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European Commission Spokesman's Briefing for 08-03-03
From: EUROPA, the European Commission Server at <http://europa.eu.int>
CONTENTS / CONTENU
[01] Conference in Brussels: How can we help young people with fewer
opportunities in society?
[02] Montenegro joins EU competitiveness programme - EMBARGO 16h00 -
[03] Euro area inflation estimated at 3.2 %
[04] First ever meeting of environment ministers from EU and Latin America
and Caribbean countries to be held in Brussels
[05] Consumers: Don't shop in the dark! Commission reveals finalists for EU
Consumer Champion of the Year Award and launches new poster campaign
[06] Commission regrets missed opportunities at annual meeting of General
Fisheries Commission for the Mediterranean
[07] Commission clears acquisition of neckermann by Sun Group
[08] Commission clears acquisition of part of Edison by Cofatech Servizi
Midday Express of 2008-03-03
Reference: MEX/08/0303
Date: 03/03/2008
EXME08 / 03.03
MIDDAY EXPRESS
News from the Communication Directorate General's midday briefing
Nouvelles du rendez-vous de midi de la Direction Générale Communicationb
03/03/08
[01] Conference in Brussels: How can we help young people with fewer
opportunities in society?
On 3-4 March, the European Commission is organising a conference in
Brussels on the 'Participation of young people with fewer opportunities'.
It will be the first European event focusing on the category of socio-
economically deprived young people in Europe. The conference aims to
highlight innovative ways to encourage the participation of marginalized
young people in society and to identify key factors for success in projects
working in this area. More than 150 participants have been invited from all
over Europe, including representatives of 23 umbrella NGOs and national or
local NGOs from all Member States, youth workers and policy-makers.
[02] Montenegro joins EU competitiveness programme - EMBARGO 16h00 -
Montenegro is the fourth country of the group of candidate and potential
candidate countries to join the EU's Competitiveness and Innovation
Programme (CIP) after Croatia and the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia
in October 2007 and Turkey in February 2008. Under the CIP, the European
Commission promotes innovation, entrepreneurship and growth in small and
medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Today, European Commission Vice President
Günter Verheugen and Mr Branimir Gvozdenović, Minister for Economic
Development of the Republic of Montenegro, signed a Memorandum of
Understanding formalising the Republic’s entry to the Entrepreneurship
and Innovation pillar of CIP.
[03] Euro area inflation estimated at 3.2 %
Euro area annual inflation is expected to be 3.2% in February 2008
according to a flash estimate issued by Eurostat. It was 3.2% in January.
Euro area inflation is measured by the Monetary Union Index of Consumer
Prices (MUICP). To compute the MUICP flash estimates, Eurostat uses early
price information relating to the reference month from Member States for
which data are available4 as well as early information about energy prices.
The flash estimation procedure for the MUICP combines historical
information with partial information on price developments in the most
recent months to give a total index for the euro area. No detailed
breakdown is available. Experience has shown the procedure to be reliable
(17 times exactly anticipating the inflation rate and 7 times differing by
0.1 over the last two years). Further information can be found in Eurostat
News Release 113/2001 of 5 November 2001.
[04] First ever meeting of environment ministers from EU and Latin America
and Caribbean countries to be held in Brussels
Climate change adaptation, renewable energy, biodiversity loss and
deforestation will be at the top of the agenda of the first meeting between
EU and Latin American and Caribbean (LAC) environment ministers which will
be held in Brussels on 4 March. These issues are especially significant
given their importance for the economic well-being of EU and Latin American
and Caribbean countries. The issues raised at the meeting will provide the
basis for the EU-LAC Heads of State and Government Summit in Lima this May.
More than two dozen ministers from the EU, Latin America and the Caribbean
will be attending. A press conference will be held on 4th March at 14:30 in
the Council press room.
[05] Consumers: Don't shop in the dark! Commission reveals finalists for EU
Consumer Champion of the Year Award and launches new poster campaign
The Commission has today revealed the 27 finalists of the first ever
"European Consumer Champion Award." This award is being launched as an
annual event to mark European Consumer Day – which will be celebrated
alongside International Consumer Day on March 15. The nominated campaigns
from the different Member States can be seen on http://ec.europa.eu/consumers/ecd/index_en.htm.
