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Photo: Courtesy of Eurotic

The European Union flag has been having a bit of a micro fashion moment. At London Fashion Week Mens in January, British label Agi & Sam put the symbolic circle of 12 gold stars on a scarf and a jacket. For Vetementss Euro-centric Stereotypes collectionwhich brought together the Gabber culture of Rotterdam, Englands chavs, and the regions many touriststhere was a distressed sweater printed with the same design. Now, it has even prompted the emergence of Eurotic, a young, cult label that has turned the EU flag cameo into a direct political statement.

Agi & Sam Fall 2017 Menswear; Vetements Fall 2017 Menswear Photo: Indigital.tv

Started by photographer Lea Colombo and model Valter Trsleff, Eurotic recently launched its small line of hoodies, T-shirts, and sweatshirts. On its lo-fi website, described as Europes Unofficial Souvenir Store, there are two versions of the flag: the standard blue with gold stars and a red version titled Eurasia. According to Trsleff, Eurotic is a direct reaction to Brexit, the United Kingdoms controversial decision to leave the EU. For us, the European Union has always stood for openness and togetherness across our bordersthe feeling of being united and open is something that our imagery tries to portray, he says. Growing up in the European Union and the freedom of movement that it has given me, I found it strange that people were repelling something that has been a guarantee for peace and stability for the last couple of generations.

The flag trend was sparked by a European Union in crisis, not unlike the way Americana swept the New York Fall 2017 runways in response to the U.S.s own political backdrop. The fallout from Brexit shed light on the growing nationalist sentiment in countries like France, where current presidential candidate Marine Le Pen is running on the platform to abandon the EU. It doesnt stop there: Politicians in Finland are reportedly pushing their own Brexit, known as Fixit, while earlier this year, Dutch far-right politician Geert Wilders (who draws comparisons to President Donald Trump in both looks and agenda) also voiced a desire to leave the Union. Of late, the call to exit has dominated the narrative, but there is also strong opposition. Back in March, pro-EU demonstrations took place in more than 40 cities. And what were some of those participants wearing? Nothing less than the EU flag.

Photo: Courtesy of Lea Colombo for Eurotic

Though it may be hard to tell whether a protester is wearing a Eurotic tee or a two-dollar piece from a souvenir shop, the label has found a way to stand out and resonate with young people through its smart digital presence . Theyve mastered a tongue-in-cheek Eurotrash flare that attracts oddball fans like model Sasha Melnychuk. Eurotics Instagram, @eurotic_ , is bizarre and funny: Think screen grabs of late night hotline commercials, flashes of German Chancellor Angela Merkel (de facto face of the European Union), and a mash-up of a football hooligan brawl and a bucolic Scandinavian midsummer celebration. That comic attitude is central to Eurotics tone. "Its one of the main messages of Eurotic; it can all be perceived as a joke, which we personally like, says Torsleff. There is so much unspirited in the world, especially when it comes to politics and world issues, therefore it is nice to be able to showcase something with a bit of a lighter energy and nuance.

Laughs aside, Eurotic has a deeper intent: Im not saying the EU is utopia but I think it has some key points and values that we would not want to live without, he adds. Therefore we wanted to create an online souvenir shop, or call it a memorabilia store, for the EU before it is all gone or forgotten. Sure, a flag hoodie isnt going to change the world, but it is an extension of a young generation thats opting for unity. That should count for something.

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The Rise of the EU Flag on the Runway and at Cult Label Eurotic - Vogue.com

The firebrand leader tore into Brussels during a jaw-dropping speech to the EU parliament in Brussels, in which he accused euro representatives of being prejudiced against his country.

In an attack on EU political correctness he raged: We are really irritated by the verbal strait jacket which stops us from calling a spade a spade and this kind of talk has become very common in European public life recently.

Today the EU Commission decided to open infringement proceedings against Budapest over changes to its higher education laws which critics say are designed to shut down a university owned by financier George Soros.

Eurocrats are also considering following suit on proposed legal changes to policies on migration, funding of NGOs and media plurality which they believe contravene European Union law.

GETTY

GETTY

Hitting back today, Mr Orban ridiculed the EUs spectacular and embarrassing judgements about his country in the past which did "not stand the test of time" and accused MEPs of condemning us on untruths.

He blasted: Fairness is not a question of the size of the country. Honourable members, Ive come here to defend my country. This situation is really absurd.

Its almost like someone being accused of murder and being convicted even whilst the alleged victim is alive and kicking.

Hungary and the Hungarian government is committed to the EU and this is unquestionable.

However, in many aspects we are unhappy with how the EU works. When we criticise your EU its because we want to correct these mistakes and we want to reform the EU.

