Europe Daily News, 07 November 2024

COMPETITION

• Prior notification of a concentration (Case M.11754 - MSC / TTC / Samudera / JV) 
• Prior notification of a concentration (Case M.11515 - Veolia Environnement / Uniper Hungary Energetikai)
• Non-opposition to a notified concentration (Case M.11650 - RIL / TWDC / BTS1 / SIPL)
• Answer given by EVP Vestager to a MEP written question - Implementation of competition rules in Greece – oligopoly in the telecommunications sector
• Austria - Eight independent Austrian authorities conclude agreement on joint ‘Digitalisation Network’
• Belgium - Notification CONC-CC-24/0019: STEF / Cooltrans, Cardon logistique, Cooltrans logistics, Koeling et Jumax
• Germany - The Bundeskartellamt has cleared the planned acquisition of the Katharinenhof Group by Alloheim Senioren-Residenzen SE (Alloheim) 

STATE AID

• Judgment of the Court of 07 November 2024 in Case C‑588/22 P, Ryanair DAC, Vs. European Commission, French Republic, Republic of Finland
  Re: Appeal - State aid - Article 107(3)(b) TFEU - Finnish air-transport market - Aid granted to an airline by the Republic of Finland in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic - Temporary Framework for State aid measures - Recapitalisation of Finnair plc - Decision by the European Commission not to raise any objections - Aid to remedy a serious disturbance in the economy - Principles of proportionality and of non-discrimination
• Authorisation for State aid pursuant to Articles 107 and 108 of the TFEU - Cases where the Commission raises no objections - SA.108556; SA.116052; SA.115740 & SA.115647

TRADE & CUSTOMS

• Judgment of the Court of 07 November 2024 in Case C-503/23, Centro di Assistenza Doganale (Cad) Mellano Srl Vs. Agenzia delle Dogane e dei Monopoli - Agenzia delle Dogane - Direzione Interregionale per la Liguria, Ministero dell'Economia e delle Finanze
  Re: Reference for a preliminary ruling - Customs Union - Customs Code of the Union - Regulation (EU) No 952/2013 - Article 18 - Customs representative - Freedom to provide services - Directive 2006/123/EC - Articles 10 and 15 - Customs assistance centres - Territorial limitation of activity - Restriction - Justification
• Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2024/2547 of 5 September 2024 amending Regulation (EU) 2021/821 of the European Parliament and of the Council as regards the list of dual-use items
• Council Decision (EU) 2024/2869 of 5 November 2024 on the position to be taken on behalf of the European Union within the Specialised Committee on Energy established by the Trade and Cooperation Agreement between the European Union and the European Atomic Energy Community, of the one part, and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, of the other part, on the establishment of the Working Group on Security of Supply
• Answer given by EVP Dombrovskis to a MEP written question - Review of agreements with third countries to introduce mirror clauses
• WTO - China initiates dispute complaint regarding EU definitive duties on electric vehicles 
• Asia will get the rough end of the Trump trade - The process of pricing in rising protectionism in the auto sector has barely begun - Financial Times
• Trump’s tariff obsession is worse than before - Trying to close current account deficits with trade tools could cause serious damage - Financial Times
• Chinese exports soar as Beijing prepares for trade tensions with Donald Trump - China could respond to aggressive new tariffs with bigger stimulus action or currency depreciation, say analysts - Financial Times

INTERNAL MARKET & INDUSTRY

• Decision (EU) 2024/2854 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 October 2024 on the mobilisation of the European Globalisation Adjustment Fund for Displaced Workers following an application from Belgium – EGF/2024/001 BE/Match-Smatch
• Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council on prohibiting products made with forced labour on the Union market and amending Directive (EU) 2019/1937
• Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council on the transparency and integrity of Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) rating activities, and amending Regulations (EU) 2019/2088 and (EU) 2023/2859
• Public consultation - Lift safety – Evaluation of the Lifts Directive - Evaluation - Feedback period: 07 November 2024 - 13 February 2025

DEFENCE & SPACE

• Record-breaking industrial interest under the 2024 round of the European Defence Fund
• EU Space Programme Security Accreditation Board work and prospect - Powerpoint presentation (Space WP meeting 06.11.2024

CHEMICAL

• ECHA adds one hazardous chemical to the Candidate List - ECHA/NR/24/29
• 6th Annual Forum on Endocrine Disruptors 2024 - see the Presentations

FINANCE

• EBA observes an improvement in competent authorities’ practices on the supervision of non-performing loans
• ESMA - Compliance table on Guidelines on certain aspects of the MiFID II compliance function (ESMA35-36-1952)
• Joint Guidelines on the oversight cooperation and information exchange between the ESAs and the competent authorities under Regulation (EU) 2022/2554

ENERGY

• Call for feedback (until 3 December 2024) : Repairability score for household tumble dryers
• Answer given by Ms Simson to a MEP written question - Recent increase in electricity prices in central and eastern Europe
• Europe’s winter gas supplies at risk from market disruptions - Region replaced Russian pipeline imports with globally traded LNG, which is more susceptible to price rises - Financial Times

