Έγγραφα - Think Tank - Ευρωπαϊκό Κοινοβούλιο

Briefing - 2025 Commission work programme - 31-03-2025

Mon, 31 Mar 2025 17:14:27 GMT

On 11 February 2025, the European Commission adopted the first work programme (2025 CWP) of the von der Leyen II Commission. Building on the reports by Enrico Letta, Mario Draghi and Sauli Niinistö, and in line with the Commission President's political guidelines, the CWP places a strong emphasis on competitiveness, simplification and implementation, and preparedness. These will remain key horizontal priorities for the entire Commission mandate. In terms of structure, the CWP follows the seven headline ambitions put forward in the political guidelines and is accompanied by a communication on implementation and simplification. The work programme should be read in conjunction with two other recent Commission communications: the 'Competitiveness Compass' – itself a flagship initiative under the 2025 CWP, setting out a strategic long-term plan for rebooting Europe's competitiveness – and the communication on 'The road to the next multiannual financial framework' (MFF), which reflects on how to align the MFF with evolving needs and priorities. Annex I of the 2025 CWP puts forward 52 major new policy initiatives, over 40 % of which fall under the competitiveness headline ambition. Only 18 new initiatives are of a legislative nature, with a further one listed as 'legislative or non-legislative'. Fourteen of the legislative initiatives aim to revise existing legislation; 11 of these have a strong simplification dimension, and only nine are set to be supported by an impact assessment. The relatively low number of legislative files is not uncommon at the beginning of a new mandate, where (non-legislative) strategies, compasses, roadmaps and action plans lay out the new priorities. Several of them, such as the Competitiveness Compass and the Clean Industrial Deal, imply intense legislative activity in the years ahead. The annual plan of evaluations and fitness checks included in Annex II is a novelty – and a step towards increased transparency.

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Μελέτη - Commission proposal for a revised Facilitation Directive: Targeted substitute impact assessment - 05-03-2025

Tue, 04 Mar 2025 23:00:00 GMT

This study constitutes a targeted substitute impact assessment of the Commission’s proposal for a revised Facilitation Directive (COM(2023) 755), presented on 28 November 2023 as part of a package to address migrant smuggling. It provides a critical review of the existing legal and policy framework at EU level and its shortcomings regarding transposition and implementation. It also undertakes a critical and thorough appraisal of the proposed objectives and measures in terms of coherence, effectiveness and efficiency, including with a view to assessing the adequacy of the interplay between this proposal and the related draft Regulation on enhancing police cooperation (COM(2023) 754). It highlights the misalignment of the proposal with relevant international and key EU law standards. It raises concerns about definitional issues, the lack of sufficient human rights safeguards, and the absence of a clear distinction between facilitation offences and the legitimate provision of services and humanitarian assistance. The study also examines the legality and proportionality of the proposed measures and stresses the need for a thorough evaluation of wider impacts on civic space and democracy at large.

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Μελέτη - Quality analysis of European Commission impact assessments - 03-02-2025

Sun, 02 Feb 2025 23:00:00 GMT

This study provides an analysis of the quality of European Commission ex-ante impact assessments (IAs) published between December 2019 and November 2024, following their appraisal by the Ex-Ante Impact Assessment Unit (IMPA) of the European �Ϸ��վary Research Service (EPRS). Drawing on a review of 143 initial appraisals of Commission IAs, the study analyses them according to quality criteria stemming from the Commission's Better Regulation Guidelines, European �Ϸ��վ resolutions and the �Ϸ��վ's Impact Assessment Handbook. During the term under review, the average quality of Commission IAs has developed positively, and in several respects. This reflects the Commission's significant efforts to apply the better regulation rules and tools. At the same time, the study reveals shortcomings in certain parts of IAs, the improvement of which will need a careful and systematic approach in future, in particular the assessment of impacts, the range of feasible options, and elements such as the inclusion of operational objectives and the quantification of benefits. As regards the uptake of the Regulatory Scrutiny Board (RSB) recommendations in the final IA, the intensified upstream scrutiny of the RSB appears to have benefited overall IA quality during this review term and should therefore be maintained. With this study, IMPA seeks to contribute to the joint effort to improve the quality of EU law-making. The aim is for the findings of the review to feed into the broader discussion on better regulation in the European Union, and impact assessment in particular.

