TY - RPRT A1 - Nguyen, Thu T1 - How Much Money is a Lot of Money? The Recovery Fund and the Battle over Rule of Law in Poland N2 - On 7 September 2021, the European Commission announced that it will ask the European Court of Justice to impose financial penalties against Poland for not complying with the Court’s order for interim measures. More specifically, Commissioner Reynders said that the request was for a fine €1 million for each day that the Disciplinary Chamber of the Polish Supreme Court would continue to operate. And while at first glance, a penalty of 1€ million a day sounds like a lot, Thu Nguyen argues in this policy position that this sum only shows how little harm the EU penalties usually do to national budgets – especially if compared to the leverage the Commission can yield with a completely new instrument: the withholding of funds under the Recovery and Resilience Facility. Y1 - 2021 UR - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:kobv:b1570-opus4-42402 UR - https://www.delorscentre.eu/en/publications/detail/publication/how-much-money-is-a-lot-of-money-the-recovery-fund-and-the-battle-over-rule-of-law-in-poland ER - TY - RPRT A1 - Mack, Sebastian T1 - Big tech: Closing the blind spot in Europe's financial market rules N2 - The technology giants Google, Apple, Facebook, Amazon and Microsoft are on the rise, recently also in the financial services business. This poses new challenges not only for competition regulators and consumer protection agencies, but also for financial market supervisors. The European financial market rules have a blind spot with regard to big tech and this endangers financial market stability. To prevent technology giants from flying under the radar of financial supervision, Sebastian Mack argues in this policy position for making group supervision of financial conglomerates fit for the digital age. Y1 - 2021 UR - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:kobv:b1570-opus4-42377 UR - https://www.delorscentre.eu/en/publications/detail/publication/big-tech ER - TY - RPRT A1 - Stahl, Anna T1 - What will the EU’s Indo-Pacific Strategy deliver? N2 - In April, the EU’s member states approved the formulate a European strategy for the Indo-Pacific region. To implement this new strategy, the EU has worked on a communication on cooperation in the Indo-Pacific. What can be reasonably expected from this long-awaited policy document? In this policy position, Anna Stahl argues why the EU needs an Indo-Pacific strategy and explains what it can deliver. Y1 - 2021 UR - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:kobv:b1570-opus4-42399 UR - https://www.delorscentre.eu/en/publications/detail/publication/indo-pacific-strategy ER - TY - RPRT A1 - Rasche, Lucas A1 - Kohlenberger, Judith T1 - Fortress Europe. Lower the drawbridges N2 - 70 years after it was signed, the Geneva Refugee Convention is degenerating into an empty phrase. Its central promise that no one with a „well-founded fear of persecution“ may be turned back stands in stark contrast to the current situation at Europe‘s borders. Yet, the EU, with its value-based self-image, has an essential role to play in guaranteeing the Convention’s promise for the next 70 years and beyond. So even if member states will not completely abandon the construction of a „Fortress Europe“, they should at least consider building rawbridges. Policy Fellow Lucas Rasche and Migration Scholar Judith Kohlenberger explain how. Y1 - 2021 UR - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:kobv:b1570-opus4-40249 UR - https://www.delorscentre.eu/en/publications/detail/publication/fortress-europe ER - TY - RPRT A1 - Nguyen, Thu T1 - A matter of principle: An infringement procedure against Germany N2 - On 9 June 2020, the European Commission announced that it is bringing an infringement procedure against Germany because of the PSPP judgment of its Federal Constitutional Court. On 5 May 2020 the German Court had declared a ruling by the European Court of Justice ultra vires and therefore not legally binding on Germany. In this policy position, Thu Nguyen argues that the Commission is right to initiate an infringement procedure against Germany: It is a matter of principle and a signal that the Commission, as the guardian of the Treaties, will not accept breaches of EU Treaty obligations, no matter the member state or authority in breach of EU law. Y1 - 2021 UR - https://www.delorscentre.eu/de/publikationen/detail/publication/a-matter-of-principle U6 - https://doi.org/10.48462/opus4-4026 ER - TY - RPRT A1 - Stahl, Anna Katharina T1 - Geopolitics in the time of the Coronavirus - The EU’s leadership in global health N2 - The EU “must relearn the language of power and geopolitics”. Both the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, and the High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Josep Borrell, share this