Daily News 01 / 09 / 2021

European Year of Rail: Connecting Europe Express now leaving the station

The ‘Connecting Europe Express', a special train put together as part of the European Year of Rail 2021, will pull out of Lisbon train station on 2 September. It will stop in more than 100 towns and cities during its five-week journey, before arriving in Paris on 7 October. Departing from Lisbon and ending its trip in Paris, the train will make a notable stop in Ljubljana, connecting the Portuguese, Slovenian and French Presidencies of the Council of the EU. Commissioner for Transport, Adina Vălean said: “Rail has shaped our rich, common history. But, rail is also Europe's future, our route to mitigating climate change and powering economic recovery from the pandemic, as we build a carbon-neutral transport sector. Over the coming weeks, the Connecting Europe Express will become a rolling conference, laboratory and forum for public debate on how to make rail the transport mode of choice for passengers and businesses alike. Please give us a warm welcome when we stop at a railway station near you.” Along the route, various events are planned to welcome the train at railway stations across Europe. Rail enthusiasts can also follow debates happening on board as well as conferences on EU infrastructure policy and the role of the Trans-European Transport Network (TEN-T), that will be livestreamed via the event website from Lisbon, Bucharest, Berlin and Bettembourg. The Connecting Europe Express is the result of unique cooperation between the European Commission and the Community of European Railway and Infrastructure Companies (CER), European rail operators, infrastructure managers and numerous other partners at EU and local level.  A press release is available online. (For more information: Balazs Ujvari - Tel.: +32 229 54578; Anna Wartberger – Tel.: +32 229 82054)

Back to school: EU support to pupils, students and teachers

As millions of pupils and teachers in Europe start the new school year, the Commission continues to accompany and support them. The pandemic has highlighted schools' capacity to innovate, but also outlined significant difficulties to adapt and to ensure quality and inclusive education for all learners. The EU supports student and teacher exchanges across Europe in different formats and collaboration aimed at promoting quality and inclusion, and supporting the digital and green transitions. The Commission has put forward many actions at EU level for schools, gathered around several topics: promoting cooperation and mobility; investing in education and skills; working towards educational success and inclusion; providing advice and platforms for online cooperation; supporting the green transition through education, and much more. For instance, from this year on, also pupils from general school education can fully benefit from Erasmus+ and go abroad, individually or with their class. This means that now all learners have access to the same opportunities, be they in schools, in vocational education and training, or higher education. With over €28 billion for 2021-2027, the new Erasmus+ programme has almost doubled its budget compared to the previous period. More than €3.1 billion are dedicated to mobility and cooperation projects in general school education, and more than €5.5 billion will contribute to co-fund such projects in the vocational education and training sector. Projects have already been approved for more than 7,000 schools, with more expected in September and October. In addition to the increased Erasmus+ budget, about €60 billion will be channelled to investments in education and skills in national recovery plans, corresponding to more than 10% of the total Recovery and Resilience Facility budget. More actions are coming before the end of the year, for instance the launch of the first European Innovative Teaching Awards. The award will showcase innovative teaching and learning practices developed in Erasmus+ transnational cooperation projects. For more information on the actions of the Commission in the field of education, please consult this page. (For more information: Johannes Bahrke – Tel.: +32 229 58615; Célia Dejond – Tel.: +32 229 88199) 