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Briefing - Revision of the Package Travel Directive - 23-10-2024

Tue, 22 Oct 2024 22:00:00 GMT

The IA underpins the revision of the Package Travel Directive with a qualitative and quantitative analysis, which relies on a wealth of data sources. It identifies the problems and their drivers, and presents alternative policy options to address them. However, a further illustration of the scale of the problems and a clearer indication of the limitation thresholds of prepayments in all policy options would have been useful. As required in the Better Regulation Guidelines (BRG), the IA assesses the economic, social and environmental impacts of the policy options, and compares the options against the BRG criteria of effectiveness, efficiency and coherence. It also offers sufficient justification for the choice of the preferred option. As the large majority of package organisers (99 %) are small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), an SME test was duly performed. Furthermore, the methodology used – including a price sensitivity analysis and multi-criteria methods – is explained in detail. The IA openly admits limitations in quantifying impacts due to the unavailability of quantitative data. The external study supporting the IA does not appear to be easily accessible, which reduces transparency. Overall, the legislative proposal appears to follow the preferred option of the IA.

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Briefing - Combating late payment - 15-02-2024

Wed, 14 Feb 2024 23:00:00 GMT

Presented as part of the 'SME relief package', the initiative aims to tighten the EU's late payment framework and improve its enforcement. It proposes, among other things, to convert the current Late Payment Directive into a regulation, a move that several national parliaments contested. National parliaments also raised subsidiarity and proportionality concerns on several provisions. The impact assessment (IA) adequately justifies the need to revise the late payment framework, and substantiates the envisaged change of legal instrument. Overall, it presents a clear intervention logic. It puts forward three well-developed policy options (each with sub-options). Because of the initiative's high relevance for SMEs, a comprehensive SME test was carried out, in addition to a competitiveness check. The focus of the impact analysis lies clearly on economic impacts. The IA draws on a wide range of evidence (including relevant studies, surveys and market analyses) and broad stakeholder input (including from SMEs). It builds on qualitative and quantitative data and is transparent about data limitations. The wide evidence base somewhat compensates for the fact that the Commission's 2015 evaluation is rather dated. That fact that no separate evaluation was carried out prior to the revision is not fully in line with the 'evaluate first' principle. Of note, the Commission's open public consultation, which ran in parallel with the feedback to the inception IA, lasted merely 9 weeks (instead of the mandatory 12 weeks), without the IA disclosing the reasons for the shortened period. The IA provides a vast amount of background information and additional explanations in annexes (26 in total) and appears broadly coherent with the legislative proposal.

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Briefing - Alternative dispute resolution for consumers - 31-01-2024

Tue, 30 Jan 2024 23:00:00 GMT

The impact assessment (IA) underpinning the revision of the alternative dispute resolution (ADR) framework presents a robust intervention logic. It puts forward four policy options (including a non-regulatory option) with varying degrees of ambition; however, the description of the different policy options would have benefited from more depth and detail. The IA assesses the policy options in terms of their economic, social and environmental impacts and their effects on fundamental rights. While large parts of the analysis are mainly qualitative, the section on economic impacts is also supported by quantitative data and estimations. Although the IA acknowledges that most businesses concerned are SMEs, the impact on SMEs is not further assessed. Similarly, more reflection on the impact of extending the directive's scope to third-country traders would have been warranted. The IA's evidence base appears solid: in addition to a comprehensive stakeholder consultation, it drew on an ex-post evaluation (conducted 'back to back' with the IA), Commission reports on the application of the current ADR/ODR framework, and several highly relevant and up to-date studies. The legislative proposal appears to follow broadly the IA's preferred option, despite some clear differences.

