OP Newsletter. N° 86, July/August 2020.
Date: 2020-08-30
Institutions: Publications Office of the European Union
Subjects: EU publication, Publications Office of the European Union, serial publication

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Publications Office Newsletter

N° 86
July/August 2020

ISSN 2315-0017

EU newsflash

1 July: the European Commission presents its European skills agenda and youth

employment support. 
8 July: ‘And this Presidency has chosen one word at the core of its programme.

Gemeinsam. Together. Tous ensemble. And that is the engine of our Union.’ –
President Ursula von der Leyen on the programme of activities of the German

Presidency of the Council of the European Union.

EU leaders agree on recovery package and the
2021-2027 budget

After four long days and nights of negotiations, the special European Council of  17-21  July
concludes  with  a  historic  step:  the  decision  for  a  joint  and  innovative  effort  at  EU  level  in
order to support the recovery and resilience of the member states' economies. To achieve the
desired result and be sustainable, the recovery effort should be linked to the traditional MFF,
which  has  shaped  EU  budgetary  policies  since  1988  and  offers  a  long-term  perspective.  EU
leaders  have  agreed  to  a  comprehensive  package  of  €1  824.3  billion  which  combines  the
Multiannual  Financial  Framework  (MFF)  and  an  extraordinary  recovery  effort  under  the  Next
Generation EU (NGEU) instrument. It is noteworthy to mention that, under the agreement, the
Commission will be able to borrow up to €750 billion on the markets. These additional funds
may be used for grants, back-to-back loans and for expenditure channelled through the MFF
programmes.  More  important  steps  remain  as  the  proposals  are  subject  to  negotiations
between the European Parliament and the Council. You can read the full text of conclusions
of the special European Council of 17-21 July here.

Spotlight on the EU’s tax policy strategy

Tax policy is one of the most important aspects of any economy. It is one of the state’s major
tools  of  economic  policy,  especially  if  that  state  is  part  of  a  monetary  union.  It  reflects  the
degree of intervention in the economy, the fundamental choices the state has made and the
particularities  of  the  economy  at  a  given  time.  In  parallel,  it  diverts  the  allocation  of  scarce
resources among different uses, influences investment and growth and is the main source of
funding for the supply of public goods, social policy and other core objectives of the public
sector. 

EU  countries  are  free  to  choose  the  tax  systems  that  they  prefer  and  consider  most
appropriate, provided they comply with EU rules. There is action at EU level only when action
by  individual  Member  States  cannot  provide  an  effective  solution  and,  in  fact,  many  tax
problems simply require better coordination. Within this framework, the Commission’s main
objective  for  tax  policy  is  to  address  the  concerns  of  individuals  and  businesses  operating
within the internal market, by eliminating tax obstacles in all forms of cross-border economic
activity.  Additional  objectives  are  to  combat  harmful  tax  competition  and  promote  greater
cooperation  between  tax  administrations  in  combating  fraud  and  in  dealing  with  the
challenge  of  taxing  an  increasingly  digitalised  economy.  On  15  July,  the  Commission
proposed  an  ambitious  new  tax  package  to  ensure  that  EU  tax  policy  supports  Europe's
economic recovery and long-term growth 

This  summer  edition  of  the  newsletter  presents  key  publications  on  the  EU’s  tax  policy

 
strategy  and  many  others  on  several  interesting  topics.  We  hope  that  you  enjoy  them  and
wish you a nice and safe summer. We will be back with you in September.

PDF

Taxation trends in the European Union

The  new  taxation  trends  report  has  just  been  released.  Discover  the
latest  analysis  of  Europe-wide  trends,  as  well  as  a  series  of  country
chapters covering the EU Member States, Iceland and Norway before the
COVID-19 crisis.

Available in English

PDF/Paper

Taxation
Promoting the internal market and economic growth

Taxation  is  central  to  national  sovereignty.  This  is  why  the  power  to
raise  taxes  and  set  tax  rates  lies  with  national  governments.  So  what
role can the EU play in making taxation fairer, easier and more efficient
for governments,  companies and citizens? This publication is part of a
series that explains what the EU does in different policy areas, why the
EU is involved and what the results are.

Available in all the official languages of the EU

PDF

Estimating international tax evasion by individuals

Global  offshore  wealth  was  estimated  at  USD  7.8  trillion  in  2016  (EUR
7.5  trillion)  or  10.4%  of  global  GDP,  a  considerable  amount.  This  and
other  interesting  facts  can  be  found  in  this  study  which  provides
estimates  of  offshore  wealth  held  by  individuals  (for  the  world’s  main
economies)  and  corresponding  estimates  of  international  tax  evasion
(for the EU and EU Member States).

