The Spanish diplomat Juan Prat will become the next Catalan Delegate to the European Union, representing the Catalan Government’s interests in Brussels. Prat was the Spanish Ambassador to The Netherlands and used to be the Ambassador to NATO with former PM José Maria Aznar. He also served as the European Commission’s Director General for External Relations. Besides, Barroso and Mas will meet on the 3rd of March.
The Secretary General for the Union for the Mediterranean Ahmad Masa’deh decided to step down as in his words, “the general conditions against which he accepted to assume the job have changed”. This statement can be interpreted as his way of denouncing how the Israeli-Palestine conflict is practically paralysing the work of the UfM.
Politicians and businessmen from Catalonia, Valencia, Murcia and Andalucía participated today in an event pushing for the so called Mediterranean Railway Corridor for freight and passengers. They push the European Union to declare it a European priority, an axe that would vertebrate Europe, from Gibraltar to the Baltic Sea. However, participants criticised that the Spanish Government has yet to show its commitment to building freight railway with European-standard width that would connect Andalucía, Valencia and Barcelona to Central Europe. Besides goods, the corridor should also count with a high-speed train connection for passengers.
Barcelona resident Alfredo Zucchi wins first place for his story 'Milena è una bomba' in the ‘Sea of Words’ contest, organised by the European Institute for the Mediterranean (IEMed) and the Anna Lindh Foundation.
In an interview with ACN, Ahmad Masa’deh affirms that the UfM should work aside the Middle East political conflict and focus on economic and social projects. The Euro-Mediterranean Summit has been postponed twice this year and most of the Member State experts have not yet been sent to the UfM headquarters.
The organisation’s headquarters in Barcelona are half-empty with only 25 people currently working. The Arab-Israeli conflict is stopping the UfM's set up and the start of projects. The Secretary General of the UfM states that the organisation's work should focus on technical projects in economic and social areas, aside from politics.
The Catalan Group on the Future of Europe sent their conclusions to the Reflection Group on the Future of Europe before the Reflection Group presented their results to the European Council. Today’s event was a way to foster debate in Catalonia on these issues and a way to show the results from the analysis by the Catalan Group on the Future of Europe. President of the Reflection Group on the Future of Europe 2020-2030 (and former Spanish PM) Felipe González. has summed up the conclusions.
The EU Common Agriculture Policy (CAP) will be reformed. Catalonia wants to have a say in the future of the CAP. To do so, it is lobbying together with other European regions that lead fruit and vegetable production. A joint declaration with 10 ways to improve the sector has been agreed on.
137 municipalities from the Barcelona area have joined together to fight global warming, participating in the European Union Covenant of Mayors. Today they were in Brussels to share their experiences.
The workers’ representatives hope that the industrial action will force the Spanish Government to reconsider its labour market reform. The strike is planned for the 29th of September.
The Air Controllers Union (USCA) and AENA resume talks on workers? labour rights, avoiding huge disruptions to air travel in peak summer season
The Israeli Ambassador to Spain, Raphael Schultz, spoke of Israel?s position on the Union for the Mediterranean in an interview with CNA. He stressed that ?we need the Union for the Mediterranean, but with the negative attitudes from Arab countries, we wi
A newly approved Tunisian law prohibits citizens to criticise the Tunisian government in front of other countries and organisations. A band of writers met in Barcelona to take a stand against this action.
The pressure of Catalan Euro MPs has worked out. The European Commission has changed its initial position to not renew its only Catalan translator. Commissioner Reding has personally engaged in finding a replacement.
Government and unions clash over success of strike action. Official figures suggest 11% of participation while unions raise the figure up to 75%. The salary cuts within the public sector adopted by the Spanish Government have infuriated the unions.