After Tuesday's (17 September) unveiling of the new transport commissioner-designate, MEPs and the sector’s stakeholders comment on Tzitzikostas and his programme.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has neatly shared out top jobs among the political camps in the next EU executive, in an effort to give the European Parliament as few reasons as possible to meddle in her plan.

On Wednesday (18 September), MEPs rejected two Commission proposals to adjust the limits for residues of some EU banned chemicals in food, as some of them are not reduced to zero in imported products.

In an attempt to justify a practice that has brought Malta before the European Court of Justice (ECJ) twice, Malta’s Federation for Hunting and Conservation recently published passionate views that distort the reality of finch trapping, writes Nicholas Barbara.

A more circular, resource-efficient economy is a top EU policy priority. Explore the EU Vision Paper for the European steel packaging industry, learn how we are turning this vision into reality, and discover our key priorities for the 2024-2029 term.

Partido Popular (PP/EPP) leader Alberto Núñez Feijóo on Wednesday (18 September) compared Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez to the late dictator Francisco Franco over a controversial media transparency plan presented on Tuesday (17 September).

Ursula von der Leyen’s commissioners-designate are to present 30 new strategies, acts, and initiatives to make Europe competitive and secure in tech.

Slovenia's national parliament is expected to end a procedural hold-up that's been preventing the formal nomination of the country's European Commission candidate on Wednesday (18 September).

To reboot Europe as an attractive location for industry, the EU needs to draw up a bold master plan to strengthen Europe's competitiveness. The motto should certainly be “less regulation, more freedom for companies”.

The International Monetary Fund has postponed its planned consultation mission with Russia indefinitely because of technical issues, TASS agency cited Alexei Mozhin, Russia's director at the IMF, as saying on Wednesday (18 September).

Today (18 September) at the Strasbourg plenary, MEPs will have their full plenary debate on the EU’s budget for 2025.

EU top diplomat Josep Borrell on Wednesday (18 September) urged Georgia to withdraw a controversial "family values" bill denounced as curbing the rights of LGBTQ people, warning it would harm the country's chances of joining the bloc.

The European Union's General Court annulled the Commission's €1.49 billion fine on Google for anticompetitive behaviour with its AdSense product on Wednesday (18 September), leaving the Commission just over two months to appeal.

The head of Russia's nuclear testing site said on Tuesday (17 September) his secretive facility was ready to resume nuclear tests "at any moment" if Moscow gave the order.

A false claim circulating on social media that Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris left a 13-year-old girl paralysed after an alleged hit-and-run is the work of a covert Russian disinformation operation, according to Microsoft.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken was briefed last week during his trip to Kyiv on elements of a Ukrainian plan to push Russia to end the war, US State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said on Tuesday (17 September).

In today’s edition of the Capitals, find out more about how member states reacted to von der Leyen's allocation of Commission portfolioss, and so much more. 

GERB leader and former prime minister Boyko Borissov expressed his gratitude for the innovation, research and start-ups portfolio European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen allocated to Bulgarian commissioner-designate Ekaterina Zaharieva.

Romania's Social Democratic Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu said he was satisfied with the People, Skills and Readiness portfolio allocated to Romania in the next European Commission. At the same time, the Liberal Party, a coalition partner in the government, appeared to find the portfolio somewhat disappointing.”

Finland celebrates double victory after appointment of MEP Henna Virkkunen to become Vice-President of the Commission and Commissioner for Technological Sovereignty, Security and Democracy.