False: “The travel time from The Netherlands to Berlin by train is as long as twenty years ago”

In an election debate in the Dutch news programme Nieuwsuur, European taxes for plane tickets were discussed. If and when this becomes reality, fast alternatives are important. According to Esther de Lange, member of the European Parliament for the Christian democrats, alternatives are still not fast enough to be an option. She said: ‘The travel…

fact checking

Mostly false: “Contributing to climate policy […] appears to be not that popular with the members of GreenLeft”

Dutch party leader Derk Jan Eppink of Forum for Democracy (FvD) claimed in a televised elections’ debate on 13 May that the Dutch Greens are not very eager to contribute financially to climate change. Eppink based his claim on a recent survey by Ipsos and, as it seems, on an article in national newspaper De Telegraaf.…

False: “Small and medium-sized enterprises employ 90 percent of the workforce in the EU area”

Member of the European Parliament Petri Sarvamaa claimed that small and medium-sized enterprises employ 90 percent of the workforce in the EU area. This false claim was made on 12th April 2019 in a press meeting at the Finnish bureau of the European Parliament in Helsinki. Sarvamaa made the claim when asked what differences parties…

fact checking

Mostly false: „10,000 scientific research files call upon delaying the implementation of 5G technology”

A candidate for the upcoming European Parliament elections, Tihomir Lukanić, expressed his concern with the implementation of 5G network at a press conference held by a Croatian political party Živi Zid (Human Shield). The claim turns out to be mostly false. The statement rose some questions in the media and provoked discussion on the dangers…

Blog: When, finally, did the deadline for submitting applications to participate in the 2019 European parliament elections for Greek citizens who have their residence in other EU countries expire?

On Friday, March 29, 2019 the website of the newspaper “Avgi” published a news item which was titled “The deadline for submitting applications to participate in the European elections for Greek citizens who live in another EU country expires today”. The item was chosen due to its importance for the Greek voters who live in…

Mostly true: “29 March deadline for submitting applications to participate in the 2019 European Parliament elections for Greek citizens who have their residence in other EU countries”

Our report on the EU Fact Check focuses on a news item which was published on Friday, March 29, 2019, on the website of the newspaper “Avgi”. More specifically, the news item was titled “The deadline for submitting applications to participate in the European elections for Greek citizens who live in another EU country expires…

Blog: Why accurate salary comparisons between government officials are nearly impossible

Salaries of government officials are always under scrutiny. The payment of EU officials is no exception. ‘Top EU civil servants to pocket salaries over €20,000 a month for the first time’, reads a Telegraph headline from last December. ‘10,000 European Union officials better paid than David Cameron’, wrote the same paper back in 2014. ‘Over…

fact checking

Mostly false: “Sign EU-petition to stop punishment of aid to migrants”

Reinier van Lanschot, party leader of the new, pan-European party Volt – and probable new member of the European Parliament – claims on Twitter that migrant aid is punished in several European member states. Subsequently, he asks his followers to sign a European citizen initiative to make an end to this. However, punishment of migrant…