OP Newsletter. N° 84, May 2020.
Date: 2020-05-30
Institutions: Publications Office of the European Union
Subjects: EU publication, Publications Office of the European Union, serial publication

Publications Office Newsletter

N° 84
May 2020

ISSN 2315-0017

EU newsflash

13 May: through the tourism and transport package the European Commission
presents guidance on how to safely resume travel and reboot Europe’s tourism in
2020 and beyond.

Spotlight on the spring economic forecast

Introduced in 2010, the European semester is an economic governance tool enabling the EU
member countries to coordinate their economic policies throughout the year and address the
economic challenges facing the EU. Its focus is on the 6-month period from the beginning of
each year, hence its name – the ‘semester’.

An  important  part  of  its  timeline  is  the  spring  economic  forecast  which  culminates  with  the
country-specific recommendations presented by the Commission. These focus on challenges
for  each  member  country  and  on  what  can  realistically  be  achieved  over  the  next  12-18
months.  Soon  after  the  Council  of  the  European  Union  discusses  the  recommendations  and
agrees on their final version.

The very fact that the European semester was born in the aftermath of the 2007-2008 global
financial  crisis  shows  its  particular  importance  in  exceptional  situations,  such  as  this  year’s
pandemic  affecting  the  economy  as  it  affects  our  daily  lives.  On  20  May,  the  Commission
presented  its  country-specific  recommendations  and  relevant  communication.  As  Valdis
Dombrovskis,  Executive  Vice-President  for  an  Economy  that  works  for  People  recently
commented:  ʻAt  this  stage,  we  can  only  tentatively  map  out  the  scale  and  gravity  of  the
coronavirus  shock  to  our  economies.  […]  Our  collective  recovery  will  depend  on  continued
strong and coordinated responses at EU and national level. We are stronger together.ʼ

The  current  edition  of  the  OP  newsletter  brings  you  a  selection  of  interesting  publications
related  to  the  economy  and  the  European  semester,  for  which  you  can  also  consult  the
relevant datasets in the EU Open Data Portal. Our newsletter also brings you publications on
the ongoing outbreak and several other topics, including research.

PDF

Eurostatistics
Data for short-term economic analysis. 05/2020

Eurostatistics  is  a  monthly  review  showing  the  evolution  of  the
economic activity in the European Union, euro area and Member States.
This May edition comes at a time of profound disruption to economies
worldwide from the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.

Available in English

PDF

The coronavirus economic crisis
Its impact on venture capital and high growth enterprises

The  coronavirus  pandemic  has  caused  a  huge  contraction  in  economic
activity.  This  publication  analyses  the  decline  in  venture  capital  and
considers  the  ways  in  which  governments  should  intervene.  The  need
for  research  is  emphasised  with  a  special  focus  on  angel  investing  in
view  of  the  role  this  plays  in  financing  businesses  at  the  start  of  the
scale-up tunnel.

Available in English

PDF

The role of digital government in the European semester
process 2019

The  digitalisation  of  public  administration  continues  to  be  a  priority.
This study identifies the challenges and the existing actions within the
ISA2 programme (programme on interoperability solutions and common
frameworks  for  European  public  administrations,  businesses  and
citizens). New actions are proposed to better drive digitalisation efforts
in the EU Member States.

Available in English

More on this topic

PDF

European Investment Bank Group Sustainability Report 2019

The  coronavirus  pandemic  has  destabilised  European  economies.
Recovery efforts must focus on sustainable, green development that can
serve as a foundation for the future. This report provides an overview of
the  European  Investment  Bank  operations  aimed  to  support  smart,
sustainable and inclusive growth in the challenging European and global
context.

Available in English

PDF

Improving the European Semester
The views of organised civil society: summary of relevant EESC opinions

This  publication  summarises  opinions  and  policy  recommendations  on
various  elements  of  the  European  semester  issued  by  the  European
Economic  and  Social  Committee  (EESC).  The  recommendations  are
intended  to  provide  a  basis  for  the  EU  Member  States  to  drive  more
inclusive,  sufficiently-financed  sustainable  growth,  in  order  to  reduce
social inequalities, fight climate change and support the economy with
productive investments.

Available in English and French

PDF

Financial risks in Europe: The end of the beginning
Monetary Dialogue Papers, February 2020

A  recession  is  on  the  way  for  economies  worldwide  and  for  the  EU  in
particular. Having used all of its instruments in the previous crisis, the
European Central Bank has little left that can be helpful this time. This
brief  examines  the  financial  risks  facing  the  euro  area  and  evaluates
flexibility  and  non-intervention  as  possible  means  of  an  appropriate
response.