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Briefing - Introducing a European disability card and a European parking card - 01-12-2023

Thu, 30 Nov 2023 23:00:00 GMT

The IA supporting the proposal for a European disability card and a European parking card builds on the experience of two instruments already in place: i) the EU disability card pilot project rolled out in eight participating Member States since 2016, and ii) the EU parking card for persons with disabilities, introduced EU-wide in 1998 through Council Recommendation 98/376/EC. The IA draws on a wide range of data, including a supporting study (which, however, is not linked and does not seem to have been published) and a recent study assessing the implementation of the disability card pilot project. The IA presents a clear and comprehensive intervention logic. It puts forward two policy options in addition to the baseline scenario, duly analysing the potential impacts, with a focus on social, fundamental rights and economic impacts. Stakeholder input was taken into account throughout the IA. Disability organisations were involved in the consultations; in addition, in line with the UN CRPD and the BRG, the open public consultation included accessible formats (e.g. a questionnaire in easy-to-read format). The legislative proposal broadly follows the IA, with some minor differences regarding the scope, delegated acts and review clauses.

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Briefing - 2024 Commission work programme - 24-11-2023

Fri, 24 Nov 2023 17:47:51 GMT

This briefing is intended as a background overview for parliamentary committees (and their respective secretariats) planning their activities in relation to the European Commission's 2024 work programme (2024 CWP), adopted on 17 October 2023. Like all work programmes under the von der Leyen Commission, the 2024 CWP delivers on the Commission's six priorities, and the twin green and digital transition. Nonetheless, the 2024 work programme differs quite significantly from the CWPs of the past four years, on account of the forthcoming European �Ϸ��վ elections (scheduled to be held between 6 and 9 June 2024), the end of the current Commission's mandate (in late 2024) and the CWP's special focus on strengthening the EU's competitiveness by cutting red tape. The latter responds to the Commission's announcement of March 2023 to reduce reporting requirements for companies and administrations by 25 %. In comparison, the von der Leyen Commission's previous CWPs were somewhat crisis-driven: the 2020, 2021 and 2022 CWPs were characterised by the COVID-19 pandemic, whereas the 2023 CWP was shaped by Russia's war against Ukraine, which triggered, inter alia, a vast humanitarian and energy crisis. Like previous work programmes, the 2024 CWP takes a look at past achievements and outlines new initiatives the Commission still intends to present before the end of this term. In view of the limited time left ahead of the European elections, the relatively low number of new (legislative and non-legislative) initiatives – namely 18 (Annex I) – does not come as a surprise. Instead, next year's CWP puts special emphasis on regulatory simplification, featuring an additional 41 initiatives to reduce administrative burden resulting from reporting requirements under existing EU legislation (Annex II). Breaking with the tradition to include only initiatives planned to be presented in the year ahead, the 2024 CWP also enumerates a significant number of initiatives the Commission either already adopted earlier this year or presented alongside the 2024 CWP. The 41 burden-reduction initiatives consist of 15 initiatives adopted between March and September 2023 (Annex II A), which aim to amend existing legislation and, at the same time, reduce regulatory burden, and 26 initiatives to 'rationalise reporting requirements' (Annex II B), of which 18 were presented on the same day the 2024 CWP was adopted. A further legislative proposal under this annex was submitted at the beginning of November 2023. Of the 26 simplification proposals mentioned above, 15 fall under the ordinary legislative procedure, while 11 are comitology acts. Leaving aside the initiatives already submitted ahead of the 2024 CWP and the comitology files, Annexes I and II B of the 2024 CWP set out a total of 33 initiatives, of which at most 20 are legislative initiatives. Of those 20, 12 were presented by the Commission on 17 October 2023, together with the 2024 CWP, and, as mentioned above, a further one was submitted at the beginning of November 2023. Thus, only seven legislative initiatives remain to be submitted later in 2023 or 2024. Overall, with a maximum of 20, the number of legislative initiatives – which are the focus of this briefing – is very low in the 2024 CWP. Indeed it is far less than in previous years: the 2023 CWP included 39 legislative initiatives, and the 2022 CWP listed 45.