conviction. They announced their ambition as soon as they took office in 2019, arguing that only by fostering its geopolitical identity would the EU be able to compete with major powers. Y1 - 2020 UR - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:kobv:b1570-opus4-35815 ER - TY - RPRT A1 - Kask, Maarja T1 - Contact tracing apps in Europe - When one is better than many N2 - One of the issues brought forth by the COVID-19 crisis is the need to track the infection chains in order to stop the disease from spreading. One of the simplest ways this can be done is via a smartphone app. However, this can bring about several privacy issues. Furthermore, unless a common protocol is taken up all over Europe allowing apps from different member states to be able to seamlessly communicate with each other, the discrepancies would render the national apps ineffective. The member states need to decide on a single app protocol throughout Europe and the European Commission should strongly back its uptake. Y1 - 2020 UR - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:kobv:b1570-opus4-35607 UR - https://www.delorscentre.eu/de/publikationen/detail/publication/contact-tracing-apps-in-europe-one-is-better-than-many ER - TY - RPRT A1 - Koenig, Nicole A1 - Redeker, Nils T1 - One year of geopolitical Commission - Time to get real N2 - Twelve months ago, Ursula von der Leyen announced that her Commission would be a geopolitical one. This promise was a response to the crisis of multilateralism, the growing competition between the US and China, the fallout of Brexit, and the broad range of brewing and frozen conflicts in the EU’s neighbourhood. One year later, a geopolitically assertive EU is needed more than ever. The pandemic has underlined the vulnerability of Europe’s supply chains and intensified the political rift between the US and China. The further the two superpowers move towards economic decoupling, the clearer it becomes how exposed Europe is to this rivalry. Meanwhile, the crises in the eastern Mediterranean, Mali, and Belarus have reminded Europeans of their geopolitical responsibilities. Y1 - 2020 UR - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:kobv:b1570-opus4-36850 ER - TY - RPRT A1 - Rasche, Lucas T1 - The EU‘s migration and asylum policy - Still under construction N2 - After a long delay, the European Commission on Wednesday last week presented its proposals for the reform of the Common European Asylum System. Originally announced for April, the reform plans have become all the more urgent in the light of the fire at the Moria refugee camp. Commission Vice- President Schinas has described the proposals as a house with three floors: agreements with countries of origin, a more rigorous border and return policy, and a solidarity mechanism among member states. But the cement between the national building blocks remains brittle. The Commission‘s plans also do little to prevent miserable camps like the one on Lesbos from springing up on its front lawn in the long term. Y1 - 2020 UR - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:kobv:b1570-opus4-36862 ER - TY - RPRT A1 - Redeker, Nils A1 - Nguyen, Thu T1 - If not now, when? The German government should seize the opportunity that the Conference on the Future of Europe provides N2 - Last week, the Conference on the Future of Europe was concluded. Now far-reaching reform proposals are on the table. However, there is a great risk of these proposals petering out. The Russian war of aggression shows how urgently the EU needs reforms. The German government should therefore seize the opportunity presented by the Conference. First, it should take its own European policy ambitions seriously and join forces with France to push for treaty changes. Second, it must find pragmatic steps in the short term to develop a constructive agenda from the Conference proposals, even below the threshold of treaty change. KW - CoFoE, Treaty Reform, Bundesregierung Y1 - 2022 UR - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:kobv:b1570-opus4-45271 UR - https://www.delorscentre.eu/en/publications/detail/publication/when-if-not-now-the-conference-on-the-future-of-europe-as-a-european-policy-opportunity-for-the-german-government ER - TY - RPRT A1 - Nguyen, Thu T1 - Time to be honest: The future will not be decided by the Conference on the Future of Europe N2 - The Conference on the Future of Europe will not be the place where the future of the EU will be decided. For that, there are too many obstacles standing in its way: First, it comes at the wrong time. Secondly, it is too short and its governance structures are too heavy. And lastly, it lacks the necessary support at member state level to bring about concrete policy changes. But it also does not have to. The future of EU democracy will be decided in national and European parliamentary elections. Instead of overpromising on the