Europe Daily News, 04 September 2024

COMPETITION

• Judgment of the General Court of 4 September 2024 in Case T-59/22, Conserve Italia - Consorzio Italiano fra cooperative agricole Soc. coop. agr, Conserves France Vs. European Commission
  Re: Competition - Agreements, decisions and concerted practices - Market in canned vegetables - Decision finding an infringement of Article 101 TFEU - Gravity and duration of the infringement - Fine - Basic amount - Additional amount for deterrence - Legal ceiling on the fine - Concept of ‘undertaking’ - Concept of ‘association of undertakings’ - Relevant turnover - Article 23(2) of Regulation (EC) No 1/2003 - 2006 Guidelines on the method of setting fines
• Agenda for: Working Party on Competition -19 September 2024
• Prior notification of a concentration (Case M.11680 - Waterland / Vendis Capital / X2O)
• Commission clears acquisition of R1 RCM by TCP and CD&R (M.11695) - Midday Express
• Commission clears acquisition of SGEF by BPCE (M.11623) - Midday Express
• France - The Autorité de la concurrence takes note of the Illumina / Grail judgment by the Court of Justice of the European Union
• Greece - Examination of the notified concentration concerning the creation of a joint venture by the companies HELLENIC TRAIN and DAMCO ENERGY
• Romania - The Competition Council assesses the takeover of G.I. Industrial Holding S.P.A by Baxi S.P.A
• Romania - The Competition Council sanctioned FCC Environment Romania SRL with a fine of 2,045 million lei (EUR 410,000) for abusing its dominant position
• Memo to the commissioner responsible for competition by Fiona M. Scott Morton - Bruegel

STATE AID

• Authorisation for State aid pursuant to Articles 107 and 108 of the TFEU - Cases where the Commission raises no objections - SA.112301
• ESA approves changes to Norwegian grant scheme for news and current affairs media

TRADE & CUSTOMS

• Agenda for: Working Party on Dual Use Goods -13 September 2024
• Agenda for: Meeting of the ACP Working Party - 06 September 2024
• Agenda for: Working Party on the United Kingdom - 06 September 2024
• Agreed Joint Minutes 10th IP Dialogue between the Republic of Korea and the European Union - July 2024
• Minutes of the First meeting of the Working Group on Motor Vehicles and Parts under the EU-UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement
• Memo to the commissioner responsible for trade, by Petros C. Mavroidis and André Sapi - Bruegel

INTERNAL MARKET & INDUSTRY

• Powerpoint presentation "Zero Debris Charter" at the Space Working Party meeting of 03 September 2024
• EU Award for Gender Equality Champions: call for applications opens on 4 September

FINANCE

• Agenda for: Financial Counsellors Working Party Meeting -06 September 2024
• Minutes of the 53rd meeting of the Expert Group of the European Securities Committee - 05 July 2024
• Europe’s failure to keep pace on corporate bonds is baked in - Part of the problem is that investors on the continent just aren’t interested in small deals - Financial Times

TAXATION

• Agenda for: Code of Conduct Group (Business Taxation) - Subgroup on internal and external issues -11 September 2024

ENERGY

• Agenda for: Working Party on Energy -10 September 2024

AGRICULTURE & FISHERIES

• Agenda for: Ad Hoc Working Party on Forest Monitoring - 06 September 2024
  
• Strategic Dialogue on the Future of EU Agriculture delivers its final report to President von der Leyen
• Statement by President von der Leyen at the joint press conference with Professor Strohschneider on the outcome of the Strategic Dialogue on the Future of EU Agriculture
• EU urged to overhaul €387bn farm subsidies regime - Report suggests basing CAP payments on income not acreage and calls for curbing meat production - Financial Times

AREA OF FREEDOM, SECURITY & JUSTICE

• Council Decision (EU) 2024/2218 of 28 August 2024 on the signing, on behalf of the European Union, of the Council of Europe Framework Convention on Artificial Intelligence and Human Rights, Democracy and the Rule of Law

EU INSTITUTIONS

• Indirect management of the EU budget: according to the General Court, the Commission’s decision refusing to recognise IMG as having status as an international organisation is lawful (See CPR No.128/24, Judgments of the General Court in Cases T-381/15 RENV II and T-509/21, IMG Vs Commission)

