Europe Daily News, 28 January 2025

COMPETITION

• Compensation for harm caused by a cartel: national legislation preventing a group action for collection may infringe EU law (See CPR No.8/25 - Judgment of the Court in Case C-253/23, ASG 2)
  
• Prior notification of a concentration (Case M.11858 - Deutsche Börse / Lindner / Digital Vault Services)
• Non-opposition to a notified concentration (Case M.11834 - GTCR / Insight Partners / Tricentis)
• Non-opposition to a notified concentration (Case M.11086 - Arcelik / Whirpool Emea MDA)
• Non-opposition to a notified concentration (Case M.11808 - Permira / Basicnet / K-Way)
  
• Non-opposition to a notified concentration (Case M.11764 - DP World / Arcese / JV)
• Denmark - Consultancy company fined DKK 20 million for co-responsibility for disco cartel
• Latvia - The Competition Council initiates additional investigation in the merger of ERGO and Gjensidige
• Romania - The Competition Council has launched an investigation into the possible violation of competition law by the Romanian College of Dentists
• Slovakia leads EU charge to rein in supermarket power - Slovakia’s right-wing government is spearheading a push to strengthen EU rules on unfair trading practices, saying the current reforms don’t go far enough - Politico.eu

STATE AID

• Authorisation for State aid pursuant to Articles 107 and 108 of the TFEU - Cases where the Commission raises no objections – SA.115557

TRADE & CUSTOMS

• EU DG Trade organisational chart updated on 16 January 2025
• Answer given by Mr Šefčovič to a MEP written question - Adverse consequences of imposing import duties on titanium dioxide
• EFTA and the Kingdom of Thailand sign Free Trade Agreement
• WTO - Members consider China’s request for panel to examine electric vehicle measures in Türkiye 
• Panama appeals WTO dispute panel report regarding measures on imports from Costa Rica
• ‘That Would Give Trump Pause’: How to Game Out the Next Trade War - Politico.eu
• As Trump returns, the EU rediscovers the art of the trade deal - Politico.eu

INTERNAL MARKET & INDUSTRY 

• Automotive manufacturers and suppliers outline must-act priorities ahead of pivotal Strategic Dialogue with EU - See the Joint Statement
• List of authorisation decisions adopted on the basis of Article 64(8) of Regulation (EC) No 1907/2006 (REACH) as of 27 January 2025
• Cefic launches 2024 Facts & Figures Report - 24 January 2024

FINANCE

• ESMA - Euribor Panel to include Finland’s OP Corporate Bank and the National Bank of Greece

TAXATION

• Report from the Commission on the negotiation of bilateral arrangements or agreements between EU Member States and the United Kingdom, relating to administrative cooperation in the field of VAT or recovery assistance for any taxes, in accordance with Article 8(2) of Council Decision (EU) 2021/689
• The Role of the EPPO and Eurofisc in Tackling VAT Fraud in the EU - Exchange of Views - 06 February 2025

AGRICULTURE & FISHERIES

• Main Results of the Agriculture & Fisheries Council - 27 January 2025
• Agenda for: Working Party on Agricultural Products - 10 February 2025
• Minutes of the Special Committee on Agriculture - 20 January 2025
• Commission registers first food Geographical Indication from Malta ('Ġbejna tan-nagħaġ') and a Protected Geographical Indication from Slovak Republic ('Trnavský slad') - Midday Express

ENERGY

• Agenda for: Working Party on Energy - 04 February 2025
• Report from the Commission on Energy subsidies in the EU
• The EU offers emergency support to tackle the energy crisis in Moldova
• EU sends emergency energy assistance to Ireland following storm Éowyn - Midday Express
• ENTSOG assesses scenarios of disruption to EU gas supply and infrastructure
• German demand soars for Russian LNG via European ports - Deals from hubs such as Dunkirk show difficulty of tracing Russian gas after Berlin eschewed direct shipments - Financial Times

HEALTH, FOOD & PRODUCT SAFETY

• Answer given by Mr Várhelyi to a MEP written question - Unequal access to medicinal products approved for use across the EU

