Second gas emergency stage + Barely any wheat exports via Poland + Commission’s autumn schedule
Germany prepares second gas emergency plan alarm stage
Ukraine: little interest in wheat export via Poland
Kaliningrad: Moscow threatens Lithuania with serious consequences over transit restrictions
Broad support of EU states for Ukraine’s candidate status
SPD leader Klingbeil sees Germany as ‘leading power’
Poland: PiS leader Kaczyński resigns from government
What the Commission is planning for the fall
Stricter limits for harmful chemicals in waste
ECJ: passenger data processing only for what is absolutely necessary
Consumer protection: TikTok promises improvement
Map service: Federal Cartel Office investigates Google’s treatment of competitors
Profile: Brigitte Knopf – ‘unusual alliances’ for climate protection
Dear reader,
Let’s go at it again: After the failed vote two weeks ago, the EU Parliament will make another attempt today to vote on parts of the Fit for 55 package. It is about a new compromise for the reform of EU emissions trading as well as a Social Climate Fund and the introduction of the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM). Last week, MEPs from EPP, S&D and Renew surprisingly quickly agreed on a compromise. Among other things, the compromise envisages that the introduction of CBAM will coincide with a reduction of free allowances from 2027 onwards and with a complete phase-out at the end of 2032.
Trilogue negotiations on the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) ended successfully yesterday. “Tonight, the EU adopts the world’s first legislation requiring large companies to document their environmental, social and human rights impacts,” announced EP rapporteur Pascal Durand (Renew). A law that is causing an uproar, especially in the SME sector: All companies with more than 250 employees and a revenue of more than €40 million – whether listed or not – will have to disclose data on the sustainability of their activities starting in 2024. Above annual revenues of €150 million, this will also apply to companies headquartered outside the EU.
According to a report in the German newspaper “Die Welt”, the German government plans to declare a state of emergency of the national gas emergency plan in the next few days. Circles inside the energy industry confirmed the report. This may have consequences for consumers; prices for natural gas could rise significantly at this stage. There is currently heated debate about the sectors in which gas consumption can be cut. So far, little attention has been paid to the public sector. Manuel Berkel reports on how great the potential for saving on the part of the state is.
The blockade of grain exports is a “real war crime,” EU High Representative Josep Borrell said this week. Wheat from Ukraine is urgently needed on the global market, and yet millions of tons are still stuck in the country. Alternative transport routes via rail and road are now supposed to make exports possible, for example through Poland. But interest in shipping wheat through the neighboring country is very limited, as Timo Landenberger found out at the Polish-Ukrainian border.
According to a newspaper report, the German government is preparing to declare the second alarm stage of the national emergency gas plan in a few days. The State Secretary in the Federal Ministry of Economics and Climate Protection (BMWK), Patrick Graichen, prepared the energy industry on Monday for the upcoming step, reported “Welt” yesterday with reference to industry circles. This account was confirmed on Tuesday evening in circles of the energy industry on inquiry by dpa.
Utilities were told to expect the alert level to be declared within 5 to 10 days. Upon inquiry, the ministry neither confirmed nor denied the rumor. Previously, the early warning stage had already taken effect in accordance with the European SoS regulation. The alert level is declared when gas supplies significantly decline, while the market is still able to cope with the disruption. Only at the third stage would the national regulatory authority intervene in the market.
However, the German gas industry has additional options due to the alert level. The German newspaper “Die Welt” notes that the amendment to the Energy Security Act in mid-May gave utilities the option of raising gas prices to an “appropriate level”. Suppliers who are forced to buy expensive natural gas as a substitute due to the loss of Russian supplies could then pass on their additional costs directly to their customers.
Italy also discusses further steps. On Tuesday evening, an emergency committee planned to discuss how gas consumption could be reduced and storage facilities sufficiently filled.
Commission sends out questionnaire on shutdown criteria
Meanwhile, voices from the gas industry have become louder. On Tuesday, RWE CEO Markus Krebber called for a joint European approach in the event of a total loss of Russian gas supplies. So far, there are no joint plans on how the remaining gas should be distributed, the executive said at the “Industry Day” of the Federation of German Industries (BDI). Each country would look at its own contingency plans. This should be clarified in two or three months at the latest.
Europe.Table previously reported that only a few member states have so far signed solidarity agreements for a gas emergency and that the EU Commission wants to develop common shutdown criteria for industrial consumers. On Tuesday, a five-page questionnaire on prioritization criteria, which the EU Commission sent to industrial associations a few weeks ago, was available to the editorial team.
The Commission lists criteria from the fields of social and economic issues, cross-border supply chains, gas dependency, and options for demand reduction and substitution. For example, it asks about the time required and the costs to reduce gas consumption in each sector.
How the government can also save gas
There is still little discussion of gas reduction in the public sector. The government could, for example, install electronic thermostats in public buildings or switch the heat supply to heat pumps as quickly as possible, says economist Christian Bayer of the University of Bonn, and also brings cuts in consumption into the discussion. “Since decision-makers in the public sector don’t focus so much on prices, it will certainly be necessary to set stricter specifications for heating public buildings in winter,” says Bayer, citing room temperatures during opening and service hours as well as the length and flexibility of opening hours as examples.
The housing sector had called for the minimum temperature for residential buildings to be lowered from 20 to 22 degrees to 16 to 18 degrees just a few days ago. Federal Minister of Housing Klara Geywitz (SPD) immediately rejected the idea. The ministry only strictly rules out the idea of lowering the temperature on its own premises. The Occupational Health and Safety Act and legislation also stipulate a temperature of at least 20 degreesin office buildings, a spokeswoman told Europe.Table.
Other authorities apparently see things differently. In February, the district administrator of Brandenburgs Oder-Spree district made headlines for setting a good example. “Occupational safety prescribes 18 degrees room temperature. I leave it to the colleagues to join in,” the daily Berliner Zeitung quoted Geywitz’s party comrade, Rolf Lindemann. Municipalities and states own significantly more real estate than the federal government.
In North Rhine-Westphalia, for example, “a short notice departmental vote to implement savings measures in buildings owned by the state administration is in the planning stage,” a spokesman for the Ministry of Economics in Düsseldorf told Europe.Table.
Amsterdam wants to lower temperature in orphanages
An EU-wide energy-saving campaign was jointly launched in May by the Commission, the Committee of the Regions (CoR) and the Covenant of Mayors for Climate and Energy. Until mid-September, cities and municipalities are called upon to implement swift energy-saving measures via the Cities Energy Savings Sprint. The EU campaign also calculates that lowering the heating temperature by three degrees to 18 degrees could save 15 percent energy.
As a prominent example, in late March, Amsterdam announced plans to turn down radiators from 21 to 18 degrees. Before this, the Dutch capital had gathered 60 stakeholders to discuss cost-cutting measures. The administration even wanted to lower the temperature for critical areas such as health care facilities, orphanages and archives – but only by one degree.
Warsaw recently joined the Savings Sprint, and Budapest is expected to follow soon, according to a CoR spokesperson.
Even if some cities and municipalities are setting a good example – the real big potential to save energy lies in other areas. Gas consumption in the public sector is so low that it is not even included in the German energy balance sheet. It accounts for around eight percent of the trade, commerce and services sector, according to Hans Georg Buttermann of AG Energiebilanzen.
