Russian economy shrinks by four per cent due to impacts of Western sanctions August 13, 2022 The Russian is now four per cent smaller than it was a year ago, according to new figures from the country’s state statistics agency. Russia’s gross domestic product (GDP) for Q2 2022 equals a sum equivalent to 96 per cent the value of the country’s economy in Q2 2021, the preliminary Rosstat statistics show. The [...]
UK Foreign Office to pay £423,000 to settle whistleblower’s employment claim July 4, 2022 The UK government has agreed to pay £423,000 to settle an employment lawsuit brought forward by one of its former prosecutors, over claims she was pushed out of her job at the Foreign Office, after she sought to blow the whistle on corruption involving suspected Kosovo criminals and officials from the EU. International prosecutor Mariah [...]
Britain not ‘scrapping’ the Northern Ireland protocol, but ‘fixing’ it, says foreign secretary May 18, 2022 Foreign secretary Liz Truss has insisted the UK is not looking to scrap the Northern Ireland protocol, but is looking to fix the agreement which “isn’t working” in wake of the Brexit vote. The cabinet member told Sky News this morning there needed to be “sensible pragmatic changes” to it, with a stalemate over trade [...]
EU mulls plans to ban insurers from insuring ships carrying Russian oil May 9, 2022 The European Union is considering banning insurers from insuring ships carrying Russian oil, as another means of draining Russia of the financial resources it needs to continue bankrolling its war in Ukraine. If brought into force, the new sanctions would come as another blow to Russia’s energy export industry, as the EU also weighs up [...]
EU court expands scope of flight refund policy to non-EU airlines April 12, 2022 The EU’s highest court has expanded the scope of its flight refund policy, by allowing passengers to claim refunds from non-EU airlines. The European Court of Justice ruled in favour of plaintiffs suing Chicago headquartered firm United Airlines in allowing them to claim a refund for a 223-minute delay between Brussels and San Jose, [...]
EU court adviser green-lights airline passenger data law January 27, 2022 The European Court of Justice’s advocate general Giovanni Pitruzzella has given the green light to a law that allows the gathering of airline passengers’ information. According Pitruzzella, under the 2016 Passenger Name Record Directive, authorities should access passengers’ information on all flights to and from the EU only in security matters, including terrorism and other [...]
Mario Draghi and Emmanuel Macron call on EU to reform fiscal rules December 24, 2021 Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi and French President Emmanuel Macron have called on the EU to reform its fiscal rules. In joint article published yesterday on the Financial Times, the two argued that even before the pandemic, the bloc’s fiscal rules were in need of reform as they are “too obscure and excessively complex”, constraining [...]
Minsk to retaliate against EU and UK, imposing sanctions on aviation December 6, 2021 Belarus is ready to retaliate against the EU and the UK, imposing sanctions on carriers flying into its air space and banning people from entering the country. “In response to the illegitimate restrictions on the Belarusian aviation industry, which are based on unfair competition, our country will take similar steps in relation to air carriers [...]
Moldova asks EU for help after Gazprom’s gas flow closure October 12, 2021 Moldova is asking European countries for help after Russian energy corporation Gazprom drastically reduced gas shipments to the country. As reported by the Financial Times, Moldova is requesting emergency gas supplies through Romania to relieve pressure, reducing shortages and easing the increase in prices. Gas supplies in the country have fallen by a third as [...]