In March 2015 the EU Affairs Committee (SUE) held 9 meetings: no. 321-329. During these meetings the Committee: 

• scrutinised 60 EU documents:
  • pursuant to Art. 7(4) of the Cooperation Act – 4 EU draft legislative acts concerning: trade in seal products; an increase of the initial pre-financing amount paid to operational programmes supported by the Youth Employment Initiative; protection against the effects of the extra-territorial application of legislation adopted by a third country and actions based thereon or resulting therefrom; Union procedures in the field of the common commercial policy in order to ensure the exercise of the Union's rights under international trade rules,
  • pursuant to Art. 151(1) of the Sejm Standing Orders and Art. 3(2) of the Cooperation Act – 17 European Commission documents (12 reports, 4 communications and 1 draft joint report) concerning i.a. the EU's anti-dumping, anti-subsidy and safeguard activities (in 2013), interim evaluation of the joint Baltic Sea research and development programme BONUS or the application of EU law (in 2013),
  • pursuant to Art. 11(1) of the Cooperation Act – EU documents, which were to be discussed by Justice and Home Affairs Council, Transport, Telecommunications and Energy Council and Agriculture and Fisheries Council,
  • pursuant to Art. 8(2) of the Cooperation Act – 31 EU draft legal acts concerning i.a. the mobilisation of the European Globalisation Adjustment Fund, certain fishing opportunities for seabass or the conclusion, on behalf of the European Union, of the protocol amending the Marrakesh Agreement establishing the World Trade Organization,
• heard information on the Energy Union, presented by Tomasz Tomczykiewicz, Secretary of State in the Ministry of Economy (mtg no. 321),
• considered information on legislative work related to the implementation of EU directives for which the transposition deadline has expired or will expire within the next three months (as of 20.02.2015), presented by the representatives of appropriate ministries (mtg no. 326).

SUE together with:

• Infrastructure Committee and Foreign Affairs Committee - heard information from Minister of Infrastructure and Development, Minster of Foreign Affairs and Minister of Labor and Social Policy on the imposition by Germany to Polish economic operators the minimum wage and other disclosure requirements which will result in a dramatic deterioration of the economic situation and the means of functioning of Polish enterprises, especially domestic carriers (mtg no. 322),
• Agriculture and Rural Development Committee - held the first reading of deputies' bill on formation of agricultural system and amending certain other acts (paper no. 3109, mtg. no 320).

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In March 2015 information on and documents of SUE meetings no. 323-327 and 329, provided by the EU Affairs Committee secretariat, were published in the EDL-S (European Legislative Documents in the Sejm) and IPEX databases.

Environmental Protection, Natural Resources and Forestry Committee and Local Government and Regional Policy Committee

• 04.03.2015, heard the information on the assessment of the possible inclusion of provincial funds for environmental protection and water management as instruments implementing the Operational Programme Infrastructure and Environment in the light of the Act of 11.07.2014 on the principles of implementation of the cohesion policy programmes, financed under the 2014-2020 financial perspective (EPNRFC – mtg no. 170, LGRPC – mtg no. 327);

Agriculture and Rural Development Committee

• 18.03.2015, heard the information of the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development (ARD) and Minister of Health on the state of implementation of the Directive 2014/40/EU of 03.04.2014, the so-called tobacco directive (mtg no. 245);
• 18.03.2015, accepted the information of the ARD Minister on the area payments for 2014 (mtg no. 246);

Public Finance Committee and Foreign Affairs Committee

• 19.03.2015, held the first reading and considered the Government's bill on ratification of the Council Decision of 26.05.2014 on the system of own resources of the European Union (2014/335/EU, Euratom), paper no. 3198 (PFC – mtg no. 446, FAC - mtg no. 171);

Innovation and New Technologies Committee

• 19.03.2015, considered the information on: Operational Programme Digital Poland for 2014-2020 and Operational Programme Smart Growth for 2014-2020 (mtg no. 155).

• the following bills implementing EU law have been referred to the first reading [paper no.]:
  • Government bill amending the act - Industrial Property Law and some other acts [3249],
  • Government bill on infertility treatment [3245],
  • Government bill on waste electrical and electronic equipment [3244].
• the following acts implementing EU law have been adopted [paper no.]:
  
  • Act of 20 March 2015 amending the act on chemical substances and mixtures thereof [3149],
  • Act of 20 March 2015 amending the act on forests and some other acts [3147],
  • Act of 5 March 2015 amending the act - Road traffic law [3110].
• the following acts implementing EU law have been published [paper no.]:

• • Act of 20 February 2015 on local development with the participation of local community [3138],
  • Act of 20 February 2015 on support for rural development with the participation of the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development in the framework of the Rural Development Programme for 2014-2020 [3130],
  • Act of 20 February 2015 amending the act on road transport and some other acts [2959],
  • Act of 20 February 2015 on renewable energy sources [2604].

30 March 2015, Brussels, Interparliamentary Committee Meeting "From COP 21 Paris to 2050: a roadmap towards an innovative low-carbon, resource-efficient Europe"
- The "Paris alliance" towards COP 21 - challenges, stakes and the role of the European environmental diplomacy
- Beyond COP 21 Paris: towards an innovative low-carbon and resource efficient Europe

19-20 March 2015, Bratislava, Meeting of the presidents of parliaments of the Visegrád Group countries
- V4 to the Europe and the world: Task of inter-parliamentary cooperation and parliamentary diplomacy in the EU and on multilateral level
- V4 to the citizens: Crisis of representative democracy?
- V4 in Digital Age: Where is our value added?

