European Parliament Elections 2009

Voters across Europe  - and EU citizens living outside Europe who registered to vote, including in New Zealand - have delivered gains for the centre-right with the Socialists losing ground. Results suggest that the centre-right European People's party will retain their position as the largest group in the European Parliament. The 736 newly elected Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) from 27 Member States will meet for the first time on 14 July in Strasbourg.  Their first task will be to form themselves into trans-national political groups and then elect the Parliament's Office Bearers, including a President and 14 Vice-Presidents. Twenty Committees from Foreign Affairs to Fisheries will be formed in the weeks after July 20.  The voter turnout for the elections was 43%, slightly lower than the 44.4% in the 2004 elections when the then 25 Member States went to the polls.

In welcoming the results of the EP elections, European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso said the elections have sent "very clear signals that Europeans want a stable economy and a new financial system. Europeans want economic recovery that is smarter and greener and sustainable. They want a Europe that safeguards fundamental freedoms and security at the same time".

NZ's Trade Policy Review 

New Zealand 's Trade Policy Review is being held in Geneva on 10 and 12 June 2009, under the auspices of the World Trade Organisation. TPRs are opportunities for WTO members to ask questions about a country's trade policy and related issues. Since its previous TPR in 2003, New Zealand has remained among the more open economies in the world. The European Commission submitted questions along with many other WTO members. WTO Members showed interest in New Zealand's foreign investment policy issues, the scope, impact and future developments of New Zealand's FTAs and other regional trade initiatives, the gap between bound and applied tariffs, conditions for granting tariff concessions, agriculture, dairy and fisheries issues. In its statement, the European Commission focussed on New Zealand's sanitary & phyto-sanitary measures, insufficient protection of geographical indications, state trading arrangements in agriculture and procurement. 
For the EC Statement, Please see:
http://www.delaus.ec.europa.eu/newzealand/Whats_New/2009/WTO_NZ_
TradePolicyStatementJune2009.htm

Head of Delegation visits Sunshine State

Together with Czech Ambassador Dr. Juraj Chmiel, representing the EU Presidency, H.E. David Daly, Head of the European Commission Delegation to Australia and New Zealand gave a speech at the Europe Day celebration in Brisbane organised by the Australian Council for Europe on 3 June. Held in the Premier’s Hall of the Parliament of Queensland, the event was attended by the Hon. Peter Lawlor MP, State Minister for Tourism and Fair Trading, and other leading Queensland politicians, businessmen and European local community leaders. The following day Ambassadors David Daly and Juraj Chmiel visited the Gold Coast where they had discussions with Mayor Ron Clarke inter alia on local climate change measures. The visit ended with a roundtable discussion with Mrs. Elfi Massey-Valazza and other members of the Australian Council for Europe in Brisbane.

Investment in new mine and clean coal technologies to create jobs

German company Direct Invest announced on 11 June that it will substantially increase its Australian investments, creating new jobs through development of the firm's Surat Basin mine and clean coal technology projects.
 
Australia's Trade Minister Simon Crean said that the investments by Direct Invest will provide a significant boost to the development of clean coal technologies in Australia and create much needed employment in regional areas: "Foreign investors, such as Direct Invest, are a critical ingredient in the growth of Australia’s clean energy future helping to fund industry development and research into innovative technologies.   Direct Invest has already invested $250 million in the Surat Basin project and will invest a further $250 million to make the mine operational. Construction on the project will start in July creating 100 jobs while a further 100 jobs will be created once the mine opens. Phase 2 of the Surat Basin project is expected to commence in 2013 with total employment expected to expand up to 600 jobs".  

Direct Invest also announced that it will significantly increase its investment in Australian clean coal projects, including coal-to-liquid (CTL), gas-to-liquid (GTL), as well as carbon capture and storage.  Direct Invest says its investment in Australian clean coal technology projects is likely to rise to more than $1.5 billion over the next 5 years, with the first project being the Sunstate CTL/GTL project located in the Surat Basin, and the second project located in New South Wales, in the preparatory stages. Once operational, both projects are expected to create several hundred jobs.

urope & Australia partnership on environmental journalism
A world-first partnership between universities in Europe and Australia to enhance the media's capacity to report the world's environmental challenges was launched at the University of Technology in Sydney (UTS).  The Global Environmental Journalism Initiative (GEJI) involves influential journalism schools at five European and four Australian universities, with all universities collaborating to develop a new international educational program in journalism including student exchanges, online student collaboration, and research on how the media covers environmental issues.

