The European Parliament gave its consent this week in Strasbourg to the EU’s accession to a major international cybercrime convention, marking a significant step in building a transnational framework against the rising tide of cyber-enabled crime affecting all 27 member states.
Members of the European Parliament engaged in heated debate on 21 May over the cybersecurity risks posed by advanced artificial intelligence systems, with lawmakers divided over whether to impose mandatory security testing requirements on developers of frontier AI models or maintain a more flexible, risk-based approach. The plenary session saw MEPs grapple with how to…
Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer’s approval rating has plummeted to minus 46 in a YouGov poll released on 21 May, marking the lowest point since he entered Downing Street last July. The dramatic decline signals mounting public frustration with Labour’s handling of key domestic challenges, including the cost-of-living crisis, NHS waiting times, and channel crossings,…
The European Union faces a pivotal choice over how to secure supplies of essential medicines, with lawmakers debating whether Brussels should harness the collective bargaining power of its 450 million citizens or maintain the current system of individual national negotiations with major pharmaceutical suppliers in the United States and China. Renew Europe’s lead negotiator on…
The European Parliament and Commission convened on 21 May to evaluate the EU’s health emergency response capabilities following a hantavirus outbreak aboard the MV Hondius in late April 2026, with lawmakers pressing officials on the adequacy of cross-border coordination mechanisms and surveillance infrastructure designed to prevent similar incidents. The session, which brought together MEPs from…
European Union gas storage levels stood at 36 per cent on 13 May 2026, the lowest mid-injection-season reading since 2018, as the closure of the Strait of Hormuz tightens LNG supply. The Commission has formally relaxed the mandatory November filling target from 90 per cent to 80 per cent for the 2026 winter season.
The European Parliament has finalised its position on the long-anticipated steel safeguards reform, establishing a tariff-free import quota of 18.3 million tonnes per year and imposing a 50 per cent duty on volumes above that threshold. The regulation is due to take effect on 1 July 2026.
The European Parliament will vote in Strasbourg on Thursday 21 May 2026 on a resolution demanding an urgent EU response to democratic backsliding in Slovakia under Prime Minister Robert Fico, citing the dismantling of anti-corruption bodies and compromised judicial independence.
EU trade ministers meet in the Foreign Affairs Council (Trade) configuration this week to review economic security, the impact of the Middle East conflict on trade flows, and the follow-up to the 14th WTO Ministerial Conference held in Yaoundé from 26 to 30 March 2026.
High Representative Kaja Kallas faces Members of the European Parliament in Strasbourg this week for the first Question Time since a lengthy pause, with the EU’s strategy on the crises in the Middle East at the heart of the debate – the situations in Iran, Israel and Syria all on the agenda.