Conference, EU institutions and national governments should ensure that their results are translated into concrete action at EU level. Y1 - 2021 UR - https://www.delorscentre.eu/en/publications/detail/publication/time-to-be-honest-the-future-will-not-be-decided-by-the-conference-on-the-future-of-europe ER - TY - RPRT A1 - Ostanina, Sascha T1 - Ukraine’s recovery: A huge challenge ahead N2 - Ukraine’s post-war recovery will require concerted, long-term EU commitment, leveraging substantial private investment, Sascha Ostanina argues in this policy position. Y1 - 2023 UR - https://www.delorscentre.eu/en/publications/detail/publication/ukraines-recovery-a-huge-challenge-ahead ER - TY - RPRT A1 - Nguyen, Thu T1 - Institutional Corsets and the Question of Timing: How Much Damage Can the Hungarian Council Presidency Do? N2 - Hungary is set to take over the EU Council presidency in the second half of 2024. Given the state of the rule of law in the country, there are doubts whether Hungary will be able to successfully fulfill tis role. A debate on whether it should be blocked from taking over the presidency on 1 July 2024 is in full swing. In this Policy Position, Thu Nguyen analyses the institutional role of Council presidencies, and argues that the Hungarian presidency will not be able to do much damage considering both the institutional corset and the time period in which it will operate. Y1 - 2023 UR - https://www.delorscentre.eu/en/publications/hungarian-council-presidency ER - TY - RPRT A1 - van den Brink, Martijn T1 - An Inconvenient Constraint: A Hungarian Council Presidency and the EU’s Rule of Law N2 - On 1 July 2024, Hungary is set to take over the Presidency of the Council of Ministers. Given the ongoing rule of law violations in Hungary, concrete proposals have been put forward to prevent it from exercising the Presidency. In this Policy Position, Martijn van den Brink analyzes the legal feasibility of these proposals and argues that the proposed EU measures violate the EU’s very own rule of law. Y1 - 2023 UR - https://www.delorscentre.eu/en/publications/detail/publication/an-inconvenient-constraint-a-hungarian-council-presidency-and-the-eus-rule-of-law ER - TY - RPRT A1 - Rasche, Lucas T1 - Why the EU needs a re-think on labour migration N2 - Labour shortages are affecting member states across the EU, with the average EU job vacancy rate doubling between 2012 and 2022. These labour shortages may cause the EU’s most severe migration crisis yet, putting common EU objectives such as the green and industrial transitions at risk. In order to combat labour shortages and create a migration system fit for the future, the EU must focus on simplifying and harmonising its legal framework on labour migration, expanding migration opportunities to low- and medium-skilled workers, and aligning migration legislation with other policy objectives. Y1 - 2023 UR - https://www.delorscentre.eu/en/publications/detail/publication/why-the-eu-needs-a-radical-re-think-on-labour-migration ER - TY - RPRT A1 - Lindner, Johannes A1 - Redeker, Nils T1 - Germany Needs a Europe Pact N2 - German Chancellor Olaf Scholz recently presented a new “Germany-Pact” to advance the country, following media reporting that has portrayed Germany as the “sick man of Europe” due to its waning economy. However, as Johannes Lindner and Nils Redeker observe, Europe does not play a big role in this pact. In this op-ed, originally published in Handelsblatt, they explain why Germany should refocus on the EU single market and develop an overall strategy for modernising the country and Europe. Y1 - 2023 UR - https://www.delorscentre.eu/en/publications/detail/publication/germany-needs-a-europe-pact N1 - This policy position is also available in German: Lindner, J., & Redeker, N. (2023). Deutschland braucht einen Europapakt. https://www.delorscentre.eu/de/publikationen/detail/publication/germany-needs-a-europe-pact ER - TY - RPRT A1 - Nguyen, Thu T1 - Warum sich die Europäische Union erweitern und reformieren muss N2 - Die Europäische Union muss sich erweitern, möchte sie ihre unmittelbare Nachbarschaft stabilisieren und dem Einfluss Russlands in der Region vorbeugen. In dieser Policy Position argumentiert Thu Nguyen, dass jedoch sowohl künftige Mitgliedstaaten als auch die EU für die Erweiterung bereit sein müssen. Dazu braucht es Reformen, vor allem in drei Bereichen: Rechtsstaatlichkeit, Handlungsfähigkeit und EU-Haushalt. Y1 - 2023 UR - https://www.delorscentre.eu/de/publikationen/detail/publication/warum-sich-die-europaeische-union-erweitern-und-reformieren-muss ER - TY - RPRT A1 - Lindner, Johannes A1 - Findeisen, Francesco A1 - Jäger, Philipp T1 - Turning challenges to EU competitiveness into opportunities N2 - The EU struggles to remain internationally competitive, with pressures intensifying since the Russian war in Ukraine. Many factors, most of them