"As an increasingly urgent issue confronting humankind, environmental sustainability is now a central concern of investigative journalism.   We know of no other collaboration of this scale or intensity – this is the first of its kind and will make a significant contribution to journalism education internationally. While concentrating on environmental reporting, it will apply more broadly to any field of journalism with an international dimension, such as economics, war and conflict, religious difference, human rights and international law," said Head of Journalism, Information and Media Studies at UTS, Professor Wendy Bacon.

The first student exchanges under the program have already taken place, with a group of Australian students studying for six months in Europe, and students from Finland, Denmark, Greece and England now attending lectures at the Australian partner universities: UTS, Monash University, Murdoch University and the University of Tasmania.  The partner institutions in Europe are the Danish School of Media & Journalism; Aristotle University of Thessaloniki; City University, London; Helsinki University; and Sámi University College in Norway.

New Zealand students wishing to study in Europe can refer to website

EIB consolidates its presence in the Pacific Region
Following the opening of its Pacific Regional Office in Sydney in November 2007, the European Investment Bank (EIB) has successfully managed to expand its presence and activities in the Pacific Region. In a presentation to the EU Economic and Commercial Counsellors held at the EC Delegation in Canberra last week,  the Head of  the Pacific Regional Office, Jean-Philippe de Jong, described in detail the recent favourable development of the EIB's activities in the Pacific Region and the institution's contributions to the long-term development of the Pacific countries' economies. As of today, the EIB has signed  more than 100 contracts  with borrowers in the region  for  a total amount of about  EUR 500  mn.

In line with the priorities set by the Cotonou  Agreement  and in close cooperation with the European Commission, financing of private sector and infrastructure  projects - with a particular emphasis on renewable energy, transport and telecommunications projects that contribute to regional integration  -  will remain centre stage in future EIB activities.    In  the last 18 months, the EIB has contributed to the financing of  a major regional mobile telecommunications project involving four South Pacific countries. The EIB has also extended lines of credit to  several development banks  in the region  such as Banque Calédonienne d'Investissement (BCI) in New Caledonia and SOCREDO in French Polynesia. These lines of credit are entirely dedicated to the financing of  renewable energy projects.  

The  EIB is committed to increase its activities in the Region in close coordination with the EC and other donors. The opening of the Sydney office has contributed to facilitate the coordination with official EIB counterparts in the region, project promoters, and other donors based in the region.    The Pacific Regional Office covers fifteen countries and four Overseas Countries and Territories (OCTs) in the region.

For further information, please contact the EIB Regional Office:  Jean-Philippe de Jong (Head of the Pacific Regional Office) or Katrin Bock (Business Analyst) at the Pacific Regional Office of the European Investment Bank in Sydney.

Breaking the Sounds of Silence

In a presentation to the Reach for Recovery International conference in Brisbane mid-May, Stella Kyriakides MP, President of Europa Donna Cyprus, past president of the Europe-wide organisation Europa Donna and currently an elected Member of Parliament in the Cypriot House of Representatives, spoke on breaking the "sounds of silence" by maintaining the momentum and supporting lobbying and advocacy about cancer.   Stella is a passionate advocate for patients' rights, saying "Our collective actions for patients’ rights are dynamic and can break down the stigmas, taboos and fear, for example the fear that breast cancer is contagious, by educating and changing attitudes to give dignity to individuals." Stella, a cancer survivor, urged equal access to care and treatment worldwide. Borrowing an idea from Australia, Europa Donna Cyprus, led by Stella, now holds an annual Field of Women walk where women carry pink silhouettes inspired by the Breast Cancer Network of Australia's Field of Women.  read more about Europa Donna

