European Union

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Britain's former Brexit negotiator, Olly Robbins, is to join US bank Goldman Sachs for a six-figure salary. The move was cleared by a UK watchdog, the Advisory Committee on Business Appointments, which said it was "unrelated to Mr Robbins' time in office" and was not "a reward" for government work, British newspaper Daily Telegraph said. The former European Commission president, Jose-Manuel Barroso, previously stirred controversy by also joining the bank.

As the EU enters new and uncharted waters in the digital world, a number of pressing questions emerge as to how the bloc can distinguish itself in a highly competitive marketplace.

The time is right for the EU and Russia to mend ties, but sanctions should stay in place for now, France has said.

Italy's anti-EU populism has ended, its prime minister, Giuseppe Conte, said on Monday, as far-right MPs tried to shout him down.

British MPs again rejected Boris Johnson's call for an early election, as the parliament began its five-week suspension period. The prime minister said he would refuse to ask for a Brexit delay - despite the law demanding it.

Estonia has decided not to retain a European Commissioner for the rest of the current administration’s mandate, instead allowing nominee Kadri Simson to prepare for her duties under President-elect Ursula von der Leyen.

On Sunday, local and regional elections were held in the Russian federation and in the Crimean peninsula. But "anybody elected in the Crimean peninsula claiming to 'represent' the populations of Crimea and Sevastopol will not be recognised as representatives of those territories, which are Ukrainian", the spokesperson of EU foreign affairs chief Federica Mogherini said. She added that the EU "continues to condemn this violation of international law".

Key indicators show that the labour market in Belgium is shrinking, Belgian newspaper De Standaard reported. The amount of vacancies went down 4.8 percent compared to 2018. So far in 2019, 4,800 jobs disappeared due to the reorganisation of companies, which is 2,000 more than in the entire year of 2018. On top of that, the use by companies of temporary unemployment has risen by 8.6 percent.

During a three-day trip to Havana, the EU's chief diplomat, Federica Mogherini, repeated European support for Cuba's economy. "The EU is Cuba's top commercial partner and investor, and we have tripled cooperation in the last two years," she said. Five years ago, the EU and US started to normalise relations with the island after years of hostility. However, US president Donald Trump returned this policy and reimposed sanctions on Cuba.

Norwegians abandoned the country's ruling parties and moved their support to left, green or rural parties in Monday's local elections. Prime minister Erna Solberg's Conservative party and the leading opposition Labour party jointly got 45 percent support, the lowest-ever tally in a local election. Norwegian broadcaster NRK summarised the result as a protest against centralisation, climate policy and increased inequality.

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Ombudsmen are often coming under attack or facing different kinds of challenges. These can include threats, legal action, reprisals, budget cuts or a limitation of their mandate.

The European Investment Bank's Board on Tuesday should back its proposal to become the EU's 'Climate Bank' and phase out fossil fuels from its portfolio.

The European Union is studying a reform of energy taxes to align them with climate targets, an EU document showed, listing as possible measures higher minimum tax rates, fossil fuel levies and the end of waivers for the air and sea transport sectors.

The European Commission has not received any formal request to launch an investigation into the different pricing levels on the EU olive oil market, a source at the EU executive has informed EURACTIV.com.

Russia’s ruling United Russia party, which supports President Vladimir Putin, has lost one third of its seats in the Moscow city assembly, final polling data cited by Russian news agencies showed on Monday (9 September), in an awkward setback for the Kremlin.