Πηγή : © Ευρωπαϊκή Ένωση, 2023 - EK

Briefing - Stepping up toy safety - 25-10-2023

Tue, 24 Oct 2023 22:00:00 GMT

The impact assessment underpinning the proposed revision of the Toy Safety Directive presents a clear and comprehensive intervention logic. The envisaged change in legal instrument, i.e. a conversion of the present directive into a regulation, appears adequately justified in the IA. It enjoys broad stakeholder support and corresponds to a call from the European �Ϸ��վ. The range of policy options explored appears balanced and sufficiently detailed, consistently reflecting the views of the different stakeholder groups; the explored options are incremental rather than self-standing alternatives. The assessment of impacts – with a focus on economic impacts and impacts on human health – is substantiated by quantitative and qualitative data, with the choice of the preferred option being convincingly justified. In line with the 'evaluate first' principle, the IA draws largely on the findings of a prior evaluation, in particular to develop the problem definition. In addition to the evaluation, the IA is also informed by an external supporting study (published after the proposal and IA), an adequate level of stakeholder consultation, and seemingly relevant scientific literature. Various annexes add depth to the analysis on specific aspects (e.g. the toy market; non-compliant toys in the EU; EU chemicals legislation). While subsidiarity is adequately addressed in the IA, proportionality questions could be reflected more explicitly. Because of the initiative's relevance for SMEs, an SME test was carried out, as recommended by the Better Regulation Guidelines. The draft IA received a positive opinion from the Regulatory Scrutiny Board.

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Μελέτη - Evaluation in the European Commission: Rolling check-list and state of play-Fifth edition - 16-10-2023

Sun, 15 Oct 2023 22:00:00 GMT

Ex-post evaluation provides an evidence-based assessment of the performance of policies and legislation. Its findings support political decision-making and inform the design of new initiatives in the policy cycle, notably legislative revisions. On this account, evaluation has become a key policymaking tool under the EU's better regulation agenda. �Ϸ��վ has a keen interest in obtaining a complete picture of the Commission's evaluation planning and in receiving evaluation results in a timely manner, as they support the �Ϸ��վ in its legislative work and in its oversight function. This fifth edition of the EPRS rolling check-list 'Evaluation in the European Commission' offers a comprehensive overview of planned, ongoing and recently completed Commission evaluations. Compiled from a range of sources in the public domain, it seeks to fill a gap by granting a single point of access to the Commission's evaluation planning and output, as of 10 October 2023. The dataset is preceded by an analysis of ex-post evaluation under the better regulation agenda. Particular emphasis is placed on the transparency of the European Commission's evaluation process and output, measured against the commitments set out in the 2016 Interinstitutional Agreement on Better Law-Making and the Commission's own Better Regulation Guidelines and toolbox. New to this edition is a section on how the European �Ϸ��վ uses the Commission's evaluations.

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Briefing - Revision of the EU pharmaceutical legislation - 21-09-2023

Wed, 20 Sep 2023 22:00:00 GMT

The proposed revision of the EU's pharmaceutical framework covers the EU's general pharmaceutical legislation and the paediatric and orphan medicines regulations ('specific pharmaceutical legislation') in an integrated manner. The merger of the orphan and paediatric regulations with the legislation applicable to all medicinal products is explained with 'simplification and increased coherence' in the explanatory memorandum of the proposed directive. The proposed revision is supported by two impact assessments that were prepared in separate processes, but striving for utmost coherence, and eventually published under the same cover: one focusing on the general and the other on the specific pharmaceutical legislation. The ease of assessing the IAs in conjunction with the proposed legislation is somewhat hampered by the differences in structure described above. Both IAs draw on the results of the respective Commission evaluations, in line with the 'evaluate first principle'. They appear solid in substance, underpinned by a seemingly sound evidence base. Despite the complex nature of the topic, the main parts of the IAs are drafted in a way that is accessible to non-experts. Much of the data is further substantiated in (partly rather detailed and technical) annexes. Each IA presents three well-developed options in addition to the dynamic baseline scenario. The assessment of the specific policy measures' impacts under each option appears comprehensive; in particular, the section on economic impacts is developed thoroughly, substantiated by qualitative and quantitative data (including, inter alia, a cost-benefit analysis). In terms of transparency, the IA on the general pharmaceutical legislation (IA, part I), as published on EurLex and the Commission's public register of documents, is incomplete in the sense that it lacks all annexes, including the Commission's evaluation of the general pharmaceutical legislation, prepared back-to-back with the IA. Although the annexes were (later) published on a dedicated DG SANTE webpage, they remain difficult to trace and lack stable hyperlinks.