Reach for Recovery conference

 EU and Russia make progress on WTO accession

EU Trade Commissioner Catherine Ashton and the Russian Minister for Economic Development, Elvira Nabiullina, met on 4 June in St. Petersburg to discuss Russia’s accession to the World Trade Organisation (WTO) with both sides showing a commitment to flexibility on all open issues regarding Russia’s WTO accession, agreeing that Russian WTO membership should be completed before the end of 2009.  The talks followed comments by Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin that Russia remained committed to WTO membership despite the economic downturn. Russia began the accession process to the WTO in 1993, and the European Union completed bilateral talks on accession with Russia in May 2004, engaging with Russia in the context of the multilateral process. Throughout the accession process, the EU has strongly supported Russia's WTO membership. The EU and Russia have a strong and interdependent trade relationship, with the EU being by far Russia's main trading partner & investor, and Russia being the EU's third largest trading partner.  Approximately 80% of Russia's foreign capital stock comes from the EU, and between 2000 and 2008 bilateral trade in goods nearly tripled in value to EUR 278 billion in 2008.

EU and Canada start negotiations for economic and trade agreement
EU Trade Commissioner Catherine Ashton and Stockwell Day, Canadian Minister of International Trade and Minister for the Asia-Pacific Gateway, set in motion on 10 June negotiations for a Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) that could provide up to EUR 20 bn per year in additional benefits to the two economies. Commissioner Ashton and Minister Day met at the Conference de Montreal, where both spoke at a plenary session on the economic crisis and international trade. Commissioner Ashton said: “The EU and Canada are trading partners with close historical ties, and our ambitions for this agreement must reflect the depth of our relationship. We come to the table prepared to discuss all subjects of interest to either of us. There will be difficult issues, but we are convinced that the ultimate prize justifies the effort as we seek to trade our way out of the economic downturn.”

Goods and services trade between the EU and Canada is now worth some EUR 70 billion annually, and the EU is Canada's second-largest source of foreign investment. As of 2007, the EU's direct investment stock in Canada reached EUR 160 billion, while Canada's investment stock in the EU was worth EUR 108 billion, making it the fourth largest source of foreign investment.

EU and Canada start negotiations for economic and trade agreement

EU Enlargement five years on – a balance sheet and what next?
Speaking at the European Economic and Social Committee's plenary debate on 10 June in Brussels, Olli Rehn, EU Commissioner for Enlargement, said that although some have argued in the context of the current economic crisis that enlargement of the EU should take a back-seat: "in economic terms, the Eastern enlargement has been a win-win process, beneficial for the people both in new and not-so-new member states.To give but one example, trade between the new and the not-so-new Member States grew almost threefold in less than ten years. Even more illustrative is the fivefold growth of the trade among the new members. These are a key factor that explains why, from 2004 until the outbreak of the current financial crisis, there was robust growth in employment in both new and older Member States.  That is why we are implementing the European Economic Recovery Plan. We have taken policy initiatives to reinforce financial regulation and supervision, which led to bold decisions at G20 level.  The current crisis has in fact underlined the crucial role of social partners and dialogue in tackling the recession and mitigating unemployment, and in preparing for a renewed post-crisis economy. To achieve this we must continue our own reforms so that the EU can deliver the results its citizens expect." "This is what the Lisbon Treaty is about and why we need it now. Today's Europe is free and reunited. Let's keep it that way." concluded Commissioner Rehn.

Joaquín Almunia, European Commissioner for Economic and Monetary Policy, at the "20 years since the collapse of communism: Progress and priorities for Central and Eastern Europe" conference in Warsaw on 5 June, echoed these sentiments: "the European Union has played a critical role in progress in Central and Eastern Europe. The 20th anniversary of the fall of the iron curtain coincides with the 5th anniversary of European enlargement. The collapse of communism paved the way for the biggest expansion in the EU's history. And in turn, European integration has accelerated and reinforced the transition process of Central and Eastern European countries.  In the political sphere, enlargement provided an anchor for stability and peaceful democratic change. Poland is a prime example of the transformation that has taken place. This country's external competitiveness increased considerably in the last two decades. Thanks to higher growth and trade, Polish people have enjoyed higher living standards and Poland is seeing real convergence in this respect with mature economies. In the early 90s GDP per capita was below 40% of the EU average; today it is around 56%."

