DAILY NEWS
Brussels, 30 July 2024
Commission launches consultation on the Code of Practice for general-purpose Artificial Intelligence
Today, the Commission has launched a consultation on a Code of Practice for providers of general-purpose Artificial Intelligence (GPAI) models. The Commission invites GPAI providers with operations in the EU, businesses, civil society representatives, rights holders and academic experts to submit their views and findings, which will feed into the Commission's upcoming draft of the Code of Practice on GPAI models. Interested parties are also invited to provide input on ensuring trustworthy general-purpose AI models in the EU.
The Code of Practice, foreseen by the Artificial Intelligence Act (AI Act), will address critical areas such as transparency, copyright-related rules, risk identification and assessment, risk mitigation, and internal risk management.
In addition, the feedback from the consultation will also inform the work of the AI Office, which will supervise the implementation and enforcement of the AI Act rules on GPAI. The AI Office is developing a template and guidelines for summarising training data, used to build the GPAI model. The template and guidelines will be adopted by the Commission and contribute to further discussions on the Code.
The AI Act, which enters into force on 1 August 2024, aims to foster responsible AI development and deployment in the EU. The provisions on GPAI will enter into application 12 months after the AI Act enters into force. The Commission expects to finalise the Code of Practice by April 2025.
Participants can find more information on the consultation on the Code of Practice for GPAI here, as well as information on how to join the upcoming drafting process here.
(For more information: Thomas Regnier – Tel.: +32 2 299 10 99; Patricia Poropat – Tel.: +32 2 298 04 85)
The EU and UNODC call for renewed efforts to end child trafficking
Today, on the 10th World Day against Trafficking in Persons, the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) and the EU Anti-Trafficking Coordinator call to increase efforts in fighting and eradicating child trafficking. Worldwide, more than one in three victims of trafficking detected is a child, while in the EU every fifth victim is a child, the majority of which are girls. A joint statement from the EU Anti-Trafficking Coordinator and the UNODC is available here, calling for the urgent need to protect every child and tackle new forms of trafficking.
The Strategy on Combatting Trafficking in Human Beings 2021-2025 describes the EU's commitment and efforts to protect children and tackle trafficking in its various forms, including the challenges created by the digital age. New EU rules entered into force on 14 July 2024, reaching a new milestone in the fight against this heinous crime. The revised rules will provide stronger tools for law enforcement and judicial authorities to investigate and prosecute new forms of exploitation, including those that take place online. For instance, national law will have to qualify the exploitation of surrogacy, of forced marriage and of illegal adoption as trafficking. Knowingly using services provided by victims of trafficking will become a criminal offence.
Through its funding, the Commission supports projects that aim to strengthen identification, assistance, support and integration of non-EU nationals who are victims of trafficking in human beings. A call for proposals under the Asylum, Migration and Integration Fund with a budget of €6 million is currently open until 21 August 2024.
For more information on EU anti-trafficking actions, see also the awareness campaign to help end the trafficking of human beings.
(For more information: Anitta Hipper -Tel.: +32 2 298 56 91, Fiorella Boigner – Tel.: +32 2 299 37 34)
EU provides €2.4 million in response to floods in Bangladesh, India and the Philippines
In response to recent floods in northern Bangladesh, India and in the Philippines, the EU has approved €2.4 million in humanitarian aid to help the most affected populations. This funding will help provide cash assistance, food, access to clean water and sanitation, and other essential services in the hardest-hit areas.
Commissioner for Crisis Management, Janez Lenarčič, said: “The beginning of this year's monsoon season is proving very hard for people in the north of Bangladesh, India and in the Philippines. The EU is stepping up its assistance to the most affected populations, so they can receive much needed relief.”
In Bangladesh and India, an allocation of €1.2 million will support the most affected communities. Combined with the effects of cyclone Remal that hit the country in May, nearly a third of Bangladesh has been impacted by floods. This funding comes in addition to the over €30 million already allocated to Bangladesh earlier this year, mainly in support to the Rohingya refugees living in Cox's Bazar as well as in response to other recent emergencies such as heatwaves and cyclone Remal.
