Open Europe press summary: 29 January 2009

Europe

Commission calls for OECD-wide emissions trading scheme by 2015 and a global carbon market by 2020;
CDM permits could be scrapped following abuse of the system
A new Commission paper was released yesterday, laying out the EU's draft negotiating position for the global environment summit in Copenhagen in December this year. The Irish Times reports that proposals include creating an OECD-wide emissions trading scheme by 2015, which Environment Commissioner Stavros Dimas said was becoming "increasingly realistic."

The Guardian reports that Dimas has said that if the US joined the system, it could be extended to developing economies, to create a global carbon market by 2020. US President Barack Obama has indicated that he plans to create a domestic emissions-trading system, but EurActiv reports that Dimas said, "We should go ahead with an agreement whether or not the US has a cap-and-trade in place by Copenhagen."

The Guardian goes on to say that the Commission's position, to be debated at a summit of European leaders in March, would commit the EU to a 30% cut in greenhouse gas emissions by 2020, compared to 1990 levels, if matched by a 30% cut in other developed countries. EurActiv reports that the proposal for developing countries would be 15-30% below 'business-as-usual' levels by 2020.

According to the Guardian, the Commission estimates that the targets will cost 175 billion euros a year to meet success by 2020, with around half of the money to be spent in the developing world.

The paper also reports that senior Commission officials have indicated that they could use the Copenhagen negotiations to scrap the Clean Development Mechanism, which allows emissions to be offset by investment in green projects in the developing world. The officials acknowledged that the current system is being abused by both rich and poor countries, and said "There is some cheating...And some of the developing countries are much richer than some [EU] member states."

Deutsche Welle writes that Greenpeace has criticised the proposal, saying the lack of specific funding targets for developing countries showed that the EU was "unable to put its euros where its mouth is", and the WWF has said that the question of specific sums would be the "make or break issue" in Copenhagen. The article also reports that the Commission's proposal calls for a doubling of investment in clean-energy research by 2013, and a quadrupling by 2020.

The Telegraph reports that the EU's ETS has seen a slump in the price of carbon by almost 30%, with £2.8 billion worth of emissions allowances having been sold since the beginning of December. The carbon consultancy IDEAcarbon suggests that a decline in industrial activity has resulted in lower emissions and a lower demand for carbon allowances, saying "[the scheme] is not serving its purpose. It's not the way the architects envisioned emissions would be reduced."

EUobserver reports that former US Vice-President Al Gore has questioned the EU's ability to provide global leadership on climate change, quoting him saying, "Some have speculated that sometime in the future, if the European Union actually unifies to a much higher degree, and has a president, and an effective legislative body that has real power, they might somehow emerge, with potential for global leadership. I'm not going to hold my breath".
Guardian Irish Times European Voice BBC BBC 2 EurActiv EUobserver Deutsche Welle EUobserver 2

Commission to reallocate funds to energy projects in biggest and most influential countries
The Commission has proposed spending five billion euros in unspent funds on energy and broadband infrastructure projects, as a response to the recent gas crisis, reports EUobserver. 3.5 billion euros would go to clean energy projects with one billion euros to be spent on broadband access. However, the article notes that the countries worst hit by the gas crisis, Bulgaria and Slovakia, are to get only minimal amounts with the bulk of funding for "bigger and influent countries." Commission President Barroso conceded that a "geographical balance" was needed to ensure the package's approval by member states.

An article in the Times notes that there is growing scepticism over the financial viability of renewable energy projects in the UK after the recent exit of a string of companies, including BP and Shell, from the funding of high-profile projects.
EUobserver European Voice EurActiv Times

On her blog, the Mail's Mary Ellen Synon looks at Open Europe's publication and debate on the EU's communication policy, held in Brussels on Tuesday evening. Meanwhile, Euractiv has a detailed write-up of the debate, with quotes from the panellists and from the research itself.
Mail: Synon blog Euractiv OE publication - "The hard sell"

Commission: 30bn worth of savings to business as a result of better regulation drive
Agence Europe reports that the European Commission published its strategic review on "Better Regulation" yesterday, claiming to have brought 30 billion euros in savings to European businesses since the start of 2007. Industry and Enterprise Commissioner Günter Verheugen hailed the great success of the operation four years after its launch in March 2005. "We have already achieved impressive results and are keen to go much further by the end of this year. Better Regulation - regulating where necessary but keeping burdens on businesses and citizens to the minimum necessary - must remain an essential part of our response to current economic difficulties," he said.
Commission press release

EU mulls new data protection initiatives as human rights activists express concerns
Euractiv reports that as the third "European data protection day" was celebrated yesterday, the European Commission has announced plans to tighten rules on data protection, including extending the concept of personal data to IP addresses and cookies, which allow very detailed profiles of Internet surfers to be created. Also, EU privacy authorities are focusing on Internet search engines' data storage and software such as Google Street View. IT site Mondaq comments that the third birthday "will be remembered simply because it follows on from what has to go down as one of the worst years on record in terms of the sheer volume of data 'lost' and flagrant breaches of the Data Protection Act 1998."

