companies - Transactions in relation to foreign countries - Obligation to provide tax documentation of commercial relations between persons with interdependent links - Assessment and increase in taxable income as a penalty
  • Judgment of the Court of 13 October 2022 in Case C-397/21, HUMDA Magyar Autó-Motorsport Fejlesztési Ügynökség Zrt. Vs. Nemzeti Adó- és Vámhivatal Fellebbviteli Igazgatósága
    Re: Reference for a preliminary ruling - Harmonisation of tax laws - Common system of VAT - Directive 2006/112/EC - Sales not subject to VAT - VAT wrongly invoiced and paid - Winding up of the supplier - Refusal of reimbursement by the tax authority to the customer of the VAT wrongly paid - Principles of effectiveness, fiscal neutrality and non-discrimination
  • Agenda for: Working Party on Tax Questions (High Level) - 27 October 2022
  • Answer given by Mr Gentiloni to a MEP written question - Temporary repeal of mineral oil taxes in the EU

AGRICULTURE & FISHERIES

  • Agriculture & Fisheries Council on 17-18 October 2022
    - Market situation in particular following the invasion of Ukraine - Information from the Commission and the Member States - Exchange of views
    - Promoting RENURE fertilizers as part of a circular economy - Information from the Belgian delegation, supported by Hungary, the Netherlands, Portugal and Spain
    - Organic protein feed from Ukraine - Information from the Lithuanian delegation
    - Tackling co-financing constraints of phytosanitary and veterinary programmes by exploring options for improving implementation based on a strategic discussion between the Commission and the Member States - Information from the Austrian and Hungarian delegations, supported by Belgium, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Estonia, Finland, France, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia and Spain
    - The importance of working in close cooperation with the Member States when preparing the EU framework for forest monitoring and strategic plans - Information from the Austrian and Finnish delegation on behalf of the Austrian, Bulgarian, Croatian, Cypriot, Estonian, Finnish, French, German, Greek, Hungarian, Irish, Latvian, Lithuanian, Polish, Portuguese, Romanian, Slovakian, Slovenian and Swedish delegation
    - EU-wide end to the systematic killing of male chicks - Information from the French and German delegations on behalf of the Austrian, Belgian, Cyprus, Finnish, French, German, Irish, Luxembourg and Portuguese delegations
  • Ms Magda Kopczynska has been appointed as Deputy Director-General for DG AGRI  - Midday Express

EMPLOYMENT & SOCIAL POLICY

  • The internal rule of an undertaking prohibiting the visible wearing of religious, philosophical or spiritual signs does not constitute direct discrimination if it is applied to all workers in a general and undifferentiated way (See CPR Nº 167/2022 - Judgment of the Court of Justice in Case C-344/20, S.C.R.L. (Vêtement à connotation religieuse))
  • Commission kick-starts work on the European Year of Skills - IP/22/6086 & Proposal
  • Commissioner Schmit to participate in informal meeting of EU employment and social affairs ministers in Prague
  • Report by MEP Alicia Homs Ginel on the proposal for a Council decision on guidelines for the employment policies of the Member States

ENERGY

  • Commissioner Simson visits Cyprus, attends EMGF Energy Transition Conference and EuroAsia Interconnector ceremony - Midday Express
  • Opening remarks by Commissioner Simson at the press conference of the informal meeting of EU energy ministers in Prague, 12 October 2022
  • Answer given by Ms Simson to a MEP written question - IGB gas supply
  • Updated for 2022: Overview of biofuels policies and markets across the EU - See Epure Statement
  • Putin suggests Nord Stream gas exports to Europe could be restored - Financial Times

ENVIRONMENT & CLIMATE CHANGE

  • Agenda for: Committee for the implementation of the Directive on Sulphur content in Marine Fuels - 25 October 2022
  • Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council amending Annexes IV and V to Regulation (EU) 2019/1021 on persistent organic pollutants
  • Draft Opinion by MEP Saskia Bricmont on the proposal for a directive of the European Parliament and of the Council on the protection of the environment through criminal law

