Author: Press Room
By Kamuran Samar & AFP Published on 16/09/2026 – 18:09 GMT+2 An English village of around 350 people has voted overwhelmingly to “secede” from the United Kingdom in a symbolic referendum held in protest against plans to house asylum seekers at a nearby former military site. ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT In Piddington, near Oxford, 285 of the 312 ballots counted backed the call for the village to seek self-determination. The referendum has no legal standing, but residents celebrated the result by putting up a sign declaring the area the “Principality of Piddington”. The vote was organised by the parish council and was inspired partly by…
The European Union is increasingly worried about whether nations will actually implement existing climate targets as it prepares for the United Nations’ climate summit, COP31, according to a Council document seen by Euronews. ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT “(The Council highlights with concern) that current ambition and implementation remain insufficient to limit warming to 1.5°C,” read the draft Council conclusions dated 14 September, referring to the Paris Agreement. Similar concerns were recently shared by the United Nations Environment Program (UNEP), which warned the world is set to cross the 1.5°C global warming threshold, but can still limit, adapt to and return from higher…
Published on 16/09/2026 – 15:48 GMT+2 Ottawa and Brussels are in talks for Canada to join the Erasmus+ exchange programme, which would let students from both sides study at each other’s universities. ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT EU-Canada relations have rarely been closer, as Prime Minister Mark Carney has sought to build a tighter relationship with the European bloc following the aggressive trade agenda and erratic foreign policy of the second Trump administration. On Wednesday, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen invited Canada to become the first “associate member” of the EU, an unprecedented arrangement short of full membership, which remains off…
Published on 16/09/2026 – 14:28 GMT+2•Updated 14:38 Belarus has released 25 political prisoners in exchange for the US lifting sanctions put on two Belarusian companies, in a deal was brokered by US envoy John Coale who was in the capital Minsk. ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT Coale announced the release of prisoners, describing it as “As a sign of goodwill”, in exchange for the lifting of sanctions. He indicated further talks could lead to “a further release of individuals and additional sanctions relief”. The US and many other Western countries imposed sanctions on Belarus after it allowed Russia to use its territory to…
“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times.” ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT With this iconic Charles Dickens quote, Ursula von der Leyen began her one-hour-long State of the Union speech in Strasbourg, laying out solutions to cope with the “exceptional” challenges and the “incredible” change that Europe is undergoing. “In this world, Europe has chosen to forge its own path. And a stronger, independent Europe is now emerging,” she told lawmakers. “Europe is there for Europeans. And that in the cold fragility of today’s world, only Europe can provide true sovereignty to Europeans.” Here are the five takeaways…
The European Commission President is “very slow” to make the necessary decisions on the current challenges facing the European Union (EU), Charles Michel, who headed the European Council during von der Leyen’s first term as Commission chief from 2019 to 2024, said. ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT His comments came ahead of von der Leyen’s highly anticipated annual State of the European Union address before the European Parliament in Strasbourg on Wednesday, in which she outlined her vision and priorities for the coming year. Michel, however, was focused on her failure to fulfil the promises made in previous years. “I’m observing that, today,…
By Alessio Dell’Anna & video by Maud Zaba Published on 16/09/2026 – 11:34 GMT+2 European homes and businesses appear to be getting safer. ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT The number of break-ins across the EU has dropped by more than a third in just a decade (35%), falling to 1.2 million from to 2014 to 2024, according to new Eurostat data. These figures cover both residential and business premises, yet despite the good news, Europe continues to be a battleground between intruders and private citizens and business owners, with many countries having a significant rate of burglaries relative to their populations. Austria faces a huge wave…
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen announced a “new European heatwave plan” during her inaugural State of the Union speech on Wednesday, after a dramatic summer that saw thousands of hectares burnt and tonnes of crops lost to raging wildfires. ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT “We need better early warning systems and better health preparedness. We need urban adaptation and cooling. And we need to support the most vulnerable,” von der Leyen told EU lawmakers in Strasbourg. She described the summer as a “summer of truth”, pointing to hundreds of thousands of hectares burned, crop losses and more than 35,000 excess deaths.…
Published on 16/09/2026 – 9:41 GMT+2 The EU will support industry efforts to slow the development of more disruptive AI technologies and will collaborate with partners such as Canada and the UK on AI safety, the Commission chief said on Wednesday. ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT In her annual State of the Union address to the European Parliament, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen hailed AI’s potential to benefit humanity, provided its risks and opportunities are properly balanced. She singled out the growing risks posed by so-called frontier AI models, those pushing the boundaries of the technology. “As the frontier models become…
There is a saying in Brussels: in a legislative term, you spend the first year thinking about what you want to do, the second year announcing it, and the third to fifth years actually doing it. ADVERTISEMENT ADVERTISEMENT By that logic, this is von der Leyen’s last real window to unveil big initiatives she might still see through before she leaves office. So, what made the cut, and what won’t? Let’s dive in. Three tipping points are shaping von der Leyen’s speech: climate change turning from forecast to lived reality after devastating wildfires and heatwaves, AI technology moving faster than…