EU-Saudi Relations: European Parliament urges EU to snub Saudi G20 Summit

The European Parliament on Thursday voted to downgrade its attendance at the November G20 summit in Saudi Arabia over human rights concerns, and to urge for sanctions.

The bill is one of the strongest political messages the institution has ever issued on Saudi Arabia and comes on the two-year anniversary of the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi.

MEPs approved a wide-ranging resolution that condemns Saudi human rights abuses and urges the European Union to downgrade its representation at the upcoming G20 Leaders' Summit to avoid legitimizing human rights violations.

Belgian MEP and vice chair of the delegation for the relations with Arab Peninsula Marc Tarabella said: "We are all aware of the importance of Saudi Arabia as a partner of the European Union and for the stability of the Middle East. However, this must not be an alibi for violating human rights."

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European Parliament urges EU to snub Saudi G20 Summit | News | DW | 08.10.2020

EU: Coronavirus -Remdesivir: Commission signs a joint procurement contract with Gilead for the supply of Remdesivir

 The Commission has signed a joint procurement framework contract with the pharmaceutical company Gilead for the supply of up to 500,000 treatment courses of Veklury, the brand name for Remdesivir, and the opportunity to increase supply beyond the 500,000 treatment courses. There are  36 signatories of the Joint Procurement Agreement participating in this joint procurement, including all EU countries, the EEA countries of Norway and Iceland*, the UK, as well as six candidate countries and potential candidates (Albania, the Republic of North Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia, Kosovo** and Bosnia and Herzegovina). All participating countries can now place their orders to procure Veklury directly. Veklury is at this stage the only medicine with a conditional marketing authorisation in the EU for the treatment of COVID-19 patients needing oxygen supply.

Read more at: Coronavirus: Remdesivir

The Netherlands: brief overview of the Dutch governmental budget for 2021 - by Rachel Deloughry

The big question for anyone working in the Netherlands is how, when and to what extent the economic downturn due to the coronavirus will affect public finances in the long term. According to CBP, the Dutch economy will grow by 3,5 percent next year. Thanks, in part, to the support package for companies, unemployment is at the rate of 5,9 percent as opposed to the previously feared rate of 6,5 percent.

Here are the main points regarding the Dutch economy:

• The economy will contract by 5 percent in 2020 but will grow by 3,5 percent in 2021 provided there is no second lockdown
• National debt will reach 60 percent of GDP
• Unemployment will be at 5,9 percent
• Higher spending on unemployment benefits will reach an overspend of 230 million euros

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A brief overview of the Dutch governmental budget for 2021

Coronavirus - The Netherlands: Dutch run out of anti-viral drug Remdesivir to treat coronavirus patients

Dutch hospitals can no longer order supplies of the anti-viral drug Remdesivir to treat coronavirus patients because central supplies have run out, the Financieele Dagblad reported on Tuesday.



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Dutch run out of anti-viral drug Remdesivir to treat coronavirus patients - DutchNews.nl

Denmark: Government seeking to tap mobile phones of rejected asylum-seekers "program should also be adopted in the Netherlands and other EU countries"

The government is aiming to obtain data from the mobile phones of rejected asylum-seekers in a bid to hasten their repatriation.

The measure is one of seven proposals that are part of a new repatriation law,

According to the immigration minister, Mattias Tesfaye, many asylum seekers in Denmark have used YouTube and Snapchat to discuss routes and destination countries.

The new law aims to provide clear direction on the treatment of asylum seekers – from the moment they are rejected residence until the time they are sent home.

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Government seeking to tap mobile phones of rejected asylum-seekers - The Post

USA: Trump’s Turn From Immigration to the Enemy Within - by Ryan Devereaux

Trump’s shift from demonizing immigrants to targeting leftists is straight out of the fascist playbook.

Read more at: Trump’s Turn From Immigration to the Enemy Within

The Netherlands one of the most sustainable destinations for expats

In the first-ever Environment and Sustainability Ranking published by InterNations - a network of expats around the world - the Netherlands has been ranked 12th out of 60 destinations for expats when it comes to sustainable living.

The data for the ranking was gathered via InterNations’ annual Expat Insider Survey, one of the most extensive surveys about living and working abroad, in which participants were asked to rate, on a scale of one to seven, their personal satisfaction in eight separate areas: air quality, the natural environment, water and sanitation, the availability of green goods and services, energy supply, local waste management and recycling infrastructure. The rating also covers perception of local government support for environmental policies and how invested the local population is in environmental issues.

Over 15.000 expats took part in the Expat Insider 2020, representing a total of 173 nationalities and living in 181 different countries or territories. For a country to be included in the ranking, a sample size of at least 75 respondents was necessary - this year, 60 countries met this requirement. The survey covers a number of issues, including making friends as an expat and the best cities around the world for expats.

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The Netherlands one of the most sustainable destinations for expats