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Europeans more worried about waste and corruption than size of the EU budget, according to new ECFR polling
Major new survey of Europe’s so-called ‘frugal’ countries reveals mixed feelings towards the EU’s proposed €750bn COVID-19 recovery fund – with greatest concerns about the package in Finland, Austria and the Netherlands. Concern with the dispensation of EU funds centres on waste and corruption linked to how the recipient countries spend funds from the recovery fund. Citizens of the ‘frugal’ countries fear that their influence is waning – with almost half of those polled in Finland, and considerable minorities in Austria, Denmark, Sweden, and the Netherlands, believing that their country’s standing in the EU has declined in recent years. The report’s authors, Susi Dennison and Pawel Zerka, call on the…
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Neue ECFR-Umfrage: Bürger der „sparsamen Länder“ sorgen sich mehr um Verschwendung und Korruption als um Höhe des EU-Haushalts
Eine neue Studie in Europas sogenannten „sparsamen“ Ländern zeigt geteilte Meinungen zum 750 Milliarden Euro-starken Corona-Wiederaufbaufonds der EU; starke Vorbehalte bestehen vor allem in Finnland, Österreich und den Niederlanden. Bedenken über die Verteilung der EU-Mittel aus dem Konjunkturfonds betreffen vor allem Verschwendung und Korruption in Empfängerländern. Bürgerinnen und Bürger der „sparsamen“ Länder befürchten, dass ihr Einfluss schwindet – fast die Hälfte der Befragten in Finnland und große Minderheiten in Österreich, Dänemark, Schweden und den Niederlanden glauben, dass das Ansehen ihres Landes in der EU in den letzten Jahren abgenommen hat. Das Autorenteam des Berichts, Susi Dennison und Pawel Zerka, empfiehlt den „sparsamen“ Regierungen, diese Entwicklung zur Kenntnis zu…
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UN Secretary-General: EU must lead the fight against climate change
“It is essential that the European Union commits to reducing emissions by at least 55 per cent by 2030”, said António Guterres, secretary-general of the United Nations, in his speech today at a special virtual event hosted by the pan-European think-tank the European Council on Foreign Relations. “By fully implementing its ‘Green Deal’ and ‘Next Generation EU’, and by mainstreaming climate change into its long-term budget, the European Union can show the world how to move towards climate neutrality and climate resilience while ensuring prosperity and a just transition“, he told an audience that included ministers from France, Germany, Poland and Spain. With little over a year to go before…
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UN Secretary-General to request EU do more to lead on climate change
In a special event hosted by ECFR today, 19 November at 16.00 CET, the UN Secretary-General António Guterres will call on Europe to lead by example on climate change. In the run up to the 12 December Climate Ambition Summit co-hosted by the UN, UK, and France; and with just under a year to go until COP26 in Glasgow, the Secretary-General is expected to stress that the encouraging signs of a rising “net zero emissions coalition” – including recent announcements from several major emitters including the EU, Japan, China and Republic of Korea – must be backed up with strong and concrete short-term measures and will urge the EU to present its…
