SE Countries in EU

Jean-Claude Trichet, the president of the European Central Bank (ECB), made a renewed call for the abolition of restrictions on Slovenian workers in the EU in the light of the fact that Slovenia has joined the eurozone. "Free movement of labour is of the essence," he told the press in Ljubljana on Monday.

The free movement of labour is a "natural feature" of the single market and the single European currency. There is "very strong economic underpinning" for this, Trichet said. Speaking to the press on the margins of a high-profile euro conference, Trichet was reluctant to comment on inflationary pressure in the eurozone in the face of falling oil prices. Nor did he wish to speculate on when other countries might join the 13-member euro club. "They are welcome," he said, adding that the eurozone was not a closed club provided that criteria are met. The fulfillment of convergence criteria is in the interest of member states as well as the eurozone as a whole, he said. Before the conference at which he was one of the keynote speakers, Trichet held talks with Slovenian Prime Minister Janez Jansa. He congratulated Slovenia on the successful adoption of the euro, saying that it has done a great job with good management of economic policies. Trichet was quoted as saying by the PM's office that the euro was a strong currency and the countries that adopted it created four times more jobs than in the same period before the euro. Jansa was convinced that as a part of the eurozone, Slovenia would progress even more rapidly, as companies could plan their activities in the long term.

Romania may receive EU funds for agriculture and rural development close to EUR 13 bn, over 2007 – 2013.

The first post-accession European funds for agriculture and rural development may become available in Romania by the end of 2007 or even during early 2008, according to those declared by Minister of Agriculture, Dan Motreanu (photo), cited by Mediafax. Farmers will continue to receive the single subsidy per area, worth EUR 50 per hectare, as of October, disbursed by Ministry of Agriculture. The Agency for Payments for Interventions and Agriculture (APIA) will disburse the subsidies starting with September – October, from the budget, the EU remaining to allot the amounts spent eventually, according to Motreanu.

The European Parliament will discuss a resolution in support of the Bulgarian nurses in Libya on Wednesday. The document had to be passed at the last session of the EP for 2006. However, a MEP form Malta proposed that the decision of the court in Tripoli should be made public before taking a stand, with the hope that the ruling will be in favor of the nurses. However, the confirmation of the death sentences shocked everybody. It is expected that the document will call for a revision of the EU policy towards Libya in case a solution to the problem with the five Bulgarian nurses cannot be found.