In the Philippines, €1.2 million will support communities in Mindanao, where monsoon rains have caused massive flooding, intensified by typhoons Prapiroon and Gaemi. This new funding comes in addition to the €3.1 million already allocated to the Philippines this year, mostly in response to the protracted crises in Mindanao but also to previous floods.
(For more information: Balazs Ujvari – Tel.:+32 2 295 45 78; Jennifer Sanchez da Silva – Tel.: +32 2 295 83 16)
Directive on repair of goods
The Directive on common rules promoting the repair of goods was adopted on 13 June 2024 and entered into force on 30 July 2024. Member States have to transpose it into national rules and apply it from 31 July 2026.
This instrument aims at promoting more sustainable consumption by increasing repair and reuse of goods both within and outside the legal guarantee. It delivers on the Commission’s priority of green transition, specifically the European Green Deal.
The Directive is one of several pieces of legislation that collectively aim at extending the lifetime of consumer products. It complements the Union’s action in the Ecodesign framework under the Ecodesign Directive, to be replaced by the Ecodesign for Sustainable Products Regulation. Ecodesign measures promote product reparability by setting requirements on, amongst others, product design and availability of spare parts. This Directive also complements Directive EU/2024/825 on Empowering Consumers in the Green Transition, which aims at providing consumers with better information on durability and reparability of goods at the point of sale.
The main elements of the Directive
The Directive aims at encouraging consumers to use their goods for longer thus preventing premature disposal of repairable goods. It establishes a number of measures to promote repair:
Obligation to repair
Manufacturers of products (e.g., fridges or smartphones) that are subject to reparability requirements in EU law and listed in Annex II of the Directive will have to repair those products within a reasonable time and for a reasonable price. Such repairability requirements are set in the product-specific legislation, mainly implementing the Ecodesign Directive and the Regulation on Ecodesign for Sustainable Products mentioned before. Annex II to the Directive provides a list of products to which this obligation applies. In addition, manufacturers will be prohibited from using contractual clauses, hardware or software techniques that impede the repair of goods listed in Annex II unless justified by legitimate and objective factors. They will be also obliged to provide access to spare parts at reasonable prices.
Manufacturers are required to make available information on their repair services to consumers in an easily accessible manner. This could be done, for example, on their website or in the instruction manuals. In addition, they must inform consumers on a free access website about the indicative prices charged for typical repairs. These obligations complement product-specific legislation that requires manufacturers to provide information on websites about the spare parts and their indicative prices for specific products.
European Online Platform for repair
Consumers will be able to find repairers more easily through a new online European Repair Platform, which will be established as an extension of “Your Europe” portal. While the Commission will be responsible for setting up the IT infrastructure for this platform, the Member States will set the conditions and manage the registration of repairers established on their territory. The platform is foreseen to become operational in 2027.
Extension of the legal guarantee after repair
The Directive also amended the existing Sale of goods Directive (EU) 2019/771. The amendment provides consumers with an extra year of the legal guarantee if they choose to repair the product instead of replacing it under the legal guarantee.
National measures promoting repair
Member States will have to take at least one measure promoting repair on their territory. This can include both financial and non-financial measures such as information campaigns, repair vouchers, trainings in repair skills.
European Repair Information Form
Repairers will be able to offer to consumers information about their repair services via a standardised European Repair Information Form. It will allow consumers to compare different repair offers more easily. When the repairer chooses to provide the Form, the repair conditions set out therein must remain valid for 30 days.
What are the next steps
The Commission will work with the Member States on the development of the European online platform and annual updates of the list of products in Annex II to which the obligation to repair applies.