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Briefing - Promoting the repair of consumer goods - 17-07-2023

Sun, 16 Jul 2023 22:00:00 GMT

In line with the overall objectives of the European Green Deal, the proposed initiative aims to render consumption more sustainable by increasing the repair and reuse of defective consumer goods, both within and outside their legal guarantee. It complements two related initiatives that are currently pending (eco-design and empowering consumers for the green transition). The IA presents a clear intervention logic and a seemingly comprehensive qualitative and quantitative assessment of the impacts of the seven policy options proposed, from which it derives a preferred set of options. The comparison of the environmental, economic, social and consumer impacts of the different policy options (including sub-options) relies inter alia on the results of a multi-criteria analysis (MCA) and a cost-benefit analysis (CBA). The IA is specific about the costs that businesses would incur in the context of the OIOO approach. Overall, the proposed directive appears to reflect the preferred set of options identified in the IA. The entire IA draws to a large degree on a supporting study focusing on economic and behavioural analysis, the methodology of which is described in detail in Annex 4. However, despite over 100 direct references to that 'IA study', the IA does not provide access to the supporting study (not even a bibliographic reference), nor does it justify why the study is not disclosed, which goes against the transparency requirements set out in the BRG.

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Briefing - EU critical raw materials act - 09-05-2023

Mon, 08 May 2023 22:00:00 GMT

As the first EU act specifically regulating the EU's CRM supply, the proposed initiative aims to address an area previously identified as one of the EU's strategic dependencies. Following a clear problem description, the IA presents three (partially overlapping) policy options and a thorough analysis of their possible impacts, with a clear focus on economic impacts. The identification of the preferred policy option appears justified. The predominantly qualitative assessment draws merely on desk research and stakeholder input. In this respect, the IA admits to having 'significant data gaps' and a 'limited' evidence base, owing in part to 'the lack of a supporting study'. With regard to stakeholder input, the IA does not explain why the public consultation was open for only 8 weeks (instead of the default 12). It is notable that the proposed regulation deviates somewhat in scope from the IA: it adds a further specific objective – namely to diversify CRM imports in order to reduce strategic dependencies – and provides for a few measures that were either not assessed at all in the IA, or which were outside the preferred policy option.

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Μελέτη - �Ϸ��վary oversight of governments' response to the COVID-19 pandemic: Literature review - 25-01-2023

Tue, 24 Jan 2023 23:00:00 GMT

Conducted at the request of the European �Ϸ��վ's Special Committee on the COVID 19 pandemic, this literature review examines the patterns in, consequences of and correlation between national approaches to parliamentary oversight of governments' responses to the COVID 19 pandemic in the EU27 and four other countries (Canada, Switzerland, the United Kingdom and the United States). The review begins by assessing parliaments' involvement during the early stages of the health crisis, when many countries were operating under emergency regimes or statutory frameworks that provided for rapid action. It then maps the parliaments' law-making and oversight role during the pandemic, demonstrating that they were not necessarily side-lined. The study goes on to assess successes and failures and, on that basis, factors in the resilience of parliamentary oversight. Mapping the widespread use of sunset and review clauses in emergency legislation, the study reflects on parliaments' cooperation with supreme audit institutions and independent fiscal institutions, which enhanced their budgetary oversight role during the pandemic. The literature review also identifies best practice regarding oversight during the COVID 19 pandemic and reforms that parliaments could pursue to strengthen their preparedness for future crises.

