EU Lawyers Say Plan to Scan Private Messages for Child Abuse May Be Unlawful

THE GUARDIAN: Under proposed ‘chat controls’ regulation, any encrypted service provider could be forced to screen for ‘identifiers’

According to the internal EU legal advice, the regulation ‘risks falling foul of a judicial review on multiple grounds’. Photograph: DCPhoto/Alamy
An EU plan under which all WhatsApp, iMessage and Snapchat accounts could be screened for child abuse content has hit a significant obstacle after internal legal advice said it would probably be annulled by the courts for breaching users’ rights.

Under the proposed “chat controls” regulation, any encrypted service provider could be forced to survey billions of messages, videos and photos for “identifiers” of certain types of content where it was suspected a service was being used to disseminate harmful material.

The providers issued with a so-called “detection order” by national bodies would have to alert police if they found evidence of suspected harmful content being shared or the grooming of children. » | Daniel Boffey, Chief reporter | Monday, May 8, 2023

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Neil Kinnock on Brexit: 'No Effort of Any Kind' Has Ever Gone into Educating the Public on the EU

May 3, 2023 | Marking three years since the UK’s withdrawal from the European Union, and 50 years since its accession to the European Economic Community, UK in a Changing Europe will bring together leading authorities to discuss the UK/EU relationship. Panelists include former EU Commissioners, journalists, academics, and politicians.

UK Will Sign Deal Paying in to EU Budget within 15 Years, Says Ryanair Boss

THE GUARDIAN: Michael O’Leary says Brexit is ‘unbelievably messy’ and a ‘net negative’ on the British economy

Ryanair boss Michael O’Leary launched a fresh attack on Brexit. Photograph: Thierry Monasse/Getty Images
The boss of Ryanair, Michael O’Leary, has launched a fresh attack on Brexit, describing it as “unbelievably messy” and predicting the UK would end up signing a Norway-style deal with the EU in the next 10 to 15 years under which it would pay into the bloc’s budget.

The outspoken chief executive of the Irish budget airline said over the next three to five years, the UK’s departure from the EU would be “net negative on the UK economy, no question about it”.

O’Leary said the UK’s longer term relationship with its closest trading partner depended “on what the British establishment or future UK governments do”. However, he said he believed that the UK would “in the next 10 to 15 years” strike a “trade deal with Europe, similar to Norway or Switzerland”. » | oanna Partridge | Wednesday, April 19, 2023

Brexit was a stupid idea put forward by duffers. — © Mark Alexander

Qatar Bribery Probe Rocks EU Parliament | DW News

Dec 12, 2022 | A vice president of the European Parliament has been charged with corruption over allegations that World Cup host Qatar paid huge bribes to influence EU policy. Eva Kaili has been stripped of her powers after investigators reportedly found bags of cash in her home. She's one of four people arrested so far in connection with the scandal.

Brexit: Rishi Sunak Quashes Talk of Swiss-style EU Deal

Nov 21, 2022 | The prime minister has delivered his firmest response yet to a Sunday Times story suggesting that some in his government wanted a Swiss-type deal with the EU. Speaking at the Confederation of British Industry's annual conference in Birmingham, Sunak said that under his leadership the UK would 'not pursue any relationship with Europe that relies on alignment with EU laws' UK politics – live updates

What a load of BS Sunak speaks about the benefits of Brexit. Brexit is an unmitigated disaster. – © Mark Alexander

EU Mulls Response to Iranian Protest Crackdown | DW News

The death toll in the fire at Tehran's Evin prison over the weekend rose to eight, Iran's judiciary said on Monday.

The deadly blaze came amid nationwide anti-government protests, sparked by the death of 22-year-old Jina Mahsa Amini in police custody.

Iranian authorities have sought to distance the prison incident from the continuing protests over Amini's death.

Amini was arrested by Iran's morality police for violating the Islamic Republic's strict dress code. She died on September 16, three days after she fell into a coma following her arrest.

EU Warns Next PM Unilateral Action on Brexit Deal Is of ‘Great Concern’

THE GUARDIAN: European Commission vice-president, Maroš Šefčovič, says it is ‘legally and politically inconceivable’

EU Commission vice-president, Maroš Šefčovič. Photograph: Martin Divíšek/EPA
The EU has warned the incoming British prime minister, likely to be Liz Truss, that any unilateral action to scrap part of the Brexit deal is legally and politically of “great concern” across the continent.

The warning by the European Commission vice-president, Maroš Šefčovič, comes just days before the new prime minister is expected to confirm they will press ahead with new laws to dismantle the arrangements for Northern Ireland.

