European Parliament Research Articles

International and domestic experience in standard regulation of bottled drinking water quality

Regulatory control of the quality of bottled drinking water is an important area of protecting health and enhancing quality of life in population, including children. The aim of the study is to conduct a comparative analysis of regulatory measures for the quality of bottled drinking water based on chemical indices, with a view to considering international standards to improve the Russian legal framework in this field. The analysis incorporates foreign regulatory and legal instruments in the area of control and monitoring of the quality of packaged drinking water, such as the Codex Alimentarius and directives of the European Parliament, Council of the European Union, Code of Special Regulations of Food and Drug Administration, ТР ЕАЭС 044/2017 Technical Regulations.Current international and domestic regulations, ensuring bottled water quality, have been analyzed. In spite of the fact that regulatory documents comprise fifty three common indices, over half of the international standard values differ significantly as compared to ТР ЕАЭС 044/2017 Regulations. There are noted advantages of domestic regulations, considering the specific requirements for bottled drinking water for children and the physiological benefits of water. In this study, only the regulation of chemical indices in packaged drinking water has been considered based on 4 regulatory documents. Additionally, the work has not taken into account in detail those indices that are not included in domestic regulations. Conclusion. A comparative analysis of international and national regulations has shown the Russian Federation to have more stringent requirements for the regulatory values of bottled water quality. Taking into account current trends it is necessary to improve and expand constantly the system of regulatory quality control of bottled drinking water by including those indices concentrations of which are regulated by international legislation.

Politicised at Home but not in Council: The European Coordination of Social Security Systems

After seven years of negotiations, the European Parliament and the Council have yet to agree on the reform of one of the most essential regulations facilitating cross-border worker mobility in the EU: the Coordination of Social Security Systems (EC 883/2004). The lack of agreement remains puzzling, as all negotiating partners are generally in favour of the reform. Similar proposals on social policy, such as the Posting of Workers Directive or the Minimum-wage Directive, were also challenging to achieve but could be agreed upon. This article tests whether “unpolitics”—a destructive approach by populist governments in the Council to undermine EU policymaking—is the reason for the persisting deadlock on the file. The central finding of this article is that the interplay of populism and the status of member states as sending or receiving workers shape unpolitical behaviour. Contrary to expectations, unpolitics is largely absent in the behaviour of populist and non-populist governments. Unpolitical behaviour does not promise high gains for the populist governments from Central and Eastern Europe because these member states send workers. The smooth functioning of the freedom of workers is essential for them and their national discourses do not discuss the freedom of movement in the context of welfare chauvinism. Welfare chauvinism is much stronger in countries that receive workers, however, populists were not in power in these member states and therefore there was no unpolitical behaviour. The findings show that unpolitical behaviour is not used by mainstream governments, not even when it would seem likely from the nature of the policy issue. This article highlights that the probability of unpolitical behavior is influenced not only by the nature of the policy issue itself but also by domestic institutional and structural factors, as well as the national discourse.

The political effects of intra-EU migration: Evidence from national and European elections in seven countries

This article studies the impact of immigration from Central and Eastern Europe on support for Eurosceptic parties. The analysis covers 30 national and European Parliament elections in seven Western, Northern and Southern European countries (2004 to 2019). For each election, I analyse how the local-level share of the vote for right- and left-wing Eurosceptic parties varies as a function of the levels and changes in the local-level share of Central and Eastern European immigrants from the population, controlling for the influence of relevant demographic, social and economic variables. I find that higher levels of immigration from Central and Eastern Europe are systematically related to higher voting shares cast for right-wing Eurosceptic parties at the local level in all of these countries, net of the influence of non-Western immigration, in elections for the European Parliament and in national elections as well. The effects on left-wing Euroscepticism are heterogeneous: positive in the Netherlands, Austria and Portugal, but negative in Italy, Denmark and Sweden. The effects have not diminished significantly over the past 15 years and are most visible in mid-sized localities.