Venice Film Festival 2021: Six EU-supported films nominated for awards

Six EU-funded films have been nominated for awards at the 78^th edition of the Venice International Film Festival, which is kicking off today. ‘Il buco' by Michelangelo Frammartino has been selected in the Venezia 78 competition. The films ‘107 Mothers' by Peter Kerekes, ‘White Building' by Kavich Neang and ‘Wela' by Jakrawal Nilthamrong have been included in the Orizzonti competition, the section of the Festival devoted to innovative and artistic works. Furthermore, ‘Costa Brava' by Mounia Akl, as well as ‘La fée des Roberts' by Léahn Vivier-Chapas, feature in the Orizzonti Extra and Orizzonti Short Films competition, respectively. The films have been coproduced by highly international teams coming from several countries in the EU (Czechia, Denmark, Germany, Spain, France, Italy, Netherlands, Slovakia, and Sweden) and around the world (Norway, Cambodia, Congo, Lebanon, Qatar, Singapore, Thailand and Ukraine). The winners of this year's edition will be announced on 11 September at the Awards ceremony. Overall, the EU has invested over €290,000 through the MEDIA strand of the Creative Europe programme in the development and international coproduction and distribution of these works. These titles will also be featured within the context of the 30 years of MEDIA campaign, which celebrates the EU's continued support to the audiovisual industry throughout the past three decades. Furthermore, the Festival, in association with the Creative Europe MEDIA programme, will host a streamed edition of the European Film Forum on 6 September: ‘Behind the scenes of the screen industry: for an innovative and resilient industry'. (For more information: Johannes Bahrke – Tel.: +32 229 58615; Marietta Grammenou – Tel.: +32 229 83583)

State aid: Commission approves €10 million Portuguese scheme to support farmers active in the outermost Region of the Azores affected by the coronavirus outbreak

The European Commission has approved a €10 million Portuguese scheme to support farmers active in the outermost Region of the Azores in the context of the coronavirus outbreak. The scheme was approved under the State Aid Temporary Framework. Under the scheme, the public support will take the form of direct grants. The measure aims at mitigating the liquidity shortages that the beneficiaries are facing and at addressing part of the losses they incurred due to the coronavirus outbreak and the restrictive measures put in place to limit the spread of the virus. The Commission found that the Portuguese scheme is in line with the conditions of the Temporary Framework. In particular, the aid (i) will not exceed €225,000 per beneficiary; and (ii) will be granted no later than 31 December 2021. The Commission concluded that the measure is necessary, appropriate and proportionate to remedy a serious disturbance in the economy of a Member State, in line with Article 107(3)(b) TFEU and the conditions set out in the Temporary Framework. On this basis, the Commission approved the scheme under EU State aid rules. More information on the Temporary Framework and other actions taken by the Commission to address the economic impact of the coronavirus pandemic can be found here. The non-confidential version of the decision will be made available under the case number SA.64523 in the State aid register on the Commission's competition website once any confidentiality issues have been resolved. (For more information Daniel Ferrie – Tel.: +32 229 86500; Giulia Astuti – Tel.: +32 229 55344; Maria Tsoni – Tel.: +32 229 90526)

ANNOUNCEMENTS

Vice-President Šuica and Commissioner Várhelyi in Slovenia for the Bled Strategic Forum 

Vice-President for Democracy and Demography, Dubravka Šuica, and Commissioner for Neighbourhood and Enlargement, Olivér Várhelyi, are in Slovenia today to participate in the Bled Strategic Forum. This year's event will focus on the future of Europe. Vice-President Šuica will join a number of Heads of State and Government on a high-level panel to discuss the future and challenges of European democracy. She will also highlight the importance of deliberative democracy by harnessing citizen support through open debate and inclusive deliberation. The Conference on the Future of Europe will be central to these debates. Commissioner Várhelyi will be joining a number of EU and Western Balkans leaders on a panel to discuss enlargement. He will also hold several bilateral meetings in the margins of the Forum. (For more information: Daniel Ferrie – Tel.: +32 229 86500; Ana Pisonero – Tel.: +32 229 54320; Sinéad Meehan – van Druten – Tel.: +32 229 84094; Zoï Muletier – Tel.: +32 229 94306)

Liste des points prévus à l'ordre du jour des prochaines réunions de la Commission

Veuillez noter que ces informations sont données sous réserve de modifications.

Eurostat: communiqués de presse

The Spokesperson's Service has re-opened the Berlaymont press room to a limited number of journalists. For more information, please see here.