Πηγή : © Ευρωπαϊκή Ένωση, 2023 - EK

Briefing - Towards a new regulatory framework for European population statistics - 11-05-2022

Tue, 10 May 2022 22:00:00 GMT

Census data and demographic statistics are of great relevance for policy-making at the European, national, regional and local levels. At a time where the European Union (EU) is undergoing major demographic changes, driven by an ageing population, low fertility rates and increased migration flows, demand for accurate and timely population statistics rises. In parallel, owing to progress in digitalisation, statistical data collection methods are shifting from traditional population censuses and surveys towards the use of administrative data. Such register-based data collection methods bear great potential in terms of improved data frequency, granularity and burden reduction. The modernisation of European population statistics is one of the action points included in the European statistical programme 2021-2027, and part of a wider programme to modernise social statistics. Under the current regulatory framework, Eurostat collects population data under a number of separate legal acts, covering demographic, census and migration data. One of them, Regulation (EU) No 1260/2013 on European demographic statistics, is set to expire in 2028. According to the 2022 Commission work programme, the Commission will present a legislative proposal on population statistics in the second quarter of 2022. The new proposal should integrate, in a single legal act, annual demographic and migration statistics and decennial census data, as well as regional and geo-referenced population data. It should provide for timelier, more coherent and more specific population statistics that reflect migration more adequately and facilitate the use of administrative data sources.

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Briefing - Amending the rules governing the statute and funding of European political parties (recast) - 23-03-2022

Tue, 22 Mar 2022 23:00:00 GMT

Ahead of the 2024 European elections, the European Commission has presented a proposal to amend Regulation 1141/2014 governing the statute and funding of European political parties (EUPPs) and foundations. The proposed amendments concern, inter alia, the funding provisions, transparency requirements and enforcement of the rules. This briefing examines the quality of the supporting impact assessment (IA), which outlines the problems encountered in applying the regulation, as identified in recent EU-level reports and through stakeholder input. The range of policy options presented in the IA to address the identified shortcomings is rather limited, although under each option, and for each problem, several alternative measures are considered. Elements of the parallel initiative on political advertising - also part of the European democracy action plan - were integrated into the amending EUPP proposal; however, the IA remains vague on the link between these two initiatives.

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Briefing - What is new in the Commission's 2021 Better Regulation Guidelines? - 04-02-2022

Fri, 04 Feb 2022 13:29:36 GMT

This briefing examines the revised Better Regulation guidelines and toolbox the European Commission presented in November 2021, which translate the Commission’s communication ‘Joining forces to make better laws’ into practice. Compared to the previous edition, many tools and principles are just validated and adjusted, such as the three pillars of ex-ante impact assessment, ex-post evaluation and stakeholder consultation, or the evaluate-first principle. Two major innovations stand out: the introduction of a new 'one in, one out' approach and the mainstreaming of strategic foresight in policy-making. The former aims at offsetting new administrative burdens (i.e. costs resulting from administrative requirements contained in legal acts by reducing an equivalent amount of existing burden on businesses and citizens. The latter aims at generating more resilient and future-proof policies by anticipating trends, risks and emerging issues, in particular in areas that are subject to rapid change.

Πηγή : © Ευρωπαϊκή Ένωση, 2022 - EK

Briefing - Voting and candidacy rights of mobile EU citizens in municipal elections under Directive 94/80/EC - 29-10-2021