This means that public administration is responsible for only 1.4 percent of Germany’s final gas energy consumption. If all government agencies, from schools to federal ministries, managed to save 15 percent of this amount, it would add up to about 110 million cubic meters of gas within a year. The largest gas consumers are residential buildings with 43 percent and the industrial sector with 38 percent. With dpa, rtr
Energy
Germany
Natural gas
Ukraine: little interest to export wheat through Poland
A delegation of the EU Parliament at the Polish-Ukrainian border.
Different track gauges for rail transport, kilometer-long truck traffic jams, and endless goods inspections: At the Polish-Ukrainian border, it quickly becomes clear where the problems lie. According to estimates, up to 20 million tons of grain still have to be brought in from Ukraine. The foodstuffs, above all wheat, are urgently needed on the global market. But the Ukrainian ports on the Black Sea, which handled more than 90 percent of agricultural exports before the outbreak of war, are blocked.
The goal now is to develop alternative transport routes. But capacities via rail and road are limited. That is why a delegation from the European Parliament’s Agriculture Committee traveled to the Polish-Ukrainian border to find solutions and get a picture of the situation on the ground. But it turned out differently than expected.
Only ten percent grain
The Korczowa border station is one of the largest border crossings between Ukraine and Poland. Around 900 vehicles reach the European Union here within 24 hours, 260 of which are trucks. Not enough: Drivers from Ukraine have to wait five days at the border for customs clearance.
Consequently, freight capacities are to be doubled from five to ten lanes this week. Only ten percent of the cargo is grain. In Medika, one of the main lanes for rail transport, it is 25 percent. Mainly corn, a bit of barley and rapeseed. Wheat: absent, says a border official. Why is that?
The main problem is insurance, Dmytro Los, Chairman of the Ukrainian Trade Association, told the EU delegation. “Ukraine is a war zone. Transport insurance is six times higher than before the war broke out.” The route via Romania and its Black Sea ports is shorter and thus cheaper than via Poland, he said.
Shortly outside the Ukrainian border. Due to different track gauges, containers have to be reloaded.
In addition, most EU logistics companies could no longer travel to Ukraine at all for insurance reasons. This is a problem, especially in the rail transport sector, because the change of gauge usually happens a few kilometers inland. For Ukrainian trains, this is the end of the line.
No buyers despite shortage
There is also a lack of buyers, despite the global food shortage. Because of the uncertain situation and with no guarantee that wheat will actually be delivered, many companies are reluctant to buy, especially as the price of wheat on the global market is at a record high. The World Food Program also announced that it would have to cut food rations due to a lack of funding.
“Exporting wheat via Poland is not profitable for us,” summarizes Larysa Bilozir, a member of the Ukrainian parliament. “As long as capacity is limited, it’s much more lucrative for Ukrainian traders to ship out corn, poultry, or sunflower oil and sell directly to Europe.”
The EU is less self-sufficient when it comes to corn than it is with wheat. Some countries in southern and Western Europe, above all Spain, have imported large quantities of grain from Ukraine for many years – primarily by sea so far. But instead of being transported onward from Poland to Spain, the feed doesn’t get very far.
Ukrainian corn costs about €235 per ton, €65 less than Polish corn, complains Jan Bieniasz, a representative of a Polish farmers’ association. “That’s because different pesticides and fertilizers are allowed to be used in Ukraine than here.” Since import and customs restrictions on agricultural goods were removed, he says, more and more Ukrainian corn is being bought in Poland. “This is destroying our regional market.”
EU in demand among insurers
So does the EU’s plan to help Ukraine export grain while mitigating the global food crisis fail at the Polish border? Liberalization was the right thing to do, defends Norbert Lins (CDU), head of delegation and Chairman of the Agriculture Committee. After all, he says, the Solidarity Lanes are not just a tool to provide food to African countries but are aimed at maintaining Ukraine’s economic viability. “But we need much more coordination so that the grain gets to where it is needed.”
The fact that Ukraine exports almost no wheat through Poland also surprised him. “This is where we as the EU have to consider whether we intervene more strongly to signal purchases. From the Ukrainian side, the interest doesn’t seem to be there because there is obviously a lack of buyers.” He also said the EU has a responsibility when it comes to insurance. “The transport has to be secured from the European side.”
In addition, the European agricultural sector would have to contribute to the fight against food shortages and increase its own production. Against this background, Lins criticized the meeting of EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi. “A mere cash payment like the promised €100 million to Egypt only fuels speculation on the market. Not one grain of grain will be grown from this,” said Lins.
At the European Development Days in Brussels, von der Leyen also announced plans to mobilize €600 million for African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) countries. The proposal calls for the money to come from the European Development Fund. Critics, including from the ranks of the Agriculture Committee, fear that the money will be used to buy grain from Russia.
Criticism of EU sanctions
Meanwhile, EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs Josep Borrell accused Russia of committing a “real war crime” by blocking grain exports from Ukraine. People’s hunger should not be misused as a weapon of war, Borrel told the Foreign Affairs Council.
The African Union (AU), in turn, criticizes the EU sanctions. Because the EU has excluded Russian banks from the international payment system Swift, trading of grain is more difficult, says AU leader Macky Sall.
Borrell was displeased by this criticism. He called it “Russian propaganda” and part of the “battle of narratives”. However, he said, the EU was not admitting defeat and would fight the Russian lies. To this end, he sent letters to all foreign ministers in Africa.
Borrell declined to comment on details. He stressed that the EU had not imposed any sanctions on grain or fertilizers. Moreover, not all Russian banks are affected by the Swift ban, he added. With Eric Bonse
European policy
Poland
Raw materials
Wheat
News
Kaliningrad: Moscow threatens Lithuania with serious consequences over transit restrictions
Moscow’s leadership has threatened Lithuania with severe consequences for its own people unless the country stops imposing transit restrictions on the Baltic Sea exclave of Kaliningrad, which belongs to Russia. “Russia will definitely react to such hostile actions” Russian Security Council Chief Nikolai Patrushev said on Tuesday during a visit to Kaliningrad, according to the Interfax agency. “Their consequences will have a serious negative impact on the population of Lithuania.”
Patrushev, who is considered to be one of Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin’s closest confidants, met in Kaliningrad with local governor, Anton Alichanov. He also chaired a meeting on transportation security issues in the region.
Alichanov hinted at a possible transit blockade for Lithuanian goods. Hardliners loyal to the Kremlin, on the other hand, repeatedly called for the creation of a “corridor” between core Russia and Kaliningrad on state television talk shows. This would represent an attack on the countries in between, Latvia and Lithuania – or, from Russia’s ally Belarus, on the border area between Lithuania and Poland.
But Brussels considers the risk of a major escalation of the conflict to be low. According to senior NATO military officials, Russia is not currently in a position to seriously threaten NATO territory due to its war against Ukraine.
