European Parliamentary Research Service

Cadmium is a toxic heavy metal causing irreversible kidney and bone damage. 2026 data confirm chronic EU-wide overexposure to cadmium. 🔎 In the EU, phosphate fertilisers are the primary source of contamination: they contribute 55% of the cadmium added to EU farmlands annually, causing the toxic heavy metal to accumulate in 45% of agricultural soils faster than it can be removed. Current regulations are fragmented and scientifically insufficient, yet the European Commission's May 2026 fertiliser action plan missed the chance to set stricter targets. 📌 The upcoming review of the Fertilising Products Regulation represents an opportunity for setting safer and binding cadmium limits. 📝 Our briefing explains the issues at stake, the Commission's 2026 fertiliser action plan, and the outlook for the European Parliament ↓ 🔗 https://lnkd.in/eJR2B2SP

🏛️🏞️ Did you know that 35 % of UNESCO world cultural heritage sites are located in the EU? That's 437 sites out of 1 248 sites worldwide. You might even visit one this summer! Cultural heritage goes beyond monuments and archaeological sites. 🖼️🎭 It also includes works of art, oral traditions, performing arts, crafts and rituals. European culture and heritage are central to the EU's values and identity, fostering dialogue, reflection and civic engagement. While culture is a competence of the Member States, the EU can encourage cooperation and support or complement national action. 🧭 The Culture Compass for Europe promotes:  - stronger protection, - wider accessibility, - regional cooperation, - a more sustainable approach to heritage governance. The European Capitals of Culture and the European Heritage Days are among the best-known European cultural heritage initiatives, but there are many more. Curious to learn more about European cultural heritage? 📥 Take our briefing with you this summer ↓ 🔗 https://lnkd.in/eWuSiaC3

The European Parliament has adopted the reform of social security rules in July, following a provisional agreement with the Council in April. 🔎 The revised rules seek to coordinate access to social security for those who live or work in another EU country. They also seek to distribute the financial burden more equitably among EU countries. 📆 The text still requires formal approval by the Council, expected in September. Read more about reforming the EU social security coordination ↓ 🔗 https://lnkd.in/ejpUMzBe

Job quality is a complex issue: it is shaped by context, hard to measure, and evolves over time.  The European Commission sees quality jobs as key to boost EU competitiveness and sustainable growth, while also supporting a resilient social Europe.  📌 To improve job quality in the EU, the Commission is preparing a legislative initiative, the quality jobs act, in consultation with social partners. So, what makes a quality job? 🔎 The concept has evolved over time. Earlier approaches emphasised dimensions such as wages and the type of employment contract. Today, it also encompasses aspects such as work autonomy and intensity, skills use and exposure to psychosocial risks. 📑 Based on its two-stage consultation of European social partners, the Commission considered five areas of possible action: - algorithmic management and artificial intelligence (AI) at work; - health and safety at work; - subcontracting; - just transitions; - enforcement and role of social partners. ❓ It remains to be seen whether the Commission will propose new measures in all these areas, and whether they will be implementable and effective, without adding administrative burdens. The European Parliament has called for legislative action to establish the right to disconnect, address digitalisation, AI and algorithmic management in the workplace, and for a just transition directive in the world of work. 🗓️ The quality jobs act proposal is expected to be presented at the end of 2026. Read more about how the EU aims to improve job quality ↓ 🔗 https://lnkd.in/evSHKiAJ

🔎 Artificial intelligence is changing the way we search online. AI chatbots and generative tools are now commonly used to search the web. At the same time, search engines are increasingly displaying AI-generated summaries at the top of results.  While convenient, this also raises several questions around: - copyright, - content quality, - potential informational dependency. 🤖 Curious to learn more about how AI is transforming search engines? ➡️ Read our briefing: https://lnkd.in/eCdRAAeF

About 6 out of 10 Europeans believed racial or ethnic discrimination to be widespread in their country (2019 Eurobarometer survey), with considerable variations between EU countries. While surveys show racism is widespread in the EU, lack of data and under-reporting of incidents make it difficult to measure the exact scale of the problem. Although the EU has introduced legislation to combat racial and xenophobic discrimination since 2000, the problem still persists. 📌 The EU anti-racism strategy 2026-2030, adopted by the European Commission in January, aims to strengthen the enforcement of existing EU anti-discrimination laws by: - reviewing the Racial Equality Directive from 2000 and considering stronger sanctions where necessary, - strengthening the rules on tackling hate speech and hate crime, and ensuring the rights of victims through EU laws, - supporting equality bodies in EU countries to carry out their work. 📌 The European Parliament, meanwhile, has long demanded an end to racial discrimination. In recent resolutions, Parliament has called for an end to structural racism, discrimination, racial profiling and police brutality. It has also advocated the protection of the right to protest peacefully, an enhanced role for culture, education, media and sport in the fight against racism, and an intersectional approach by authorities. 📝 Read more about the EU's efforts to combat racial and ethnic discrimination ↓ 🔗 https://lnkd.in/deY4WPyQ

