MEPs endorsed on Thursday two proposals concerning the Channel Tunnel with the goal to maintain the same set of rules governing the whole railway tunnel once the UK has the status of a third country.

The legislation will empower France to negotiate a new international agreement with the UK and maintain the Intergovernmental Commission as the main safety authority for the Eurotunnel.

Additionally, the regulations on the safety and interoperability arrangements will allow, as amended by the Parliament, negotiations between France and the UK to begin without delay.

The decision empowering France to negotiate an agreement supplementing its existing bilateral Treaty with the UK concerning the operation of the Channel Fixed Link was endorsed with 687 votes in favour, three against and four abstentions.

The regulation on application of railway safety and interoperability rules within the Channel Fixed Link was adopted with 687 votes in favour, four against and four abstentions.

Next steps

The amendments adopted by the Parliament correspond to the Council’s position. The Council will now have to formally adopt its first reading position. The regulation will enter into force the day after its publication in the Official Journal of the EU.

Background

If nothing is agreed, as of 1 January 2021, national safety authorities in the UK and France would have authority over their own half of the tunnel. EU regulations would no longer apply to the part of the tunnel that is under the UK’s jurisdiction.

The Parliament voted on the proposals under urgent procedure.

It’s a great pleasure to be here, in your country today. And I would like to warmly thank you for your welcome and for your hospitality. It’s an honour to be received here in Farmleigh house.

We had very constructive discussions on many important topics and, of course, we also tackled Brexit. My message is simple. The EU stands in full solidarity with Ireland and this is especially true when it comes to the full implementation of the Withdrawal Agreement and the Protocol on Ireland and Northern Ireland. This text has been negotiated for three years. Each word, each comma has been debated for hours and hours. It has been ratified by both parties. There is simply no question on its full implementation. This is a matter of law, a matter of trust.

What’s at stake is what we cherish most. The Good Friday Agreement, the peace and stability of the island of Ireland and the integrity of the single market. This is not only an Irish issue. This is a European one.

I have been very clear yesterday with Prime Minister Johnson. It’s now for the UK to restore trust and to put all its cards on the table. The EU is doing its utmost to find an agreement with the UK, but not at any cost. We are following these negotiations very closely on a daily basis and are fully united behind our negotiator Michel Barnier and to get to an agreement, we need significant steps to be made by our British friends in the coming days, not only on fisheries but also on the level playing field and governance.

On other issues such as water transport, energy or trade in goods, progress has been made but is not enough. As in any such negotiation, nothing is agreed until everything is agreed. The coming days are crucial. This is the moment of truth and there is only one week to go before the European Council on 15 and 16 October with also the occasion to discuss many other very important topics: the single market, the digital agenda. How it’s possible for the European Union to deliver more concrete results for our European citizens.  We will also have the opportunity to discuss important international topics — our relationship with China, our relationship with Africa, for example. And climate change is a very important priority for us.

We followed what has been decided in this country and it demonstrates a very strong political ambition. We want to support this positive effort.

We will have the occasion next week during the European Council to have an orientation debate about climate change, especially on our European goals by 2030. And I hope this is our intention that we will be able to take formal decisions on climate change by the end of the year. I would like to thank you because it was important for me personally to listen actively and carefully to your political priorities at the European level. And I am optimistic because I am certain that we will continue to work together closely with all our colleagues to deliver very concrete and positive results for all European citizens. Thank you again.

Please enable JavaScript to view the page content.
Your support ID is: 11469114198309240012.

This question is for testing whether you are a human visitor and to prevent automated spam submission.

What code is in the image?
submit

Your support ID is: 11469114198309240012.

Mental well-being among people in Europe improved between the April and July waves of Eurofound’s Living, working and COVID-19 surveys, with the largest increases among those aged 50 and over. On a national level, reported mental well-being was highest in Denmark, Slovenia and the Netherlands, and marked improvements were seen in France and Italy – coinciding with an easing of confinement measures over the summer. Despite broad improvements in a number of well-being and quality of life indicators over the summer months, comparatively low reported mental well-being was recorded among younger people and the unemployed; this is cause for concern, particularly considering that mental well-being has traditionally been higher among younger age groups.

