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EU workers expected to spend longer in employment as average working life reaches 37.5 years

EU workers expected to spend longer in employment as average working life reaches 37.5 years EU workers expected to spend longer in employment as average working life reaches 37.5 years
  People across the European Union are expected to spend more time in the workforce than ever before, with the average working life reaching...
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EU asylum applications fall by 11% as Venezuelans become largest group of new applicants

EU asylum applications fall by 11% as Venezuelans become largest group of new applicants EU asylum applications fall by 11% as Venezuelans become largest group of new applicants
  The number of people applying for asylum in the European Union fell by 11% in April compared with the same month last year, according...
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German court jails three more suspects in €50m EU VAT fraud investigation

German court jails three more suspects in €50m EU VAT fraud investigation German court jails three more suspects in €50m EU VAT fraud investigation
  A German court has convicted three more people linked to a major VAT fraud network accused of hiding more than €50 million in tax losses...
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EU fund to help nearly 2,000 workers hit by job losses in Belgium and Spain

EU fund to help nearly 2,000 workers hit by job losses in Belgium and Spain EU fund to help nearly 2,000 workers hit by job losses in Belgium and Spain
  The European Commission has proposed a €6.5 million support package to help almost 2,000 workers affected by major job losses in Belgium...
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EU approves €41m Greek aid package to help farmers cope with fertiliser price surge

 EU approves €41m Greek aid package to help farmers cope with fertiliser price surge EU approves €41m Greek aid package to help farmers cope with fertiliser price surge
The European Commission has approved a €41 million support scheme for Greek agricultural businesses hit by rising fertiliser costs linked...
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EU review finds nitrates rules still protect water but calls for simpler farming measures

EU review finds nitrates rules still protect water but calls for simpler farming measures EU review finds nitrates rules still protect water but calls for simpler farming measures
  The European Commission has said EU rules aimed at tackling agricultural pollution remain effective after more than three decades, but...
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EU and UK agree new Gibraltar deal to secure post-Brexit future

EU and UK agree new Gibraltar deal to secure post-Brexit future EU and UK agree new Gibraltar deal to secure post-Brexit future
The European Union and the United Kingdom have signed a landmark agreement aimed at shaping Gibraltar’s future relationship with the bloc...
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EU Parliament backs tougher rules for organic imports and stronger support for local producers

EU Parliament backs tougher rules for organic imports and stronger support for local producers EU Parliament backs tougher rules for organic imports and stronger support for local producers
  Members of the European Parliament have backed plans to tighten rules on organic food imports, simplify requirements for small producers...
Read More...

EU launches defence industry pact with Ukraine and unveils €1bn drone package

EU launches defence industry pact with Ukraine and unveils €1bn drone package EU launches defence industry pact with Ukraine and unveils €1bn drone package
  The European Union has signed a new defence industrial partnership with Ukraine, launched a joint drone production initiative and released...
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EU and India deepen technology and trade ties with plans for Horizon Europe talks and AI cooperation

EU and India deepen technology and trade ties with plans for Horizon Europe talks and AI cooperation EU and India deepen technology and trade ties with plans for Horizon Europe talks and AI cooperation
  The European Union and India have agreed to deepen cooperation on technology, trade and supply chains, announcing a series of new initiatives...
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Latest News

EU workers expected to spend longer in employment as average working life reaches 37.5 years

EU workers expected to spend longer in employment as average working life reaches 37.5 years EU workers expected to spend longer in employment as average working life reaches 37.5 years
  People across the European Union are expected to spend more time in the workforce than ever before, with the average working life reaching...
Read More...

EU asylum applications fall by 11% as Venezuelans become largest group of new applicants

EU asylum applications fall by 11% as Venezuelans become largest group of new applicants EU asylum applications fall by 11% as Venezuelans become largest group of new applicants
  The number of people applying for asylum in the European Union fell by 11% in April compared with the same month last year, according...
Read More...

German court jails three more suspects in €50m EU VAT fraud investigation

German court jails three more suspects in €50m EU VAT fraud investigation German court jails three more suspects in €50m EU VAT fraud investigation
  A German court has convicted three more people linked to a major VAT fraud network accused of hiding more than €50 million in tax losses...
Read More...

EU fund to help nearly 2,000 workers hit by job losses in Belgium and Spain

EU fund to help nearly 2,000 workers hit by job losses in Belgium and Spain EU fund to help nearly 2,000 workers hit by job losses in Belgium and Spain
  The European Commission has proposed a €6.5 million support package to help almost 2,000 workers affected by major job losses in Belgium...
Read More...

