One single charger for frequently used small and medium-sized portable electronic devices Charging speed harmonised for devices that support fast charging Buyers can choose whether to purchase new device with or without charging device By autumn 2024, USB Type-C will become the common charging port for all mobile phones, tablets and cameras in the EU, Parliament and Council negotiators agreed today. The provisional agreement on the amended Radio Equipment Directive, establishes a single charging solution for certain electronic devices. This...

The world may gain an estimated $78 trillion over coming decades by making this energy transition. International negotiators can’t agree on how to phase out coal, in part because of opposition to carbon taxes, and now even countries that had been able to abandon the fuel are reversing that progress as the war in Ukraine raises energy prices. The most common concern about scrapping coal is that replacing it with renewable energy would be too expensive, but we show in new...

'Countries should allow international prices to pass through to domestic prices while protecting households that are most in need.' Governments confront difficult policy choices as they try to shield their people from record food prices and soaring energy costs driven higher by the war in Ukraine. Countries introduced a variety of policy measures in response to this unprecedented surge in prices of the most crucial commodities. Our survey of these announced measures by member nations shows that many governments tried to...

The amount of plastic waste produced globally is on track to almost triple by 2060, with around half ending up in landfill and less than a fifth recycled, according to a new OECD report. Global Plastics Outlook: Policy Scenarios to 2060 says that without radical action to curb demand, increase product lifespans and improve waste management and recyclability, plastic pollution will rise in tandem with an almost threefold increase in plastics use driven by rising populations and incomes. The report...

​​Tourism has been one of the sectors worst affected by the Covid-19 pandemic: hotels, restaurants, airlines and travel agencies had to stop their activity almost completely during a long period and only now touristic activity is slowly recovering back to pre-2020 levels. However, the pandemic has also accelerated the transition to a more sustainable models of tourism. This was the topic of a conference organised by the CoR's NAT Commission in Santiago de Compostela on 3 June. The host...

The European Commission and the US Commerce Department have agreed to strengthen coordination on the enforcement of export controls on Russia, building on the excellent cooperation under the US-EU Trade and Technology Council. In a meeting in Brussels, Deputy Secretary of Commerce Don Graves, US Ambassador to the European Union Mark Gitenstein and Assistant Secretary for Export Enforcement Matthew Axelrod, discussed export control enforcement with Bjoern Seibert, Head of Cabinet for the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der...

Introductory statement by Fabio Panetta, Member of the Executive Board of the ECB, at the meeting of the Euro Accession Countries Working Group of the Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs of the European Parliament | Brussels, 1 June 2022 | Thank you for inviting me to discuss our latest ECB Convergence Report. As foreseen in the EU Treaties, we publish our Convergence Report at least once every two years. The report examines the progress made by non-euro area Member States...

Today, the European Commission has concluded that Croatia is ready to adopt the euro on 1 January 2023, bringing the number of euro area Member States to twenty. The conclusion is set out in the 2022 Convergence Report, which assesses the progress that Bulgaria, Czechia, Croatia, Hungary, Poland, Romania and Sweden have made towards joining the euro area. These are the seven non-euro area Member States that are legally committed to adopting the euro. The Report concludes that: Only Croatia...