Since Saturday, Lithuania has prohibited the rail transit of goods on Western sanctions lists through its territory to Kaliningrad. According to Alichanov, this affects 40 to 50 percent of all transit goods, including construction materials and metals. The Kremlin already criticized these restrictions as “illegal” on Monday and threatened countermeasures. The Foreign Ministry summoned both Lithuania’s diplomatic representative and the EU ambassador to Moscow. dpa/sas
Geopolitics
Broad support from EU countries for Ukraine’s accession status
Shortly ahead of the decisive EU summit at the end of the week, broad support is emerging among EU states for an EU accession perspective for Ukraine and Moldova. There is currently not a single country that is causing problems, said Luxembourg Foreign Minister Jean Asselborn on Tuesday on the sidelines of an EU meeting in Luxembourg. There will be great unanimity, he added. Portugal, whose position had been unclear recently, also emphasized its support.
French Secretary of State for Europe Clément Beaune, as current Chairman of the EU Council of Ministers for Europe, also expressed confidence. There was “a total consensus on moving these issues forward” He was optimistic, but also cautious because unanimity is required at summits of heads of state and government.
It is still open, for example, whether EU members like Austria, Slovenia, and Croatia will base their approval of EU accession candidate status for Ukraine and Moldova on progress in efforts to expand the EU to the Western Balkans. Specifically, there are calls, among other things, for Bosnia-Herzegovina to also be granted EU accession status.
On Friday, the EU Commission recommended that Ukraine and Moldova be officially designated as candidates for accession to the European Union. The decision on candidate status must now be made by the governments of the 27 EU states. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) and his colleagues will meet tomorrow in Brussels to discuss the issue.
Germany is in favor of accession status for Ukraine and Moldova. The clear signal must be sent that the countries belong in the EU, said Minister of State for Europe Anna Lührmann (Greens) in Luxembourg on Tuesday. dpa
European policy
Ukraine
SPD leader Klingbeil sees Germany as a ‘leading power’
According to SPD leader Lars Klingbeil, Germany must pursue the claim of a “leading power” in international politics. In a keynote speech at a conference of the Friedrich Ebert Foundation on Tuesday, he argued that this was due to the significantly growing expectations of Germany around the world. “After almost 80 years of restraint, Germany has a new role in the international system.” He said the country had earned a high degree of trust in recent decades, but that this trust was also coupled with expectations.
“Over the last decades, Germany has earned itself a great amount of trust. With this trust come expectations,” said Klingbeil. “We should meet these expectations.”
Until now, Germany has seen itself as a middle power rather than a leading power in international politics. Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD), however, made a complete turnaround in German foreign and security policy with his “Zeitenwende” speech after the start of the war in Ukraine and, above all, initiated a massive rearmament of the Bundeswehr. However, he has not yet spoken of a leading power like Klingbeil.
Klingbeil’s plea for a different approach to military force is also likely to generate discussion. “Closing your eyes to reality leads to war. We are seeing that right now in Ukraine. For me, peace policy therefore means also seeing military force as a legitimate means of politics.” dpa
Geopolitics
Germany
Security policy
Poland: PiS leader Kaczyński leaves the government
The leader of Poland’s national-conservative ruling PiS party, Jarosław Kaczyński, has resigned from his post as Deputy Prime Minister, as expected. A request to that effect had already been accepted by Head of Government Mateusz Morawiecki and President Andrzej Duda, Kaczyński told news agency PAP on Tuesday. “I am not in the government at the moment.” In the future, he wants to focus on working in the party, which needs to regain strength, Kaczyński said, referring to the parliamentary election coming up in the fall of 2023.
Two weeks ago, a government spokesman already announced Kaczyński’s imminent retirement from the cabinet. The 73-year-old had been deputy head of government since October 2020 and since then coordinated the areas of internal security and defense. This function will now be taken over by Minister of Defense Mariusz Błaszczak, Kaczyński has now announced.
The PiS co-founder served as Poland’s Prime Minister from 2006 to 2007. Since his party regained power in 2015, he has been seen as a key figure in Polish politics – with or without government office. dpa
The Cyber Resilience Act will then follow on September 21, according to an internal planning document from the Commission’s Secretariat General. A week later, the Commission plans to present the revised product liability directive, along with liability rules for artificial intelligence products. The proposal for regulating short-term rentals (like Airbnb) is scheduled for October 12. In the following week, the authority plans to publish its work program for 2023.
On November 9, a package for security and defense is expected. It includes a new action plan for military mobility, a proposal for cyber defense and a defense investment program.
Further measures for circular economy package
According to planning, the second package on the circular economy will be severely delayed. Originally, Climate Commissioner Frans Timmermans was to present the package on July 20, but the date has now been postponed to November 16. In it, the Commission wants to create a legislative framework for biodegradable plastics, revise the packaging directive and the directive on wastewater treatment, and present a proposal for a regulation on green claims.
In addition, three other measures will be added to the package: Timmermans will also present a revision of EU legislation on the Registration, Evaluation, Authorization and Restriction of Chemicals (REACH) and measures to reduce the release of microplastics. Furthermore, Věra Jourová, Commissioner for Values and Transparency, will present a proposal on the “right to repair” as part of the package.
A raw materials law, which Internal Market Commissioner Thierry Breton announced several times in recent weeks, will not be presented this year, according to the agenda. Cornerstones of the proposal are to be a clear prioritization of critical raw materials, measurable targets for the development of European production capacities and the strengthening of the circular economy in this area.
Climate & Environment
Climate Policy
Digital policy
Digitization
European policy
Stricter limits for harmful chemicals in waste
On Monday evening, the European Parliament and Council agreed on stricter limits for persistent organic pollutants (POPs) in waste management. The EU is thus setting new limits for three groups of pollutants. The Commission may also revise waste legislation to classify certain wastes as hazardous.
At the end of October, the Commission had submitted a proposal to revise two annexes of the 2019 POPs Regulation. The regulation implements the international Stockholm Convention, which aims to reduce the production, use and release of POPs. These chemicals are toxic to humans and animals.
Although POPs are hardly present in new products, they can still be found in waste. The revision of the POPs Regulation is intended to more effectively achieve the goals of the Green Deal, especially those of a toxic-free environment and a circular economy.
“The outcome of our negotiations is a compromise, but it is a step in the right direction,” said Martin Hojsík, Slovak MEP for the Renew Group and rapporteur. “We have shown our commitment to implementing the Stockholm Convention, which clearly states that the only way to deal with POPs is to work toward their elimination.”
Disposal of ash and soot from households
Chemicals of concern include perfluorooctanoic acid, found in waterproof textiles and firefighting foams, as well as dioxins and furans found in ash from biomass plants used to generate heat and electricity. Member states are to find strategies for the future disposal of ash and soot from households.
Within three years after the regulation enters into force, the Commission is also to decide whether EU waste legislation should be amended. This should determine whether waste containing POPs above the threshold values should be classified as hazardous.
The provisional agreement will now first be submitted to the Committee of Permanent Representatives of the Member States (COREPER) for approval before being forwarded to Parliament for a final vote. This will probably happen after the summer break. Finally, the Council will have to give its formal approval once again. leo
Chemicals
Climate & Environment
Sustainability
ECJ: processing of passenger data ‘limited to what is strictly necessary’
The processing of passenger data by EU states must be limited to what is absolutely necessary for the fight against terror, according to a ruling by the European Court of Justice. In addition, the European high court made it clear in Tuesday’s ruling that the processing of data on flights within the EU violates EU law unless there is a risk of terrorism (Case C-817/19).