Available in English

Research and innovation

PDF/Paper

Biodiversity ─ a new deal for nature (Research*eu)
Bringing you the results of EU research and innovation

Biodiversity  makes  life  possible.  It  nurtures  us,  provides  countless
health  benefits  and  offers  many  opportunities  for  jobs  and  economic
growth (tourism, green technologies, conservation efforts, etc.). The EU
is committed to healthy ecosystems and biodiversity preservation, both
within Europe and worldwide. In the special feature of this Research*eu,
we  meet  seven  projects  on  biodiversity  research  that  are  supported
through the Horizon 2020 programme.

Available in English

(Individual article  also  available  in  English,  French,  German,  Italian,
Polish and Spanish on the CORDIS website)

Also out recently

PDF

Le 70e anniversaire de la déclaration Schuman
De la déclaration du 9 mai 1950 vers l’Union européenne

The declaration of 9 May 1950 issued by the French Minister of Foreign
Affairs,  Robert  Schuman,  changed  the  course  of  the  European
continent’s  history.  Schuman’s  vision,  rooted  in  a  dialogue  with  Jean
Monnet,  paved  the  way  for  a  united  Europe.  This  publication
commemorates the 70th anniversary of the Schuman declaration.

Available in French. Editions in English and German will follow soon.

PDF

The COVID confinement measures and EU labour markets

This publication assesses the potential impact of the early 2020 COVID

confinement  measures  on  the  EU  labour  market.  Possible  mid-term
developments  and  broader  socioeconomic  implications  of  the  COVID
crisis  in  Europe  are  provided,  with  economic  sectors  categorised
according  to  the  likely  impact  of  the  COVID  crisis  in  relation  to
employment.

Available in English

PDF

Contact Tracing with Mobile Applications

In public health, contact tracing is the process of identifying individuals
who have been in contact with infected persons. Proximity tracing with
smartphone applications and sensors could support contact tracing but
involves  the  processing  of  sensitive  personal  data.  This  European  Data
Protection Supervisor publication is a valuable source of information on
topics related to digital proximity tracing.

Available in English

You may also like

Dataset

EuroSciVoc - The European Science Vocabulary

(EuroSciVoc) 

The  European  Science  Vocabulary 
is  a  multilingual
taxonomy  representing  all  the  main  fields  of  science  with  a  link  to
Community  Research  and  Development  Information  Service  (CORDIS)
content.  It  contains  almost  1  000  categories  in  6  languages  (English,
French, German, Italian, Polish and Spanish) and each category features
relevant  keywords  extracted  from  the  textual  description  of  CORDIS
projects.

Available in English

PDF

A long way to go for LGBTI equality

This  report  presents  selected  findings  of  the  2019  survey  of  the
European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights on LGBTI people in the
EU, North Macedonia and Serbia. With almost 140 000 participants, it is
the  largest  survey  of  its  kind  and  shows  little  progress  over  the  last  7
years. Discrimination in everyday life persists – at work and at school; in
cafés, restaurants, bars and nightclubs; when looking for housing; when
accessing  healthcare  or  social  services;  and  in  shops.  Harassment  and
physical and sexual attacks also remain concerns.

Available in English

PDF/Paper

Europe Organising together!

Study  material  to  stimulate  a  young  reader’s  mind.  This  publication
explains  the  decision-making  process  in  the  European  Union  and  the
roles  of  the  three  EU  institutions:  the  European  Parliament,  the
is
European  Council  and  the  European  Commission.  The  text 
accompanied by infographics and illustrations.

Available in all the official languages of the EU

Our news

EU Datathon 2020 receives
121 proposals!
Sunday  3  May  was  the  first
major  deadline  for  this  year’s
datathon,  organised  by 
the
Publications  Office.  Despite  a
busy  period  for  data  hackers
tackling COVID-19, we received
the largest number of proposals
ever: 121.

This number represents an increase of over 21 % on last year’s total (99) and is a long way
from the modest number of 34 received for the first datathon in 2017!

Of  the  four  challenges  this  year,  ‘A  Europe  fit  for  the  digital  age’  was  the  most  selected  by
teams, attracting 52 proposals. It was followed by ‘A European Green Deal’ (30), ‘A new push
for European democracy’ (21) and ‘An economy that works for people’ (18).

The  preselection  jury  is  now  assessing  the  proposals  to  shortlist  the  12  finalists.  These  12
teams will be invited to develop their applications and present them in Brussels in the course
of  the  European  Week  of  Regions  and  Cities  in  October.  The  winners  will  be  selected  there
during the EU Datathon’s final conference on 15 October 2020.

To learn more or follow the event, visit: https://op.europa.eu/en/web/eudatathon

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