Despina Spanou

In June 2024, the execution of the Baka v. Hungary judgment was on the agenda of the Committee of Ministers (CM) of the Council of Europe again - for the ninth time. Despite the key importance of the case to the independence of the Hungarian judiciary, despite the ongoing enhanced supervision process by the CM, several CM decisions (including an interim resolution), and the eight years that have passed since the delivery of the judgment by the European Court of Human Rights, the Hungarian authorities remain totally reluctant to take the general measures required for the implementation. The Hungarian Helsinki Committee welcomes the decision of the CM to urge the Hungarian authorities in a letter to find swift solutions to fully abide by the judgment. This step has rarely been taken by the CM, only in a handful of cases. https://lnkd.in/dRf86Bcr In our latest communication to the Committee of Ministers, we argued that constitutional-level legislative amendments are necessary to guarantee beyond doubt the freedom of expression of judges as required by the ECtHR’s jurisprudence. See our submission: https://lnkd.in/dn5iCxtU #ruleoflaw #Hungary #justice #judicialindependence #freespeech

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Citizens still face difficulties having their professional qualifications recognised by other EU countries. Every #EU_citizen has the right to #move to, #live and #work in any EU member state, taking their #professional_qualification with them. The European Court of Auditors launched an audit on the #recognition_of_professional_qualifications, to assess how this process works in practice. The result of our work is available in a special report published in all official EU languages on our website (https://lnkd.in/djxMUfnz). My team and I wrote this report because we find it important that you can use your #qualification to work throughout the EU. We also find it essential that you as a customer and user of services are sure that professionals are qualified. The video in this post summarises the content of the report. #StefBlok #ECA #EU #ProfessionalQualifications #FreedomofMovement

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This year’s International PACE Event will be hosted by the The Romanian Lobbying Registry Association/ Asociatia Registrul Roman de Lobby and the PACE - Public Affairs Community of Europe(PACE). This event aims to encourage participants to engage in an active debate and demonstrate how ethical and transparent lobbying can strengthen democratic processes and protect the public interest. The 2024 Summit will focus on what the future holds from multiple public affairs perspectives, through exploring the ever-changing landscape of governance from the lens of upcoming elections, the impact and influence of artifical intelligence, and mitigation of threats through responsible and transparent partnerships between the private and public sphere. Each panel will feature discussions on the following topics: Regulating influence. How do we prepare for the future? Recommendations of the Regulation of Lobbying from international organisations Romania’s opportunities: Exploring Perspectives for Good Governance and Ethical Practices Presentations of EC and National Developments on Lobbying Regulations – Associations The future is here. AI in the future of Governance. Deep fake dangers for democracy Each year, the PACE Summit serves as a platform for thought-provoking discussions and knowledge exchange among delegates representing over 14 countries from across Europe. It is a gathering that fosters collaboration and drives meaningful change in the realm of public affairs. #publicaffairs #publicaffairssolutions #PACE

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Thrilled to be a #speaker again in the 2024 RSA (Regional Studies Association) Annual #Conference, June 11–14, 2024 Università degli Studi di Firenze, #Italy, with a #paper on 'Alternative Futures for #EU #CohesionPolicy' (Special Session SS43. What Future for Cohesion Policy? II - Theoretical Underpinnings) #RSA24 Euro. Reg. Sci. Ass. (ERSA)EURADA - European Association of Development Agencies #EU #regions #innovation

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We are very proud to have contributed with 🇲🇹 national research carried out by Marine Giorgis to The Right to Know in the European Union: Comparative Study on Access to Classified Data in National Security Related Immigration Cases, published by the Hungarian Helsinki Committee. The study provides a comparative analysis of the laws and practices of 🇪🇺 Member States concerning their compliance with the standards laid out by the ECtHR and CJEU jurisprudence on invoking national security grounds in immigration cases, as well as the scope and effectiveness of the remedy provided against administrative decisions in such cases. Read more: https://lnkd.in/gUSreCU6

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📣 Hungarian presidency priorities unveiled 📣 Following the EU elections, the #HungarianPresidency has outlined its priorities, spanning from competitiveness to defense. However, there are mixed feelings regarding health matters, with relatively low attention, particularly to public health topics: #CardiovascularDisease, focusing on actions against cardiovascular disease with planned Council Conclusions #OccupationalHealth and safety and #WorkLifeBalance, including a focus on mental and physical health #OrganDonation, foreseeing Council Conclusions #EUPharmaceuticalPackage: Continuing negotiations to establish competitive, sustainable, and patient-centred pharmaceutical regulations Additional mentions include rare diseases, pollution free environments, mental health in emergencies, and cooperation on affordable medicines In social policy, priorities include: Quality #ServiceAccess: Reducing territorial inequalities and leveraging digital transitions, supported by Council Conclusions #DisabilityInclusion: Enhancing employment and rehabilitation opportunities, with Council Conclusions planned. And various labour market initiatives that recall a lot the #Junker's agenda 😊 Events: High-Level Conference on Cardiovascular Health (04/07) High-Level Conference on Transplantation (11/07) High-Level Group Meeting on Gender Mainstreaming (03-04/09) High-Level Conference on the Employment of Persons with Disabilities (09/10) #EU2024 #HungaryPresidency #EuropeanUnion #Competitiveness #PublicHealth #HealthEquity

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EU failure to rein in spyware reflects lack of political will, parliamentarian says. Why it matters: 1. The reluctance from European governing bodies to tackle widespread spyware abuse signifies a troubling normalization of such surveillance tech on the continent, which indirectly suggests approval of its misuse. 2. By exporting spyware to other countries, Europe may be unintentionally amplifying the global scope of the problem, thereby increasing its potential repercussions. 3. Though framed as a tool for law enforcement and national security, unchecked use and abuse of spyware pose a significant and largely unrecognized security threat that goes beyond mere communication interception, potentially undermining governance and personal freedoms across nations. Learn more by visiting The Record from Recorded Future News: https://lnkd.in/eaB_rPVF

