Hae

Online child sexual abuse materials (CSAM) and grooming practices (manipulation aimed at exploiting and abusing people), now increasingly targeting younger children, have been proliferating at an alarming rate. In 2024, more than 20.5 million reports of suspected online child sexual abuse materials were detected. Reports related to AI-generated CSAM saw a 1 325 % increase, rising from 4 700 in 2023 to 67 000 in 2024. Most activities detected were hosted in Europe. In response to this situation, on ...

Under the Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF), the EU response to the COVID-19 crisis, Bulgaria is set to receive €6 174.1 million in grants, including €479.3 million under REPowerEU and €6 million from the Brexit Adjustment Reserve. Any additional financing must be covered by national or private co-funding. Bulgaria's national recovery and resilience plan (NRRP) corresponds to 10.1 % of its 2019 gross domestic product (GDP) (the RRF amounts to 5.2 % of EU-27 2019 GDP), the eighth-highest share ...

The first-ever European defence industrial strategy (EDIS) was adopted on 5 March 2024. As an immediate and central step to deliver the strategy, the Commission put forward a proposal for a European defence industry programme (EDIP) regulation, also on 5 March 2024. The EDIP seeks to achieve defence industrial readiness by bridging the gap between short-term emergency measures and a more structural, long-term approach. On 16 October 2025, the Council Presidency and European Parliament negotiators ...

Directive 2005/44/EC on harmonised river information services (RIS) on inland waterways ('RIS Directive') establishes rules on RIS to ensure the safety, efficiency and environmental protection of inland waterways in the EU. On 26 January 2024, the European Commission put forward a proposal to amend the RIS Directive with a view to addressing certain shortcomings. The amending directive should provide better-quality information, reduce efforts to collect basic information, reduce the need to re-register ...

Slovakia is set to receive €6 408.5 million, solely in grants, to implement its national recovery and resilience plan (NRRP), representing 6.8 % of the country's gross domestic product (GDP) in 2019. That grant allocation includes the revised Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF) grant allocation (€6 005.8 million), REPowerEU grants (€366.4 million), and a transfer of the country's remaining share from the Brexit Adjustment Reserve (€36.3 million). On 8 May 2025, the European Commission adopted ...

The EU Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF) 2028–2034 allocates significant funding (EUR 522 billion) to its Heading 2: 'Competitiveness, prosperity and security'. It proposes three key instruments which directly impact ITRE core areas of responsibility : - The European Competitiveness Fund (ECF), which serves as the MFF’s main instrument to boost EU competitiveness. It merges 14 programmes into a flexible fund, aiming to enhance coherence and EU added value, but raises concerns over centralised ...

The EU institutions are required to take into account the Charter of Fundamental Rights in the design and implementation of legislation or of policies, both within law- and policymaking internal to the Union and in the external relations of the EU. This study was commissioned by the European Parliament's Policy Department for Justice, Civil Liberties and Institutional Affairs at the request of the Committee on Constitutional Affairs of the European Parliament, to examine how they discharge this duty ...

European Union leaders met eight times in various formats of the European Council in 2024. None of the meetings was in response to a crisis or emergency, suggesting that the European Council is reverting to a 'normal' institution, albeit one that sits at the highest level of EU governance. Ukraine, the Middle East, and the economy were uppermost in 2024 as leaders sought to maximise support for Ukraine's defence against Russia's military aggression, respond to the deepening humanitarian crisis in ...

On 1 March 2023, the European Commission published its legislative proposal on driving licences – a matter of EU competence – to facilitate the free movement of persons and goods throughout the EU by modernising the driving licence system. This involves future-proofing the driving licence rules, improving road safety and simplifying the rules for those wanting to get a driving licence. The proposal provides for accompanied driving for young learners, zero tolerance for drink-driving, better preparation ...

A series of recent economic and geopolitical shocks have led to rising fragmentation of global trade, whereby countries tend to boost economic ties with those sharing similar political values, economic policies and security interests. While a broad retreat from globalisation is not taking place, there are some signs of reconfiguration of supply chains along geopolitical lines. This is likely to have pronounced effects for EU economy due to its openness and high level of integration into global value ...