The European Union’s so-called PNR (Passenger Name Record) Directive provides for the systematic processing of passenger data when large numbers of passengers cross an external EU border. This is intended to prevent and detect acts of terrorism and other severe crimes. The data stored includes, for example, address, baggage details, telephone number and the names of accompanying passengers.
The Belgian human rights organization Ligue des droits humains (League for Human Rights) filed a complaint against the way Belgium implements EU rules. Among other things, it sees the right to respect for private life and to protection of personal data violated. Under Belgian law, air, rail, bus, ferry and travel companies are obliged to share the data of its passengers traveling across national borders with a central office that includes police and intelligence agencies. According to the ECJ ruling, Belgian rules are likely to violate EU law.
No use for border controls
The same is likely to apply to the German implementation of the EU Directive, as Germany has extended the rules to all intra-European flights. The Wiesbaden Administrative Court and the Cologne Local Court referred questions on the PNR Directive to the ECJ in 2020.
With regard to the Belgian case, the ECJ now firstly states that the directive is in line with the relevant parts of the European Charter of Fundamental Rights. At the same time, the Court emphasizes that the rules undoubtedly represent a serious interference with, for example, the right to respect for private and family life and the protection of personal data.
According to the ECJ, the powers under the directive must be narrowly interpreted. Then the transfer, processing and storage of the data in question could be considered limited to what is absolutely necessary in the fight against terrorism and serious crime.
This means that the system introduced by the PNR Directive may only cover the information listed in the Annex to the Directive. Also, the system must be limited to terrorist offenses and serious crimes with an objective connection to the transport of passengers. In principle, the ECJ stressed that the directive should not be used to improve border controls and strengthen the fight against illegal immigration. dpa
Data
Data law
Data protection
European policy
Consumer protection: TikTok pledges improvement
The social network TikTok has pledged to strengthen the rights of its predominantly underage users. The Chinese platform thus responds to criticism from the European consumer association BEUC, which had accused TikTok of violating consumer protection regulations. It claimed that minors were not protected from hidden advertising and inappropriate content.
The EU Commission and the Network of National Consumer Protection Authorities subsequently urged the platform to make adjustments. According to the Brussels authority, TikTok has now committed to ban the advertising of inappropriate products such as alcohol. Paid ads in videos are to be marked with a new label. In addition, users will be able to report offers that entice children to buy goods or services.
BEUC Deputy Director-General Ursula Pachl criticized TikTok’s concessions as insufficient in some areas. For example, the platform had not committed to refraining from creating user profiles of children for personalized advertising. It also reserves far-reaching copyrights for user-generated content. In addition, the investigation is now closed, “so important concerns we raised are not being addressed,” Pachl said. However, EU Commissioner for Justice Didier Reynders announced that the platform would continue to be monitored.
German Digital Minister Volker Wissing spoke out against a special law to regulate the video platform. “That is not the approach of the European Union and not my favored approach,” Wissing said at a digital conference of the German Association of Digital Publishers and Newspaper Publishers (BDZV) in Berlin on Tuesday. “It cannot be a solution for us to restrict, to restrict.” tho/rtr
Advertising
Digital policy
Digitization
Map service: German Federal Cartel Office investigates Google’s handling of competitors
The German Federal Cartel Office (BKartA) recently turned its attention to Google’s map service. It is investigating information suggesting “that Google may be restricting the combination of its own map services with third-party map services,” the authority announced on Tuesday. This refers, for example, to the option of integrating location data, the search function or Google Street View into maps that are not owned by the Internet company. The Cartel Office will now examine whether Google could “expand its position of power regarding certain map services“.
Among other things, the Google Maps platform allows the company to integrate its maps into websites and apps. The Cartel Office also intends to review the licensing conditions for the integration of Google maps into the infotainment systems of cars.
Google responded that “Developers and businesses choose the Google Maps platform among many options. They are also free to use other mapping services alongside Google Maps Platform – and many do.” Google would always work with regulators and was happy to answer any questions, a company spokeswoman said.
Companies with cross-market competitive significance
The investigation is based on the expanded powers of the antitrust authority in the case of companies with “paramount significance for competition across markets“. The authority has included Google in this category since the end of last year. It is already investigating the Internet company’s data processing conditions and the news service Google News Showcase.
Following the new powers to take action against companies with cross-market competitive significance, which have been in force since the beginning of 2021, the Cartel Office also launched investigations into Facebook Group Meta, Amazon and Apple. Meta also falls under the same definition according to the authority’s assessment, as announced at the beginning of May. The investigation into Apple and Amazon is still ongoing.
Brigitte Knopf – ‘unusual alliances’ for climate protection
Brigitte Knopf has been Secretary-General at the Mercator Research Institute on Global Commons and Climate Change (MCC) in Berlin since 2015.
It is quite telling that when Brigitte Knopf, Secretary-General at the Mercator Research Institute on Global Commons and Climate Change (MCC), is asked what her favorite pub was during her studies in Marburg, she first thinks of the small book café down by the little Lahn river – and not of a tavern. Knopf, born in Bonn in 1973, 1.0 A-levels, diploma and thesis with distinction, became fascinated with physics, mathematics and the environment at an early age.
During her physics studies, she specialized in solar thermal energy, at a time when this technology was still in its infancy in Germany. After two years in the industry, she goes back to research and writes her thesis on the uncertainties in modeling Earth systems at the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK) in Berlin.
Involved in the 5th IPCC Report
She prefaced her work with quotes from feminist writers Simone de Beauvoir and George Eliot on the topic of ignorance. No coincidence. “I was an alien in my friends and family circle at the time with the topic of environmental protection. Climate change was still ignored by many then.” In addition, she says, there were fewer women in her professional circle. “That’s why today I also like to encourage women who do a good job but are often quieter to speak up and take the space they deserve,” she says, explaining her choice of quotes.
She leaves the PIK in 2015, where she most recently worked as deputy head of the Sustainable Solutions Research Unit, to become Secretary-General and Head of the Policy Unit at the MCC. “I didn’t want to analyze problems anymore and write scientific papers about them that ultimately won’t be read by the decision-makers. I wanted to connect the findings with policy.” She already experienced that this can be a very daunting task during her work on the 5th IPCC report (published in 2014/2015), where she had to fight for the approval of all countries for every sentence.
Better explain climate policy
At the MCC, Knopf forges “unusual alliances”. She organizes meetings with stakeholders such as industry and transport associations, large companies, but also NGOs, and, above all, representatives from German federal ministries. “Firstly, these meetings provide important insights into the different interests and problems and thus, in turn, research approaches for us,” Knopf says. ” Secondly, our approaches can be explained well and discussed critically, such as the CO2 price, which we see as the guiding instrument in climate policy.” She no longer has to beg anyone to come to these meetings, as the awareness has grown that the energy transition will only succeed if tackled together.
A relatively new “unusual alliance” is that between citizens, politics and science. The Kopernikus Projekt Ariadne, funded by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research, brings these worlds together. Because, says Knopf, “Politicians often don’t properly explain to citizens why certain levies, such as the CO2 price, exist and what people will get back in return. In the long run, that’s dangerous, because social acceptance is essential.”