German Daily Tagesspiegel gives a detailed critical overview of all EU plans, mentioning "big brother" concerns by human rights activists and also saying how "given the data protection deficiencies occurring in the UK in 2008, it is surprising that British Home Office Minister Jacqui Smith has expressed in the beginning of January that her police would like to search through accounts on an EU wide basis".
EurActiv Mondaq Tagesspiegel

European Parliament: "Most laws enacted in your country are a transposition of European acts voted by MEPs"
On his FT Brussels blog Tony Barber looks at the upcoming European Parliament elections due to be held in June. He notes that the Parliament's website has a section setting out "10 good reasons to vote" and that reason number six "spells out the reality of lawmaking in today's EU" as it states: "Many, probably most, laws enacted in your country are a transposition of European acts voted by MEPs."

The website says that "Heavyweight MEPs" is a reason to vote in the European elections. It says: "In most cases, MEPs have as much weight as the Member States in EU decision-making. Most laws that concern our daily lives are legislated side by side by MEPs and ministers at EU level. Many, probably most, laws enacted in your country are a transposition of European acts voted by MEPs - your representatives. And it's not just laws: money for new roads, cleaner beaches, research, education, development aid? MEPs also decide where our EU money goes."
FT: Brussels blog EP: 10 good reasons to vote

Formation of new Commission to be delayed to avoid Nice Treaty rules
European Voice reports that Commission President Jose Barroso has told other Commissioners to be ready to stay in place beyond 31 October, the official end of the Barroso Commission, amid uncertainty over what rules will govern the formation of the next Commission. The article reports that any extension of the current Commission's mandate could raise questions about the legality of its decisions.
European Voice European Voice 2

Merkel steps up pressure for Russian-German gas pipeline
EUobserver reports that German Chancellor Angela Merkel has stepped up the pressure on the European Commission and member states to back the Nord Stream Russian-German gas pipeline project. The article notes that Nord Stream was highly criticised by the Baltic states, Poland, Finland and Sweden for trying to leave them out by connecting Germany directly to the Russian gas fields.
IHT EUobserver Reuters

Good handling of financial crisis but lack of budgetary coordination will cost EU
Chief Economists and Managing Directors of Barclays Capital, Laurence Boone and Raoul Salomon, argue in Le Monde that the EU has handled the financial crisis well but that its lack of budgetary coordination could cost the EU dearly. Boone and Salomon believe that the independent budgetary measures adopted by each member state will lead to considerably higher debt levels across the EU.
Le Monde

Felicity Lawrence: EU's agricultural subsidies "impoverish small farmers"
On the Guardian's Comment Is Free website Consumer Affairs Correspondent Felicity Lawrence argues that the US and EU systems of agricultural subsidies favour large corporations and that their effect "has been to impoverish small farmers around the world".

Meanwhile, European Voice notes that the Commission has said that French government subsidies to the country's fruit and vegetable sector, amounting to over 330 million euros over ten years, broke the EU's state-aid rules. France must now recoup all the payments made to producers, the Commission has said.
Guardian: Comment is free European Voice EU Referendum: blog

A report published by the EU Commission yesterday noted that the morale of consumers and business is at its lowest ever since the eurozone was created.
Libération

Le Monde reports that Danish Prime Minster Anders Fogh Rasmussen is pushing for a referendum on the euro in 2010.
No link

The European Ombudsman has urged the European Commission to set up a comprehensive register of the documents it produces or receives, following a complaint by Statewatch about the Commission's failure to register the vast majority of its documents.
Statewatch

More than a million protesters are expected to take to French streets today striking against the economic policies of President Nicolas Sarkozy.
Times Times: Bremner Independent FT IHT Irish Times BBC EurActiv

European Voice reports that EU Internal Markets Commissioner Charlie McCreevy is "poised" to propose regulation for the credit derivatives markets, which could see legislation put in place before a new Parliament is elected in June.
European Voice

In an article in the WSJ Giampoalo Galli and Alberto Mingardi argue that the financial crisis was not the result of wild deregulation in American markets. They go on to argue that the EU should avoid the curtailment of market freedom in response to recent events.
WSJ: Galli and Mingardi

Johanna Sigurdardottir is expected to be sworn in as Iceland's Prime Minister by the end of the week.
Independent IHT

On his BBC blog Mark Mardell looks at the impact of the economic crisis on the Greek economy.
BBC: Mardell blog

Strong result predicted for French Radical Left in EU parliamentary elections Both Le Monde and Le Figaro note the potentially strong results for the united list representing the various radical Left parties in France for the EU's parliamentary elections in June. The IFOP poll shows that 14.5% of voters in the European elections would choose the Radical Left list, which is strongly opposed to what it perceives as the EU's free market principle.
Le Monde

UK

The IMF has predicted that the UK will suffer the deepest recession in the developed world due to the current economic crisis.
Times Independent FT Guardian Mail Telegraph Novinte EUobserver

In an article in the New Statesman, General Secretary of the Fabian Society, Sunder Katwala, argues that a coalition government between the Conservatives and the Liberal Democrats would be a "non-starter", because no policy on Europe could ever be agreed upon.
No link
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