Europe politics

Europe politics

In countries with ageing populations, there's a growing likelihood that many of us will be. But behind the dream of a cosy retirement, the economic reality is ever more complex. As populations age, the number of younger people entering the workforce is shrinking and that's a big problem for pay as you go state pension schemes where employees fund the pensions of an expanding cohort of retired people.

The biggest shake-up of green trade rules for decades comes into force today, as companies selling steel, cement and other high-carbon goods into the EU will have to prove they comply with low-carbon regulations or face fines. But a lack of clarity on how the rules will be applied, and the failure of the UK government to strike a deal with Brussels over the issue, could lead to confusion in the early stages, experts warned.

Powerful new IRA mortars had significantly impacted the morale of British Army personnel stationed in south Armagh.

"The police concluded their investigation against me in connection with the Budapest Pride march in June with a recommendation to press charges," he said in a video posted to Facebook. "They accuse me of violating the [new law on] freedom of assembly, which is completely absurd." Karácsony approved the Pride event and took to the streets with hundreds of thousands of marchers in defiance of the ban. Celebrants anointed Orbán "King of European Pride."

Secretary of state Marco Rubio said the five people targeted with visa bans who include former European Commissioner Thierry Breton have led organized efforts to coerce American platforms to censor, demonetize, and suppress American viewpoints they oppose. These radical activists and weaponized NGOs have advanced censorship crackdowns by foreign states in each case targeting American speakers and American companies, Rubio said in an announcement.

China will impose provisional duties of up to 42.7% on certain dairy products imported from the EU from Tuesday after concluding the first phase of an anti-subsidy investigation widely seen as retaliation for the bloc's electric vehicle tariffs. The tariffs will range from 21.9% to 42.7% although most companies will pay about 30% and target products such as milk and cheeses including protected origin brands such as French Roquefort and Italian Gorgonzola.

"Specifically, the EU countries want ... the Commission to help ensure, going forward, that the financing of, among other things, return centres can be done using EU funds," the Danish immigration ministry said in a statement, with the signed letter sent to the Commission attached. The European Parliament must still vote on the measures. Denmark has made illegal immigration one of its main battle horses during its six-month stint at the helm of the EU presidency, which ends at the end of the month.

GAA president Jarlath Burns has revealed plans for a "high-performance licence" aimed at controlling the cost of running inter-county teams.

The EU's outright ban on the sale of new petrol and diesel cars from 2035 is poised to be watered down, a senior European parliament politician has said. The decision, expected to be unveiled by the European Commission on Tuesday in Strasbourg, would be a divisive move, angering environmental campaigners who argue it would amount to the gutting of the EU's flagship green deal.

Lawmakers in Austria have voted overwhelmingly to ban headscarves in schools for girls under the age of 14, despite concerns the legislation will deepen societal divisions and marginalise Muslims. The law could also be struck down by the country's constitutional court. The ban was proposed earlier this year by Austria's conservative-led government, which took office in March after a far-right party came first in the elections but failed to form a government.

The European Commission president was in Serbia as part of her tour of the Western Balkans to discuss EU enlargement with candidate countries in the region. That day, she invited Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic to come to Brussels a month later so that the two could "take stock together." That was October; this is December. According to multiple sources who spoke to DW, the meeting was postponed because Serbia had no progress to report.

A new bill aims to make it significantly harder to obtain - or keep - Italian citizenship, with proposals ranging from testing knowledge of Italian culture to making it possible to leave people stateless. The hard-right, anti-immigration party presented the bill to the Chamber of Deputies on Monday, saying it believed Italians wanted tighter limits after a failed referendum in June on easing citizenship requirements. "Citizenship is a serious matter and must be treated as such," said Deputy Prime Minister Matteo Salvini, the League's leader.

Germany's chancellor, Friedrich Merz, will meet the European Commission chief, Ursula von der Leyen, and Belgium's prime minister, Bart De Wever, for emergency talks on Friday as the EU races to save its sorely needed financing plan for Ukraine. The three leaders will dine in private in Brussels, a German government spokesperson said on Thursday, as Belgian officials continued to express strong opposition to the scheme, which involves the unprecedented use of frozen Russian assets.

The ReSourceEU programme will seek to de-risk and diversify the bloc's supply chains for key commodities with a funding initiative to support 25-30 strategic projects in the sector. These projects cover rare earths a group of 17 heavy metals that are actually abundant but difficult and costly to extract as well as the elements gallium, germanium and lithium, used in batteries for electric vehicles.

Belgian police have arrested three people including the EU's former top diplomat Federica Mogherini and raided the headquarters of the EU foreign service and the elite College of Europe as part of an investigation into suspected fraud. The three were detained as part of a probe into suspected fraud related to EU-funded training for junior diplomats, the European public prosecutor's office said in a statement, without naming individuals.

When Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and their two cabinets meet in Berlin for intergovernmental consultations on Monday, the intention is that talks will focus above all on present-day problems and future solutions, especially in relation to Russia's war in Ukraine, NATO's eastern flank, migration, security and infrastructure. But the heavy burden of the past will be the ever-present elephant in the room.

Verona Murphy says she was misled about intentions of photo, but MEP says impartiality was compromised and excuse is 'inadequate' Fine Gael MEP Regina Doherty has said it is "hard to accept" the explanation from Ceann Comhairle Verona Murphy about her decision to pose for a photograph with Sinn Féin TDs and senators. Dublin MEP Ms Doherty, who is a former government chief whip, ­added that

Ryanair is shutting its frequent flyers members' club after only eight months because customers exploited its benefits too much. The budget airline said on Friday it was closing the scheme, which offered benefits including flight discounts, free reserved seating on up to 12 flights a year and travel insurance. It said 55,000 passengers had signed up to Prime, generating 4.4m (3.5m) in subscription fees but customers had received more than 6m in benefits, making it a lossmaker for the company.

Simon Harris has accused Sinn Féin's finance spokesperson of being "a hypocrite" for saying the party is on "the side of the working people" after a group which raises money to aid Sinn Féin accepted donations from US construction firms.