Progress and priorities for Central and Eastern Europe

EU Enlargement five years on

EC outlines vision for freedom, security & justice in next five years
The European Commission on 9 June adopted two communications analysing the EU's work on justice and internal affairs in recent years and setting out its priorities for the future. Ordinary citizens will be at the heart of the future Stockholm Programme, to be debated by the European Parliament and adopted by the European Council before the end of the year, which will provide a framework for EU action on the questions of citizenship, justice, security, asylum and immigration for the next five years.

"In future, EU action must aim above all at delivering the best possible service to the citizen in an area of freedom, security and justice more tangible for the citizens", according to Commission President, José Manuel Barroso. "We want to promote citizens' rights, make their daily lives easier and provide protection, and this calls for effective and responsible European action in these areas. In this context, I consider immigration policy particularly important. This is the vision the Commission is presenting to the Council and Parliament for debate, with a view to the adoption of the new Stockholm Programme by the European Council in December 2009".
EC outlines vision for freedom, security & justice in next five years

Competition: restructuring & returning banks to viability
European Commissioner for Competition Neelie Kroes briefed the EU's Council of Economics and Finance Ministers in Luxembourg on 9 June on the restructuring of banks and their return to viability without state support.
 
"Governments and central banks have been instrumental in preserving financial stability in recent months. However, temporary rescue measures will not take us out of the financial crisis.  We need to start thinking about a return to viability without state support, which means the timely phasing out of the rescue schemes.    Without viable banks operating within well-functioning markets, we will not deliver financial stability, we will not restore market confidence and we will not re-start lending to the economy.  This is why the Commission has already commenced a process of restructuring for banks that received state aid and that are not fundamentally sound. This is the necessary cure to return to long-term prosperity. The Commission aims at finalising shortly some guidelines for restructuring banks and returning to viability. I hope that this process can be finalised rapidly, so that we can catch up with the US market, restructure our banks and overcome the crisis." said Commissioner Kroes.

World Oceans Day 8 June: healthy oceans key to Europe's future
Seas and oceans cover almost three quarters of the Earth's surface and contain some 90% of the biosphere. World Oceans Day was created in order to raise awareness of the importance of the world's oceans, their contribution to wildlife and life on Earth and how they can be preserved. The Day, an initiative of the United Nations first celebrated in 1992, typically consists of educational activities organised across the various continents.
 
The European Union is strongly committed to the protection of oceans and seas and in 2008 adopted a thematic strategy for the protection and conservation of the marine environment which included a Marine Strategy Framework Directive with the aim of ensuring that all EU marine waters are environmentally-healthy by 2020.

Recently returned from a visit to Australia and the Seychelles, Commissioner for Maritime Affairs and Fisheries, Joe Borg, said: "By looking at maritime activities in a coordinated way, the Integrated Maritime Policy constitutes a winning formula for the environment and the economy. Maritime Europe has a considerable economic potential which this new policy can help unleash."
World Oceans Day: healthy oceans key to Europe's future

Commissioner Reding: New European Charter on Freedom of Press
Commissioner Viviane Reding on 9 June met Mr Hans-Ulrich Jörges, editor-in-chief of the German magazine Stern and initiator of the European Charter on Freedom of the Press, which was signed on 25 May by 48 European journalists from 19 countries to protect the press from government interference and ensure journalists' access to sources of information. The Charter, which formulates the main values that public authorities should respect when dealing with journalists, was presented and handed over by Mr Jörges to Commissioner Viviane Reding who welcomed journalists' adoption of this first European Charter of Freedom of the Press.

"The Charter on Freedom of the Press initiated by the European journalist community is an important reaffirmation of the basic values, including media pluralism, freedom of expression and information that underpin Europe's democratic traditions and are enshrined in fundamental legal texts. It is also a reminder that in order to have effective freedom of the press, public authorities have a role to play: they must be ready to protect freedom of expression and foster its development," said Viviane Reding, EU Commissioner for Information Society and Media.

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