Road safety: deal for modern EU driving licence rules
Parliament and Council negotiators agreed new driving licence rules, introducing:
- A digital driving licence, available on a smartphone with EU-wide digital wallet technology
- A probation period for new drivers, who will be subject to stricter rules and sanctions for driving under the influence of alcohol and driving while not using safety belts or child-restraint systems.
- Training on phone usage and driving in dangerous conditions
- The minimum age whereby a driver can obtain a truck licence will be lowered from 21 to 18, and for a bus driving licence from 24 to 21, provided the applicant holds a certificate of professional competence.
These rules are intended to improve road safety in Europe, with almost 20,000 lives lost on EU roads annually.
The preliminary deal still needs to be approved by Council and Parliament. EU countries will have four years to transpose new provisions into national law and prepare for its implementation.
More details available here.
Agreement on EU-wide rules to reduce reckless driving while abroad
EU countries agreed on new rules to curb impunity and trigger EU-wide driving disqualifications for reckless drivers. Currently, if a driver loses their licence following a traffic offence in a different EU country to the one where the licence was issued, the sanction will only be applicable in the country where the offence was committed.
Furthermore, concerned EU countries will have to inform each other on decisions on driving disqualifications related to the most severe traffic offences, including drink or drug driving, involvement in a fatal traffic accident, or excessive speeding (e.g. driving 50 km/h faster than the speed limit).
The informal agreement on driving disqualification rules still needs to be approved by both the Council and the Parliament.
More details available here.
Commission selects 47 Strategic Projects to secure and diversify access to raw materials in the EU
The Commission has adopted, for the first time, a list of 47 Strategic Projects to boost domestic strategic raw material capacities, which will in turn strengthen the European raw materials value chain and diversify sources of supply. The new Strategic Projects mark an important milestone in the implementation of the Critical Raw Material Act (CRMA), which aims to ensure European extraction, processing and recycling of strategic raw materials meet 10%, 40% and 25% of EU’s demand by 2030. To become operational, the 47 Strategic Projects have an expected overall capital investment of €22.5 billion.
Find an interactive map of the selected projects here.
EU Preparedness Union Strategy to prevent and react to emerging threats and crises
The Commission launched the Preparedness Union Strategy to support Member States and enhance Europe’s capability to prevent and respond to emerging threats, as the European Union is facing increasingly complex crises and challenges that cannot be ignored. From growing geopolitical tensions and conflicts, hybrid and cybersecurity threats, foreign information manipulation and interference, to climate change and increasing natural disasters, the EU needs to be ready to protect its citizens and the key societal functions that are crucial for democracy and daily life.
Key objectives and actions of the Strategy include:
- Protecting Europe’s Essential Societal Functions.
- Promoting Population Preparedness.
- Enhancing Crisis Response Coordination.
- Strengthening Civil-Military Cooperation.
- Bolstering Foresight and Anticipation Capabilities.
- Increasing Public-Private Cooperation.
- Enhancing Cooperation with External Partners.
Fore more details, find the Joint Communication on EU Preparedness Union Strategy here.
Commission to invest €1.3 billion in artificial intelligence, cybersecurity and digital skills
The Commission will allocate €1.3 billion for the deployment of critical technologies that are strategically important for the future of Europe and the continent’s tech sovereignty through the Digital Europe Programme (DIGITAL) adopted on the 28th of March 2025.
Key priorities include:
- Improving the availability and accessibility of generative AI applications.
- Support the European Digital Innovation Hubs (EDIHs): a network of hubs that provides companies and the public sector with access to technical expertise and testing of technologies, as well as with advice, training and skills to adopt the latest technologies.
- Building-up the award-winning Destination Earth initiative that is working to build a digital model of Earth to support climate adaptation and disaster risk management.
- Facilitating the new EU Digital Identity Wallet architecture and the European Trust Infrastructure
- Stimulating the transformation of the public sector by developing efficient, high-quality, interoperable digital public services.
- Boosting cyber resilience.
More information on the Digital Europe Programme available here.
Belarus: EU impose restrictive measures on an additional 25 individuals and 7 entities responsible of undermining democracy and the rule of law in Belarus
As well as contributing to the ongoing internal repression, human rights abuses as well as military cooperation with Russia in support of the war against Ukraine.
Since August 2020, the EU has imposed numerous successive rounds of individual and sectoral sanctions, against those responsible for internal repression and human rights violations in Belarus, and in the context of Belarus’ involvement in Russia’s war against Ukraine. With these measures, the EU is signalling to the political and economic actors responsible that their actions and support for the regime and to Russia come at a cost.
Read the Press Release here.
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