Knopf assumes the task with passion, explaining time and again that the revenue from the CO2 levy is intended to facilitate socially just change. Is she a patient person? Knopf laughs heartily. “No. But I am a positive and hopeful person because we have already taken some steps. My impatience continues to drive me.” Lisa-Martina Klein
Germany prepares second gas emergency plan alarm stage
Ukraine: little interest in wheat export via Poland
Kaliningrad: Moscow threatens Lithuania with serious consequences over transit restrictions
Broad support of EU states for Ukraine’s candidate status
SPD leader Klingbeil sees Germany as ‘leading power’
Poland: PiS leader Kaczyński resigns from government
What the Commission is planning for the fall
Stricter limits for harmful chemicals in waste
ECJ: passenger data processing only for what is absolutely necessary
Consumer protection: TikTok promises improvement
Map service: Federal Cartel Office investigates Google’s treatment of competitors
Profile: Brigitte Knopf – ‘unusual alliances’ for climate protection
Dear reader,
Let’s go at it again: After the failed vote two weeks ago, the EU Parliament will make another attempt today to vote on parts of the Fit for 55 package. It is about a new compromise for the reform of EU emissions trading as well as a Social Climate Fund and the introduction of the Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM). Last week, MEPs from EPP, S&D and Renew surprisingly quickly agreed on a compromise. Among other things, the compromise envisages that the introduction of CBAM will coincide with a reduction of free allowances from 2027 onwards and with a complete phase-out at the end of 2032.
Trilogue negotiations on the Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD) ended successfully yesterday. “Tonight, the EU adopts the world’s first legislation requiring large companies to document their environmental, social and human rights impacts,” announced EP rapporteur Pascal Durand (Renew). A law that is causing an uproar, especially in the SME sector: All companies with more than 250 employees and a revenue of more than €40 million – whether listed or not – will have to disclose data on the sustainability of their activities starting in 2024. Above annual revenues of €150 million, this will also apply to companies headquartered outside the EU.
According to a report in the German newspaper “Die Welt”, the German government plans to declare a state of emergency of the national gas emergency plan in the next few days. Circles inside the energy industry confirmed the report. This may have consequences for consumers; prices for natural gas could rise significantly at this stage. There is currently heated debate about the sectors in which gas consumption can be cut. So far, little attention has been paid to the public sector. Manuel Berkel reports on how great the potential for saving on the part of the state is.
The blockade of grain exports is a “real war crime,” EU High Representative Josep Borrell said this week. Wheat from Ukraine is urgently needed on the global market, and yet millions of tons are still stuck in the country. Alternative transport routes via rail and road are now supposed to make exports possible, for example through Poland. But interest in shipping wheat through the neighboring country is very limited, as Timo Landenberger found out at the Polish-Ukrainian border.
According to a newspaper report, the German government is preparing to declare the second alarm stage of the national emergency gas plan in a few days. The State Secretary in the Federal Ministry of Economics and Climate Protection (BMWK), Patrick Graichen, prepared the energy industry on Monday for the upcoming step, reported “Welt” yesterday with reference to industry circles. This account was confirmed on Tuesday evening in circles of the energy industry on inquiry by dpa.
Utilities were told to expect the alert level to be declared within 5 to 10 days. Upon inquiry, the ministry neither confirmed nor denied the rumor. Previously, the early warning stage had already taken effect in accordance with the European SoS regulation. The alert level is declared when gas supplies significantly decline, while the market is still able to cope with the disruption. Only at the third stage would the national regulatory authority intervene in the market.
However, the German gas industry has additional options due to the alert level. The German newspaper “Die Welt” notes that the amendment to the Energy Security Act in mid-May gave utilities the option of raising gas prices to an “appropriate level”. Suppliers who are forced to buy expensive natural gas as a substitute due to the loss of Russian supplies could then pass on their additional costs directly to their customers.
Italy also discusses further steps. On Tuesday evening, an emergency committee planned to discuss how gas consumption could be reduced and storage facilities sufficiently filled.
Commission sends out questionnaire on shutdown criteria
Meanwhile, voices from the gas industry have become louder. On Tuesday, RWE CEO Markus Krebber called for a joint European approach in the event of a total loss of Russian gas supplies. So far, there are no joint plans on how the remaining gas should be distributed, the executive said at the “Industry Day” of the Federation of German Industries (BDI). Each country would look at its own contingency plans. This should be clarified in two or three months at the latest.
Europe.Table previously reported that only a few member states have so far signed solidarity agreements for a gas emergency and that the EU Commission wants to develop common shutdown criteria for industrial consumers. On Tuesday, a five-page questionnaire on prioritization criteria, which the EU Commission sent to industrial associations a few weeks ago, was available to the editorial team.
The Commission lists criteria from the fields of social and economic issues, cross-border supply chains, gas dependency, and options for demand reduction and substitution. For example, it asks about the time required and the costs to reduce gas consumption in each sector.
How the government can also save gas
There is still little discussion of gas reduction in the public sector. The government could, for example, install electronic thermostats in public buildings or switch the heat supply to heat pumps as quickly as possible, says economist Christian Bayer of the University of Bonn, and also brings cuts in consumption into the discussion. “Since decision-makers in the public sector don’t focus so much on prices, it will certainly be necessary to set stricter specifications for heating public buildings in winter,” says Bayer, citing room temperatures during opening and service hours as well as the length and flexibility of opening hours as examples.
The housing sector had called for the minimum temperature for residential buildings to be lowered from 20 to 22 degrees to 16 to 18 degrees just a few days ago. Federal Minister of Housing Klara Geywitz (SPD) immediately rejected the idea. The ministry only strictly rules out the idea of lowering the temperature on its own premises. The Occupational Health and Safety Act and legislation also stipulate a temperature of at least 20 degreesin office buildings, a spokeswoman told Europe.Table.
Other authorities apparently see things differently. In February, the district administrator of Brandenburgs Oder-Spree district made headlines for setting a good example. “Occupational safety prescribes 18 degrees room temperature. I leave it to the colleagues to join in,” the daily Berliner Zeitung quoted Geywitz’s party comrade, Rolf Lindemann. Municipalities and states own significantly more real estate than the federal government.
In North Rhine-Westphalia, for example, “a short notice departmental vote to implement savings measures in buildings owned by the state administration is in the planning stage,” a spokesman for the Ministry of Economics in Düsseldorf told Europe.Table.
Amsterdam wants to lower temperature in orphanages
An EU-wide energy-saving campaign was jointly launched in May by the Commission, the Committee of the Regions (CoR) and the Covenant of Mayors for Climate and Energy. Until mid-September, cities and municipalities are called upon to implement swift energy-saving measures via the Cities Energy Savings Sprint. The EU campaign also calculates that lowering the heating temperature by three degrees to 18 degrees could save 15 percent energy.
As a prominent example, in late March, Amsterdam announced plans to turn down radiators from 21 to 18 degrees. Before this, the Dutch capital had gathered 60 stakeholders to discuss cost-cutting measures. The administration even wanted to lower the temperature for critical areas such as health care facilities, orphanages and archives – but only by one degree.
Warsaw recently joined the Savings Sprint, and Budapest is expected to follow soon, according to a CoR spokesperson.
Even if some cities and municipalities are setting a good example – the real big potential to save energy lies in other areas. Gas consumption in the public sector is so low that it is not even included in the German energy balance sheet. It accounts for around eight percent of the trade, commerce and services sector, according to Hans Georg Buttermann of AG Energiebilanzen.