Shades of Resistance: Factors Influencing Populist Mobilization Against the EU Budgetary Conditionality Regime

Although the past decade has shown how populist governments may challenge the EU’s budgetary framework, we still lack an understanding of the circumstances under which populists are more likely to mobilize against EU-level decision-making in this field, and what this mobilization may look like. Combining the literature on populism as an ideology and EU decision-making, the article zooms in on the negotiations regarding the general regime of conditionality in EU budgetary politics and argues that economic and political factors have influenced populist mobilization. A qualitative comparison of the nine cases where populist parties feature in the government highlights that only two countries, Poland and Hungary, have actively opposed the introduction of the so-called rule-of-law conditionality. A closer look indicates that a combination of Euroscepticism, European Parliamentary affiliation, membership in the European Public Prosecutor’s Office, and the political power that populist parties possess at home, along with key macroeconomic indicators, have influenced populists in government to mobilize against the conditionality mechanism. In the second part of the analysis, the article showcases the actions of the Hungarian government, highlighting it as a specific example of populist mobilization. Viktor Orbán’s government has built a populist narrative around the issue, questioned the norm of the decision-making process, exerted a veto to block the agreement temporarily, and later challenged the regulation in court—in short, it engaged in unpolitics.

The challenger advantage – how challenger parties disrupt mainstream party dominance in the European Parliament

ABSTRACT Under what conditions can challenger parties disrupt mainstream party dominance in democratic institutions? While extant work describes the cultural and economic developments that benefit challengers and parties’ programmatic responses to these, I demonstrate when and how challengers exploit these conditions in their political communication. Theoretically, I posit that challenger parties have relatively stronger vote-seeking incentives than mainstream parties. These collective incentives affect individual parliamentarians’ cost–benefit calculations. Challenger parliamentarians will engage in anti-establishment rhetoric and issue-entrepreneurship when these signals are more likely to reach the voting public and pay-off electorally. I test this theory by analysing parliamentary debates from the European Parliament (1999–2016) through a novel combination of word embeddings and bespoke dictionaries. I find that challenger parties indeed pursue different communication strategies than mainstream parties. Challenger parliamentarians engage in anti-establishment rhetoric in the run-up to elections and issue-entrepreneurship during crises. This is because these factors make speeches more likely to be transmitted to voters. These results demonstrate that challengers adjust their political communication in opportune moments giving them a competitive advantage over less flexible mainstream parties.

The End of the Supranational Dream of the European Union: Toward a More Nationalist and Intergovernmental Union

This article questions and analyses the supranational aspirations of the European Union (EU) over its intergovernmental policies. It addresses first nationalism followed by neo-functionalism, supranationalism, and intergovernmentalism; the dominant theories in European integration. The purpose of the study is to reflect the EU’s supranational limitations. Our main research question is to determine whether there is a new form of Europeanism across Europe. The study shows the rising nationalism across Europe, through the 2019 and 2024 European Parliament (EP) elections, and the growing Euroscepticism through public opinion surveys. Moreover, a “policy analysis” is conducted through the EP resolutions between 1999 and 2024 and in European laws through Eur-lex, to reflect the number of intergovernmental operations. The overall findings indicate that many EU countries have ambiguous positions and altered views on the EU, between “Europhoria” and “Europhobia”. The study suggests a new form of Europeanism is growing, between Pro-Europeanism and Anti-Europeanism: “Adapted-Europeanism”. This new typology is introduced to refer to countries asking for less but more adapted integrational policies.

The 2024 European Parliament Elections in Spain: National and European Dimensions

The 2024 European Parliament Elections in Spain: National and European Dimensions

LEGAL ANALYSIS OF EU ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE ACT (2024): INSIGHTS FROM PERSONAL DATA GOVERNANCE AND HEALTH POLICY

Background: This study correlates the up-to-date ethical, functional and legal evaluations related to the management and governance of artificial intelligence (AI) under European Union (EU) law, particularly impacting the health data sector and medical standards as provided by the Artificial Intelligence Act within the Regulation adopted by the European Council in May 2024. The initial proposal for the management and governance of the AI sector was submitted in April 2021. Three years later, on 13 March 2024, the European Union Artificial Intelligence Act (EU AIA) was adopted by the European Parliament. Subsequently, on 21 May 2024, the Council adopted an innovative legislative framework that harmonises the standards and rules for AI regulation. This framework is set to take effect in May 2026, with the central objective of stimulating and motivating a fair, safe, legal single market that respects the principles of ethics and the fundamental rights of the human person. Methods: The current legal analysis focuses on the European Union’s new institutional governance involving a multistage approach to managing health data, ethical artificial intelligence, generative artificial intelligence and classification of types of AI by considering the degree of risk (e.g. artificial intelligence systems with limited risk and systems with high risk) and medical devices. It outlines the legal framework for AI regulation and governance in the EU by focusing on compliance with the previously adopted legislation in the Medical Devices Regulation (2017) and the In-Vitro Diagnostic Regulation (2017). The paper also examines the application of the newly adopted EU Artificial Intelligence Act in relation to national justice systems, previous EU regulations on medical devices and personal data protection regulation, and its correlation with the European Court of Human Rights jurisprudence. This opens up complex discussions related to judicial reform and access to justice. For this purpose, as a research objective, the legal analysis includes an innovative perspective following an integrative discussion on the latest legal reforms and regulations of the AI sector in Eastern Europe launched in 2024 with a special focus on the latest developments in the EU Candidate Countries namely Ukraine and the Republic of Moldova. Results and conclusions: The present research facilitates the exploration of the real benefits of managing innovative AI systems for medical data, research, and development, as well as within the medical technology industry.

