Major manufacturers warn of dangers in leaving EU

Bosses of Siemens AG, Airbus Group SE and GKN Plc will issue a warning that a vote to leave the European Union later this month would endanger future investment and manufacturing jobs, reports Bloomberg: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-05-31/siemens-airbus-warn-brexit-would-put-jobs-at-risk-as-vote-looms

The Paris stock exchange plans to "assert its strength" to attract international businesses, taking advantage of the potential damage Brexit could do to the City of London, French sources said on Monday (30 May), reports EurActiv: http://www.euractiv.com/section/euro-finance/news/brexit-paris-stock-exchange-to-assert-its-strength/?nl_ref=13994559

Deutsche Bank AG Chief Executive Officer John Cryan said the German lender would move some trading activities from London if the U.K. decides to exit the European Union next month, reports Bloomberg. It would be "counterintuitive" to trade euro zone products such as Italian government bonds out of London if Britain was no longer part of the EU, Cryan told investors Tuesday at a conference in New York: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-05-31/deutsche-bank-would-relocate-some-activities-in-event-of-brexit

All told, two-thirds of farm workers in Britain are from somewhere on the continent, and that number doesn't include the thousands of seasonal workers brought to the isles to help pick produce and help with pork, poultry and dairy operations at key points in the year, says Politico Morning Agri and Food, citing a report in Farmers Weekly. While supporters for leaving the EU say this could all be negotiated, it's unclear where replacement workers would come from: https://dub129.mail.live.com/?tid=cm23kbLrcn5hGTeNidZ19FoA2&fid=flinbox

About half of the pre-made sandwiches sold in Britain are made by the Ireland-based Greencore. If the Brexit occurs, the company has warned that the added costs of importing ingredients and packaging to its British facilities as well as changes to its labor force would likely raise costs, reports Politico Morning Agri and Food, quoting a report in the Food Manufacture newsletter: https://dub129.mail.live.com/?tid=cm23kbLrcn5hGTeNidZ19FoA2&fid=flinbox

Since 2007, Orkney lamb has been protected by the EU as a geographical indication (GI). Should voters choose to leave the EU, the islands' famous lamb and 72 foods from the British isles that have protected status would be bumped from the GI list, reports Politico Morning Agri and Food: https://dub129.mail.live.com/?tid=cm23kbLrcn5hGTeNidZ19FoA2&fid=flinbox

British gin is having a renaissance of sorts, and the EU is drinking it up, reports Politico Morning Agri and Food, citing a report in the Spirits Business magazine. Of the ￡430 million in U.K. gin exports in 2015, almost half went to the EU. Getting rid of the easy access to those customers created by the common market would give the industry a serious hangover: https://dub129.mail.live.com/?tid=cm23kbLrcn5hGTeNidZ19FoA2&fid=flinbox

Agriculture Commissioner Phil Hogan hinted at a new targeted aid package for dairy and pigmeat farmers in July, according to La France Agricole and other media, reports Politico Morning Agri and Food. The Commission and ministers discussed a possible aid package on the margins of Tuesday's informal farm council meeting - and are set to keep discussing it at June's council meeting: https://dub129.mail.live.com/?tid=cm23kbLrcn5hGTeNidZ19FoA2&fid=flinbox

The market for homes in prime central London is stagnating before the referendum on the U.K.'s future in Europe, according to Knight Frank LLP, with price cuts of more than 10 percent failing to attract buyers, reports Bloomberg: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-05-31/market-stagnating-for-prime-central-london-homes-on-brexit-fear

The possible exit of the United Kingdom from the European Union will not be in the interests of Cyprus stated the Cyprus Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CCCI) in a press release on Tuesday: http://in-cyprus.com/cyprus-will-suffer-possible-brexit/

Google, Microsoft, Twitter and Facebook said they will remove posts containing hate speech within 24 hours as part of a new agreement organised by the European Commission to counter extremism on the internet, reports EurActiv: http://www.euractiv.com/section/justice-home-affairs/news/google-microsoft-twitter-and-facebook-agree-to-remove-hate-speech-online/?nl_ref=13994559

The European Commission's latest effort to coordinate standardization across the continent aims to boost the single market and make Europe a competitive global business player, according to a document obtained by POLITICO. The Commission will announce its joint initiative on standards, which touches on everything from public procurement, to tech to trade, Wednesday. Standards are essential to ensure businesses can make products that are compatible with one another... Industry, not the Commission, establishes the common standards voluntarily: https://dub129.mail.live.com/?tid=cm0_xWBU4n5hGBDBBgS7LiGg2&fid=flinbox

Companies in the EU can ban Muslim employees from wearing headscarves to work, a senior jurist has said in a case involving British security firm G4S, reports EUobserver. The headscarf ban "may … be justified in order to enforce a legitimate policy of religious and ideological neutrality pursued by the employer", Juliane Kokott, a German advocate general at the EU Court of Justice in Luxembourg, said in a statement on Tuesday: https://euobserver.com/justice/133621

The European Court of Justice should confirm that EU sanctions against Russian companies such as oil major Rosneft are valid, the court's Advocate General Melchior Wathelet has recommended, reports Politico. State-controlled Rosneft challenged the validity of measures the U.K. adopted to implement the European Council's decision and accompanying regulation for imposing sanctions on July 31, 2014. The High Court of England and Wales referred the case to the Luxembourg-based Court of Justice, asking whether the British court has the jurisdiction to weigh in on the EU decision... Wathelet said the British court does have the jurisdiction: https://dub129.mail.live.com/?tid=cma1lxIBwn5hGNuWw75af6Uw2&fid=flinbox

EU member states are expected to give the European Commission the green light next Tuesday (7 June) to start negotiations with the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Qatar on comprehensive aviation agreements that will also cover alleged subsidies given to their airlines. EU transport ministers, who will be meeting in Luxembourg next week (6-7 June), are also expected to authorise the Commission to start discussions with other fast-growing markets, namely Turkey and the Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN), various EU officials told EurActiv.com: http://www.euractiv.com/section/transport/news/eu-to-finally-start-talks-with-gulf-countries-on-aviation-agreements/?nl_ref=13994559

An Iran-EU center for cooperation was opened in Berlin in the presence of Iranian Minister of Trade, Mohammad Reza Nematzadeh, Mehr news agency reported, picked up by Politico Morning Trade: http://en.mehrnews.com/news/116991/Iran-EU-economic-coop-center-opens-in-Germany

Courtesy of Peter Morris, European Movement in the North East