Tag: European Commission

Democratic impasse: Lewis moves to break Northern Ireland deadlock

The Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, Brandon Lewis, made a statement following a series of meetings with party leaders:

The Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, Rt Hon Brandon Lewis MP, yesterday met with the leaders of Northern Ireland’s five main political parties; Michelle O’Neill, Sinn Féin; Sir Jeffrey Donaldson, DUP; Naomi Long, Alliance; Doug Beattie, UUP; and Colum Eastwood, SDLP.

In all his meetings, the Secretary of State reiterated the need to respect the electoral outcome of Thursday’s election and restore the full functioning of the devolved institutions as soon as possible – both the Executive and the Assembly.

All parties agreed on the importance of maintaining political stability. The Secretary of State encouraged all party leaders to come together to form an Executive as soon as possible, starting with the nomination of an Assembly Speaker.

The Secretary of State acknowledged that the Northern Ireland Protocol remains a clear barrier to political stability and re-confirmed that the Government will do whatever it takes to protect the Belfast (Good Friday) Agreement, in all of its dimensions.

He reiterated the Government’s desire to address the outstanding issues by agreement with the EU, but confirmed that the Government stood ready to take further steps to rectify those issues, should that be necessary.

He noted that negotiations with the European Commission related to the Protocol were the responsibility of the UK Government and that they should not stand in the way of restoring the Stormont institutions and enabling the Executive to deliver for all the people of Northern Ireland.

He reiterated the importance of taking advantage of the new provisions in the NI (Ministers, Elections and Petitions of Concern) Act passed earlier this year to enable continuity in decision-making during the Executive formation process. This will ensure existing Northern Ireland ministers can remain in place to oversee NI departments, allow legislation to progress and support the delivery of vital public services.

Speaking after his meetings, the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, Brandon Lewis MP, said: “Northern Ireland’s party leaders must come together to agree a way forward to deliver a stable and accountable devolved government.

“The UK Government’s overriding priority remains the preservation of peace and stability in Northern Ireland and the protection of the Belfast (Good Friday) Agreement in all its strands.

“The current situation with the Protocol is fundamentally undermining the Belfast (Good Friday) Agreement and creating an unacceptable situation in Northern Ireland. We will continue to press the EU to agree the crucial changes that are urgently needed but will take nothing off the table in our pursuit of those solutions.

“As I conveyed to party leaders today, our collective focus must be on the restoration of the Stormont institutions so that those newly elected representatives can come together and deliver in the best interests of all the people of Northern Ireland.

“I will remain in close contact with the party leaders over the coming days.”

Capital of Culture stooshie: it’s jist no’ fair!

CULTURE SECRETARY SEEKS CLARIFICATION OVER CAPITAL of CULTURE SNUB

Culture Secretary Fiona Hyslop has written to Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, Karen Bradley MP, and Director General for Education, Youth Sport and Culture at the European Commission, Martine Reicherts, on the UK hosting the European Capital of Culture competition in 2023. Continue reading Capital of Culture stooshie: it’s jist no’ fair!

Summer Holidays – but not for all …

Can’t afford to get away on holiday this summer? You’re not alone – it’s a Europe-wide issue, as EC economic analyst M. Vaalavuo explains ...

seaside

Schools are closed, summer holidays are here, and also this blog is having its well-deserved summer break. Like many of you, authors of Evidence in Focus are leaving their desks to travel in Europe and beyond. However, without wanting to spoil your holidays, this may be a good time to recall that 39 per cent of Europeans cannot afford paying for one week annual holiday away from home.

This is a form of deprivation that is taken into account in the calculation of the EU’s indicator of the risk of poverty and social exclusion (AROPE) which counts people who face

  1. monetary poverty (discussed already in several blog posts e.g. comparing the situation of young and old Europeans and looking at parental employment and child poverty), and/or
  2. low work intensity, and/or
  3. severe material deprivation.

The last one is an absolute measure of living standards that complements the measure of relative monetary poverty (people with disposable income below 60 % of the country’s median income). The EU severe material deprivation rate is currently defined as the share of the population living in households that cannot afford at least four out of nine items. 8.9 per cent of the EU population were in this situation in 2014.

One week annual holiday away from home is one of these nine items. Other items are for example the capacity to face unexpected financial expenses, to afford a washing machine or a car, and the ability to avoid arrears in mortgage or rent payments. The most prevalent forms of deprivation concern holidays and the capacity to cope with unexpected expenses.

Across countries, there is a huge variation in the share of people who cannot afford holidays away from home (see chart). In the Nordic countries, Luxembourg, the Netherlands and Austria, fewer than 20 per cent of the population are deprived of an annual holiday in 2014, while in Hungary, Croatia and Romania this concerns more than 60 per cent.

Not surprisingly, people who are at risk of monetary poverty are also most likely to be deprived of holidays away from home: 70 per cent of them cannot afford holidays. But even among those who are not poor in monetary terms, a third is deprived of holidays away from home.

However, the situation is improving in many countries. Since 2008, the share of people not affording holidays away from home has decreased in 15 EU Member States: especially in Poland (11 pp.), Malta (10 pp.), Portugal (9 pp.), Austria (9 pp.), and Bulgaria (9 pp.). Furthermore, after an initial increase in the share from 2008 to 2010 in the Baltic countries, the share has since then fallen in Lithuania by 20, in Latvia by 18 and in Estonia by 16 percentage points. This development can be considered a real improvement in living conditions of these people, but it still leaves us many to be worried about.

After the holdidays … Evidence in Focus will be back in September. We wish you a great summer!

Author M. Vaalavuo is a socio-economic analyst in the unit of Thematic Analysis of DG EMPL

The views expressed in this article are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the European Commission.

Editor’s note: this article is part of a regular series called “Evidence in focus“, which will put the spotlight on key findings from past and on-going research at DG EMPL

European Health Insurance Card

European Health Insurance Card

What is the European Health Insurance Card?

A free card that gives you access to medically necessary, state-provided healthcare during a temporary stay in any of the 28 EU countries, Iceland, Lichtenstein, Norway and Switzerland, under the same conditions and at the same cost (free in some countries) as people insured in that country.

Cards are issued by your national health insurance provider.

Important – the European Health Insurance Card:

  • is not an alternative to travel insurance. It does not cover any private healthcare or costs such as a return flight to your home country or lost/stolen property,
  • does not cover your costs if you are travelling for the express purpose ofobtaining medical treatment,
  • does not guarantee free services. As each country’s healthcare system is different services that cost nothing at home might not be free in another country.

Please note: when you move your habitual residence to another country, you should register with the S1 form instead of using the EHIC to receive medical care in your new country of habitual residence.