ECB, EURO & ECONOMY

• Commission endorses preliminary assessment of Greece's fourth payment request for €998.6 million in grants under the Recovery and Resilience Facility
• Keynote speech by the Eurogroup President, Paschal Donohoe, to the City of London Corporation on 'Financing Our Future', 3 September 2024
• Commission methodology for the determination of payment suspension under the Recovery and Resilience Facility Regulation
• Reversal of Milestones and Targets under the Recovery and Resilience Facility
• Study - Comply and invest: The effect of EU fiscal rules on public investment
• ECB - Consolidated financial statement of the Eurosystem as at 30 August 2024
• Interview with ECB's Piero Cipollone, conducted by Eric Albert - Le Monde
• ECB - Euro area bank interest rate statistics: July 2024
• Opinion of the European Central Bank of 30 August 2024 on a proposal for a regulation on a framework for Financial Data Access and amending Regulations (EU) No 1093/2010, (EU) No 1094/2010, (EU) No 1095/2010 and (EU) 2022/2554

EXTERNAL RELATIONS

• Agenda for: Working Party on the Western Balkans region - 05 September 2024
• Agenda for: Meeting of the Non-Proliferation and Disarmament subgroup (CONOP) of the Working Party on Non-Proliferation and Arms Exports -18 September 2024
• Judgment of the General Court of 4 September 2024 in Case T-503/23; Ammar Sharif v Council of the European Union
  Re: CFSP -  Restrictive measures taken on account of the situation in Syria - Freezing of funds - Restrictions on admission to the territory of the Member States - Maintenance of the applicant's name on the lists of persons, entities and bodies concerned - Criterion of link with members of the Assad or Makhlouf families - Plea of illegality - Errors of assessment - Non-contractual liability
• Judgment of the General Court of 4 September 2024 in Case T-370/23; Samer Kamal Al-Assad Vs. Council of the European Union
  Re: CFSP - Restrictive measures taken against Syria - Freezing of funds and economic resources - List of persons, entities and bodies to whom the freezing of funds and economic resources applies - Inclusion of the applicant's name on the list - Criterion of family affiliation - Plea of illegality - Requirement that any restriction must be provided for by law - Error of assessment - Right to property

RUSSIAN INVASION OF UKRAINE

• Judgment of the General Court of 4 September 2024 in Cases T-290/22 and T-763/22, Igor Albertovich Kesaev Vs. Council of the European Union
  Re: CFSP - Restrictive measures taken in respect of actions undermining or threatening the territorial integrity, sovereignty and independence of Ukraine - Freezing of funds - List of persons, entities and bodies to whom the freezing of funds and economic resources applies - Inclusion and maintenance of the applicant's name on the list - Concept of ‘influential businessman or businesswoman’ - Concept of ‘businessman or businesswoman active in economic sectors which provide a substantial source of income to the Government of the Russian Federation’ - Article 2, (1)(g) of Decision 2014/145/CFSP - Article 3(1)(g) of Regulation (EU) No 269/2014 - Plea of illegality - Error of assessment - Right to be heard - Right to property - Proportionality - Legal certainty - Equal treatment.’
• Judgment of the General Court of  4 September 2024 in Case T-651/22, Kirill Shamalov Vs. Council of the European Union
  Re: CFSP - Restrictive measures taken in respect of acts undermining or threatening the territorial integrity, sovereignty and independence of Ukraine - Freezing of funds - List of persons, entities and bodies to whom the freezing of funds and economic resources applies - Restrictions on admission to the territory of the Member States - List of persons, entities and bodies subject to restrictions on admission to the territory of the Member States - Inclusion and maintenance of the applicant's name on the lists - Concept of ‘influential businessman or woman’ - Article 2(1)(g) of Decision 2014/145/CFSP - Article 3(1)(g) of Regulation (EU) No 269/2014 - Obligation to state reasons - Plea of illegality - Error of assessment - Misuse of powers’
• Vice-President Jourová participates in the Council of Europe's conference on accountability for international crimes committed in Ukraine - Midday Express