EU CO2 tax may ‘make electricity more expensive and polluting’
A new “green” European Union tax might have some ugly, unintended consequences.
Economy
Latest reporting and analysis on economy.
Groundbreaking Dutch CO2 storage-project costs soar
The Dutch Porthos project that aims to capture and store CO2 from industry in empty gasfields beneath the North Sea is proving much more expensive than initially…
Full-fledged American isolationism would be devastating – for its own interests, first and foremost
In his farewell address George Washington urged his compatriots and their descendants to restrict America’s involvement in the world and avoid entangling alliances.
Trump’s ‘nationalism a danger to US’, German Vice Chancellor warns
Former US president Donald Trump's “nationalism” poses a danger to his own country, Germany's Vice Chancellor Robert Habeck claimed.
Polish MP ‘tear-gassed by police’ at farmers’ protest in Warsaw
Sławomir Mentzen MP, a leader of the Polish right-wing Confederation party who was at a farmers’ protest outside the Polish Parliament, accused the police of…
Polish Government claims credit for EC revision of transport deal with Ukraine
Poland’s Government crowed that it persuaded the European Commission to revise a deal on road transport between the European Union and Ukraine, which had prompted…
German travellers left waiting as transport workers walk out
Many thousands of Germans were left facing delays as train drivers, airport-security workers and Lufthansa ground-staff walked off the job, spelling further headaches…
‘EC President cause of economic woes,’ says German finance minister
"It is Ursula von der Leyen's legacy that we have chosen regulation instead of innovation," Lindner told German newspaper Handelsblatt on March 6.
UK non-doms and vapers hit under Hunt’s taxation budget proposals
Britain's finance minister Jeremy Hunt said he would abolish a so-called "non-dom" status that let residents, including those in European Union countries, avoid…
Dutch double-up on nuclear power
The Dutch Parliament passed a move to build four new nuclear-power plants, doubling the planned two major installations originally envisaged.
Is a commitment to climate orthodoxy a prerequisite to working for the European Central Bank? The Frankfurt institution has tied itself in knots over the true meaning of diversity
There are two key kinds of diversity in Western liberal democracies. One visible. and one invisible.
No more pacifism for an EU that gears up for war
The European Commission presented its first industrial defence strategy on March 5, along with a €1.
EU solar panel market showing signs of collapse
EU manufacturers of solar panels are swiftly going out of business, as cheaper Chinese imports outcompete them.
Hard-left eco-arsonists set fire to Tesla’s Berlin gigafactory
Hard-left environmentalists set fire to a high-voltage transformer in Tesla's Berlin-Brandenburg factory, resulting in a major power outage and a forced halt in…
Two years into the conflict, have Putin and the Russian economy been the real winners of the war in Ukraine? Depressingly that’s what the numbers suggest
Since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022 hundreds of thousands of lives have been lost, millions of people have been displaced, Western economies…
Brno’s integrated strategy: using EU funds, connecting urban and rural communities for a brighter future
Brno, Czechia In the heart of South Moravia, the city of Brno stands as a vibrant hub of culture, education, and innovation.
EU agrees to ban goods made with forced labour, including many Chinese solar panels
The EU has decided to ban importing goods made using forced labour, in a move that also limits access to Chinese-made solar panels.
EU gives banks just nine months to prepare for instant euro payments
The EU has given payment providers just nine months to get ready to accept instant euro payments, a move that the bloc hopes will help European payment providers…
EU forced-labour crackdown ‘could curtail Chinese solar-panel imports’
A proposed European Union crackdown on goods made with forced labour could cut the number of Chinese solar panels imported into the bloc, the European Commission…
A $1.5 trillion ‘ESG’ debt market has started bleeding clients
In the world’s second-biggest ESG debt market, corporate clients are starting to walk away.
Hundreds of tonnes of Russian wood reach Belgium, despite EU sanctions
Belgian authorities have intercepted hundreds of tonnes of Russian wood despite EU sanctions that have been in effect since early 2022.
EU unblocks about €2 billion from suspended funding for Hungary
Hungary managed to unblock about €2 billion in European Union funds as Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s government made further progress in the recovery of crucial…
EC withholds some UN funds for Palestine but ups overall aid budget
The European Commission will hold back part of a payment of €82 million for the United Nations Palestinian refugee agency (UNRWA) - but increase overall aid…
Tusk says Poland ‘will ignore EU Green Deal and Ukraine policies’ unless reformed
Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk met protesting farmers in Warsaw and called for reform of both the European Union’s Green Deal and the EU free-trade agreement…
German travellers left kicking their heels as transport workers strike
Travellers were left waiting in Germany as buses, trams and underground trains stood idle across most of the country at the culmination of a week of staggered public…
IEA: Global energy-related CO2 emissions hit record high in 2023
Global energy-related emissions of carbon dioxide (CO2) hit a record high last year, driven partly by increased fossil fuel use in countries where droughts hampered…
Germany and Italy scupper EU law on company liability for supply-chain human-rights abuse
Germany and Italy torpedoed a European Union law at the last minute that would have made companies liable for human-rights abuses in their supply chains - such as…
Icy blast of bankruptcies loom for Swedish wind-power sector, experts warn
Two Swedish economists have issued a warning that the country’s wind-power industry is on the brink of a wave of bankruptcies.
MEPs back ‘quality’ produce protections amid farmers’ protests
MEPs have backed the implementation of further protections for so-called "quality" agricultural produce in the wake of the farmers' protests across Europe.
Eurocities report spotlights local green initiatives
Eurocities, Brussels