This means that public administration is responsible for only 1.4 percent of Germany’s final gas energy consumption. If all government agencies, from schools to federal ministries, managed to save 15 percent of this amount, it would add up to about 110 million cubic meters of gas within a year. The largest gas consumers are residential buildings with 43 percent and the industrial sector with 38 percent. With dpa, rtr
Energy
Germany
Natural gas
Ukraine: little interest to export wheat through Poland
A delegation of the EU Parliament at the Polish-Ukrainian border.
Different track gauges for rail transport, kilometer-long truck traffic jams, and endless goods inspections: At the Polish-Ukrainian border, it quickly becomes clear where the problems lie. According to estimates, up to 20 million tons of grain still have to be brought in from Ukraine. The foodstuffs, above all wheat, are urgently needed on the global market. But the Ukrainian ports on the Black Sea, which handled more than 90 percent of agricultural exports before the outbreak of war, are blocked.
The goal now is to develop alternative transport routes. But capacities via rail and road are limited. That is why a delegation from the European Parliament’s Agriculture Committee traveled to the Polish-Ukrainian border to find solutions and get a picture of the situation on the ground. But it turned out differently than expected.
Only ten percent grain
The Korczowa border station is one of the largest border crossings between Ukraine and Poland. Around 900 vehicles reach the European Union here within 24 hours, 260 of which are trucks. Not enough: Drivers from Ukraine have to wait five days at the border for customs clearance.
Consequently, freight capacities are to be doubled from five to ten lanes this week. Only ten percent of the cargo is grain. In Medika, one of the main lanes for rail transport, it is 25 percent. Mainly corn, a bit of barley and rapeseed. Wheat: absent, says a border official. Why is that?
The main problem is insurance, Dmytro Los, Chairman of the Ukrainian Trade Association, told the EU delegation. “Ukraine is a war zone. Transport insurance is six times higher than before the war broke out.” The route via Romania and its Black Sea ports is shorter and thus cheaper than via Poland, he said.
Shortly outside the Ukrainian border. Due to different track gauges, containers have to be reloaded.
In addition, most EU logistics companies could no longer travel to Ukraine at all for insurance reasons. This is a problem, especially in the rail transport sector, because the change of gauge usually happens a few kilometers inland. For Ukrainian trains, this is the end of the line.
No buyers despite shortage
There is also a lack of buyers, despite the global food shortage. Because of the uncertain situation and with no guarantee that wheat will actually be delivered, many companies are reluctant to buy, especially as the price of wheat on the global market is at a record high. The World Food Program also announced that it would have to cut food rations due to a lack of funding.
“Exporting wheat via Poland is not profitable for us,” summarizes Larysa Bilozir, a member of the Ukrainian parliament. “As long as capacity is limited, it’s much more lucrative for Ukrainian traders to ship out corn, poultry, or sunflower oil and sell directly to Europe.”
The EU is less self-sufficient when it comes to corn than it is with wheat. Some countries in southern and Western Europe, above all Spain, have imported large quantities of grain from Ukraine for many years – primarily by sea so far. But instead of being transported onward from Poland to Spain, the feed doesn’t get very far.
Ukrainian corn costs about €235 per ton, €65 less than Polish corn, complains Jan Bieniasz, a representative of a Polish farmers’ association. “That’s because different pesticides and fertilizers are allowed to be used in Ukraine than here.” Since import and customs restrictions on agricultural goods were removed, he says, more and more Ukrainian corn is being bought in Poland. “This is destroying our regional market.”
EU in demand among insurers
So does the EU’s plan to help Ukraine export grain while mitigating the global food crisis fail at the Polish border? Liberalization was the right thing to do, defends Norbert Lins (CDU), head of delegation and Chairman of the Agriculture Committee. After all, he says, the Solidarity Lanes are not just a tool to provide food to African countries but are aimed at maintaining Ukraine’s economic viability. “But we need much more coordination so that the grain gets to where it is needed.”
The fact that Ukraine exports almost no wheat through Poland also surprised him. “This is where we as the EU have to consider whether we intervene more strongly to signal purchases. From the Ukrainian side, the interest doesn’t seem to be there because there is obviously a lack of buyers.” He also said the EU has a responsibility when it comes to insurance. “The transport has to be secured from the European side.”
In addition, the European agricultural sector would have to contribute to the fight against food shortages and increase its own production. Against this background, Lins criticized the meeting of EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen with Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi. “A mere cash payment like the promised €100 million to Egypt only fuels speculation on the market. Not one grain of grain will be grown from this,” said Lins.
At the European Development Days in Brussels, von der Leyen also announced plans to mobilize €600 million for African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) countries. The proposal calls for the money to come from the European Development Fund. Critics, including from the ranks of the Agriculture Committee, fear that the money will be used to buy grain from Russia.
Criticism of EU sanctions
Meanwhile, EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs Josep Borrell accused Russia of committing a “real war crime” by blocking grain exports from Ukraine. People’s hunger should not be misused as a weapon of war, Borrel told the Foreign Affairs Council.
The African Union (AU), in turn, criticizes the EU sanctions. Because the EU has excluded Russian banks from the international payment system Swift, trading of grain is more difficult, says AU leader Macky Sall.
Borrell was displeased by this criticism. He called it “Russian propaganda” and part of the “battle of narratives”. However, he said, the EU was not admitting defeat and would fight the Russian lies. To this end, he sent letters to all foreign ministers in Africa.
Borrell declined to comment on details. He stressed that the EU had not imposed any sanctions on grain or fertilizers. Moreover, not all Russian banks are affected by the Swift ban, he added. With Eric Bonse
European policy
Poland
Raw materials
Wheat
News
Kaliningrad: Moscow threatens Lithuania with serious consequences over transit restrictions
Moscow’s leadership has threatened Lithuania with severe consequences for its own people unless the country stops imposing transit restrictions on the Baltic Sea exclave of Kaliningrad, which belongs to Russia. “Russia will definitely react to such hostile actions” Russian Security Council Chief Nikolai Patrushev said on Tuesday during a visit to Kaliningrad, according to the Interfax agency. “Their consequences will have a serious negative impact on the population of Lithuania.”
Patrushev, who is considered to be one of Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin’s closest confidants, met in Kaliningrad with local governor, Anton Alichanov. He also chaired a meeting on transportation security issues in the region.
Alichanov hinted at a possible transit blockade for Lithuanian goods. Hardliners loyal to the Kremlin, on the other hand, repeatedly called for the creation of a “corridor” between core Russia and Kaliningrad on state television talk shows. This would represent an attack on the countries in between, Latvia and Lithuania – or, from Russia’s ally Belarus, on the border area between Lithuania and Poland.
But Brussels considers the risk of a major escalation of the conflict to be low. According to senior NATO military officials, Russia is not currently in a position to seriously threaten NATO territory due to its war against Ukraine.
Since Saturday, Lithuania has prohibited the rail transit of goods on Western sanctions lists through its territory to Kaliningrad. According to Alichanov, this affects 40 to 50 percent of all transit goods, including construction materials and metals. The Kremlin already criticized these restrictions as “illegal” on Monday and threatened countermeasures. The Foreign Ministry summoned both Lithuania’s diplomatic representative and the EU ambassador to Moscow. dpa/sas
Geopolitics
Broad support from EU countries for Ukraine’s accession status
Shortly ahead of the decisive EU summit at the end of the week, broad support is emerging among EU states for an EU accession perspective for Ukraine and Moldova. There is currently not a single country that is causing problems, said Luxembourg Foreign Minister Jean Asselborn on Tuesday on the sidelines of an EU meeting in Luxembourg. There will be great unanimity, he added. Portugal, whose position had been unclear recently, also emphasized its support.
