European Parliament - EPRS Policy podcasts

The proposed directive on liability of defective products aims to bring the European Union's product liability rules up to speed with the digital age, circular economy business models and global value chains. Consumers would be better protected against defective products and the damages they might cause. Compensation for defective products would also extend to those manufactured outside the EU. - Original publication on the EP Think Tank website - Subscription to our RSS feed in case your...

The proposed 'AI liability directive' introduces new rules specific to damages caused by AI systems. These rules are intended to ensure that consumers harmed by AI systems enjoy the same level of protection as consumers harmed by other technologies in the EU. The directive would also ease the burden of proof for victims to establish damage caused by an AI system and give national courts the power to order disclosure of evidence about high-risk AI systems suspected of having caused damage. -...

The European defence industry reinforcement through common procurement act, or EDIRPA, is a short-term joint defence procurement instrument worth €500 million. It seeks to address the most urgent and critical defence capability gaps and to incentivise EU countries to procure defence products jointly. - Original publication on the EP Think Tank website - Subscription to our RSS feed in case your have your own RSS reader - Podcast available on Deezer, iTunes, TuneIn, Stitcher,...

European integration has been a key driver of economic growth, peace and social prosperity. But challenges remain and crises could arise. In one of its latest studies, “Increasing European added value in an age of global challenges: Mapping the cost of non-Europe (2022-2032)”, EPRS finds that more EU action in 50 policy areas could bring large gains to society, up to more than €2.8 trillion per year by 2032. In this podcast, we will look at the benefits from more EU action in the area of...

European integration has been a key driver of growth, peace and social prosperity. But challenges remain and crises could arise. Further European integration can help respond to present and future challenges and generate benefits of over €2.8 trillion per year by 2032, as shown in one of latest EPRS studies, “Increasing European added value in an age of global challenges: Mapping the cost of non-Europe (2022-2032)”. In this podcast, we will look at the benefits for EU citizens from more EU...

In this podcast, we look at the potential gains of more European action versus the costs of non-Europe in the area of energy, one of the 50 policy areas investigated in one of the latest studies from EPRS: “Increasing European added value in an age of global challenges: Mapping the cost of non-Europe (2022-2032)”. We analyse how closer EU cooperation in this area could bring substantial economic, social and environmental benefits. - Original publication on the EP Think Tank website -...

For over half a century now, European integration has been a key driver of economic growth, environmental protection, peace and social prosperity. And one of Europe's landmark achievements is, without a doubt, the single market. In this podcast, we look at the benefits for EU citizens from more ambitious and united EU action in the single market for goods and services. In one of its latest studies, “Increasing European added value in an age of global challenges: Mapping the cost of...

The volume of online child sexual abuse materials (CSAM) and frequency of grooming activities, increasingly targeting younger children, is rising sharply. Reporting of suspected online child sexual abuse increased by 35 % in 2021 compared with 2020, representing a historical peak. The proposed regulation laying down rules to prevent and combat child sexual abuse would require interpersonal communication services and others to search proactively for CSAM materials and grooming activities...

The European media freedom act proposes a new set of rules and mechanisms to promote media pluralism and independence across the European Union. The aim is to prevent political interference in editorial decisions and ensure transparency of media ownership. The proposed act stresses the importance of an independent and adequately funded public service media, and seeks to protect journalists from having to disclose their sources and from the use of spyware against them. - Original publication...

The European Union has set itself a double target: a 50 % reduction in the overall use of and risk from chemical plant protection products,and a 50% reduction in the use of more hazardous ones by 2030. A proposed regulation on the sustainable use of plant protection products would require EU countries to contribute collectively to achieving these EU-wide targets through the adoption and attainment of binding national targets. To protect biodiversity and citizens' health, the use of all plant...

Platform work is an umbrella concept covering a heterogeneous group of economic activities completed through a digital platform. As platform workers' rights are not enshrined in EU labour law, this increasingly leads to problems related to various aspects of their work and human development. To remedy this situation, the European Commission has proposed a directive aimed at improving the working conditions of platform workers, clarifying their employment status, and supporting the...

For two decades, the EU has sought to modernise its preferential trade relationship with the sub-Saharan African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) countries and establish free trade areas with regional groupings under so-called economic partnership agreements (EPAs). These are free trade agreements that allow ACP countries to continue exporting their products to the EU duty free and quota free, while ensuring full compliance with World Trade Organization (WTO) rules. EU goods should also benefit...

At least 80 % of European citizens should have the possibility to use a digital identity to access key public services by 2030 and to do so across EU borders. The updated European digital identity framework would also allow citizens to identify and authenticate themselves online (via their European digital identity wallet) without having to resort to commercial providers, a practice that raises trust, security and privacy concerns. - Original publication on the EP Think Tank website -...

The European Commission outlined various approaches to capture and store or isolate carbon dioxide emissions, or capture already released carbon dioxide directly from the atmosphere to reduce the concentration and thereby its warming effect. Various solutions, both technology- and nature-based, are being brought forward to this end. A key challenge will be to ensure permanence of carbon dioxide removals, whether in underground geological storage or through actively managed natural processes,...

The proposed EU data act lays down harmonised rules on fair access to and use of data. The aim is to remove barriers before consumers and businesses' access to data in a context in which the volume of data generated by humans and machines is increasing exponentially and becoming a critical factor for innovation by businesses (e.g. algorithm training) and by public authorities (e.g. shaping of smart cities). - Original publication on the EP Think Tank website - Subscription to our RSS feed...

The European Commission proposed to expand the scope of the existing EU rules on the deployment of intelligent transport systems (ITS) in road transport to cover new and emerging challenges and to make essential ITS services mandatory across the EU. The proposal seeks to resolve problems stemming from the lack of interoperability and continuity of the existing applications and services, but also from the low level of availability and sharing of the data supporting ITS services. Finally, it...

Care work provided in homes and institutions is a public good that is under-valued by society. Care workers are more likely to have low earnings and precarious working conditions. About 9 in 10 care workers are women. Most unpaid care work within households is carried out by women. The 'unpaid care penalty' for women in the EU, which is equivalent to the earnings they lost because of this unbalanced distribution of care responsibilities, is estimated to reach €242 billion per year. EU action...

The European Union's outermost regions (ORs) qualify for special treatment owing to structural difficulties – such as remoteness, difficult topography and economic dependence on a few products – that can severely hamper their development. In addition, the coronavirus pandemic has hit their economies particularly hard. While these regions are quite different from one another, they have levels of unemployment and GDP significantly worse than EU and national averages. Article 349 of the Treaty...

Small farms make up the vast majority of the EU's 10 million farms. Recent studies have lowered past estimates of how much of the global food supply is produced by small farms. Notwithstanding the complex nature of such estimates and the possible under-estimation of small operators' production because of self consumption, it is clear that small farms allocate larger shares of their production to food and have a more diversified produce portfolio than larger farms. In addition to producing...

Culture plays a fundamental role in human life. It is also an essential source of identity, at local, regional, national and European levels, while making a significant contribution to the EU economy. EU cultural policy relates to cultural heritage, but also to the cultural and creative sector. The EU supports culture through a variety of initiatives, including the European Capitals of Culture scheme. A number of EU programmes also offer funding for cultural projects, for instance the...