Thu, 28 Oct 2021 22:00:00 GMT

An estimated 13.3 million European Union (EU) citizens live in an EU Member State that is not their country of origin. Of these, over 11 million are of voting age. Under Council Directives 93/109/EC and 94/80/EC, these 'mobile' Europeans are entitled to participate in European and municipal elections in their country of residence. While Member States have successfully transposed both directives, voter turnout among mobile citizens remains low compared to nationals. In its 2020 citizenship report, the European Commission announced a strengthening of electoral rights in European and municipal elections. According to the Commission's 2021 work programme (Annex II), amending proposals are envisaged for the fourth quarter of 2021, as part of the 'Transparency and democracy package'. This briefing explores the operation of Council Directive 94/80/EC on the right to vote and to stand as a candidate in municipal elections and discusses obstacles to citizens' effective exercise of their rights. It also analyses the implications of Brexit on local election rights for both United Kingdom (UK) citizens residing in the EU 27 and EU citizens living in the UK. The resulting post-Brexit status quo is a complex patchwork governed by national law and bilateral agreements. A separate briefing examines the implementation of Directive 93/109/EC regarding European elections.

Πηγή : © Ευρωπαϊκή Ένωση, 2021 - EK

Briefing - Voting and candidacy rights of mobile EU citizens in European elections under Council Directive 93/109/EC - 29-10-2021

Thu, 28 Oct 2021 22:00:00 GMT

Under the arrangements set out in Council Directives 93/109/EC and 94/80/EC, EU nationals who live in a Member State other than their own are entitled to participate in European and municipal elections, respectively, in their country of residence. This concerns an estimated 11 million EU citizens of voting age (post-Brexit data). Even if Member States have successfully transposed both directives, voter turnout among mobile citizens remains low compared to nationals. Similarly, only a fraction of candidates standing for European elections is made up of non-nationals (slightly over 1 % in the 2019 elections). The European Commission has announced its intention to update both directives; according to its 2021 work programme (Annex II), amending proposals are envisaged for the fourth quarter of 2021, forming part of the 'transparency and democracy package'. This briefing looks into the operation of Council Directive 93/109/EC on the right to vote and stand as candidate in European elections. It discusses obstacles that hinder mobile EU citizens from effectively exercising their electoral rights, such as registration and communication issues, and looks into the problem of double voting. The implementation of Directive 94/80/EC regarding municipal elections is examined in a separate briefing.

Πηγή : © Ευρωπαϊκή Ένωση, 2021 - EK

Briefing - Machinery Directive: Revision of Directive 2006/42/EC - 17-09-2021

Thu, 16 Sep 2021 22:00:00 GMT

The Machinery Directive establishes a regulatory framework for mechanical engineering industry products. It regulates the harmonisation of essential health and safety requirements for machinery in order to ensure the free movement of machinery products within the internal market on the one hand, and a high level of protection for machinery users on the other. The European Commission's Regulatory Fitness and Performance Programme (REFIT) evaluation of 2018 concluded that the directive has generally remained relevant and effective. However, it pointed at certain shortcomings in the enforcement of the directive (mainly related to market surveillance, a Member State responsibility), and found that despite its technology-neutral design, the directive might not sufficiently cover new risks stemming from emerging technologies (in particular robots using artificial intelligence technologies). Furthermore, it identified the potential for administrative simplification. The Commission issued its new proposal for a regulation on machinery products (COM(2021) 202) on 21 April 2021, as part of the 'artificial intelligence package'. In particular, the change of instrument (regulation instead of a directive) aims at ensuring a uniform implementation in the Member States and avoiding the risk of 'gold plating'.

Πηγή : © Ευρωπαϊκή Ένωση, 2021 - EK

Μελέτη - Statute and funding of European political parties under Regulation 1141/2014 - 21-06-2021

Sun, 20 Jun 2021 22:00:00 GMT

European political parties are transnational political alliances made up of national parties from the same political family. Since July 2004, they have been able to receive funding from the EU general budget. The current Regulation 1141/2014, applicable since 2017, tightened the requirements for parties' recognition, funding and spending. Yet, some parties (and their affiliated foundations) found loopholes in the legal framework. Targeted amendments to the regulation adopted in 2018 and 2019 sought, inter alia, to prevent misuse of public funds, enhance the role of European parties in the European public space, and safeguard the integrity of the European elections by sanctioning breaches of the rules on the protection of personal data. This study examines the operation of the legal framework, ahead of the legislative revision announced by the European Commission in its 2021 work programme, and in support of the evaluation report currently undertaken by the AFCO committee.

