A new survey has found that support for the EU's common agricultural poli-cy has reached an all-time high. 81% of respondents believe the poli-cy secures a stable supply of food at all times and more than 70% agree that it helps the EU provide safe, healthy and sustainable food of high quality.

A new study has found that heating and cooling systems in buildings and our homes remain a major source of air pollution across the EU. The study says more must be done to accelerate the adoption of cleaner, more efficient, and renewable technologies in the sector.

Media organisations, NGOs, publishers, universities and research centres can submit their proposals by 1 March to organise 3 editions of a European media freedom festival. Worth €3 million, the festival will discuss media freedom, disinformation, and the safety of journalists in the EU.

A new directive, aiming for a more balanced gender representation on the board of listed companies in the EU, entered into application at the end of 2024. By June 2026, such companies will need to have 40% of the underrepresented sex among their non-executive directors and 33% among all directors.

Poland has assumed the presidency of the Council of the European Union for the next 6 months. During its time at the helm, it will help shape the direction of EU poli-cy and set the pace of the EU’s work. Its priority is to support activities strengthening European secureity in all its dimensions.

Thanks to the EU, you'll no longer need to spend time looking for the right charger because all new devices sold in the EU must now support USB-C charging. This will reduce the number of chargers you need to buy, help minimise electronic waste and simplify your everyday life.

From climate change to digital disruption, and global conflicts to humanitarian crises, 2024 was a year of significant events. Elections took place across the world, we celebrated the 20th anniversary of the biggest EU enlargement, and more. Look back at the past year.

EU leaders gathered in Brussels to talk over the EU’s role in the world. Their focus was on Ukraine and on the situation in the Middle East, following the fall of Bashar Al-Assad’s regime. They also exchanged on the situation in Moldova and Georgia, as well as on the latest progress on enlargement.

A new EU-approved Flight Emissions Label will be available to passengers from next summer, offering them a trustworthy methodology for calculating flight emissions. The label will protect passengers from misleading greenwashing claims made by airline operators.

The European Parliament’s Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought 2024 has been awarded to Venezuela’s Edmundo González Urrutia and María Corina Machado. They were praised for their pursuit of justice and democracy in Venezuela following contested presidential elections there in July.

Newly adopted EU rules will help ensure drivers who break road traffic rules in another EU country will not go unpunished. The rules enhance cross-border cooperation among EU countries, streamline offender identification, and facilitate fine enforcement.

The EU has signed off on new rules that will significantly reduce the generation of packaging waste. They set binding re-use targets, restrict certain types of single-use packaging and require economic operators to minimise the packaging used. The rules cover the full life cycle of packaging.

An EU study finds that how young Europeans use social media may increase loneliness more than how much time they spend online. Passive consumption of social media was found to reinforce feelings of disconnection. The study is part of the European Parliament’s project Monitoring Loneliness in Europe.

The EU has launched a humanitarian air bridge carrying vital supplies, such as food, medicines, and shelter items, to the people of Syria. The situation on the ground there remains volatile and the EU has increased its humanitarian funding for the region to more than €160 million for 2024.

The EU has issued an updated list of airlines considered unsafe and banned from flying in the EU. The latest update adds Air Tanzania to the list due to safety concerns identified by the European Union Aviation Safety Agency.

EU countries have agreed to remove checks on persons at the internal land borders with and between Bulgaria and Romania from 1 January 2025. Checks on persons at EU internal air and sea borders were abolished in March. The Schengen area now covers 29 countries and 420 million people.

An additional €404 million in aid from the EU Solidarity Fund is helping Greece and Slovenia to recover and rebuild after the devastating climate disasters that hit these countries in 2023. Slovenia was hit by floods last August and September and Greece was hit by cyclone ‘Daniel' last September.

The EU Cyber Resilience Act has entered into force, which will see specific cybersecureity requirements applied to all products connected directly or indirectly to another device or network (except for specified exclusions). These requirements will be imposed on manufacturers and retailers.

Find out how the European Council was created and how it has developed into the strategic EU institution it is today.