EU approves €41m Greek aid package to help farmers cope with fertiliser price surge

 EU approves €41m Greek aid package to help farmers cope with fertiliser price surge EU approves €41m Greek aid package to help farmers cope with fertiliser price surge
The European Commission has approved a €41 million support scheme for Greek agricultural businesses hit by rising fertiliser costs linked...
Read More...

EU review finds nitrates rules still protect water but calls for simpler farming measures

EU review finds nitrates rules still protect water but calls for simpler farming measures EU review finds nitrates rules still protect water but calls for simpler farming measures
  The European Commission has said EU rules aimed at tackling agricultural pollution remain effective after more than three decades, but...
Read More...

EU and UK agree new Gibraltar deal to secure post-Brexit future

EU and UK agree new Gibraltar deal to secure post-Brexit future EU and UK agree new Gibraltar deal to secure post-Brexit future
The European Union and the United Kingdom have signed a landmark agreement aimed at shaping Gibraltar’s future relationship with the bloc...
Read More...

EU Parliament backs tougher rules for organic imports and stronger support for local producers

EU Parliament backs tougher rules for organic imports and stronger support for local producers EU Parliament backs tougher rules for organic imports and stronger support for local producers
  Members of the European Parliament have backed plans to tighten rules on organic food imports, simplify requirements for small producers...
Read More...

EU launches defence industry pact with Ukraine and unveils €1bn drone package

EU launches defence industry pact with Ukraine and unveils €1bn drone package EU launches defence industry pact with Ukraine and unveils €1bn drone package
  The European Union has signed a new defence industrial partnership with Ukraine, launched a joint drone production initiative and released...
Read More...

EU and India deepen technology and trade ties with plans for Horizon Europe talks and AI cooperation

EU and India deepen technology and trade ties with plans for Horizon Europe talks and AI cooperation EU and India deepen technology and trade ties with plans for Horizon Europe talks and AI cooperation
  The European Union and India have agreed to deepen cooperation on technology, trade and supply chains, announcing a series of new initiatives...
Read More...

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Most Popular Stories

The European Commission on Tuesday welcomed Romania's pledge to renounce controversial judicial reforms that had triggered strong criticism and

Prime Minister Theresa May on Tuesday urged whoever succeeds her to get Britain out of the EU quickly but with a deal, as she met the bloc's leaders just

As up to 400 million Europeans prepare to vote for the EU parliament, the populist challenge to the Brussels consensus has been disrupted by scandal.

Europe's mainstream political parties took a hit in elections on Sunday but held off a strong surge by the populist right of Marine Le Pen, Matteo Salvini and Nigel Farage.

 

Facebook has closed 23 mostly pro-government pages in Italy which were spreading fake news and anti-immigrant content, after an investigation by Avaaz, the civil rights group said on Monday.

More than half of the pages, which had a total of almost 2.5 million followers, supported the far-right anti-immigrant League party or the anti-establishment Five Star Movement, which form the ruling coalition, Avaaz said in a statement.

The most active page translates as "We want the Five Star Movement in government" which had shared a quote wrongly attributed to anti-mafia writer Roberto Saviano that he would "prefer to save migrants than Italian earthquake victims."

Saviano was forced to publicly deny having said it.

A pro-League page shared a video which it wrongly said depicted migrants smashing up a police car.

The footage was in fact filmed for a movie, but was viewed almost 10 million times, days ahead of next week's European parliament elections in which Italian populist parties hope to do well.

"This is more proof that lies designed to sow hate and division in our societies are being spread deliberately on social media ahead of the EU elections," said Avaaz's Christoph Schott.

"Facebook has done a good job in taking these pages down, but it says a lot that a multi-billion dollar company is relying on a crowd-funded Avaaz investigation to defend Europe’s democracy. Facebook need to do more, and they need to do it fast."

Avaaz also noted the practice of "recycling followers" used by some supporters of the two ruling parties, whereby a page with non-political content changes its name to become political or partisan, retaining likes and followers.

One such page "was started as an agricultural breeders’ association of the Messina province and eventually became a League-supporting local chapter. The change was made one word at a time, gradually, using the ambiguity of the word 'League' to avoid the automatic checks carried out by Facebook," Avaaz said.

Facebook and other social networks are regularly accused of not doing enough to eliminate fake news from its platform.AFP