Update from Berlin #9 | EU Train Passenger Rights | Schengen Report | ECJ Sessions

Hello and welcome to our Update from Berlin for the week of June 5th. My name is Florian von Gierke and today we’re looking West – specifically to Brussels. Why not Berlin? Well Berlin is essentially taking a break this week. But before we get started: Leave a like and / or comment, we look forward to hearing from you and engagement really helps convince the almighty algorithm that people should watch these videos.

So what’s going on in Europe:

EU Train Passenger Rights

Train travelers in Europe should take note of June 7th – Wednesday, as that’s when the new EU Directive on consumer rights for rail passengers goes into effect. This will mean some improvements – notably slightly better refund options if a trip has become obsolete due to a significant delay – but it also includes substantial negative changes. For example, going forward, train operators do not owe compensation if the delay is due to acts of god. Now those of us accustomed to trains being canceled due to strikes: Be aware that those do not count as “acts of god”. One will have to see if rail passengers will have the same fights over the cause of a delay as airline passengers.

EU Commission Session

Also on Wednesday the EU Commission is scheduled to talk about its budget for 2024, debate a holistic concept for psychiatric health and the Commission is going to take a first look at a new agenda for Latin America and the Caribbean.

Schengen Report

On Thursday and Friday the Justice and Home Affairs Council will meet. On Thursday the Interior Ministers are expected to debate the overall state of the Schengen area on the basis of the Commission’s State of Schengen report 2023. Based on that debate, they are supposed to define priorities for Schengen in the coming year. Ministers should also talk about managing security challenges and the fight against violent extremism and terrorism. Moreover, access to data for an “effective” law enforcement should be on the agenda.

Meeting of the Justice Ministers

On Friday the Justice Ministers will come together. On the agenda are regulations against so-called SLAPP law-suits, changes to an anti-human smuggling Directive, as well as measures to combat violence against women and domestic violence.

ECJ Sessions

Lastly the ECJ is scheduled to release its judgment on the Polish Supreme Court today, there’s going to be a hearing on Wednesday on refunds of travel expenses in cases of disruptions due to the pandemic, and final arguments will be heard on Thursday in a case concerning state aid and taxes.

Thanks again for watching and have a great start into your week!