Europe Daily News, 18 April 2025

COMPETITION

• France - Agrifood industry: the Autorité clears the takeover of the Pierre Martinet Group by the LDC Group
• UK - CMA: Anti-competitive behaviour relating to freelance labour in the production and broadcasting of sports content

TRADE & CUSTOMS

• Answer given by Mr Séjourné to a MEP written question - Public procurement and EU international agreements following CJEU case C-652/22
• EU/Mercosur trade agreement unlikely to reduce emissions, according to study commissioned by CAN Europe

EU/US TARIFFS

• The European Union should form an international open trade coalition in response to Trump’s tariffs - See the Analysis by Bruegel
• Trump’s auto tariffs build on a long destructive history - It is US protectionism rather than trade barriers abroad that has undermined American carmakers - Financial Times
• Donald Trump “100%” sure there will be deal with EU on tariffs - US president raises hopes of breakthrough while meeting Italy’s leader Giorgia Meloni in Washington - Financial Times
• Supermarkets call for EU-UK deal on plant and animal exports - Marks and Spencer and J Sainsbury intervene over veterinary agreement ahead of ‘reset’ summit next month - Financial Times

INTERNAL MARKET & INDUSTRY

• Eurelectric and ACEA ask for grid measures to accelerate heavy-duty vehicles electrification
• Europe’s centre-right calls for softening of 2035 green car target - EU should ditch its planned ban on internal combustion engines, Manfred Weber of EPP says - Financial Times

TAXATION

• 39 MEPs call on European Commission to propose digital tax as new own resource
• OECD - Taxing Powerhouses: The Systematic Role of Businesses in Collecting Government Revenue
• Why von der Leyen’s Big Tech tax plan is bluster - There are major hurdles to overcome for the EU to retaliate against U.S. digital companies - Politico.eu

ENVIRONMENT & CLIMATE CHANGE

• Council Decision on the position to be taken on behalf of the European Union at the seventeenth Conference of the Parties to the Basel Convention on the Control of Transboundary Movements of Hazardous Wastes and their Disposal with regard to certain amendments to the Convention and the Annexes thereto
• Council Decision on the position to be taken on behalf of the European Union at the Conference of the Parties to the Rotterdam Convention on the Prior Informed Consent Procedure for certain hazardous chemicals and pesticides in international trade as regards certain amendments to that Convention and to Annex III thereto, and to the Rules of Procedure for the Conference of the Parties to the Convention

AGRICULTURE & FISHERIES

• Open letter to Commission President von der Leyen by COPA-COGECA: A historic misstep? Undermining the architecture of Europe’s first common policy the CAP will inevitably weaken Europe's security.

FINANCE

• European Commission published three draft delegated acts and an annex relating to the regulation on European Green Bonds
  - Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) …/... supplementing Regulation (EU) 2023/2631 of the European Parliament and of the Council by establishing the content, methodologies, and presentation of the information to be voluntarily disclosed by issuers of bonds marketed as environmentally sustainable or of sustainability-linked bonds in the templates for periodic post-issuance disclosures
  - Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) …/... supplementing Regulation (EU) 2023/2631 of the European Parliament and of the Council by specifying the type of fees to be charged by ESMA to external reviewers of European Green Bonds, the matters in respect of which fees are due, the amount of the fees, and the manner in which those fees are to be paid
  - Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) …/... supplementing Regulation (EU) 2023/2631of the European Parliament and of the Council by specifying rules of procedure for the exercise of the power to impose fines or periodic penalty payments by the European Securities and Markets Authority on external reviewers
• The Joint Committee of the European Supervisory Authorities (EBA, EIOPA and ESMA - ESAs) published its 2024 Annual Report

HEALTH, FOOD & PRODUCT SAFETY

• Answer given by Mr Várhelyi to a MEP written question - EFSA citing a non-independent expert on genetically engineered animals
• Industry stakeholders and EU network experts surveys on early engagement fostering innovation - EMA Final report: 01 January 2024-15 December 2024
  
• EFSA - Safety and efficacy of a feed additive consisting of an essential oil derived from the leaves of Pogostemon cablin Benth. (patchouli oil) for use in all animal species (FEFANA asbl)

DIGITAL & INFORMATION SOCIETY

• Draft Open:Procedural arrangements for peer-reviews of electronic identification schemes to be notified to the Commission - Implementing regulation - Feedback period: 15 April 2025 - 13 May 2025
• Draft Open: Validation of qualified electronic signatures and seals as well as advanced electronic signatures and seals - Implementing regulation - Feedback period: 15 April 2025 - 13 May 2025
• Draft Open: Verification of identity and attributes at qualified certificate or qualified attestation of attributes issuance - Implementing regulation - Feedback period: 15 April 2025 - 13 May 2025
• Draft Open: Qualified preservation services for qualified electronic signatures and for qualified electronic seals - Implementing regulation - Feedback period: 15 April 2025 - 13 May 2025
• Draft Open: Management of remote qualified signature creation devices as a qualified trust service - Implementing regulation - Feedback period: 15 April 2025 - 13 May 2025
• Answer given by Executive Vice-President Virkkunen to a MEP written question - Debunking pre-bunking
• The ECSO has been following with great concern the recent developments regarding MITRE’s role in the management of Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures (CVE) programme‘s IDs.

ECB, EURO & ECONOMY

• ECB cuts rates to 2.25% amid Trump trade war - Read the Speech by Christine Lagarde, Luis de Guindos: Monetary policy statement & decisions (with Q&A) - Financial Times
  

EXTERNAL RELATIONS

• The EUSFF brings three unique programs of European short films to Ottawa
• EU-funded BOMCA 10 strengthens regional investigative capacity in digital crime detection
• The proposed European Defence Mechanism: questions and answers - See the Analysis by Bruegel
• Russia’s effort to get US to drop aviation sanctions hits EU resistance - Brussels is also worried about the risks to air safety posed by fake and uncertified parts installed in Russian planes - Politico.eu