The overall EU Consumer Champion Award will be given to the national
campaign which has most successfully informed people about their rights and
shifted consumer behaviour. The campaigns cover a wide range of topics,
including financial services, air passenger rights, internet fraud,
misleading advertising, young consumers and food information. Commissioner
Meglena Kuneva will announce the EU winner on at 11.00 on Monday 10 March
at a press conference outside the Commission pressroom. There will also be
a formal awards ceremony at 14.00 the same day, in the Galeries de la Reine
(Brussels city centre). At both events, there will be an exhibition of all
27 nominated campaigns, and the national organisations which ran these
campaigns will be present. The Commission has today also launched a new
poster campaign to mark European Consumer Day. The poster campaign uses the
striking image of a woman with her head covered by a stark white shopping
bag. It aims to send a clear message that consumers are too often left
operating in the dark - in the supermarkets, when they shop online, or when
they try to switch their phone or energy supplier. Consumers can't see
prices clearly, can't compare offers easily and they are faced with an
information overload. The key role of consumer policy is to break down the
barriers, particularly at the retail level, that are holding consumers back
from making informed choices. The poster is also part of the Commission's
overall goal to challenge conventional stereotypes and put consumers back
where they belong - as a driving force for competition in the market. The
central message of the poster campaign is: "Know Your Rights, Use Your
Rights." It is an appeal to consumers to take power back in their hands, to
get informed and to use their power of comparison and power of choice. The
poster campaign will also be used by Member States during the Consumer Day
activities that will take place at national level. For more information,
including the poster, see: <a href="http://ec.europa.eu/consumers/ecd/index_en.htm">http://ec.europa.eu/consumers/ecd/index_en.htm
[06] Commission regrets missed opportunities at annual meeting of General
Fisheries Commission for the Mediterranean
Commissioner Joe Borg has expressed his regret at the failure of the
General Fisheries Commission of the Mediterranean (GFCM) to take more
decisive conservation decisions and agree on a performance review at its
annual meeting, held in Rome last week. The EU was behind several of the
ambitious proposals tabled at the meeting, which could have led to major
progress in conservation of vulnerable resources, the fight against Illegal,
Unreported and Unregulated (IUU) fishing and the performance review of the
GFCM. The European Commission is satisfied, however, that GFCM was able to
adopt a regional Port State Inspection Scheme, even though at this stage it
will only be applicable to foreign flagged vessels. It said that to avoid
discrimination and ensure the transparent and harmonised application of
such a measure, the port scheme should be applicable to both national and
foreign vessels and expressed the hope that the issue could be re-examined
at next year’s session. Port state control now represents a benchmark in
the international fight against IUU fishing, since the adoption of the
first such scheme by the North East Atlantic Fisheries Commission in 2007.
The GFCM Scientific Committee has given advice that clearly indicates the
need to take both conservation and management measures to protect
Mediterranean fish stocks. The EU was the only Contracting Party to table
proposals this week which addressed this scientific advice, along with
other measures aimed at improving the control needs of the organisation.
Commenting after the meeting, Joe Borg, European Commissioner for Fisheries
and Maritime Affairs, expressed great disappointment at the lack of
progress on these issues. Joe Borg said: "The GFCM is closely related to
the Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) of the United Nations. It
should therefore be prepared to undertake a performance review, as called
for in the UN General Assembly's 2006 Resolution on sustainable fisheries
and the FAO's own Committee on Fisheries in 2007". He also reiterated the
Commission's commitment to working with its Mediterranean partners to
ensure the long-term sustainability of sea fisheries.
[07] Commission clears acquisition of neckermann by Sun Group
The European Commission has granted clearance under the EU Merger
Regulation to the acquisition of sole control of neckermann.de GmbH of
Germany by Sun Group of the US. Sun Group is a private equity portfolio
investments company. neckermann is active in distance retail sales of a
wide range of consumer goods. The operation was examined under the
simplified merger review procedure.
[08] Commission clears acquisition of part of Edison by Cofatech Servizi
The European Commission has granted clearance under the EU Merger
Regulation to the acquisition of sole control of part of Edison SpA of
Italy (the "Target") active in electricity generation by Cofatech Servizi
SpA of Italy, belonging to the Gaz de France Group. Cofatech Servizi
supplies energy management, installation and maintenance services in
Europe. The Target produces combined electricity and steam (thermoelectric
cogeneration) in Italy. The operation was examined under the simplified
merger review procedure.
Autre matériel diffusé
• Memo on Preparation of Eurogroup and Economic and Finance Ministers
Council, Brussels, 3 and 4 March 2008
A disposition au secrétariat de Jonathan Todd (BERL 03/315):
Notification préalable d'une opération de concentration :
Theodorus I / Theodorus II / EADS Astrium / Euro Heat Pipes
From EUROPA, the European Commission Server at http://europa.eu.int/
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