Spain has taken over the Presidency of the Council of the European Union for the fourth time, for the first time in a trio with Belgium and Hungary. The Spanish Presidency starts with some reforms in the EU structure being in place: the Lisbon Treaty has come into force and a new Commission takes office. Under the motto “Innovating Europe”, the Presidency will try over the next 6 months to get the financial, economic and employment crisis under control.

In a 3-hour hearing this week, the Hungarian commissioner-designate for employment and social affairs László Andor answered the questions of the MEPs. In demand were pragmatic ideas and long-term visions. The setting of the hearing did not do justice to these requests. László Andor left many concrete questions unanswered and did not get involved in details.

This week in Brussels, Michel Barnier, the French Commissioner-designate for the internal market and services, was responsible for one of the most convincing appearances during the current hearings of the candidates for the future Commission by the European Parliament. His attempt to draw a clear line under the neoliberal course of his predecessors has been successful.

The first years of experience with Brussels I have shown that the Regulation essentially guarantees a well functioning European system of jurisdiction in civil and commercial matters. However, not least cases, which had to be decided by the European Court of Justice (ECJ), have made it obvious that the current Regulation has some weaknesses and gaps.

This week, the Commission presented a new Eurobarometer survey on poverty and social exclusion and held a conference under the motto “Poverty: between perception and reality - a communication challenge”. The survey and the conference are associated with the 2010 European Year for Combating Poverty and Social Exclusion, whose aim it is to reach a broad public and to shed light on the different perceptions of poverty and social exclusion.

The frequencies, which are released by the conversion from analogue to digital television, will be used for innovative services, informed the Commission in a press release. Interactive television or mobile phones with advanced functions could now be made possible by the freed frequencies.

This week, the Commission in Brussels published two Communications, which deal with regulating the financial markets. On the one hand, this concerns future measures to restrain the derivative markets, which played a central role in the financial crisis. On the other hand, the Commission has also adopted a Communication on an EU Framework for Cross-Border Crisis Management in the Banking Sector.

A new microfinance instrument for employment; more money for energy projects, for promoting small and medium-sized business and for milk farmers: that is what suggestions of the European Parliament included for the EU budget, which was adopted on Thursday in its first reading.

This week, the European Commission presented two legislative instruments for changing the Common European Asylum System: the Directive on qualification and status of persons in need of international protection and the Asylum Procedures Directive.

This week, the European Commission presented progress reports on the accession negotiations with Croatia, Turkey and the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia. No EU accession negotiations have been opened yet with Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia and the Kosovo.