Truss and Sunak have both committed to carrying through with the Northern Ireland protocol bill in their leadership campaigns, despite the threat of a retaliatory trade war with the EU.

“The unilateral action is naturally of great concern,” Šefčovič told an audience that included invited ministers from the British and Irish governments. » | Lisa O'Carroll, Brexit correspondent | Friday, September 2, 2022

Is It Acceptable That Russians Can Continue Travelling to the EU | DW News

Aug 30, 2022 According to the EU border control agency Frontex, almost a million travelers with Russian passports have come to the EU since the war in Ukraine started six months ago. Is it acceptable that Russians can continue travelling to the EU as if the war of aggression against Ukraine wasn't happening?


Les pays membres de l’UE suspendent un accord facilitant la délivrance de visas pour les Russes : Ils n’ont cependant pas décidé d’une interdiction de visa plus large, comme le demandaient certains Etats membres. »

Sewage in Sea: French Appeal to EU over UK Discharges of Waste

A file photo shows untreated sewage flowing into a river | GETTY IMAGES
BBC: The UK is threatening health and marine life on the French coast by allowing raw sewage to be dumped in the Channel and North Sea, say three Euro MPs.

Pollution warnings have been issued for almost 50 beaches in England and Wales, after heavy rain caused sewage overflow to be diverted into rivers and the sea.

The French MEPs accuse the UK of neglecting environmental commitments and risking marine life and fishing.

British water companies have said they are investing in solving the problem.

Since its departure from the European Union, the United Kingdom had neglected its environmental commitments, the MEPs said in a letter calling for legal or political action from the European Commission.

A UK government spokesperson said their allegation was "simply not true".

Despite no longer being bound by EU laws, the UK was still a signatory to relevant United Nations conventions on protecting shared waters, the MEPs argued. » | Elsa Maishman, BBC News | Thursday, August 25, 2022

The Only EU Country Where Abortion Is iIlegal - BBC News

Aug 12, 2022 Malta is the only EU state with a ban on abortion, there are no exceptions, including in cases of rape or incest.

Neither of Malta's main political parties supported a bill to decriminalise abortion last year but campaigners hope that a review of the law, along with shifts in social attitudes, could trigger change.

EU under Pressure to Ban Russian Tourists from Europe

THE GUARDIAN: Ukrainian president says Russians ‘should live in their own world until they change their philosophy’

The EU has been urged to introduce a travel ban on Russian tourists with some member states saying visiting Europe was “a privilege, not a human right” for holidaymakers.

President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said in an interview with the Washington Post that the “most important sanction” was to “close the borders, because the Russians are taking away someone else’s land”. Russians should “live in their own world until they change their philosophy”, he said.

The Ukrainian president’s call was backed by Estonia’s prime minister, Kaja Kallas, who tweeted that visiting Europe was “a privilege, not a human right”, adding: “Time to end tourism from Russia. Stop issuing tourist visas to Russians.”

Finland’s prime minister, Sanna Marin, has aired the same frustrations, telling public broadcaster YLE that it was “not right that while Russia is waging an aggressive, brutal war of aggression in Europe, Russians can live a normal life, travel in Europe, be tourists.” » | Jon Henley | Wednesday, August 10, 2022

Michael Lambert: Why Time Is Running Out for Boris Johnson Who Says He Will Not Change

Jun 25, 2022 • Time is running out for Boris Johnson. He says he will not change despite the mass of problems which he faces. The economy is doing badly post-Brexit, a major strike of railwaymen is taking place with many more strikes planned by other sectors.

He has threatened a trade war with the EU by wanting to introduce legislation to override the Northern Ireland Protocol. Food supplies are threatened later this year, and there are now said to be more food banks in the UK than branches of MacDonalds.

Many MP's are worried that Johnson is no longer an election winner but an election loser and it is likely that the 1922 committee will arrange another Vote of No Confidence in the Prime Minister very soon.

The OECD, the OBR, the LSE and others all predict a sharp decline in the British economy as a direct result of Brexit.

Eine neue Struktur für Europa? | ARTE Info Plus

Jun 22, 2022 • Die Europäische Union blickt auf eine lange Geschichte zurück und ist stetig um neue Mitgliedsländer gewachsen, die ihre demokratischen Werte teilen wollen. Dennoch sucht die große europäische Gemeinschaft immer wieder nach ihrer politischen Einheit - umso mehr angesichts neuer Beitrittskandidaten. Europas Struktur der Zukunft muss noch überdacht werden.

Related article.

Brussels Initiates Proceedings against London | Outside Views on Brexit and UK Politics

Jun 17, 2022 • Brussels initiates proceedings against London | Outside Views on Brexit and UK politics.