Its our conviction that this is the only way to regain peoples confidence towards EU institutions.

EbS

EbS

Ive come here to defend my country. This situation is really absurd.

Viktor Orban

He raged: If you manage to overcome your prejudices towards us you will find fresh, critical and innovative thinking behind them. This is exactly what lies behind the successes of Hungary.

Mr Orban said that he believed the EU was overstepping its legal remit by trying to impose migrant quotas on Hungary, saying: We reserve ourselves the right to decide who we share Hungary with who we live together with.

And he added: It is also true, I wont deny this, that our vision of Europe is of a Europe built on strong member states.

If you dont like our position, come forward with reasoned arguments but dont judge us and condemn us because we have our own opinion.

Hungary is a proud country, we have always been committed to European Christian values.

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A migrant taunts Hungarian riot police as they fire tear gas and water cannon on the Serbian side of the border, near Roszke

Mr Orban has accused US-based billionaire Mr Soros of using his university and charities which work with asylum seekers in an attempt to undermine his Government.

In his speech today he accused Mr Soros of attacking Hungary and described him as an open enemy of the euro, saying he was actively encouraging illegal migration to Europe.

After his speech the Hungarian PM was roundly condemned by MEPs, who described his migration policies as inhumane and accused him of betraying European values.

Leader of the Socialists and Democrats, the Italian MEP Gianni Pitella, accused him of knowingly lying when he accused the parliament of defending a hidden agenda on behalf of Mr Soros.

He told him: Dont go back to Budapest saying its all our fault, that were the bad guys imposing certain choices on you and trying to stop you with regard to the university, the NGOs, the media and the refugees. I think you should stand by your conscience and tell your people the truth.

Liberals leader Guy Verhofstadt said he saw a sort of modern day version of old Communist Hungary in Mr Orbans authoritarian leadership style, adding: Its like Stalin or Brezhnev are back.

The Brexit negotiator even suggested that the Hungarian leader should think about quitting the EU, accusing him of taking the blocs money but not being prepared to play by its rules.

However, the Hungarian PM found an ally in the form of former Ukip leader Nigel Farage who said Brussels would "go on interfering in the lives of Hungarian people" and urged him to call a Brexit style referendum on membership.

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'This is ABSURD!' Stony-faced MEPs look on aghast as Hungary PM gives them both barrels - Express.co.uk

Customers of U.S. banks, credit-card companies and insurance companies will soon have their personal data protected more rigorously, thanks to a sweeping new set of regulations from the European Union.

The General Data Protection Regulation, which takes effect in May 2018, will force companies to be more transparent about the type of data they collect on individuals, how that data is used and when personal information is exposed in a breach.

The regulation will apply to all companies that process data on EU citizens, but observers expect some large multinational companies will adopt the rules throughout their operations, rather than try to enforce multiple sets of rules across locations. That is expected to be the case for financial institutions, which typically handle transactions from customers around the world.

From an architectural perspective, I think companies are going to assume everyone theyre dealing with is a European Union citizen, says Denyette DePierro, vice president and senior counsel of cybersecurity and payments at the American Bankers Association. The architecture of trying to keep that information properly segregated is probably more burdensome than just meeting the standard.

Companies will bear a substantial compliance burden from the new rule, commonly referred to as GDPR. It is a vast regulation that requires organizations toamong other thingsdocument cybersecurity practices, notify affected users within 72 hours of a breach and designate a data-protection officer who will supervise an organizations data-collection methods. Companies that fail to comply could face fines of as much as 4% of their global revenue.

But adopting GDPR could also present an opportunity for financial institutions to demonstrate their cybersecurity credentials and to prepare for what could be stricter cybersecurity regulation in the U.S.

An expanded version of this article appears on WSJ.com .

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French Presidential Runoff Heralds New Political Era

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New European Union financial rules to also give US consumers protection - MarketWatch

The only point of agreement between French voters in Sundays presidential election was that much needed to change. Their country, one of the tent poles of the European Union, had been shaken by everything from economic insecurity to the fallout of Brexit to terrorist attacks, culminating in last weeks machine-gun murder of a police officer on the iconic Champs-lyses by an Islamist terrorist. The appetite for radical overhaul has at times seemed bottomless: Everything has to be rebuilt, one farmer recently told Euro News.