5 March 2015, Brussels, Interparliamentary Committee Meeting "Empowering women and girls through education"
- The importance of eliminating gender disparity in education and training
- Challenges for equal access to continuous and quality education
- Moving towards the empowerment of women and girls through education in the European Union

4-6 March 2015, Riga, Inter-parliamentary Conference for the Common Foreign and Security Policy and the Common Security and Defence Policy
- State of play of the European Neighbourhood Policy
- European Common Security and Defence Policy and NATO - Better cooperation in view of the new security challenges
- Priorities and tasks of the Common Foreign and Security Policy
- Workshops (Towards the Riga summit - redifining the Eastern Partnership, European response to the instability and threats in the Southern Mediterranean and the Middle East, The hybrid war - a new security challenge for Europe, Challenges and solutions for EU Battlegroup deployment within the existing legal framework)
- Closing session - presentation of workshop results, adoption of the conclusions

ON THE OIDE WEBSITE

Following section has been updated

OIDE Notes - Green and white papers, The EU Justice Scoreboard

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LATEST DEBATES - COMMENTS

 Articles on the current political and economic issues in the EU from the specialist periodicals available on-line (accessed 09.04.2015)

• Beblavý M.: Will this time be different for Greece? How to assess its ability to deliver on the reform agenda, „Commentary", Centre for European Policy Studies, 13.03.2015.
• Borońska-Hryniewiecka K.: The Black Box of European Legislation: The Motivation (or Lack of It) behind Transparency in EU Policymaking, „PISM Policy Paper" nr 4 (106), Polski Instytut Spraw Międzynarodowych, March 2015.
• Cîrlig C.: European defence cooperation: State of play and thoughts on an EU army, „Briefing", European Parliament - European Parliamentary Research Service, March 2015.
• Dauvergne A.: Cameron: taking a gamble on Europe, „Policy paper" no. 129, Jacques Delors Institute, 30.03.2015.
• De Ruyt J.: Who is leading the European Union?, „European Policy Brief" No. 33, EGMONT – The Royal Institute for International Relations, March 2015.
• Dhéret C.: Fostering social cohesion: the missing link in the EU's exit strategy from the crisis, „Discussion Paper", European Policy Centre, 31.03.2015.
• Dimitrakopoulos D.G.: The Greek elections of 2015 and Greece ́s future in the eurozone, „European Policy Analysis" iss. 2015/04, Swedish Institute for European Policy Studies.
• Dudek J.: Od warszawskiej do brukselskiej Unii Energetycznej, „Analizy Natolińskie" nr 1/2015, Centrum Europejskie Natolin.
• Emmanouilidis J.A.: Greece back on centre stage: the results of a déjà vu summit, „Post-Summit Analysis", European Policy Centre, 23.03.2015.
• Erbach G.: Energy Union. New impetus for coordination and integration of energy policies in the EU, „Briefing", European Parliament - European Parliamentary Research Service, 05.03.2015.
• Fischer S.: European Union Sanctions Against Russia. Objectives, Impacts and Next Steps, „SWP Comment" 2015/C 17, Stiftung Wissenschaft und Politik, March 2015.
• Frontini A.: Federalist rhetoric or political tactics? The what, where, who, when and why of Juncker's call for a common European army, „Commentary", European Policy Centre, 12.03.2015.
• Giuli M.: The Energy Union: what is in a name?, „Commentary", European Policy Centre. 18.03.2015.
• Hedberg A.: EU's quest for energy security - What role for the Energy Union?, „Policy Brief", European Policy Centre, 03.03.2015.
• Jędrzejewska S.: Revision of the Multiannual Financial Framework (Article 19, MFF Regulation), „Briefing", European Parliament - European Parliamentary Research Service, 23.03.2015.
• Lazarewicz A.: Governance of the Free Movement of EU Citizens: Weathering the Storm of Politicisation, „PISM Policy Paper" nr 3 (105), Polski Instytut Spraw Międzynarodowych, March 2015.
• Leonard M.: The British problem and what it means for Europe, „Policy Brief" no. 128, European Council on Foreign Relations, 11.03.2015.
• Marty O.: Progress on the 'Juncker Plan' continues - but are Member States behind it?, „Commentary", European Policy Centre, 18.03.2015.
• Merabishvili G.: The EU and Azerbaijan: Game on for a more normative policy?, „Policy Brief" no. 329, Centre for European Policy Studies, March 2015.
• Poptcheva E.: EU legal framework on asylum and irregular immigration 'on arrival'. State of play, „Briefing", European Parliament - European Parliamentary Research Service, March 2015.
• Raik K.: No zero-sum game among EU foreign policy actors: Germany's leadership in the Ukraine crisis has strengthened the Union, „FIIA Comment" 8 (2015), The Finnish Institute of International Affairs, 10.03.2015.
• Schneider J.D.: Growth for Europe - Is the Juncker Plan the answer?, „Discussion Paper" European Policy Centre, 20.03.2015.
• Siddi M.: The EU's Energy Union: Towards an integrated European energy market?, „Briefing Paper" 172 (2015), The Finnish Institute of International Affairs, 16.03.2015.
• Toporowski P.: Skup obligacji rządowych przez EBC – lepiej późno niż wcale, „Biuletyn PISM" nr 26 (1263), Polski Instytut Spraw Międzynarodowych, 16.03.2015.
• Vanden Broucke J. i inn.: Outcome of the European Council of 19-20 March 2015, „Briefing", European Parliament - European Parliamentary Research Service, 27.03.2015.
• Wnukowski D.: Umowa o wolnym handlu UE–Japonia: szanse dla polskiego biznesu, „Biuletyn PISM" nr 27 (1264), Polski Instytut Spraw Międzynarodowych, 17.03.2015.
• Youngs R.: The EU's geopolitical crossroads in the Middle East, „Policy Brief" No. 197, Fride, 12.03.2015.