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Ensuring Europe’s competitiveness and security is top of the EU agenda for the next few years. The European Commission has taken important steps towards meetings these goals in its first 100 days in office. See what they have achieved so far.

A screening by the European Commission and national consumer protection authorities finds that nearly half of second-hand online traders fail to correctly inform consumers of their return rights. Consumer authorities will now decide whether to take action against those traders in breach of EU law.

At the Special European Council, EU leaders committed to strengthening the EU's defence readiness and capabilities. They also called for increased military support for Ukraine and set out principles for a lasting peace.

Ahead of International Women's Day, read about the European Commission's plans to strengthen women's rights and ensure gender equality by working to eliminate the structural discrimination they face.

The European Commission has presented an Action Plan for a thriving car industry that creates jobs, drives growth, and protects the environment. The Plan includes funding worth €1.8 billion to create a secure and competitive supply chain for battery raw materials.

The Union of Skills focuses on delivering higher levels of basic skills, providing lifelong opportunities for adults to regularly upskill and reskill, making recruitment across the EU easier for businesses, and attracting and retaining the skills and talents needed in the EU.

Rare diseases represent a big challenge for healthcare systems due to the limited knowledge available to diagnose them and the limited number of treatment options. The EU is facilitating knowledge sharing and access to specialised care to improve patient access to diagnosis, information and care.

The new Clean Industrial Deal outlines concrete actions to turn decarbonisation into a driver of growth for European industries. It's a bold business plan to support the competitiveness of EU industry, decarbonise faster and secure the future of manufacturing in Europe.

High energy costs are hurting EU citizens and businesses. The Affordable Energy Action Plan sets out concrete measures to lower costs, complete the Energy Union, attract investments, and be better prepared for potential energy crises, to save €260 billion annually on energy by 2040.

On 25 February, the Europa website celebrates its 30th birthday. Once small enough to fit on a CD-Rom and available in 3 languages only, Europa has grown to be a web domain that includes 800 websites, is published in 24 languages and attracts 300 million visitors a year.

On 24 February 2022, Russia launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine. The EU has condemned Russia’s unprovoked aggression, imposed wide-ranging sanctions, and offered unwavering support to Ukraine. The EU will stand with Ukraine until it achieves a just and lasting peace.

EU farmers who have lost income due to adverse climatic events or natural disasters are set to receive over €98 million from the EU’s agricultural reserve. The funds will be shared among farmers in Spain, Croatia, Cyprus, Latvia and Hungary who have all suffered due to extreme weather conditions.

A new vision for agriculture and food in the EU has been presented by the European Commission. It outlines the measures the EU will take to build an attractive, competitive, resilient, future-oriented and fair agri-food system in the coming years.

An agreement has been struck to set EU targets for food waste reduction by 2030 and measures towards a more sustainable and less waste-producing textile sector. Under the new rules, textile producers and fashion brands would be required to pay a fee to help fund waste collection and treatment.

A survey of young people in the EU has found that the cost of living and the environment are their main concerns. 31% also believe the economic situation and job creation should be a priority. 42% cited social media as their top source of information on political and social issues.

Thirteen people have been arrested for illegally disposing 35 000 tonnes of hazardous waste in Croatia. The environmental crime network is believed to have made €4 million by illegally importing hazardous waste from Italy, Slovenia and Germany to Croatia. Europol supported the investigations.

The 27 winners of ‘Juvenes Translatores', the European Commission’s translation contest for secondary schools, have been announced. Some 3070 pupils tried their hand at translating a text between any two of the EU's 24 official languages. There was one winner for each EU country.

Most people in Europe think that digital technologies, including AI, have a positive impact on their jobs, the economy, society, and on quality of life, a new survey shows. Over 60% of Europeans positively view robots and AI at work. 84% think that AI needs careful management to protect privacy.

You can give your views on the next EU long-term budget in a series of public consultations that are open for the next 12 weeks. You can also tune in to a citizens’ debate on the budget via an online platform. The long-term budget supports millions of people across the EU and beyond.