EFSA

• Scientific Opinion - Welfare of horses during killing for purposes other than slaughter - See the Summary
• Scientific Opinion - Safety of a change of specifications of phytosterols/phytostanols as a novel food pursuant to Regulation (EU) 2015/2283

EMA

• EMA celebrates 30 years of progress in science and medicines in the European Union

DIGITAL, DATA PRIVACY & CYBERSECURITY

• Report of the Eleventh Meeting of the European Board for Digital Services - 24 January 2025
• Answer given by Executive Vice-President Virkkunen to a MEP written question - Digital Services Act
• Answer given by Executive Vice-President Virkkunen to a MEP written question - Cybersecurity in Italy and the effectiveness of NRRP investments in cybersecurity
• Data Protection Day, the EDPS, Council of Europe, and CPDP Conferences are joining forces to host a one-day event: “CPDP – Data Protection Day: A New Mandate for Data Protection.” - 28 January 2025
• EDPS - 1st meeting of AI Correspondents Network: community, compliance and collaboration
• EDPB - Dutch SA fines Netflix for not properly informing customers
• The State of Digital Communications 2024 - See the Report by ConnectEurope
• Fact-checkers under fire as Big Tech pulls back - Meta’s move to ditch fact-checking put a target on the back of fake-news fighters, they warn - Politico.eu

AREA OF FREEDOM, SECURITY & JUSTICE

• Georgia: Council suspends visa-free travel for diplomats and officials

ECB, EURO & ECONOMY

• ECB - January 2025 euro area bank lending survey
• ECB - Euro area economic and financial developments by institutional sector: third quarter of 2024
• ECB - Survey on the Access to Finance of Enterprises: firms report lower interest rates but a small decline in bank loan availability

FUTURE OF EUROPE

• Agenda for: Meeting of the Coreper (Part.1 & Part.2) - 29 January 2025
• Speech by President von der Leyen at the solemn undertaking of the College of Commissioners before the European Court of Justice
• The President and Members of the European Commission give a solemn undertaking before the Court of Justice of the European Union - Formal sitting of the Court of Justice

EXTERNAL RELATIONS

• Main Results of the Foreign Affairs Council - 27 January 2025
  - The Council appointed Mr. Peter Sørensen as EU Special Representative for the Belgrade-Pristina Dialogue - See Council Decision (CFSP) 2025/144
  - United Nations Human Rights Fora: Council approves EU priorities for 2025
• Foreign Affairs Council: Press remarks by High Representative Kaja Kallas after the meeting
• Council Implementing Regulation (EU) 2025/190 of 27 January 2025 implementing Regulation (EU) 2016/44 concerning restrictive measures in view of the situation in Libya
• Council Implementing Decision (CFSP) 2025/189 of 27 January 2025 implementing Decision (CFSP) 2015/1333 concerning restrictive measures in view of the situation in Libya
• Council Decision (CFSP) 2025/155 of 27 January 2025 amending Decision 2011/72/CFSP concerning restrictive measures directed against certain persons and entities in view of the situation in Tunisia
• Answer given by Ms Kos to a MEP written question - Enlargement without any concessions
• Answer given by HR/VP Kallas to a MEP written question - Provision of assistance to Syria in 2024 under the NDICI-Global Europe programme
• EU and Nato take vow of silence on Greenland - Denmark urges other European capitals to resist reacting to Donald Trump’s threats - Financial Times & Politico

RUSSIAN INVASION OF UKRAINE

• The Council imposed restrictive measures on three individuals involved in cyber-attacks against Estonia - See Regulation (EU) 2025/173 & Decision (CFSP) 2025/171
• Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine: Council extends economic restrictive measures for a further 6 months - See Council Decision (CFSP) 2025/175 - Financial Times
• EU plans ban on sales of video game consoles to Russia - Country’s armed forces use gaming kit to control attack drones against Ukrainian targets, Brussels says - Financial Times
• Lithuania and Estonia pledge to meet Donald Trump’s 5% target on defence spending - EU states to boost military plans as they deal with Russia’s invasion of Ukraine - Financial Times