Πηγή : © Ευρωπαϊκή Ένωση, 2021 - EK

Briefing - New European Commission communication on Better Regulation: Joining forces to make better laws - 28-05-2021

Thu, 27 May 2021 22:00:00 GMT

Better Regulation ensures that EU policies and laws are prepared in an open, transparent manner, informed by the best available evidence and backed by comprehensive stakeholder involvement so that they achieve their objectives at minimum cost. It is a dynamic agenda that has gradually evolved in the European Commission since the early 2000s. Today's Better Regulation agenda covers the whole policy cycle. It was shaped under the Juncker Commission presidency, which formally declared it a priority, with the aim of strengthening the effectiveness, transparency and accountability of its actions across all policy areas. The comprehensive Better Regulation package of 2015 presented a strategy, guidelines and a toolbox, and established the Regulatory Scrutiny Board as the Commission's regulatory oversight body. It also paved the way for the Interinstitutional Agreement on Better Law-Making (IIA-BLM) concluded by the Commission, �Ϸ��վ and Council in April 2016, and which, inter alia, defines their respective roles and responsibilities in the regulatory process. Following a revision in 2017, the Commission took stock of the Better Regulation agenda in 2019, concluding that in a post-fact world, evidence-based policy-making remains an imperative. The long-awaited new Commission communication, adopted on 29 April 2021, draws lessons from the Better Regulation stocktaking review. At the same time, it sets out a policy-making framework that aims at supporting post-crisis recovery and the twin digital and green transformation, in line with the Commission's intention to advance the Better Regulation agenda further, with 'future-proof legislation that can stand the test of time'.

Πηγή : © Ευρωπαϊκή Ένωση, 2021 - EK

Briefing - European critical infrastructure: Revision of Directive 2008/114/EC - 03-02-2021

Tue, 02 Feb 2021 23:00:00 GMT

Council Directive 2008/114/EC is part of the EU framework for critical infrastructure protection. While embracing an all-hazards approach, its scope is limited to the sectors energy and transport. This is widely considered a shortcoming. Calls for broadening its scope and for refocussing the directive on resilience rather than just protection, and interconnectivity of critical infrastructures resulted in a new legislative proposal the Commission presented in December 2020.

Πηγή : © Ευρωπαϊκή Ένωση, 2021 - EK

Μελέτη - Implementation of the Employment Equality Directive in light of the UN CRPD - 03-12-2020

Wed, 02 Dec 2020 23:00:00 GMT

3 December marks the International Day of Persons with Disabilities. EPRS has prepared a study on the implementation of the Employment Equality Directive in light of the UN CRPD, in support of the ongoing EMPL implementation report. The study places a particular focus on reasonable accommodation, positive action, sanctions and equality bodies, and also to employment-related data regarding persons with disabilities.

Πηγή : © Ευρωπαϊκή Ένωση, 2020 - EK

Μελέτη - Evaluation in the European Commission - 29-07-2020

Tue, 28 Jul 2020 22:00:00 GMT

Ex-post evaluation provides an evidence-based assessment of the performance of policies and legislation. Its findings support political decision-making and inform the design of new interventions. For this reason, and notably under the EU's Better Regulation agenda, evaluation has become a key policy-making tool at EU level. At the same time, evaluation is an aid for legislators, in particular at the policy review stage. �Ϸ��վ therefore has a keen interest in obtaining a complete picture of ongoing Commission evaluations and in having timely access to evaluation results. This fourth edition of the EPRS rolling check-list 'Evaluation in the European Commission' is designed to provide a comprehensive overview of planned, ongoing and recently completed Commission evaluations. Compiled from a range of sources in the public domain, it seeks to fill a gap by granting a single access point to the Commission's evaluation planning and output, as of 30 June 2020. The dataset is preceded by an analysis of how the evaluation process has evolved since the 2015 Better Regulation reform, with particular regard to the transparency of the European Commission's ex post evaluation process.

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