Latest blog articles
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Questions surrounding how the EU budget is spent or audited have been, and will always be, of interest to EU citizens. Formally, the responsibility for the implementation of the budget rests with the Commission, but it is well known that the Member States have a crucial role to play, especially in...
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The EU Directive on Administrative Cooperation (DAC), enacted in 1977 and – as a standard – most recently re-adopted in 2011, has been amended several times with its scope of application broadened over the years. The DAC and its amendments tend to follow discussions on transparency and exchange of...
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On 4 March 2021, Italy decided to block a shipment of the Oxford/AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine that was destined for Australia. This remarkable move, notably made in response to AstraZeneca’s delay in providing the agreed doses of vaccines by the set deadlines, is the first of its kind since the...
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Officially supported export credits are instruments that governments can use to boost or support their exports, either through insurances, loans or guarantees. Most governments provide this support through Export Credit Agencies (ECAs), the first of which were founded in the 1920s (Stephens, 1999).
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After the initial relief that followed upon reaching a Trade and Cooperation Agreement between the European Union and the United Kingdom on Christmas Eve, we slowly see how this treaty is going to affect the tax domain. In this blog I will briefly focus on the area of fiscal state aid, i.e. the...
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In her recent book “The Deficit Myth” star economist Stephanie Kelton tells us why economists should not worry too much about sovereign debt and deficits. But is that the same for lawyers? And are all countries truly treated equally?
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Almost 20 years ago, in 2002, I had the honour to give one of the “William Harvey lectures” at the University of Padua, celebrating the 400th anniversary of the Englishman’s graduation with a degree in medicine from the famous Italian university.
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In the aftermath of the surge in COVID-19 related government support to businesses and just days after UK Brexit negotiators announced not to extend the deadline for the ongoing negotiations with the European Union, the European Commission launched its “White Paper on levelling the playing field as...
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On February 1st, the UK has left the EU. This (has had or) will inevitably have an impact on unitary IP rights at EU level. Unitary IP rights such as the Community Plant Variety Right will no longer be valid after the transition period in the UK. What does this mean for holders of a Community Plant...