Publications Archive

The MFF sets the legally binding ceilings for the annual budgets in advance and thus serves to maintain the budgetary discipline and the transparency of the budgetary procedure. The Commission proposes an EU financial volume to the amount of 1.11% of GNI (1,083 bn Euro). It is to consist of the actual MFF to the amount of 1.05% of GNI (1,025 bn Euro) and ), and further “possible“ expenditures outside the MFF to the amount of 0.06% of GNI (58 bn Euro) which are increased compared to the volume of 2007-2013.

The main causes of the Euro crisis lie in the irresponsible indebtedness policy of the affected Euro states and in the real economy structures which threaten not only the creditworthiness of those states but of entire economies.

As a reaction to serious tension on the financial market, on 21. July 2011, the heads of states and governments of the euro zone decided to amend the existing EFSF. The objective of the amendments is to increase the operative volume of the EFSF and to provide it with new legal instruments.

The Commission wishes to adjust the European Neighbourhood Policy to its transport policy. To this end, it proposes measures to facilitate international goods and passengers transport affecting the EU transport markets and their European neighbours as well as the development of transport infrastructure in the neighbouring EU countries. 

 “Implementing acts” serve to implement a legally binding EU legal act. Implementing binding legal EU acts according to national law is in principle the duty of Member States. If an EU-wide implementation is required, the basic legal act serves to delegate implementing powers to the Commission. The Member States control the exercise of the implementing powers by the Commission through committees. The Regulation rules such committee procedures.

The Commission wishes to create a unitary European protection law for intellectual properties including digital business models. The Commission’s plans mainly focus on the introduction of an EU unitary patent protection including a European patent litigation system, a modernised EU framework for copyrights and an improved fight against counterfeiting and piracy. 

The Commission wishes to align energy taxation to its energy and climate protection targets by 2020 by linking taxation rates to CO₂ content and to energy content. The CO₂ related taxation component

Is to promote low-carbon motor and heating fuels and covers all consumers of motor and heating fuels who are not subject to the EU Emissions Trading Scheme. 

Under horizontal agreements, undertakings co-operate as competitors at the same level in the value-added chain. The Guidelines are intended to make it easier for undertakings to assess themselves whether or not their intended horizontal agreements infringe the ban on cartels of Art. 101(1) TFEU and whether an exemption applies. They contain general and agreement-specific explanations of the assessment of horizontal agreements for goods and services. The revised version contains also contains explanations on “information exchange” between undertakings which are relevant in terms of competition law.

The EU patent is a third option flanking the national and the European patent and providing EU-wide patent protection. At the same time, a European patents court system is to be established. The aim of the EU patent is to provide applicants with an easier and cheaper EU-wide patent protection. With a court for European patents and EU patents, the solving of legal disputes on patent granting and patent infringements is to be more consistent and calculable as it avoids parallel proceedings before national courts.

The “European Semester“ serves to contribute to the yearly ex-ante economic policy coordination of Member States. On the basis of National Reform Programmes, the EU issues country-specific recommendations for action. The implementation of these measures is to eliminate macro-economic imbalances and to serve the targets of the “Europe 2020” strategy.