The dispute over the Northern Ireland Pact continues to escalate: the British government had declared that it wanted to change the agreement unilaterally. Now the EU Commission is drawing conclusions.

'Let's Call a Spade a Spade - This Is Illegal' - the EU Takes Action against the UK

Jun 15, 2022 • The EU has begun legal action against the UK following the Government's decision to override parts of the Northern Ireland Protocol.

Maros Sefčovič had acted illegally in ignoring parts of the deal they with the EU.

He said the move had damaged trust and respect between the EU and the UK.


Related video.

'Let's Call a Spade a Spade': EU Resumes Legal Action against UK over New NI Protocol Bill

Jun 15, 2022 • The EU's Brexit commissioner has confirmed the body has decided to take fresh legal action against the UK over its new legislation bypassing sections of the Northern Ireland protocol. Along with reviving the infringement process it launched in 2021, the EU is initiating two more processes – accusing the UK of failing to comply with provisions in the protocol relating to controls at border posts and the sharing of data

UK Reveals Plans to Ditch Parts of EU Brexit Deal

Read the BBC article here.

UK risks EU trade war as Northern Ireland protocol bill is published: Liz Truss says bill will ‘fix’ post-Brexit trade problems but legal experts and some Tory MPs say move is illegal under international law »

Boris Johnson and his band of jesters, Liz Truss included, behave appallingly.

How can one possibly be proud of one’s country when one’s government flouts international law like this and reneges on the very treaty it has signed, even with fanfare.

It is high time that this excuse for a government be kicked out of office. Surely, with our illustrious history, the United Kingdom can do better than this. – © Mark Alexander

The Guardian View on Overriding the Brexit Treaty: A National Disgrace

THE GUARDIAN – EDITORIAL: Boris Johnson’s plans to shred the Northern Ireland protocol have no basis in law, economics or diplomacy

There is no good reason for the UK to sabotage relations with its European neighbours, but doing it to score ideological points with a small faction of the prime minister’s supporters is exceptionally poor judgment. Yet that is what Boris Johnson intends to do with legislation, now said to be due for publication next week, to override the Northern Ireland protocol of the Brexit deal he signed in 2019.

The ostensible trigger is the collapse of power-sharing at Stormont, caused by the Democratic Unionist party’s refusal to form an administration with Sinn Féin. The DUP objects to the basis of the protocol – the requirement for customs checks on goods crossing the Irish Sea – and wants it rewritten. The EU offers modifications in the way that the treaty is implemented, saying checks are necessary to prevent Northern Ireland becoming an unregulated backdoor into the single market. » | Editorial | Thursday, June 9, 2022

Brexit: PM to unveil plans to scrap parts of NI Protocol agreed with EU: Boris Johnson will later publish plans to scrap parts of the post-Brexit deal he struck with the EU in 2020. »

UK Moves to Scrap Northern Ireland Protocol Raises EU Ire

May 17, 2022 • British Foreign Secretary Liz Truss is expected to present a new law to parliament that would unilaterally change the Northern Ireland protocol, a key element of the Brexit deal that saw the UK leave the European Union. Donnacha O Beachain from Dublin City University has more on the Northern Ireland protocol.

Pelosi: London riskiert möglichen Handelspakt

Nancy Pelosi am 17. Mai 2022 in Washington | Bild: DPA
NORDIRLAND-STREIT
FRANKFURTER ALLGEMEINE ZEITUNG: Die Sprecherin des amerikanischen Repräsentantenhauses warnt Großbritannien vor einer Eskalation des Streits über Brexit-Regeln für Nordirland. Ein erklärtes Ziel der Johnson-Regierung stehe auf dem Spiel.

Die Sprecherin des US-Repräsentantenhauses, Nancy Pelosi, hat die Regierung in London gewarnt, mit einer einseitigen Eskalation des Streits über Brexit-Regeln für Nordirland einen Handelspakt mit den USA zu riskieren. Wenn London sich entscheide, dieses Abkommen zu unterlaufen, werde der US-Kongress kein bilaterales Freihandelsabkommen mit Großbritannien unterstützen, schrieb Pelosi am Donnerstag in einer Erklärung. Das sogenannte Nordirland-Protokoll schütze die wichtige Stabilität in der ehemaligen Bürgerkriegsregion, die der als Karfreitagsabkommen bekannte Friedensvertrag gebracht habe.

Ein weitreichender Handelspakt mit den USA gilt als erklärtes Ziel der Brexit-Befürworter um Premier Boris Johnson, das jedoch aktuell noch in weiter Ferne liegt. » | Quelle: dpa | Freitag, 20. Mai 2022