Based on GermanWatch.org and Climate Action Network (CAN)

The EU has given up the leading role in the UNFCCC process as well as its position as a frontrunner in the implementation of ambitious climate protection on the national level. So far, the EU has not yet developed a concept to use the fight against the economic crisis as an opportunity to invest in the rail and grid infra­structure, in energy efficiency programmes (for example, in the housing sector) and renewable energies. Some countries have been blocking any meaningful process, most noticeably Poland.

The European energy sector is faced with serious challenges. While trying to solve the pressing issues unilaterally, Member States have been bypassing and disregarding the benefits of the internal energy market integration by implementing national energy strate­gies aimed at protecting the status quo. A European Energy Union is about optimization of resources and infrastructure on the European level. It is exactly the realization of this need of co-operation and addressing the problems from the European perspective which is still missing among the Member States.

24 May: Municipal and local parliament elections (Spain)

24 May: Municipal elections in the Regions of Aosta Valley and Trentino Alto Adige 2nd round (Italy)

26 May: Indirect Senate elections (elected by the members of the provinces) (Netherlands)

31 May: State elections Burgerland (Austria)

31 May: State elections Styria (Austria)

31 May-1 June: Regional and Municipal elections 1st round (Italy)

3 June: President (by the Parliament) (Latvia)

14-15 June: Regional and Municipal elections 2nd round (Italy)

Government has multiple identities. It alone acts as both player and referee to arbitrate and define the “public interest”. Sometimes impartial and fair, it can also be narrowly self-interested. Despite adherence to a command and control governance model, it is neither coherent nor cohesive. On any given day, government pulls in all directions at once. Associations, corporations, interest groups, and individuals develop strategies to promote or advance their interests in response to what government is, what it does or what it proposes to do.

When an organization decides to take on a key issue, creating public awareness and action is often critical to success. But what exactly is a “public awareness campaign,” and how do you create one?

Many advocacy and communications terms are used loosely and with varied meanings, so it helps if your campaign team is using commonly understood definitions. Here are key definitions to help eliminate confusion during the planning process and beyond:

1. Austria

• Ensure the necessary resources to specialised prosecutors for processing corruption cases.
• Make access to bank account information easier, in cases of suspicion of corruption, would also make the prosecution of bribery more effective.
• Introduce a monitoring mechanism for checking declarations of assets for elected and appointed senior officials.

2. Belgium

Key issues for EU action (2015-2019)

To follow-up on previous political commitments and recommendations made by different EU institutions and to prompt effective change in practice, TI-EU recommends that the EU ensures now that anti-corruption legislation and ongoing legislative proposals are implemented and enforced across the board in the 28 EU Member States.

Further, TI considers the following areas of concern to call for further action, in which:

Abuse of Functions : Abuse of functions refers to a public employee or public office holder that is doing something which is illegal or something that the official has no legal authority to do, in order to obtain a personal economic benefit or cause an illegal damage to others. One sort of abuse of office is the misuse of information.

There is no globally accepted definition of corruption. Transparency International defines corruption as ‘the abuse of entrusted power for personal gain’. Corruption can be distinguished between 'true corrupt intent' and 'necessary corruption'. True corrupt intent implies bribery or an action to obtain an illicit benefit, whereas necessary corruption occurs to get things done (i.e., to obtain a legally entitled service); facilitation payments fall under this category of corruption. The main forms of corruption are bribery, embezzlement, fraud and extorsion.

The EU-Ukraine Civil Society Platform is the joint civil society institution established under Articles 469-470 of the EU-Ukraine Association Agreement. The Platform, together with the Association Council, the Association Committee and the Parliamentary Association Committee, is one of the official institutions established in the framework of the Association Agreement.