long-standing, determine EU competitiveness, such as lack of skilled labour, digitalisation, or quality of infrastructure. A vast literature exists on how to address these issues. This paper takes a narrower approach by focusing on three more recent levers for the EU to ensure its future competitiveness: devising an EU industrial policy, adapting to the changing energy landscape, and positioning the EU in a geopolitically tense environment. Y1 - 2023 UR - https://www.delorscentre.eu/en/publications/turning-challenges-of-eu-competitiveness-into-opportunities ER - TY - RPRT A1 - Guttenberg, Lucas T1 - How the EU should turn the tables on Hungary and Poland N2 - The EU should counter blackmail attempts by the governments in Warsaw and Budapest with calm determination. As long as Poland and Hungary maintain their vetoes, there should not be any agreements on new EU spending programmes, from which these two countries benefit the most. Y1 - 2020 UR - https://www.delorscentre.eu/en/publications/detail/publication/how-the-eu-should-turn-the-tables-on-hungary-and-poland ER - TY - RPRT A1 - Mack, Sebastian T1 - The EU must not procrastinate on urgent audit market reforms N2 - After the Wirecard accounting scandal, the EU Commission promised to reform the rules for auditors. Now it must finally present them: The problems are clear and there are plenty of proposed solutions. Y1 - 2022 UR - https://www.delorscentre.eu/en/publications/urgent-audit-reforms ER - TY - RPRT A1 - Jäger, Philipp T1 - The Green Deal agenda beyond Fit for 55: What the EU needs to tackle in 2023 N2 - The EU’s green agenda for 2023 is packed. Beyond finalising and implementing Fit for 55, the EU must react quickly to challenges that emerged recently and which put the climate objectives at risk. This policy position outlines four challenges that are particularly important, urgent and for which it remains unclear what the EU’s solution will look like: 1) Avoiding overcapacity of fossil fuel infrastructure; 2) Improving cross-border energy connections; 3) Reforming the electricity market; and 4) Keeping green technologies competitive in the EU. Y1 - 2023 UR - https://www.delorscentre.eu/en/publications/greendeal-agenda-beyond-fitfor55 ER - TY - RPRT A1 - Woll, Cornelia T1 - Avoiding the Road Bumps of the Green Transition N2 - Green growth requires strategy and coordination. The green transition entails important costs and will fail politically if we do not address socio-economic inequalities. In this Policy Position, Cornelia Woll proposes three pathways to a net-zero economy by 2050 that ideally should be combined: (i) correcting market signals through taxonomies and taxation; (ii) developing a European industrial policy that supports green innovation but also rewards successful transition plans; (iii) facilitating the funding for companies and financial institutions lending to those invested in green technology. Y1 - 2023 UR - https://www.delorscentre.eu/en/publications/detail/publication/avoiding-the-road-bumps-of-the-green-transition ER - TY - RPRT A1 - Findeisen, Francesco T1 - Conditional support: How the EU can solve the geo-economics dilemma of the Green Deal N2 - A European Green Deal that can withstand external shocks and navigate the twists and turns of geo-politics rests on diversified sources of critical imports. However, diversification is a matter for corporate decisions on where to find supplies and place investment and European firms, grappling with cost-push inflation, are reluctant to bear the costs these entail. In this policy position, Francesco Findeisen makes three suggestions about how the EU can help its firms achieve economic resilience through conditional industrial policy support and public procurement. Y1 - 2023 UR - https://www.delorscentre.eu/en/publications/detail/publication/conditional-support-how-the-eu-can-solve-the-geo-economics-dilemma-of-the-green-deal ER - TY - RPRT A1 - Ostanina, Sascha T1 - To guarantee its security, the EU should arm Ukraine through a self-defence agreement N2 - Current security guarantees for Ukraine range from unavailable to ineffective, writes Sascha Ostanina. She proposes a middle-ground solution to provide collective security for Ukraine through a binding self-defence agreement between the EU and Ukraine. Such an agreement would provide Ukraine with access to weapons and ammunition in the event of Russian aggression. Y1 - 2023 UR - https://www.delorscentre.eu/en/publications/detail/publication/to-guarantee-its-security-the-eu-should-arm-ukraine-through-a-self-defence-agreement ER - TY - RPRT A1 - Lindner, Johannes A1 - Mack, Sebastian T1 - Europe must improve the quality of its regulation N2 - The EU is discussing better regulation. The issue is urgent. Nothing less than the competitiveness of European companies and the acceptance of the EU are at stake. But beware – neither symbolic politics nor