Lаnguаgе аnd Pоlitiсаl Imаgе: Аnаlуsis оf thе Fасеbооk Prоfilеs оf Pеtаr Vоlgin аnd Nikоlа Minсhеv during the Election Campaign for Members of the National Assembly and Members of the European Parliament of the Republic of Bulgaria in June 2024.

Thе аrtiсlе will еxаminе thе rоlе оf lаnguаgе in shаping thе pоlitiсаl imаgе оf twо prоminеnt figurеs during thе 2024 еlесtiоn саmpаign. Thе fосus is оn thеir Fасеbооk pоsts, аnаlуzing thе linguistiс strаtеgiеs usеd аnd thеir impасt оn thе саndidаtеs’ pоlitiсаl imаgе. Thе studу will highlight thе impоrtаnсе оf sосiаl mеdiа аs а plаtfоrm fоr pоlitiсаl соmmuniсаtiоn аnd suppоrtеrs’ mоbilizаtiоn, аs wеll аs thе nееd tо аdаpt lаnguаgе tо thе spесifiс саpаbilitiеs оf еасh plаtfоrm fоr еffесtivе vоtеr еngаgеmеnt. Thе аrtiсlе will аlsо еmphаsizе thе signifiсаnсе оf using lаnguаgе аs а kеу tооl fоr pеrsuаsiоn аnd influеnсing publiс pеrсеptiоn.

Peer review of the pesticide risk assessment of the active substance Bacillus velezensisRTI301.

The conclusions of the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) following the peer review of the initial risk assessments carried out by the competent authority of the rapporteur Member State The Netherlands for the pesticide active substance Bacillus velezensis strain RTI301 are reported. The context of the peer review was that required by Regulation (EC) No 1107/2009 of the European Parliament and of the Council. The conclusions were reached on the basis of the evaluation of the representative uses of B. velezensis strain RTI301 as a fungicide for the control of soil-borne diseases in greenhouses (permanent) and walk-in tunnels (non-permanent) and field crops; by drip and drench irrigation on lettuce, cucurbit and solanaceous vegetables; field application by treating tubers whilst laying in furrow on potato; seed treatment application on maize, sunflower, sugar beet and winter oilseed rape. The reliable endpoints, appropriate for use in regulatory risk assessment, are presented. Missing information identified as being required by the regulatory framework is listed. Concerns are reported when identified.

Peer review of the pesticide risk assessment of the active substance Bacillus subtilis strain RTI477.

The conclusions of the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) following the peer review of the initial risk assessments carried out by the competent authority of the rapporteur Member State the Netherlands for the pesticide active substance Bacillus subtilis strain RTI477 are reported. The context of the peer review was that required by Regulation (EC) No 1107/2009 of the European Parliament and of the Council. The conclusions were reached on the basis of the evaluation of the representative uses of B. subtilis strain RTI477 as a fungicide for the control of soil-borne diseases in greenhouses (permanent) and walk-in tunnels and field crops; by drip and drench irrigation on lettuce, cucurbit and solanaceous vegetables; field application by treating tubers whilst laying in furrow on potato; seed treatment application on maize, sunflower, sugar beet and winter oilseed rape. The reliable endpoints, appropriate for use in regulatory risk assessment, are presented. Missing information identified as being required by the regulatory framework is listed. Concerns are reported when identified.