🚉 Do you know what multimodal digital mobility services are and how they work? Multimodal digital mobility services are digital platforms that integrate transport modes (e.g. rail, buses, bikes, taxis and car-sharing) into a single interface for planning, booking and payment. 📱 While they aim to provide a seamless and user-friendly travel experience, passengers still face difficulties when planning and booking multimodal and cross-border journeys. A key problem is the lack of interoperability between ticketing systems and inconsistent rules on access to travel data. Travel information, fares and ticketing services are often fragmented across different operators and booking platforms, making it difficult to compare travel options or purchase a single ticket covering the entire journey. As a result, passengers frequently need to buy multiple separate tickets from different operators, particularly for international rail travel. 🎫 But using separate tickets also has consequences for passenger rights, as passengers travelling on independently purchased tickets do not generally benefit from through-ticket protection. 📌 To address this issue, the European Commission proposed the passenger package with rules on: - multimodal booking, - rail ticketing, - enhanced protection for single tickets. The proposed passenger package aims to enable seamless door-to-door booking and consistent passenger rights across operators. It is closely linked to the objectives of the European Green Deal and the sustainable and smart mobility strategy. Both identify digitalisation and multimodal transport as key tools for decarbonising the transport sector. Curious to learn more? 🔎 Check how multimodal digital mobility services work ↓ 📝 Read how the passenger package aims to provide stronger passenger rights in the EU: https://lnkd.in/d7sxD6J5

🇮🇪 What do you know about the Irish Parliament and how it deals with EU affairs? 📌 Ireland is a parliamentary democracy with a bicameral parliament known as the Oireachtas. 📌 The Irish Parliament consists of the President of Ireland (Head of State) and two Houses: Dáil Éireann (House of Representatives) and Seanad Éireann (the Senate). The President is directly elected but mainly has a ceremonial role.  📌 EU affairs are frequently discussed in each House of the Oireachtas – either in the form of plenary debates or parliamentary questions. As Ireland assumes the Presidency of the Council of the European Union, read these publications to learn more about this new presidency: 🟢 The Irish Parliament and EU affairs ↓ https://lnkd.in/eUVV6S8e  ⚪ Priorities under the Irish EU Council Presidency https://lnkd.in/e4KxraKs  🟠 Ireland: key economic indicators   https://lnkd.in/euEb8ybw #Ireland2026EU Irish Presidency of the Council of the EU 2026 Houses of the Oireachtas

Artificial intelligence is transforming the world of work, with generative AI accelerating this change. While the debate often focuses on productivity gains and job losses, current evidence suggests that the most likely impact of generative AI is a profound transformation of jobs, rather than their large-scale replacement. AI's impact will vary depending on the tasks involved. Analyses distinguish between: - augmentable jobs, where AI enhances or supports human judgement and expertise, - automatable jobs, where AI can carry out many tasks, - less affected jobs, where AI has a more limited impact. 🔎 On the other hand, a recent LinkedIn analysis of hiring data in the EU shows that, since 2023, over 256 000 AI-related jobs have been created in the EU, mostly AI engineers, heads of AI, and AI infrastructure roles. To reap AI's benefits while mitigating its negative effects on jobs, societal adaptations are also needed. These include training and education to provide workers with the necessary skills, as well as social protection, social dialogue, and safeguards of workers' rights. 📌 The European Commission is currently working on a quality jobs act, with preparatory consultations suggesting the Commission could seek a balance between supporting and enabling the uptake of AI at work, and protecting workers from potential risks arising from the use of algorithmic management at the workplace. In the end, much will depend on the regulatory framework, on organisations' workflow adaptation, and on training people in AI skills. 📝 Read more in our briefing on how AI is reshaping jobs ↓ 🔗 https://lnkd.in/egahS48z

As clean technologies expand, data centres multiply, and security needs grow, so does demand for critical resources. Critical and strategic raw materials are essential to both European and American industries. The EU and the US share a strategic vulnerability in processing and refining capacity for critical minerals, and both seek new ways to shore up domestic supplies. 📝 Read our 2-page explainer on EU and US critical raw materials strategies ↓ 🔗 https://lnkd.in/ez59ruPe