The European Commission has approved the fourth instalment of Slovakia's recovery plan in a preliminary decision, in which it also gave the green light to an outdated calculation of the spending limit that did not account for inflation and failed to use one of its options to pressure the Slovak government to uphold the rule of law.

Some elected Democrats loyal to President Joe Biden raised fresh questions on Tuesday (2 July) about his 2024 re-election bid, with one calling for him to step aside, a shift after many defended him in the wake of last week's shaky debate performance.

President Andrzej Duda took aim at Prime Minister Donald Tusk for saying Poland had given up on war reparations claims against Germany launched by the previous conservative PiS government during a joint press conference with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz in Warsaw on Tuesday.

Former Czech prime minister and leader of the opposition ANO party, Andrej Babiš, has come under fire for recent political manoeuvres that critics say align him with pro-Russian interests.

Alberto Núñez Feijóo, leader of the right-wing Partido Popular (EPP), criticised Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez following the Supreme Court's decision not to apply the new amnesty law to former Catalan president Carles Puigdemont, saying he had betrayed the separatists despite their agreement to support him in parliament.

Two MEPs from Italia Viva and Azione have called on their respective parties to revive the old centrist Third Pole alliance, though well-informed sources told Euractiv that their efforts are futile.

European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde told the ECB forum in Sintra on Tuesday that there is concern about the respect of budgetary rules in the European Union.

Two days after the far-right Rassemblement National secured a historic lead in the first round of the French legislative elections, 218 candidates, mainly from the left-wing Nouveau Front Populaire and Macron's Ensemble, announced they were pulling out of the race in a bid to prevent the far right from securing an absolute majority in Sunday's final round.

Russia's President Vladimir Putin arrived in Kazakhstan on Wednesday (3 July) for regional security and defence talks, the Kremlin said, as well as a series of bilateral meetings, including with Chinese and Turkish leaders.

John Lennon may not have known much about NECPs but he still has wisdom to share – particularly his observation that “life is what happens to you while you're busy making other plans.”

The Commission is preparing a new ban on Carcinogenic, Mutagenic or toxic for Reproduction (CMR) substances from use in Cosmetics, while the announced revision of the Cosmetics Regulation is not envisaged this year.

Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić on Tuesday (2 July) lauded the two countries' "bilateral relations" during a rare high-level visit to Belgrade by top Russian diplomat Alexander Grushko.

Europeans are still feeling the pinch from successive crises, which shapes their democratic engagement and risks more shifts towards authoritarian governance if the importance of social rights is not amplified, the president of the Council of Europe’s Social Rights Committee told Euractiv in an interview.

Ursula von der Leyen is campaigning to secure a second term as Commission president, negotiating with key groups, including the Socialists, the liberals, and the Greens, to secure the 361 votes needed for her confirmation in Parliament.

Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni told her Brothers of Italy party on Tuesday (2 July) that it should expunge from its ranks anyone who idolises Italy's fascist past.

The European Union's growing emphasis on economic security will not unduly impact the bloc's business community or undermine the fundamental openness of Europe's economy, the EU's top trade official said on Tuesday (2 July).

Dutch anti-Islam populist Geert Wilders saw ministers from his party sworn in for the first time ever on Tuesday (2 July), as the Netherlands' new right-wing government was installed almost a year after the previous administration resigned.

A critical shortage of general practitioners threatens the Bulgarian health system, according to a new report by the National Health Insurance Fund (NHIF), serious bottlenecks look certain to occur.

The Swedish government will explore a national stakeholder partnership to increase the number of clinical trials in Sweden. The move comes after a decade of slow decline in trial applications, which reached a record low in 2023.

Access to novel medicines continues to vary widely across EU member states. Though health remains mostly a national competence, a new Euractiv cross-country report shows patients in each country face unequal challenges when accessing new therapies.