Five decades' experience of long‐term soil monitoring, and key design principles, to assist the EU soil health mission

AbstractThe European Union has a long‐term objective to achieve healthy soils by 2050. The European Commission has proposed a Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council on Soil Monitoring and Resilience (Soil Monitoring Law, SML), the first stage of which is to focus on setting up a soil monitoring framework and assessing soils throughout the EU. Situated in NW Europe, the UK has substantial experience in soil monitoring over the last half century which may usefully contribute to this wider EU effort. A set of overarching principles have and continue to guide design of national soil monitoring and may prove helpful as other European countries embark on similar monitoring programmes. Therefore, we present the principles of design from five decades of national soil monitoring. The monitoring discussed is based on a stratified‐random design, has matured in support of policy questions, and operates over space and time scales relevant to the SML. The UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology (UKCEH) Countryside Surveys (CS) of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, Welsh Government, Environment and Rural Affairs Monitoring and Modelling Programme (ERAMMP) and the England Ecosystem Survey (EES) monitoring programme are national programmes currently operating in the UK. Some important lessons learnt include: adopting a question‐based approach; having a clear robust statistical design for the purpose; selecting indicators that address policy and underlying scientific questions; and selecting indicators that can detect change and use robust and well‐tested methodologies across a wide range of soil and land use types, remaining valid over long time scales, supporting thinking long‐term. Technical lessons learned include the proven cost effectiveness of a stratified‐random design including replication, while adopting a common stratification layer of stable environmental attributes aids comparability between monitoring programmes. Common protocols are vital for future intercomparisons, but a full ecosystem approach that includes co‐located soil and vegetation samples for interpreting a co‐evolving system has proved hugely advantageous. UK monitoring programmes offer a range of experience that may prove valuable to future soil monitoring design to address the major societal challenges of our time, such as maintaining food production and addressing climate change and biodiversity loss.

Hungary's attacks on human dignity: Article 2 TEU and the foundations of democracy in the European Union

AbstractWhile in Poland the October 2023 elections led to a government halting the rule of law crisis, in Hungary the political situation continues to deteriorate. Focusing on European Parliament resolutions, this article analyses Hungarian developments from the prism of human dignity, the EU's first foundational value under Article 2 TEU. First the article discusses the key features of human dignity with reference to the original commitment to human dignity under the 1948 Universal Declaration of Human Rights and to the EU Charter. Secondly, it uses these key features as an analytical grid for evidencing the construction of a counter‐model of human beings made to live in a society of inequality and exclusion. Finally, this paper outlines five reasons why human dignity as the first Article 2 value is breached by the Hungarian regime and why the EU Commission's decision not to trigger Article 7(2) is so problematic.

Europeanisation of environmental protection through criminal law

Abstract This article focuses on the European legal framework for environmental protection, in particular through criminal law. Given the societal need to reconcile technological development with the protection of natural resources and the environment in general, this is a highly relevant issue. The aim of this article is to describe and examine the current European legislation in the field of the environmental protection through criminal law, employing descriptive, analytical and synthetic methods. The article first discusses the history of environmental policy in public international law and European law, where initially the legal instruments of criminal law were not used. Subsequently, the author examines the current legal framework and, finally, considers its future. In the last parts, the article addresses the secondary law of the European Union, namely the Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council on the protection of the environment through criminal law of 2008 and the new Directive of the European Parliament and the Council on the criminal law protection of the environment of 2024. However, other decisions, directives and case law relevant to the issue are also covered. Overall, this is a unique article mapping all the essential legal instruments in the field of European environmental protection through criminal law. The author highlights the importance of protecting the environment through criminal law, but also emphasises the necessity of applying one of its basic principles, i.e., ultima ratio.

Pecularities of a lawyer’s remuneration for professional activity in Ukraine and Germany

According to the fact Ukraine sees the process of European integration as one of the main directions of its further development, which is confirmed by the resolution of the European Parliament, according to which Ukraine was granted the status of a candidate country for joining the European Union, the study of the experience of the leading countries of the European Union (hereinafter – the EU) should become a certain basis in the process of reforming the judiciary, the Institute of Advocacy is a part of which. Modern Ukrainian legislation in the context of remuneration for a lawyer’s professional activity has significant shortcomings and contradictions, and with regard to the so-called «success fee», the judicial practice is ambiguous and has already changed several times in previous years. At the same time, the institution of a lawyer’s remuneration for his professional activity needs changes and clarifications also in connection with the fact that the main categorical apparatus, which is used in the regulation of issues of this institute, is not coordinated with its European counterparts, and therefore leads to the emergence of legislative collisions in the future during a closer relationship between Ukraine and the EU countries after Ukraine becomes a member of the EU countries. A study of the historical analysis of the emergence and development of the institution of remuneration of a lawyer for his professional activity, as well as methods of calculating the amount and payment of a lawyer’s fee, forms and methods, which contributes to a comprehensive study of this institution. At the same time, on the basis of a comparative analysis between the studied institute in Ukraine and Germany, it is advisable to develop ways of improving Ukrainian legislation in this field. Special attention is paid to the so-called «success fee» of a lawyer for his professional activity, the issues of application of this type of lawyer’s fee both in Ukraine and in Germany are investigated. On the basis of the analysis, those issues that require further regulation at the legislative level in Ukraine and the identification of types of «success fee» have been identified on the example of how this issue is resolved in the EU countries, taking into account the practice of the European Court of Human Rights. The article is based on general scientific and special methods of scientific knowledge, namely: the dialectical method, the method of synthesis and analysis, the comparative legal method, as well as historical and terminological approaches.

