EU affairs ministers held their first discussion on the Commission's long-term post-Brexit budget plans - with cohesion and agriculture cuts, phasing put rebates, and the overall size emerging as major divisions.

The Kingdom of Bahrain has refused to host a visit by MEPs from the parliament's official human rights committee, citing scheduling conflicts - while helping organise one from an unofficial 'friendship group'.

Committee of the Regions president Karl-Heinz Lambertz tells EUobserver why he is not happy with proposed cuts to the EU's cohesion policy. France has already spoken up against Common Agriculture Policy, but who will speak for the regions?

The EU's budgetary muddling through might not be enough when the next crisis hits.

The European Commission is dangling the prospect to farmers of being able to dodge financial cuts in the upcoming EU budget – but only if national governments agree to a mandatory redistribution of subsidies.

EU officials want discretionary powers to suspend funds from states that violate treaty values, in a bold power grab amid likely clashes with Hungary and Poland.

While the European Commission's post-Brexit EU budget proposal for 2021-2027 calls for a less-than-expected increase in spending, prime ministers of net payer countries have already called the starting proposal "unacceptable".

Starting in 2012, when it first entered the EU's transparency register, Facebook has been steadily intensifying its lobbying efforts within European institutions.

The space for civil society is shrinking in Europe, but it is still crucial to address Europe's challenges, says Luca Jahier, the new head of the EU's Social and Economic Committee.


The proposal by the European Commission for a directive protecting whistleblowers could be a true turning point in how corruption and abuse of law is fought in the EU.

The EU should not share out military HQs for political reasons if it wants effective armed forces, Italy's former defence chief tells EUobserver.

The anti-abortion campaign known as "One of US" lost its bid to force the European Commission to propose legislation that would cut funding to embryonic stem cells.

The European Commission finally proposed a directive to protect whistleblowers in response, at least partly, to scandals like Luxleaks, the Panama Papers and the ongoing Cambridge Analytica revelations.

Finnish MEP Heidi Hautala won a trailblazing court case two decades ago for the right of EU citizens to receive 'partial access' to documents. Now she says it is "outrageous" the European Investment Bank is refusing to release Volkswagen documents.