Author: staff
Petrol and diesel prices across Europe have been rising hand in hand with global oil costs due to the Iran war, and the disruption impacting the supply coming from the Gulf countries. Brent crude briefly hit $119 a barrel twice since the first joint US–Israeli strikes on Iran in late February. The effects of fluctuating oil prices are now being felt by households across the continent, where taxes are making up a significant share of the cost at the pump. How much of the price of oil is tax? So, where do consumers pay the most tax on fuel in…
By Angela Symons with AP Published on 20/03/2026 – 7:02 GMT+1 Research has shown the majority of plastic waste found ingested in the guts of seabirds is white rather than other colours. The University of Auckland’s Ariel-Micaiah Heswall set out to find out why this is. She led a follow up study on whether penguins were more attracted to this colour and therefore more likely to ingest harmful plastics or whether it could be attributed to a greater abundance of white plastic debris in the sea. According to researchers, soft plastics such as balloons can obstruct the birds’ guts, causing starvation, while sharp…
By David del Valle Published on 20/03/2026 – 7:00 GMT+1 Every day of war with Iran stops international tourists from spending €550 million in the Middle East, according to the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC). Many are now looking to Europe as a safe destination. The blow to tourism in the Middle East and Gulf opens up both an opportunity and a risk for Europe: to absorb some of this flow of travellers. WTTC estimates that the Middle East accounts for 5% of global international arrivals and 14% of international transit traffic, so the impact could be very strong on…
SONDAGE CLUSTER 17 X POLITICO. Le maire Ecologiste, Pierre Hurmic, devance son adversaire macroniste au premier tour. L’économiste Philippe Dessertine, à la tête d’une liste de centre droit, pourrait jouer les arbitres. Mar 9 3 mins read
Wir befinden uns in einem neuen Kalten Krieg, und er ist deutlich ungemütlicher als der letzte. Anstatt klarer Blockkonfrontation erleben wir ein multipolares Chaos, in dem die zivile Infrastruktur und die Wirtschaft längst zum Ziel geworden sind. Im Panel-Gespräch auf einer Sicherheitstagung in Berlin spricht der Präsident des Bundesverfassungsschutzes, Sinan Selen, mit Gordon Repinski über Russlands Nadelstiche aus der „hybriden Toolbox“ und neue Bedrohungen aus Richtung Iran. Wie gut sind das Land und die Geheimdienste gegen diese teils unsichtbaren Feinde aufgestellt? Im 200-Sekunden-Interview dazu: der stellvertretende Vorsitzende des Parlamentarischen Kontrollgremiums, Konstantin von Notz (Grüne). Nach dem EU-Gipfel sortiert Hans von…
Biotechnology is central to modern medicine and Europe’s long-term competitiveness. From cancer and cardiovascular disease to rare conditions, it is driving transformative advances for patients across Europe and beyond.1 Yet innovation in Europe is increasingly shaped by regulatory fragmentation, procedural complexity and uneven implementation across member states. As scientific progress accelerates, policy frameworks must evolve in parallel, supporting the full lifecycle of innovation from research and clinical development to manufacturing and patient access. The proposed EU Biotech Act seeks to address these challenges. By streamlining regulatory procedures, strengthening coordination and supporting scale-up and manufacturing, it aims to reinforce Europe’s position in a highly competitive global biotechnology landscape.2 Its success,…
Names are so important. Just imagine trying to win elected office in 2026 if your name was Hitler? It’d never happen … oh. Yes, the first round of French municipal elections shone a spotlight on one Charles Hittler (that extra “t” isn’t really helping) — the mayor of Arcis-sur-Aube, southeast of Paris. And one of his opponents was called Zielinski (Antoine Renault-Zielinski, not Volodymyr). Though Hitler vs. Zelenskyy sounds like the kind of thing that only previously existed in fan fiction spawned from the darkest corners of the internet. The French mayor isn’t the only Hit(t)ler on the political scene…
Macron said that he discussed that idea with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi during a call on Thursday morning and with Guterres, who on Thursday joined the European Council for lunch. Macron then informed other EU leaders. Guterres told leaders it was important for the Global South that any initiative on clearing the Strait of Hormuz go through the United Nations, according to one EU diplomat. Earlier in the day, a second diplomat told POLITICO that such an initiative could consist of a resolution that might win support from Gulf and European countries, creating a basis for a broader coalition…
Fury over Viktor Orbán’s decision to veto the European Union’s €90 billion loan for Ukraine burst into the open on Thursday as leaders castigated, one by one, in the harshest terms yet the “unacceptable” behaviour of the Hungarian prime minister. The condemnation was led by António Costa, the usually mild-mannered president of the European Council, whose authority is being directly challenged by Orbán’s disruption. “The leaders took the floor to condemn the attitude from Viktor Orbán, to remember that a deal is a deal and all the leaders need to honour that word,” Costa said at the end of the…
It is a win for China hawks, who have fought to impose tougher measures against Huawei — with strong backing from Washington. The EU has spent years trying to persuade national governments to voluntarily kick out Huawei and ZTE over concerns that their presence in European telecom networks could enable large-scale spying and surveillance by the Chinese government. It is now working on broader rules that seek to reduce the bloc’s reliance on foreign “high-risk” suppliers and limit foreign government control over its digital networks. The case was brought by Estonian telecom operator Elisa, which is seeking compensation for the…