Eurofound’s unique Living, working and COVID-19 research looks in detail at the experiences of citizens in both April, when much of Europe was under heavy restriction, and July, when restrictions had been eased according with a relative retreat of the coronavirus. The full report details the social, economic, labour market, and quality of life findings of a total of 87,477 respondents across the EU. Notable improvements can be seen related to mental well-being, life satisfaction and optimism between the two surveys, although from a very low base in some Member States.

The WHO-5 mental well-being index was used in the surveys as an indicator of people’s moods over the previous two weeks, based on five statements of positive feelings, with mental well-being measured on a scale of 0 to 100. Respondents in Denmark (61), Slovenia (58), the Netherlands (57) and Finland (56) indicated the highest mental well-being in July. Respondents in Romania (48) and Cyprus (48) had the lowest mental well-being. Overall, mental well-being in the EU increased from 49 in April to 53 in July, with the largest increases observed in Bulgaria (7 points), France (6 points) and Italy (6 points). When an analysis according to population groups is applied, respondents unable to work due to health reasons and unemployed respondents had the lowest mental well-being in July, though both groups experienced an improvement since April. Retired respondents had the highest results.

Improvements were also seen with regards to loneliness, something that could be expected from the easing of restrictions. The proportion of respondents overall who felt lonely ‘all’ or ‘most of the time’ dropped from 16% in April to 13% in July. Gender differences in terms of loneliness were small, but there were large differences across age groups, with young respondents still reporting loneliness most frequently (16% in July, down from 20% in April), followed by the middle age group (14%, down from 15%) and those aged 50 and over (11%, down from 15%).

Improved findings in mental well-being and loneliness were reflected in levels of optimism and life satisfaction. In the first round of the survey, 45% of respondents expressed optimism about the future; this was 49% in the second round. Despite expressing lower mental well-being, respondents under 35 were significantly more optimistic than older groups, with 57% of this group feeling optimistic in July, in contrast to just 48% of 35- to 49-year-olds and 46% of those aged 50 or over. Statistically significant improvements in life satisfaction were also recorded among respondents in 16 Member States, mostly notably in France, Greece and Italy.

Speaking about the findings, Massimiliano Mascherini, Eurofound Head of Unit for Social Policies, said ‘Improvements in mental well-being, life satisfaction and optimism for the future across Europe between April and July are heartening – particularly for southern and eastern Europe where indicators were particularly low. These improvements occurred alongside the relative easing of COVID-19 restrictions. This research will be important for Europe’s broader economic and social responses to this pandemic, particularly from a longer- term perspective.’

Read more:

In 2020, the Agency has registered 40% of all applications in Greece, Italy, Cyprus and Malta, ranking it 5^th if it were an EU Member State.

Speaking at informal video-conference of EU home affairs ministers on 8 October 2020, the Executive Director of the European Asylum Support Office (EASO), Nina Gregori, expressed support for the European Commission’s balanced, yet ambitious, Pact on Migration and Asylum. 

While recognising that political divergences remain amongst Member States, Ms. Gregori emphasised that the Pact outlines a real possibility to step forward on all aspects of the proposed asylum processes and to achieve clear, fast and more efficient EU migration management.

The Executive Director also underlined EASO’s strong support for the step-by-step approach proposed by the German Presidency of the Council of the EU, which acknowledges that a strong and robust EU Agency for Asylum (EUAA) is needed – not as part of a package, but rather as a self-standing file.

Between January and August of this year, EASO has registered over 20 000 (40%) of all applications in the Member States where it has operations: Greece, Italy, Cyprus and Malta. The Agency would be 5^th among all the EU countries in terms of the number of registrations performed. 

In Greece alone, more than 10 000 interviews were carried out by EASO personnel in the first eight months of 2020 – more than double the number in 2019. This comes as EASO continues to double its operational deployment in all four Member States, despite the unique challenges of this year. 

The Executive Director highlighted that the Agency is now operating at the very limit of its current mandate and its capacity. She stated that a new mandate and the transformation of EASO into the EUAA would relieve such pressures on the capacity of the Agency and allow for it to continue increasing the very tangible support it is providing for all Member States’ asylum service, not just those of frontline countries.

Any further information may be obtained from the European Asylum Support Office on the following email address: press@easo.europa.eu