HEALTH, FOOD & PRODUCT SAFETY

  • Judgment of the Court of 13 October 2022 in Case C-616/20, M2Beauté Cosmetics GmbH Vs. Bundesrepublik Deutschland
    Re: Reference for a preliminary ruling - Medicinal products for human use - Directive 2001/83/EC - Article 1(2)(b) - Concept of 'medicinal product by function' - Lack of scientific study - Scientific knowledge of a structural analogue - Regulation (EC) No 1223/2009 - Cosmetic product - Specific beneficial effects on human health - Immediate or mediate beneficial effects - Positive effects on appearance
  • Agenda for: Standing Committee on Plants, Animals, Food and Feed
    - Section "Novel Food and Toxicological Safety of the Food Chain" - 19 October 2022
    - Section: "Phytopharmaceuticals - Legislation" - 13 & 14 October 2022
  • EFSA - Safety evaluation of the food enzyme β‐galactosidase from the non-genetically modified Kluyveromyces lactis strain AE‐KL
  • EFSA - Safety evaluation of the food enzyme β‐galactosidase from the non‐genetically modified Kluyveromyces lactis strain GAL
  • EFSA - Safety evaluation of the food enzyme β‐galactosidase from the non‐genetically modified Neobacillus sp. strain AE‐LT
  • EFSA - Safety evaluation of the food enzyme β‐galactosidase from the genetically modifiedAspergillus niger strain TOL
  • ECDC - "Monkeypox situation" update, as of 11 October 2022
  • Ebola outbreak in Uganda under ECDC monitoring

DIGITAL SINGLE MARKET & INFORMATION SOCIETY

  • Launch of new calls for proposals, with budget €277 million, to support investments in digital connectivity infrastructure - Midday Express
  • Ms Renate Nikolay has been appointed as Deputy Director-General for its Directorate-General for DG CNECT

DATA PRIVACY CYBERSECURITY

  • Data Space for Skills kicked off to develop an open and trusted ecosystem for skills data sharing - See DigitalEurope Statement

TRANSPORT & MOBILITY

AREA OF FREEDOM, SECURITY & JUSTICE

  • Prolongation of the temporary reintroduction of border controls at the French internal borders in accordance with Articles 25 and 27 of Regulation (EU) 2016/399 on a Union Code on the rules governing the movement of persons across borders (Schengen Borders Code)
  • Enforcing EU laws: delivering the benefits to citizens - IP/22/6110, FactSheet & Communication
  • Commission proposes full suspension of the visa waiver agreement with Vanuatu due to risks related to golden passport schemes - Midday Express
  • Mr Nils Behrndt has been appointed as Deputy Director-General for DG JUSTICE - Midday Express

ECB, EURO & ECONOMY

  • EU budget: EU accounts signed off the 15th year in a row - IP/22/6132
  • European Commission raised a further €11 billion for NextGenerationEU and to support Ukraine - IP/22/6097
  • Another €550 million from the EIB Group supported by an EU guarantee reaches Ukraine for immediate assistance - IP/22/6123
  • Poland: EIB and Bank Gospodarstwa Krajowego (BGK) successfully issue first tranche of bonds under EIB solidarity package
  • ECB Blog - A plain-speaking central bank: contradiction in terms?

FUTURE OF EUROPE

  • Conference on the Future of Europe - Follow-up: Preliminary synthesis report on the Presidency questionnaire

EXTERNAL RELATIONS

  • 2022 Enlargement package - European Commission assesses reforms in the Western Balkans and Türkiye and recommends candidate status for Bosnia and Herzegovina - IP/22/6082, Remarks by Commissioner Olivér Várhelyi
    - Key findings of the 2022 Report on North Macedonia, Montenegro, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Serbia, Kosovo, Albania & Türkiye
  • EU launches first ever overseas aid stockpile in Latin America and the Caribbean - IP/22/6011
  • Speech by President von der Leyen at the EU Ambassadors Conference 2022
  • Countries siding with warmongers cannot be EU candidate - See EPP Group Statement
  • EU Enlargement process: Serbia, as any candidate country, should stop making a mockery of democracy and join EU sanctions against Russia, says S&D Tonino Picula
  • Answer given by to a MEP written question - Revival of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) and Russia’s ability to circumvent European sanctions

    RUSSIAN INVASION OF UKRAINE
  • Council gives the final go-ahead to further flexibility in the use of cohesion policy funds in response to Russia’s war in Ukraine
  • Europol - Suspect arrested in the Netherlands for circumventing EU trade sanctions against Russia
  • Switzerland - The Federal Department of Economic Affairs, Education and Research (EAER) approved the addition of some 30 individuals and entities to Switzerland's sanctions list

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