New research on VAT carousel fraud was presented in Brussels today. The research, which was commissioned by Green MEP and EP draftsman for an opinion report on the future of VAT Bart Staes, underlines the extent of VAT carousel frauds and points to readymade solutions, as well as the lack of political impetus to implement these solutions (1). Commenting on the study, Bart Staes said:

Guy Verhofstadt, along with the Parliamentary Committee Coordinators for the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe are currently in Warsaw for a series of informal meetings with Prime Minister Donald Tusk and members of Polish government. This is an opportunity for the European Liberals and Democrats to share their priorities on the eve of the EU Council's Polish Presidency.

On behalf of the European United Left/Nordic Green Left, Group President Lothar Bisky expresses his condolences to the President of the Republic of Cyprus, Dimitris Christofias, and the Cypriot people on the tragic and catastrophic blast that has taken place at the camp of the National Guard during which a number of people have lost their lives and the country's electric power supply has been severely damaged.

ACCA is delighted to announce the names of the 2011 recipients of the Simpson Scholarship. This year’s winners come from China, Malta, Nigeria, Russia, and the UK.

RICS this week announced the inauguration of its new presidential team, with the election of Malaysian-born See Lian Ong FRICS as its first ever non-British President for 2011/12. See Lian will replace the outgoing Robert Peto FRICS in a move which reaffirms the organisation’s increasingly international role as the world’s leading qualification for property professionals.