French Secretary of State for Europe Clément Beaune, as current Chairman of the EU Council of Ministers for Europe, also expressed confidence. There was “a total consensus on moving these issues forward” He was optimistic, but also cautious because unanimity is required at summits of heads of state and government.
It is still open, for example, whether EU members like Austria, Slovenia, and Croatia will base their approval of EU accession candidate status for Ukraine and Moldova on progress in efforts to expand the EU to the Western Balkans. Specifically, there are calls, among other things, for Bosnia-Herzegovina to also be granted EU accession status.
On Friday, the EU Commission recommended that Ukraine and Moldova be officially designated as candidates for accession to the European Union. The decision on candidate status must now be made by the governments of the 27 EU states. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) and his colleagues will meet tomorrow in Brussels to discuss the issue.
Germany is in favor of accession status for Ukraine and Moldova. The clear signal must be sent that the countries belong in the EU, said Minister of State for Europe Anna Lührmann (Greens) in Luxembourg on Tuesday. dpa
European policy
Ukraine
SPD leader Klingbeil sees Germany as a ‘leading power’
According to SPD leader Lars Klingbeil, Germany must pursue the claim of a “leading power” in international politics. In a keynote speech at a conference of the Friedrich Ebert Foundation on Tuesday, he argued that this was due to the significantly growing expectations of Germany around the world. “After almost 80 years of restraint, Germany has a new role in the international system.” He said the country had earned a high degree of trust in recent decades, but that this trust was also coupled with expectations.
“Over the last decades, Germany has earned itself a great amount of trust. With this trust come expectations,” said Klingbeil. “We should meet these expectations.”
Until now, Germany has seen itself as a middle power rather than a leading power in international politics. Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD), however, made a complete turnaround in German foreign and security policy with his “Zeitenwende” speech after the start of the war in Ukraine and, above all, initiated a massive rearmament of the Bundeswehr. However, he has not yet spoken of a leading power like Klingbeil.
Klingbeil’s plea for a different approach to military force is also likely to generate discussion. “Closing your eyes to reality leads to war. We are seeing that right now in Ukraine. For me, peace policy therefore means also seeing military force as a legitimate means of politics.” dpa
Geopolitics
Germany
Security policy
Poland: PiS leader Kaczyński leaves the government
The leader of Poland’s national-conservative ruling PiS party, Jarosław Kaczyński, has resigned from his post as Deputy Prime Minister, as expected. A request to that effect had already been accepted by Head of Government Mateusz Morawiecki and President Andrzej Duda, Kaczyński told news agency PAP on Tuesday. “I am not in the government at the moment.” In the future, he wants to focus on working in the party, which needs to regain strength, Kaczyński said, referring to the parliamentary election coming up in the fall of 2023.
Two weeks ago, a government spokesman already announced Kaczyński’s imminent retirement from the cabinet. The 73-year-old had been deputy head of government since October 2020 and since then coordinated the areas of internal security and defense. This function will now be taken over by Minister of Defense Mariusz Błaszczak, Kaczyński has now announced.
The PiS co-founder served as Poland’s Prime Minister from 2006 to 2007. Since his party regained power in 2015, he has been seen as a key figure in Polish politics – with or without government office. dpa
The Cyber Resilience Act will then follow on September 21, according to an internal planning document from the Commission’s Secretariat General. A week later, the Commission plans to present the revised product liability directive, along with liability rules for artificial intelligence products. The proposal for regulating short-term rentals (like Airbnb) is scheduled for October 12. In the following week, the authority plans to publish its work program for 2023.
On November 9, a package for security and defense is expected. It includes a new action plan for military mobility, a proposal for cyber defense and a defense investment program.
Further measures for circular economy package
According to planning, the second package on the circular economy will be severely delayed. Originally, Climate Commissioner Frans Timmermans was to present the package on July 20, but the date has now been postponed to November 16. In it, the Commission wants to create a legislative framework for biodegradable plastics, revise the packaging directive and the directive on wastewater treatment, and present a proposal for a regulation on green claims.
In addition, three other measures will be added to the package: Timmermans will also present a revision of EU legislation on the Registration, Evaluation, Authorization and Restriction of Chemicals (REACH) and measures to reduce the release of microplastics. Furthermore, Věra Jourová, Commissioner for Values and Transparency, will present a proposal on the “right to repair” as part of the package.
A raw materials law, which Internal Market Commissioner Thierry Breton announced several times in recent weeks, will not be presented this year, according to the agenda. Cornerstones of the proposal are to be a clear prioritization of critical raw materials, measurable targets for the development of European production capacities and the strengthening of the circular economy in this area.
Climate & Environment
Climate Policy
Digital policy
Digitization
European policy
Stricter limits for harmful chemicals in waste
On Monday evening, the European Parliament and Council agreed on stricter limits for persistent organic pollutants (POPs) in waste management. The EU is thus setting new limits for three groups of pollutants. The Commission may also revise waste legislation to classify certain wastes as hazardous.
At the end of October, the Commission had submitted a proposal to revise two annexes of the 2019 POPs Regulation. The regulation implements the international Stockholm Convention, which aims to reduce the production, use and release of POPs. These chemicals are toxic to humans and animals.
Although POPs are hardly present in new products, they can still be found in waste. The revision of the POPs Regulation is intended to more effectively achieve the goals of the Green Deal, especially those of a toxic-free environment and a circular economy.
“The outcome of our negotiations is a compromise, but it is a step in the right direction,” said Martin Hojsík, Slovak MEP for the Renew Group and rapporteur. “We have shown our commitment to implementing the Stockholm Convention, which clearly states that the only way to deal with POPs is to work toward their elimination.”
Disposal of ash and soot from households
Chemicals of concern include perfluorooctanoic acid, found in waterproof textiles and firefighting foams, as well as dioxins and furans found in ash from biomass plants used to generate heat and electricity. Member states are to find strategies for the future disposal of ash and soot from households.
Within three years after the regulation enters into force, the Commission is also to decide whether EU waste legislation should be amended. This should determine whether waste containing POPs above the threshold values should be classified as hazardous.
The provisional agreement will now first be submitted to the Committee of Permanent Representatives of the Member States (COREPER) for approval before being forwarded to Parliament for a final vote. This will probably happen after the summer break. Finally, the Council will have to give its formal approval once again. leo
Chemicals
Climate & Environment
Sustainability
ECJ: processing of passenger data ‘limited to what is strictly necessary’
The processing of passenger data by EU states must be limited to what is absolutely necessary for the fight against terror, according to a ruling by the European Court of Justice. In addition, the European high court made it clear in Tuesday’s ruling that the processing of data on flights within the EU violates EU law unless there is a risk of terrorism (Case C-817/19).
The European Union’s so-called PNR (Passenger Name Record) Directive provides for the systematic processing of passenger data when large numbers of passengers cross an external EU border. This is intended to prevent and detect acts of terrorism and other severe crimes. The data stored includes, for example, address, baggage details, telephone number and the names of accompanying passengers.