broad deregulation will help. Instead: here are four concrete measures that could substantially improve the quality of EU regulation. Y1 - 2023 UR - https://www.delorscentre.eu/en/publications/detail/publication/quality-of-regulation ER - TY - RPRT A1 - Redeker, Nils T1 - Chasing Shadows: What the Net Zero Industry Act Teaches Us About EU Industrial Policy N2 - The Net Zero Industry Act (NZIA) was touted as the EU‘s big response to the US Inflation Reduction Act. After a year of negotiations, it will finally hit the legislative books. In his policy position, Nils Redeker analyses what has become of the EU‘s green industrial policy ambitions, what the NZIA teaches us about Europe‘s role in the clean tech race, and what the next Commission needs to do to formulate a constructive answer to the global return of industrial policy. Y1 - 2024 UR - https://www.delorscentre.eu/en/publications/detail/publication/chasing-shadows-what-the-net-zero-industry-act-teaches-us-about-eu-industrial-policy ER - TY - RPRT A1 - Enderlein, Henrik T1 - We All Die Alone N2 - Europe is struggling in the face of the pandemic. Germany in particular fails to recognise the historic proportions of this undertaking, and has reduced itself to the role of the model student who cannot help but lecture others along the way. Y1 - 2020 UR - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:kobv:b1570-opus4-35177 ER - TY - RPRT A1 - Chopin, Thierry A1 - Koenig, Nicole A1 - Maillard, Sébastien T1 - Die europäische Solidarität braucht dringend eine politische Dimension N2 - Angesichts der Corona-Pandemie sind die 27 Staats- und Regierungschefs aufgerufen, gemeinsam zu handeln. Der Europäische Rat vom 23. April kann es sich nicht leisten, erneut zu scheitern, indem er innere Spaltungen offenbart, die angesichts der Covid-19-Krise wieder aufgeflammt sind. Die Dramatik der Situation hat auch Jacques Delors aus einer längeren Phase des Schweigens gerissen: „Die Atmosphäre, die unter den Staats- und Regierungschefs zu herrschen scheint, und der Mangel an europäischer Solidarität versetzen die Europäische Union in Lebensgefahr“. Y1 - 2020 UR - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:kobv:b1570-opus4-35187 ER - TY - RPRT A1 - Redeker, Nils A1 - Bremer, Björn T1 - Geduldig am Abgrund N2 - Die EU-Mitgliedstaaten zögern weiter, eine wirklich europäische Antwort auf die Krise zu geben. Damit verspielen sie die derzeit breite öffentliche Zustimmung für europäischer Solidarität. Y1 - 2020 UR - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:kobv:b1570-opus4-35213 ER - TY - RPRT A1 - Rasche, Lucas T1 - The EU must deprive Erdoğan of his basis for blackmail N2 - The misery at the Greek-Turkish border can be put to an end: The EU‘s emergency mechanism allows for the rapid redistribution of refugees. Here is what should happen next. Y1 - 2020 UR - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:kobv:b1570-opus4-35116 ER - TY - RPRT A1 - Rasche, Lucas T1 - In Greece, the Corona crisis threatens to become a disaster N2 - If the coronavirus spreads to the Greek refugee camps, a humanitarian catastrophe is imminent. Instead of relying on national border controls, other EU states should relocate the migrants who are currently stuck in Greece. Y1 - 2020 UR - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:kobv:b1570-opus4-35122 ER - TY - RPRT A1 - Jäger, Philipp T1 - Almost a free lunch: Boosting investment predictability for the Green Deal N2 - Implementing the EU Green Deal requires annual investments of about €620 billion, most of which will have to be shouldered by the private sector. However, businesses and households are not investing enough as of now. An important lever for greater green investment is reducing uncertainty around such investment. At the start of the next institutional cycle, the EU should hence improve regulatory certainty for green investments, which should be palatable to most parties likely to form a majority in the Parliament. In addition, the EU should adopt concrete tools that reduce cost uncertainty for companies and households in a pragmatic manner. To this end, this policy position recommends using green lead markets and proposes moves to explore two novel mechanisms that cost taxpayers little to nothing but should boost green investments. Y1 - 2024 UR - https://www.delorscentre.eu/en/publications/detail/publication/boosting-investment-predictability-for-the-green-deal ER - TY - RPRT A1 - Leichthammer, Arthur T1 - Mining for Tomorrow: The strategic importance of critical raw materials for Europe’s industry N2 - Arthur Leichthammer, Geoeconomics Policy Fellow at the Jacques Delors Centre, argues that the EU needs a strategic rethink to safeguard its critical raw materials supplies as global competition intensifies. Y1 - 2024 UR - https://www.delorscentre.eu/en/publications/detail/publication/mining-for-tomorrow ER -