Available in English

More on this topic

PDF

Tax policies in the European Union
2020 survey

This  survey  examines  how  Member  States’  tax  systems  perform  in
terms  of  fighting  tax  abuse,  promoting  sustainable  investment,
supporting  employment  and  mitigating  inequalities.  To  this  end,  the
report presents the main indicators used by the European Commission
to  analyse  tax  policies  in  the  context  of  the  European  semester  and
substantiates  the  tax  policy  priorities  of  the  Commission’s  annual
sustainable  growth  strategy.  It  also  includes  an  overview  of  recent  tax
reforms at both EU and Member State level.

Available in English

PDF

Impact of digitalisation on international tax matters
Challenges and remedies - Study

This  paper  discusses  the  tax  challenges  posed  by  digitalisation,
especially those related to new business models and the value creation
process.  It  analyses  the  impact  of  base  erosion  and  profit  shifting
actions,  unilateral  measures  and  recent  tax  developments  in  the
European  Union  and  the  United  States.  It  also  evaluates  alternative
approaches  to  reform  the  international  tax  system,  and  highlights
difficulties and opportunities presented by blockchain and collaborative
economy for international taxation.

Available in English

PDF

Corporate taxation for the future : competitive, simple and
predictable
In tax systems, less is often more!

This factsheet presents the European Economic and Social Committee’s
opinion on what criteria an effective EU tax strategy should satisfy and
what it should achieve.

Available in English and French

Research and innovation

PDF/paper

CORDIS results pack on viruses
Europe  has  always  supported  robust  virology  research.  This  is  already
helping  in  the  fight  against  the  COVID-19  pandemic,  and  it  will  be
essential  if  we  want  to  tackle  other  current  viral  challenges  and
potential new ones in the future. In this results pack, we meet a number
of innovative EU-funded projects that are making contributions not only
to  the  battle  against  SARS-CoV-2  but  also  to  the  wider  virology  field
that  will  improve  our  overall  understanding  of  viruses,  as  well  as  our
ability to create even more effective antiviral treatments and vaccines.

Available in English

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

Also out recently

PDF

The likely impact of COVID-19 on education
Reflections  based  on  the  existing  literature  and  recent  international
datasets

In order to reduce the spread of COVID-19, most countries around the
world  decided  to  temporarily  close  educational  institutions.  However,
learning has not stopped, but is now fully taking place online as schools
and universities provide remote schooling. Using existing literature and
evidence  from  recent  international  data,  this  report  attempts  to  gain  a
better  understanding  of  how  the  COVID-19  crisis  may  affect  students’
learning.  

Available in English

PDF

Participatory democracy
A success story written by the EESC

This collection brings together all the opinions and reports which, over
the  last  30  years,  have  enabled  the  European  Economic  and  Social
(EESC)  and  civil  society  organisations  to  strengthen
Committee 
participatory  democracy  and  become  an  indispensable  part  of  the
European decision-making process.

Available in English and French

PDF

Brazil and the Amazon rainforest
Deforestation,  biodiversity  and  cooperation  with 
international forums - Study

the  EU  and

For the largest tropical rainforest on Earth, an aggravated forest fire and
deforestation  regime  in  Amazonia  put  at  risk  the  world’s  richest
biodiversity  assets  and  a  major  climate  regulator.  For  the  EU,  it
highlights the need to associate the question of embodied deforestation
consumption  by  placing  deforestation-free  supply  chains  at  the  centre
of  negotiations  surrounding  the  EU-Mercosur  association  agreement,
given  the  volume  of  trade  between  these  economic  blocs  in  meat,
leather, soy, coffee, rubber, wood pulp, biofuel and timber.

Available in English

You may also like

PDF

Second European Union minorities and discrimination survey  
Being black in the EU

The  recent  murder  of  George  Floyd,  a  black  American  man,  in
Minneapolis,  Minnesota  caused  unrest  and  anti-racist  protests  that
quickly  spread  worldwide.  But  how  is  the  situation  in  the  EU  for  black
people?  Almost  20  years  after  the  adoption  of  EU  laws  forbidding
discrimination, people of African descent in the EU face widespread and

entrenched prejudice and exclusion as this report, based on the second
large-scale EU-wide survey on migrants and minorities, finds out.

Available in English

PDF

European bathing water quality in 2019

For  many  people  in  the  EU,  holidays  revolve  around  bathing  water  –
whether  it  is  snorkelling  in  the  turquoise  waters  of  the  Aegean  Sea  or
swimming  in  a  Scandinavian  lake.  This  latest  edition  of  the  bathing
water  quality  report  based  on  sampling  from  last  year,  gives  an
indication of the places where the quality of bathing water is expected
to be good for the 2020 bathing season.

Available in English, French and German

PDF/Paper

The big bonfire

A  chaotic  ride  on  Fred  the  donkey  leads  Justin  to  meet  Agatha,  an  old
lady  with  green  fingers,  who  is  desperately  trying  to  save  her  family
home from the grasp of property developers. Justin’s adventures in this
comic help him discover how modern farming can produce high-quality
food,  while  also  contributing  to  the  European  economy  and  preserving
the environment. So, will Agatha make it? Read and find out.

Available in all the official languages of the EU except Irish

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