Welcome to Better Europe's weekly update on EU Affairs. VON DER LEYEN SLAPPED IN THE FACE ON TRADE DEALS The Parliament’s fourth try to adopt a motion of censure against Ursula von der Leyen’s Commission failed as expected: with only 165 votes in favour and 390 against, it fell far short of the two-thirds majority required to dismiss the College. The motion, led by the far-right Patriots, was presented as a protest against the Commission's management of the EU-Mercosur agreement. However, the more significant blow to von der Leyen’s authority had already been delivered earlier in the week: MEPs decided to delay the vote on the EU-U.S. trade agreement, and voted to refer Mercosur to the Court of Justice, delaying its final adoption by up to two years. To add…

Welcome to Better Europe's weekly update on EU Affairs. PARLIAMENT STRIKES FIRST IN ECB WAR OF SUCCESSION Parliament has the European Central Bank on its mind. While Trump is trying to find a way to take the printing press away from his central bankers and force them to define the interest rates that he appreciates, MEPs still believe in soft power to nudge the ECB in line with their policies. In a report adopted this week, they welcome the independence of the ECB, stress the importance of physical cash, and suggest to take a cautious approach for setting interest rates to avoid overshooting. The political fork in the road on how agile interest rate policy should be is also reflected in the appointment of a new ECB Vice-President, a decision…

Welcome to Better Europe's weekly update on EU Affairs. THE POLITICAL MEETING THAT WASN'T Brussels observers described it as a 'political meeting' of EU agriculture ministers on EU food security and sovereignty, but nobody bought it. Behind the talk of farm budgets and 'listening to rural voices', the real topic was the deadlocked EU-Mercosur trade agreement and whether the Commission could secure its approval before a key Coreper meeting on Friday. So, the Commission sent its best negotiators to the meeting: Trade Commissioner Maroš Šefčovič and Agriculture Commissioner Christos Stylianides, who were armed with promises of 'safeguards' and 'flexibility'. The party poopers? France and Poland, who warned that the deal could open the door to unfair competition and weaken Europe’s farming standards. Meanwhile, Italy is drifting towards a yes after…