The Belgian human rights organization Ligue des droits humains (League for Human Rights) filed a complaint against the way Belgium implements EU rules. Among other things, it sees the right to respect for private life and to protection of personal data violated. Under Belgian law, air, rail, bus, ferry and travel companies are obliged to share the data of its passengers traveling across national borders with a central office that includes police and intelligence agencies. According to the ECJ ruling, Belgian rules are likely to violate EU law.
No use for border controls
The same is likely to apply to the German implementation of the EU Directive, as Germany has extended the rules to all intra-European flights. The Wiesbaden Administrative Court and the Cologne Local Court referred questions on the PNR Directive to the ECJ in 2020.
With regard to the Belgian case, the ECJ now firstly states that the directive is in line with the relevant parts of the European Charter of Fundamental Rights. At the same time, the Court emphasizes that the rules undoubtedly represent a serious interference with, for example, the right to respect for private and family life and the protection of personal data.
According to the ECJ, the powers under the directive must be narrowly interpreted. Then the transfer, processing and storage of the data in question could be considered limited to what is absolutely necessary in the fight against terrorism and serious crime.
This means that the system introduced by the PNR Directive may only cover the information listed in the Annex to the Directive. Also, the system must be limited to terrorist offenses and serious crimes with an objective connection to the transport of passengers. In principle, the ECJ stressed that the directive should not be used to improve border controls and strengthen the fight against illegal immigration. dpa
Data
Data law
Data protection
European policy
Consumer protection: TikTok pledges improvement
The social network TikTok has pledged to strengthen the rights of its predominantly underage users. The Chinese platform thus responds to criticism from the European consumer association BEUC, which had accused TikTok of violating consumer protection regulations. It claimed that minors were not protected from hidden advertising and inappropriate content.
The EU Commission and the Network of National Consumer Protection Authorities subsequently urged the platform to make adjustments. According to the Brussels authority, TikTok has now committed to ban the advertising of inappropriate products such as alcohol. Paid ads in videos are to be marked with a new label. In addition, users will be able to report offers that entice children to buy goods or services.
BEUC Deputy Director-General Ursula Pachl criticized TikTok’s concessions as insufficient in some areas. For example, the platform had not committed to refraining from creating user profiles of children for personalized advertising. It also reserves far-reaching copyrights for user-generated content. In addition, the investigation is now closed, “so important concerns we raised are not being addressed,” Pachl said. However, EU Commissioner for Justice Didier Reynders announced that the platform would continue to be monitored.
German Digital Minister Volker Wissing spoke out against a special law to regulate the video platform. “That is not the approach of the European Union and not my favored approach,” Wissing said at a digital conference of the German Association of Digital Publishers and Newspaper Publishers (BDZV) in Berlin on Tuesday. “It cannot be a solution for us to restrict, to restrict.” tho/rtr
Advertising
Digital policy
Digitization
Map service: German Federal Cartel Office investigates Google’s handling of competitors
The German Federal Cartel Office (BKartA) recently turned its attention to Google’s map service. It is investigating information suggesting “that Google may be restricting the combination of its own map services with third-party map services,” the authority announced on Tuesday. This refers, for example, to the option of integrating location data, the search function or Google Street View into maps that are not owned by the Internet company. The Cartel Office will now examine whether Google could “expand its position of power regarding certain map services“.
Among other things, the Google Maps platform allows the company to integrate its maps into websites and apps. The Cartel Office also intends to review the licensing conditions for the integration of Google maps into the infotainment systems of cars.
Google responded that “Developers and businesses choose the Google Maps platform among many options. They are also free to use other mapping services alongside Google Maps Platform – and many do.” Google would always work with regulators and was happy to answer any questions, a company spokeswoman said.
Companies with cross-market competitive significance
The investigation is based on the expanded powers of the antitrust authority in the case of companies with “paramount significance for competition across markets“. The authority has included Google in this category since the end of last year. It is already investigating the Internet company’s data processing conditions and the news service Google News Showcase.
Following the new powers to take action against companies with cross-market competitive significance, which have been in force since the beginning of 2021, the Cartel Office also launched investigations into Facebook Group Meta, Amazon and Apple. Meta also falls under the same definition according to the authority’s assessment, as announced at the beginning of May. The investigation into Apple and Amazon is still ongoing.
Brigitte Knopf – ‘unusual alliances’ for climate protection
Brigitte Knopf has been Secretary-General at the Mercator Research Institute on Global Commons and Climate Change (MCC) in Berlin since 2015.
It is quite telling that when Brigitte Knopf, Secretary-General at the Mercator Research Institute on Global Commons and Climate Change (MCC), is asked what her favorite pub was during her studies in Marburg, she first thinks of the small book café down by the little Lahn river – and not of a tavern. Knopf, born in Bonn in 1973, 1.0 A-levels, diploma and thesis with distinction, became fascinated with physics, mathematics and the environment at an early age.
During her physics studies, she specialized in solar thermal energy, at a time when this technology was still in its infancy in Germany. After two years in the industry, she goes back to research and writes her thesis on the uncertainties in modeling Earth systems at the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK) in Berlin.
Involved in the 5th IPCC Report
She prefaced her work with quotes from feminist writers Simone de Beauvoir and George Eliot on the topic of ignorance. No coincidence. “I was an alien in my friends and family circle at the time with the topic of environmental protection. Climate change was still ignored by many then.” In addition, she says, there were fewer women in her professional circle. “That’s why today I also like to encourage women who do a good job but are often quieter to speak up and take the space they deserve,” she says, explaining her choice of quotes.
She leaves the PIK in 2015, where she most recently worked as deputy head of the Sustainable Solutions Research Unit, to become Secretary-General and Head of the Policy Unit at the MCC. “I didn’t want to analyze problems anymore and write scientific papers about them that ultimately won’t be read by the decision-makers. I wanted to connect the findings with policy.” She already experienced that this can be a very daunting task during her work on the 5th IPCC report (published in 2014/2015), where she had to fight for the approval of all countries for every sentence.
Better explain climate policy
At the MCC, Knopf forges “unusual alliances”. She organizes meetings with stakeholders such as industry and transport associations, large companies, but also NGOs, and, above all, representatives from German federal ministries. “Firstly, these meetings provide important insights into the different interests and problems and thus, in turn, research approaches for us,” Knopf says. ” Secondly, our approaches can be explained well and discussed critically, such as the CO2 price, which we see as the guiding instrument in climate policy.” She no longer has to beg anyone to come to these meetings, as the awareness has grown that the energy transition will only succeed if tackled together.
A relatively new “unusual alliance” is that between citizens, politics and science. The Kopernikus Projekt Ariadne, funded by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research, brings these worlds together. Because, says Knopf, “Politicians often don’t properly explain to citizens why certain levies, such as the CO2 price, exist and what people will get back in return. In the long run, that’s dangerous, because social acceptance is essential.”
Knopf assumes the task with passion, explaining time and again that the revenue from the CO2 levy is intended to facilitate socially just change. Is she a patient person? Knopf laughs heartily. “No. But I am a positive and hopeful person because we have already taken some steps. My impatience continues to drive me.” Lisa-Martina Klein