This was an election where even the Europhile centrist, Emmanuel Macron, upbraided the establishment and pledged a revolution for Frances economy. His bte noire, nationalist Marine Le Pen, thundered against mass immigration and Islam, with promises to cordon off French civic life for the native French. Franois Fillon of the center-right Republicans has promised to fire half a million civil servants. Meanwhile, Jean-Luc Mlenchon, the far-left soapbox fixture, has said that he would jettison the Fifth Republic entirely and chisel out a new social contract. The true ruling establishment, not Macron but the center-left Socialist Party which controls the National Assembly and the presidency, saw its candidate, Benoit Hamon, languish in single digits.

Which form of radicalism would prevail? The official exit poll, commissioned by the French networks and disclosed after voting had finished, confirmed the expectations of most observers, with Macron finishing first but well short of a majority and Le Pen in second, which would set up a runoff election between them. Immediately after it was released, the socialist left began coagulating around Macron, with prompt endorsements from Hamon, current president Franois Hollande and other powerful socialists. The center-right Fillon was soon to follow, saying his duty was to vote against Le Pen. The political class had circled its wagons.

That elastic club did not include Mlenchon, who hadnt backed Macron as of late Sunday night and also hadnt accepted the exit poll results. During a press conference he declared, It will not be the result that was announced. . . . Of course, until then, the oligarchs will be elated. Alas, the rapacious masters of the universe made off with the crown jewels once again, as the actual results ended up mirroring the exit poll. Geographically, Macron prevailed by winning the French west and the suburbs of Paris, Le Pen hauled in Frances deindustrialized northeast, Fillon took the districts around the Sarthe river near where he grew up, and Mlenchon eked out victories in many of the overseas territories.

French pollsters thus acquitted themselves far better than their American and British counterparts, which should give Washingtons data-political complex something to buzz about for the next couple days. So on to the runoff, scheduled for May 7, with the most felicitous results possible in hand. Macron versus Le Pen will be the clearest expression yet of the Wests incipient political realignment, not left versus rightthis is the first runoff in the history of the Fifth Republic that wont feature either the Socialists or the Republicansbut internationalists versus nationalists, elites versus populists, and, perhaps most consequentially, European integrationists versus Euroskeptics.

President Marine Le Pen ejecting France from the European Union was always an unlikely scenario, given that her National Front party controls only four federal legislative seats and excising EU membership from the French constitution would require parliamentary consent. But the EU is about much more than just a head countits an ideology unto itself, with ever-closer union elevated to the level of dogma and nationalist spat with the pejorative force of heretic and infidel. A Le Pen victory in France would represent a fifty-thousand-kilojoule repudiation of everything European elites stand for. Populism would enter the lyse Palace; the EU could no longer portray it as a freak fever quarantined to continents edge. Le Pen would be elevated from her current European Parliament seat into the European Council, which includes all the member nations heads of state. The EU can ignore the vituperations of Polands hostile government, but the leadership of France, a founding nation, cant be so easily spurned. Concerns also abound over a domino effect, as the next Italian election looms and Italys populist Five Star Movement watches for cues.

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French Frustrations Could Further Deteriorate the European Union - The National Interest Online

The word Peace (in French) and the logo of the European Union are projected during a light show onto the French Foreign Ministry building to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the Treaty of Rome international agreement that established the creation of the European Economic Community, on March 24, 2017 in Paris. (File Photo | AFP)

BRUSSELS: The EU unveiled a raft of proposals on Wednesday to improve the work-life balance for Europeans in an effort to fight accusations by populist parties that Brussels is too beholden to budget cuts and free markets.

The new ideas include an EU-wide policy on paternity leave for fathers and more rights for parents to ask for time off.

The commission is also looking to better protect Uber drivers and food delivery couriers, employees of the so-called gig economy that have limited access to benefits.

The measures are part of what the EU is calling the "pillar of social rights", announced in the wake of Britain's Brexit vote as a way to win back the faith of Europeans tempted by euroscepticism.

The announcement comes at an especially sensitive moment in France, where pro-EU Emmanuel Macron will in the second round of the presidential election face the far right Marine Le Pen, who calls Brussels a destroyer of the welfare state.

"Look what is going on in France in the election campaign, social policy is the top of people's minds and what we have to do is regain the trust of the people in the institutions," Social Affairs Commissioner Marianne Thyssen said at a news conference.

These ideas face a long road to becoming reality. Today, the EU has very little power over social policies that remain the strict remit of national governments.

The end goal for the commission is that social protection one day be incorporated into the EU treaties which right now is only vaguely mentioned.

"I have been seeking to put social priorities at the heart of Europe's work, where they belong," said European Commission chief Jean-Claude Juncker, the former Luxembourg prime minister.

But opposition has been historically spearheaded by Britain, which is leaving the EU, and Brussels hopes to seize the opportunity to bring the topic back to the fore.

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European Union seeks deeper social rights to thwart populists - The New Indian Express