European Parliament rejects Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement

It was a triumphant moment for public health campaigners when members of the European Parliament voted against the Anti- Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA) on July 4. ACTA is a plurilateral pact, designed to protect against counterfeiting of products, including medicines.

EU's biofuel policy fuelling food inflation: ActionAid

The European Union’s biofuel policies are driving up global food prices and pushing people in poor countries off their land, says a recent report of ActionAid. EU has a target of 10 per cent renewable energy in transport by 2020, and 88 per cent of this is expected to come from biofuels.   [Highlights]

India, China slam EU’s carbon emissions tax on airlines

The European Union’s move to levy tax on carbon emissions from airlines entering the EU from January 1 has been roundly criticised by its Asian trading partners, China and India, along with other members of the BASIC negotiating group, comprising Brazil and South Africa. The tax is viewed as providing unfair advantage to some, and more importantly, interfering with the supreme autonomy that states enjoy over their airspace.

Coffins for the EU Delegation in Delhi

As India and the 27-nation European Union today begin what is billed as the final lap of their negotiations on the Bilateral Trade and Investment Agreement (BTIA)—it is popularly referred to as a free trade agreement or FTA—that will cover a wide range of government policy, activists took to novel forms of protest.

Living with big brothers

On May 1 2004, ten new countries joined the European Union (eu). This is the biggest enlargement in the union's history and will undoubtedly affect its decision-making processes. Whether that will be for the better or worse remains to be seen.

"Governments should try for 100 per cent pure water"

The Codex Committee is supposed to focus on health, not trade. But the general perception is that trade dominates the agenda and therefore the commission's standards for acceptable daily intake of pesticides and their maximum residue levels are not stringent. Interviewee:  Hans Jeuring