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🎙️ What is at the core of intra-#EU contestation regarding the #Israel/#Palestine conflict? How does it interplay with the fragmentation and multipolar competition in the region? 🎧 Listen to this JOINT podcast 👇 https://loom.ly/rvupOWU

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La Strada International is deeply concerned about the outcomes of the recent EU elections. The rise of populist and nationalist parties in several EU member states is alarming. Such parties often promote xenophobic and anti-democratic and anti-migration rhetoric and threaten the respect for human rights within the EU. We hoped to see more support for labour and victims' rights, women's rights and access to justice. See more in our blog (https://lnkd.in/d3tTE7xQ) or manifesto (https://lnkd.in/dGx6iedA).    The outcome of the elections highlights once more the need for an organised and strong CSO space to demand human rights based EU policies.

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⚖️ European Commission refers Czech Republic to the Court of Justice of the European Union for failing to correctly transpose EU rules on proportionality of professional regulations! For more information ➡️ https://lnkd.in/eTWcNPjr #infringement #eulaw #eu #czechia #ecj #transposition #lawyers #legalnews

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I'm very proud to have contributed to the development of the EBSI Pan-European Blockchain, a groundbreaking initiative aimed at making information easy to verify and almost impossible to fake. This initiative represents a significant step towards enhancing trust in a privacy-preserving way as no data is stored on #Blockchain aside the public keys of issuers of information (authentic documents and data). Have a look to know more! #Innovation #EBSI #DigitalTransformation #Cybersecurity

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Group for Legal and Political Studies has published my new Policy Note on 🇽🇰-🇷🇸 dialogue. It is a recap of the normalization since Ohrid Agreement. 👉https://lnkd.in/dXVG6tmg

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Hot of the press! 📰 Andreas Corcaci and Henning Deters just published a new #openaccess article in the journal Regional & Federal Studies: "Shaping #EU policy in #regional #parliaments: a configurational analysis of the Posted Workers Directive in Germany". 🔍 They examine how #subnational #legislators engage with the substance of #EUpolicy by studying the case of the Posted Workers Directive. 🔗 Read the full article here: https://lnkd.in/ea4w97UR #Research #EUPolicy #LegislativeEngagement #PostedWorkersDirective #PoliticalScience #SubnationalPolitics #PolicyResearch

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A new bill proposing significant amendments to Bulgaria’s Consumer Protection Act has been published for public consultations. One of the key objectives of the Bill is to create the conditions for the implementation of Regulation (EU) 2023/988 on general product safety. You can find out more about the planned changes to the Consumer Protection Act in today's Law Now legal alert from CMS Sofia here: https://lnkd.in/ewd4mBcH #consumerprotection #legislation #productsafety #freelegalalert

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🇪🇺 The European Commission's 9th Cohesion report shows that Cohesion policy continues to narrow the gaps in EU regions and Member States. The report, published on 27 March 2024, assesses the current state-of-play of the EU's economic, social, and territorial cohesion, and shows its role as a driver for regional development. For busy readers, we've put together the 5⃣ key take-aways of particular interest to the Interreg community ⤵ https://lnkd.in/gXyNqVA5 #CohesionPolicy #Interreg #EuropeanUnion #EU

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Final greenlight for new #Schengen rules to include: 📌 tools to better manage #migration flows 📌 rules for external borders in the event of a health crisis 📌 rules & procedures for internal border controls More ⬇️ https://europa.eu/!Q3gkNf #FreeMovement #MigrationEU #SecurityEU #SchengenEU

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European Commission: Commission sends preliminary findings to #X for #breach of the DSA Digital Services Act Brussels Today, the Commission has informed X of its preliminary view that it is in breach of the Digital Services Act (DSA) in areas linked to dark patterns, advertising transparency and data access for researchers. Transparency and accountability in relation to content moderation and advertising are at the heart of the DSA. Based on an in-depth investigation that included, among others, the analysis of internal company documents, interviews with experts, as well as cooperation with national Digital Services Coordinators, the Commission has issued preliminary findings of non-compliance on three grievances: 📍First, X designs and operates its interface for the “verified accounts” with the “Blue checkmark” in a way that does not correspond to industry practice and deceives users. Since anyone can subscribe to obtain such a “verified” status, it negatively affects users' ability to make free and informed decisions about the authenticity of the accounts and the content they interact with. There is evidence of motivated malicious actors abusing the “verified account” to deceive users. 📍Second, X does not comply with the required transparency on advertising, as it does not provide a searchable and reliable advertisement repository, but instead put in place design features and access barriers that make the repository unfit for its transparency purpose towards users. In particular, the design does not allow for the required supervision and research into emerging risks brought about by the distribution of advertising online. 📍Third, X fails to provide access to its public data to researchers in line with the conditions set out in the DSA. In particular, X prohibits eligible researchers from independently accessing its public data, such as by scraping, as stated in its terms of service. In addition, X's process to grant eligible researchers access to its application programming interface (API) appears to dissuade researchers from carrying out their research projects or leave them with no other choice than to pay disproportionally high fees.

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Stay informed with the EUAA's latest Quarterly Overview of Asylum Case Law at 📄 https://europa.eu/!BqH89F Read about key rulings by the Court of Justice of the European Union, European Court of Human Rights & national courts related to Dublin transfers, safe country designations and reception conditions. 📝 Why read it? This series enhances your understanding of: 🔵 Court interpretation and application of the Common European Asylum System 🔵 Key judicial decisions that impact asylum policy and procedures 🔵 Recent developments in the assessment of asylum applications by national courts

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