A holistic approach to different regulations for acoustic improvements in industrial facilities

With the developing technology and mechanization, the number of industrial facilities has increased. It is important for the worker’s physical and mental health to be in suitable working conditions. This paper analyses the regulations applied in the examination and evaluation of the acoustic environment in industrial facilities. The European Parliament and Council Directive, the United States, Singapore, Canada, Australia, Mexico, Japan, and WHO principles were analysed in detail. Simultaneously, analyses were conducted on the auditory perception of the workers in industrial facilities. As a result of the study, 85, 87, and 90 dBA noise exposure levels were determined for 8 h in different regulations examined. It has been determined that the regulative systems for the auditory perception of the workers in industrial facilities are insufficient. It was found necessary to develop regulation systems for evaluating noise exposure levels and the auditory perception of the workers together. It is important for the occupational health and safety of workers to develop a holistic approach in the update and revision of international regulation and to evaluate the control mechanisms within this scope. The protection of mental and physical health of the workers is presented as the most fundamental requirement. Moreover, it should be ensured that the noise control measures that can be taken (at the source, at the transmission path, and at the receiver) are formed by reducing the noise exposure and increasing the auditory perception of the workers in a positive view.

Guy Fiti Sinclair’s Approach and its Application to EU Law: the Development of the Rule of Law as a Case Study

As theories on the development of the European Union do not give sufficient emphasis to aspects of EU law, it may be necessary to complement their application with other integration theories. To this end, the article intends to provide an analytical framework by relying on the field of the law of intergovernmental organisations. Guy Fiti Sinclair’s approach provides a framework to understand the expansion of powers in the case of intergovernmental organisations, an area not sufficiently explored concerning matters of EU law. The article examines the development of the rule of law based on the analytical framework. In addition to the introduction of the early context of the rule of law as well as the trends in the development of the rule of law in particular intergovernmental organisations, it also examines the position of the European Commission, the European Parliament and the Court of Justice of the European Union and the understanding of the rule of law within the academic sphere of the 2010s. The article focuses on the ASJP case, which, due to its innovative nature, has significantly impacted the development of the interpretation of the rule of law within EU law. The article, therefore, aims to give a perspective to understand the development of the rule of law, relying on this analytical framework.

Roll call votes in the committees of the European Parliament: A new dataset

This forum article presents a new dataset on roll call votes in the committees of the European Parliament in the 2014 to 2019 legislative term. Data on roll call votes in the plenary has greatly informed research on the functioning of the European Parliament, broader legislative politics and European Union decision-making. Responding to transparency concerns about legislative decisions increasingly taken at committee level, a change of the European Parliament's Rules of Procedure introduced mandatory roll calls in committees from 2014. The article explains the context of the rule change, the data collection effort, and the data as such. A discussion of conflict across committees, party group cohesion and participation in roll call votes illustrates potential applications of the data.

Actions to improve energy efficiency on the example of selected historic buildings in Poland in the context of European Union guidelines

The article presents, in the context of the guidelines of the "Long-Term Strategy for Renovation of Buildings" valid until 2050, examples of renovations of historic buildings carried out in Poland in 2018-2021, which serve as public facilities. They were designed and constructed in a manner consistent with the guidelines for the transformation of a climate-neutral economy, which stem from Article 2a of Directive 2010/31/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of May 19, 2010. The purpose of the article is a comparative analysis of selected Polish examples of revaluation of public buildings from the point of view of the Architecture of these objects. These are: the Wagner Villa in Kostrzyn on Oder, the railway station in Białystok, the Teodor Sixt Villa in Bielsko-Biała, the office building of the Forestry Commission in Elbląg, the building of the Savings Bank in Ropczyce and the former granary in Żukowo. Also cited are the current financial tools available and the basic measures needed to ensure high energy efficiency and low-carbon performance of public buildings in the run up to 2050.

The European Parliament in the News: A Critical Analysis of the Coverage in the United Kingdom and Greece, written by Dimitrios Souliotis

The European Parliament in the News: A Critical Analysis of the Coverage in the United Kingdom and Greece, written by Dimitrios Souliotis