ENVIRONMENT & CLIMATE CHANGE

• Agenda for: Working Party on International Environment Issues (Global) - 13 November 2024
• Agenda for: Working Party on International Environment Issues (Basel Convention) - 14 November 2024
• Agenda for: 39th Meeting of the Expert Group on Reporting under the Nature Directives - 21 November 2024
• Minutes of the Meeting of the expert group for sustainability and quality of agriculture and rural development – Sub-group on methane emissions in agriculture - 17 September 2024
• Communication from the Commission on the Strategic Framework for International Cooperation Engagement in the context of Regulation (EU) 2023/1115 on the making available on the Union market and the export from the Union of certain commodities and products associated with deforestation and forest degradation
• Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council on establishing a Union certification framework for permanent carbon removals, carbon farming and carbon storage in products
• Commission opens call for members of the new Ecodesign Forum for transparent development of criteria for sustainability of products - Midday Express
• Tackling pollution and energy poverty key to reducing chronic respiratory disease in Europe - See EEA Report
• Ensuring justice in Europe’s sustainability transition - See EEA Report
• World on track to exceed warming of 1.5C this year, EU agency says - Data comes as experts fear Donald Trump will deliver on his promise to pull US out of the Paris Agreement - Financial Times

HEALTH, FOOD & PRODUCT SAFETY

• Answer given by Ms Kyriakides to a MEP written question - A tobacco-free generation as part of the fight against cancer
• ESFA - Scientific Opinion - Guidance for establishing and applying tolerable upper intake levels for vitamins and essential minerals

DIGITAL, DATA PRIVACY & CYBERSECURITY

• Agenda for: Horizontal Working Party on Cyber Issues - 11 November 2024
• EDPB adopts its first report under the "EU-U.S. Data Privacy Framework" and a statement on the "Recommendations" on access to data for law enforcement
• EDPB - Norwegian SA issues administrative fine to the University of Agder
• EDPB - Norwegian SA issues fine and orders to Norwegian Labour and Welfare Administration
• EDPB - Monitoring employees and broadcasting CCTV footage: Slovenian SA fines DODO PIZZA
• ENISA Cybersecurity Resilience and Market Conference: Joining forces for a cyber-secure and resilient digital single market
• The ENISA organises the 9th edition of the eHealth Security conference, in collaboration with the National Cybersecurity Centre of Hungary and Semmelweis University.

AREA OF FREEDOM, SECURITY & JUSTICE 

• Facilitation of unauthorised entry carried out for a humanitarian purpose: Advocate General Richard de la Tour finds that Directive 2002/90 validates, and clarifies the conditions for, the criminalisation of that offence in EU law and national law (See CPR No.189/2024, Advocate General's Opinion in Case C-460/23; Kinsa)
• Compensation to victims of violent intentional crime: the automatic exclusion of certain family members of the victim of homicide does not guarantee ‘fair and appropriate’ compensation (See CPR No.188/24, Advocate General's Opinion in Case C-126/23; Burdene) 
• The Commission launches a new high-level committee to strengthen the security of access routes to the EU - Midday Express
• Answer given by Mr Reynders to a MEP written question - Application of the General Product Safety Regulation (GPSR) and its effects on small and medium-sized enterprises in the cultural sector 

ECB, EURO & ECONOMY

• Statement by Eurogroup President Paschal Donohoe for the 10th Anniversary of the Single supervisory mechanism
• ECB - Survey on the Access to Finance of Enterprises: firms report moderate tightening of financing conditions
• Speech by Isabel Schnabel: The ECB’s balance sheet reduction: an interim assessment
• Time-varying agglomeration economies and aggregate wage growth - ECB Working Paper Series No.2997
• Fiscal policy and inflation: accounting for non-linearities in government debt- ECB Working Paper Series No.2996

FUTURE OF EUROPE

• Invitation letter by President Charles Michel to the members of the European Council ahead of their informal meeting in Budapest on 7 and 8 November 2024
• Doorstep by President von der Leyen at the meeting of the European Political Community in Budapest
• The Committee on Fisheries questioned Costas Kadis, Cypriot candidate for the Fisheries and Oceans portfolio
• The Committee on Development questioned Jozef Síkela, Czech candidate for the International Partnerships portfolio
• Two European Parliament committees questioned Olivér Várhelyi, Hungarian candidate for the Health and Animal Welfare portfolio
• The Foreign Affairs and Industry, Research and Energy committees questioned Andrius Kubilius, Lithuanian candidate for the Defence and Space portfolio
• The Monetary and Economic Affairs Committee questioned Maria Luis Albuquerque, candidate for the Financial Services and the Savings and Investments Union portfolio
• The Committees for Development, Women’s Rights, Civil Liberties and Environment questioned Hadja Lahbib, candidate for the Preparedness, Crisis Management and Equality portfolio

EXTERNAL RELATIONS

• OTS: Statement by HR/VP Josep Borrell on attempts to legitimise the Turkish Cypriot secessionist entity
• Answer given by HR/VP Borrell to a MEP written question - The responsibilities of the EU and national governments in the escalation of the imperialistic war in Ukraine
• Answer given by HR/VP Borrell to a MEP written question - Resolution adopted by the UN on Israel’s occupation of Palestinian territories