In depth


Poland has a new train schedule. But problems are far from over

Friday 20 December 2019 | Jarosław Kopeć
| BiQdata

As the Polish government claims to fight against transport exclusion, trains are coming back to some routes that were not operated anymore. The merits and impact of these changes are not clear-cut though, as much larger investments would be needed to rescue local lines.


Thousands of children go missing in Europe every year

Friday 13 December 2019 | Laszlo Arato
| EUrologus

Various forms of abuse, violence, neglect, family disputes, and poverty all account for the over one thousand children going missing every year in Europe. A new development is the increasing number of who disappear down migration paths. There is no precise data available, but one NGO, Missing Children Europe 2014, has collected and compiled the available figures from European countries’ designated hotlines. 


Hungarians are more dissatisfied with their lives than EU citizens in general

Friday 13 December 2019 | Laszlo Arato
| EUrologus

An interesting survey result was published by the European Union: it gauged the life satisfaction of Europeans, and how this measures up with their overall happiness. The survey results show some improvement as they are better than last year’s. Yet Hungarians continue to lag behind, as we are shown to be far less happy than the average European.


2019: escape from the Balkans

Monday 25 November 2019 | Francesca Rolandi
Christian Elia
| OBC Transeuropa

A growing phenomenon with worrying implications: the flight of workers, skilled or otherwise, from former Yugoslavia. A look at the data and political responses.


Which parties and countries chair the EP committees?

Thursday 21 November 2019 | Elena Sánchez Nicolás
| EUobserver

The MEPs in the European Parliament's committees are divided up among 20 standing committees and two sub-committees (Human Rights (DROI) and Security and Defence (SEDE)), specialising in concrete areas of EU's policymaking.


Where the EU power really lies

Tuesday 19 November 2019 | Andrew Rettman
| EUobserver

Welcome to the EU engine room: the European Parliament's 22 committees, which churn out hundreds of new laws and non-binding reports each year and keep an eye on other European institutions.


The Irish Sea, a new frontier

Friday 15 November 2019 | Aude Martin
| Alternatives Economiques

The introduction of customs and regulatory controls in the Irish Sea, provided for in the latest UK withdrawal agreement, would make Northern Ireland a very special economic area.


The mirage of cheaper labor

Wednesday 13 November 2019 | Marc Chevallier
| Alternatives Economiques

In their quest for competitiveness many countries are fixated on cutting the cost of labor, in particular by reducing social-insurance contributions. But it that the right solution?


Dark patterns: born to mislead

Wednesday 13 November 2019 | Federico Caruso
| OBC Transeuropa

Digital platforms often trick users into giving up their personal data or buying particular products. These “dark patterns” go against European legislation, but authorities are struggling to combat them.


Visegrad 4 and the rule of law: Why always me?

Tuesday 05 November 2019 | Alexander Damiano Ricci
| Voxeurop

The World Bank’s worldwide governance indicators provide useful data about the evolution of the perceptions within EU countries as to how much agents abide by the rule of law. Based on this data source, Southern European countries appear more problematic than Visegrad ones.