Documents
13 JUNE 2024
Directive on common rules promoting the repair of goods
English
(401.23 KB - HTML)
Download
30 JULY 2024
Directive on common rules promoting the repair of goods: Questions and Answers
(143.16 KB - PDF)
22 MARCH 2023
Proposal for a Directive on common rules promoting the repair of goods
(275.28 KB - HTML)
Impact assessment - Proposal for a Directive on common rules promoting the repair of goods
(2.61 MB - PDF)
Summary of Impact assessment - Proposal for a Directive on common rules promoting the repair of goods
(138.57 KB - HTML)
Towards a mercury-free environment: Revised Mercury Regulation enters into force
The revised Regulation on Mercury prohibits the last intentional remaining uses of mercury in the EU and contributes to the Zero Pollution objective of a toxic-free environment. It represents a breakthrough in the safeguarding of human health, with clear environmental benefits.
The new rules prohibit the use and export of dental amalgam by 1 January 2025. Member States requiring more time to adapt their national healthcare system get a limited and temporary derogation for the use, manufacture, and import of dental amalgam (until 30 June 2026). Eventually, dental filling materials will soon be free from mercury, except for specific medical needs and when deemed strictly necessary by a medical practitioner.
Under the revised regulation, Member States will have to stop manufacturing, importing and exporting certain categories of mercury-containing lamps (as of 31 December 2025 or 31 December 2026, depending on the lamp category). These will be replaced by alternatives like LEDs, which are less toxic and more energy efficient.
Next steps
The regulation is now directly applicable in all Member States.
The Commission will publish guidance on abatement technologies for mercury emissions from crematoria by 31 December 2025.
Background
Mercury is a very toxic substance which is used in industrial processes and various products. Exposure to high levels of mercury can be extremely damaging to human health and the environment.
On 14 July 2023, the Commission adopted a proposal for a revision of the Mercury Regulation to further restrict the use of mercury in the EU.
The revised Mercury Regulation complements the existing Mercury Regulation from 2017, which already addresses the entire lifecycle of mercury, from primary mercury mining to the final disposal of mercury waste.
Commission unveils new tool to help SMEs self-assess their digital maturity
The European Digital Innovation Hubs (EDIHs) have launched a Digital Maturity Assessment Tool that will help small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) identify their strengths and weaknesses in the digital transformation of their businesses. The tool is open to all companies and available free of charge in 32 languages. Companies can use the tool to assess their digital maturity based on six key criteria: corporate digital strategy, digital readiness, digital skills development, data management, automation and artificial intelligence (AI), and green digital transformation. With this information, SMEs will be able to plan their digital growth more effectively and receive tailored advice from their local EDIH. In addition, other actors such as the Enterprise Europe Network and Industry Hubs can leverage the Digital Maturity Assessment Tool to help their SMEs digitalise and use artificial intelligence. Composed of 228 hubs, the EDIH Network is dedicated to strengthening the digital capabilities of businesses and public sector organisations. With 151 hubs funded by the Commission's Digital Europe Programme and 77 supported by national or regional resources, the Network is a catalyst for digital innovation and growth across Europe. The Digital Maturity Assessment Tool will contribute to the Digital Decade target of 75% adoption of AI, cloud computing and/or big data by European businesses. The EDIH Network, together with the growing AI Office, will provide a one-stop shop for SMEs and public services looking for AI and digital transformation solutions. More details are available online. Open DMAT - Digital Maturity Assessment tool | European Digital Innovation Hubs Network (europa.eu)
(For further information: Thomas Regnier – Tel.: +32 2 299 10 99; Patricia Poropat — Tel.: +32 2 298 04 85)
The European Commission is committed to personal data protection. Any personal data is processed in line with Regulation (EC) 2018/1725. All personal information processed by the Directorate-General for Communication / European Commission Representations is treated accordingly. If you do not work for a media organisation, you are welcome to contact the EU through Europe Direct in writing or by calling 00 800 6 7 8 9 10 11.
Athanasios ATHANASIOU
Press Officer / Political Reporter
European Commission
Representation in Cyprus
EU House, 30 Vyronos Avenue, 1096 Nicosia
Tel: +357 22 81 75 76 Mob: +357 99 363753
Twitter: @aathans