Summer time in Europe is the variation of standard clock time that is applied in most European countries in the period between spring and autumn, during which clocks are advanced by one hour from the time observed in the rest of the year, with a view to making the most efficient use of seasonal daylight. It corresponds to the notion and practice of daylight saving time (DST) to be found in some other parts of the world.
The European Union Agency for Cybersecurity – self-designation ENISA from the abbreviation of its original name – is an agency of the European Union. It is fully operational since September 1, 2005. The Agency is located in Athens, Greece and has offices in Brussels, Belgium and Heraklion, Greece.
A cybersecurity regulation comprises directives that safeguard information technology and computer systems with the purpose of forcing companies and organizations to protect their systems and information from cyberattacks like viruses, worms, Trojan horses, phishing, denial of service (DOS) attacks, unauthorized access and control system attacks. There are numerous measures available to prevent cyberattacks.
The Roaming Regulation 2022 bans roaming charges (Eurotariff) within the European Economic Area (EEA), which consists of the member states of the European Union, Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway. This regulates both the charges mobile network operator can impose on its subscribers for using telephone and data services outside of the network's member state, and the wholesale rates networks can charge each other to allow their subscribers access to each other's networks. The 2012 Regulation was recast in 2022.
The common external power supply was a European Commission (EC) specification for a universal charger for smartphones sold within the European Union. The specification included the use of a USB Micro-B connector and adherence to the USB Battery Charging Specification.
European company law is the part of European Union law which concerns the formation, operation and insolvency of companies in the European Union. The EU creates minimum standards for companies throughout the EU, and has its own corporate forms. All member states continue to operate separate companies acts, which are amended from time to time to comply with EU Directives and Regulations. There is, however, also the option of businesses to incorporate as a Societas Europaea (SE), which allows a company to operate across all member states.
The ePrivacy Regulation (ePR) is a proposal for the regulation of various privacy-related topics, mostly in relation to electronic communications within the European Union. Its full name is "Regulation of the European Parliament and of the Council concerning the respect for private life and the protection of personal data in electronic communications and repealing Directive 2002/58/EC ." It would repeal the Privacy and Electronic Communications Directive 2002 and would be lex specialis to the General Data Protection Regulation. It would particularise and complement the latter in respect of privacy-related topics. Key fields of the proposed regulation are the confidentiality of communications, privacy controls through electronic consent and browsers, and cookies.
The 2024 European Parliament election is scheduled to be held on 6 to 9 June 2024. This will be the tenth parliamentary election since the first direct elections in 1979, and the first European Parliament election after Brexit.
Projects of Common Interest (PCIs) is a category of projects launched in 2013, which the European Commission has identified as a key priority to interconnect the energy infrastructure in the European Union. These projects are eligible to receive public funds. The PCI list is reviewed every two years. Since 2014, it is synoymously used with the term "Important Project of Common European Interest" (IPCEI) and includes innovation in microelectronics and communication technologies.
The migration and asylum policy of the European Union is within the area of freedom, security and justice, established to develop and harmonise principles and measures used by member countries of the European Union to regulate migration processes and to manage issues concerning asylum and refugee status in the European Union.
The Directive on the accessibility of websites and mobile applications also known as Directive (EU) 2016/2102 was adopted by the EU in 2016. This Directive applies to public sector organizations of member states of the European Union. The goal was to ensure that all public sector organizations were accessible for the 80 million people with disabilities in the EU.
The Digital Services Act is a regulation in EU law to update the Electronic Commerce Directive 2000 regarding illegal content, transparent advertising, and disinformation. It was submitted along with the Digital Markets Act (DMA) by the European Commission to the European Parliament and the Council on 15 December 2020. The DSA was prepared by the Executive Vice President of the European Commission for A Europe Fit for the Digital Age Margrethe Vestager and by the European Commissioner for Internal Market Thierry Breton, as members of the Von der Leyen Commission.
The Data Governance Act (DGA) is a legislative proposal of the European Commission that aims to create a framework which will facilitate data-sharing. The proposal was first announced within the 2020 European strategy for data and was officially presented by Margrethe Vestager in 25 November 2020. The DGA covers the data of public bodies, private companies, and citizens. Its main aims are to safely enable the sharing of sensitive data held by public bodies, to regulate data sharing by private actors. On 30 November 2021, the EU Parliament and Council reached an agreement on the wording of the DGA. Formal approval by those bodies is still required but that should be procedural.
The Artificial Intelligence Act is a European Union regulation on artificial intelligence in the European Union. Proposed by the European Commission on 21 April 2021, it aims to introduce a common regulatory and legal framework for artificial intelligence. Its scope encompasses all sectors, and to all types of artificial intelligence. As a piece of product regulation, it would not confer rights on individuals, but would regulate the providers of artificial intelligence systems, and entities making use of them in a professional capacity.
The Temporary Protection Directive is a 2001 European Union directive providing for immediate, temporary protection for displaced people from outside the external border of the Union, intended to be used in exceptional circumstances when the regular EU asylum system has trouble handling a "mass influx" of refugees. It was introduced in the aftermath of the Yugoslav Wars, but was not used before 2022. When invoked, it requires EU member states to accept refugees as allocated based on their capacity to host them, following a principle of solidarity and a "balance of efforts" among member states.
The European Chips Act (ECA), also known as simply the Chips Act, is a legislative proposal by the European Commission to encourage semiconductor production in the European Union.
The Cyber Resilience Act (CRA) is a cyber-security regulation for the EU proposed on 15 September 2022 by the European Commission for improving cybersecurity and cyber resilience in the EU through common cybersecurity standards for products with digital elements in the EU. The draft legislation is available.
