How Different European Countries Decide on New Laws

Law is an integral part of society today and you would be amazed at how many people don’t know the decision making that goes behind the rules that govern our lives. How many times have you wondered why that law is there? Or who came up with it, and why? Thankfully, there is a lot of information on Dutch lawfirm Le Poole Bekema explaining how European countries, such as Holland, decide on the new laws. There’s a lot more to it than just picking and it often takes years to establish new laws.

Many counties in Europe are part of the EU and this has a massive effect on the laws they implement. The European Commission proposes laws that are inside the EU’s parameters. That is to say, they are laws that the EU approve of. The level of scrutiny of these laws is then much higher because they not only represent that country but the EU as a whole. This means the laws are heavily reviewed, checked by professionals, and updated when necessary, all so that they are as effective as possible. Any new European laws are proposed by the European Commission. The laws are set up and refined by them so that the interests of the union are protected and as a result, it’s citizens. The European Commission will send a legislative proposal to the European Parliament and also the Council of the European Union who then must reach an agreement on the text for it to become an actual law.

A lot of people can have their say in the law-making process, including businesses, members of the public, public authorities such as the police, and stakeholders. This concept, known as better regulation, is a huge part of the process of creating new laws. It shows the European Commission actually listens to those that the laws will directly affect and it is usually evidence-based. It allows the laws to be put in place for the people to improve the things that really need to be improved. this helps the Commission to reach its target at a low cost and with less work going into the admin side. It shows people that they are being listened to and therefore feels more inclusive.

There are many ways interested members of the public and shareholders can suggest new laws, such as impact assessments, legislative proposals, elements of evaluations and fitness checks, or previous laws and roadmaps where the Commission demonstrates new ideas for policies or reviews of existing ones.

Passing Law

Whenever a law is passed, the Council of the European union can authorize the Commission to take two types of acts that aren’t legislative to ensure laws are implemented properly or updated if required. If it wasn’t clear by now, the Commission is solely responsible for ensuring whether the EU laws are applied on time and in a suitable manner.  That is why many refer to it as the Guardian of Treaties. If an EU country does not apply the law in the intended fashion or worse, doesn’t make the proposed legislation part of the new law at all, it will take steps to correct this. These steps may include holding formal infringement hearings, against the particular country. This has been known to happen in the past.

The benefit of the Commission is used to set up new European laws is it is monitored heavily. The EU laws are regularly evaluated to see if they have had the desired effect they were set up to do. the findings of the evaluation will encourage the Commission to decide whether or not the EU actions have any need to be changed. They really listen to the public as anyone is able to give feedback and take part in evaluations and checks on the laws.

The impact the EU has had on European laws is astronomical. Since the Second World War, the EU has intended to deepen its integration in search of a peaceful future and growth in the economy. By regulating European laws, they are able to help in a big way and ensure the public and businesses really get their voices heard. The European Parliament is the only elected EU body and they are the ones tasked with proposing the laws, implementing decisions, regulating issues, and representing the EU around the world. It may not be able to propose legislation but laws cannot pass through it without their approval. Currently, the leader of the EU parliament is Italian politician, David Sassoli.

The Council of Ministers, also known as the Council of the European Union, are the ones who also need to approve of legislation before it passes. They consist of government ministers from all countries of the EU and they are all organized by their area of policy.

It seems that in this internet age we are slowly but surely giving away all of our personal and deeply important liberties. It feels like there is a new story every day of a tech giant selling our data or overstepping their boundaries. The confidence these big tech firms have comes from an awareness that the everyday internet user does not fully understand their internet rights. This has led almost every site using cookies to track and consume your internet footprint to distort to their own needs. This passage will aim to break down what a company is actually legally allowed to do with your data, so you know of and are aware of any wrong practices.

What Data can They Collect?

Firstly, I feel it is important to understand just what data a website can collect before we obviously go into how they choose to use it. Under current US internet law, any company can access your location information, how long you choose to spend on a website, your internet history, and the activity on any given site. So, please do keep this in mind as I examine what they choose to do with this information.

Targeted Advertising

Targeted advertising may not be a practice that many are not even aware of, but companies can and will use your internet search history to give you certain advertisements. So, for a thought exercise let us say you have been searching for tennis rackets on google, you should then expect to see an uptick in tennis based advertisements. It is as simple as that. This most certainly does feel like quite a shady practice, that may be open to corruption. The idea in principle is meant to lead to advertisements that the user may find useful and relevant. As stated in the above text, this is companies using their access to your internet search history. So before consenting or ticking an option keep this in mind.

Site User Analytics

This is another practice you may not have been aware of, but companies will access your information to find out which demographics you fit into. Let us say that a company is looking for more users in the 18-25 female demographic, to understand how to reach their quotas they will access your data to see where you fit and what exactly you chose to interact with on the site. This means that companies will legally be able to see your name, age, and gender; to process and analyze as they please.

Hardware Analytics

Companies often store the type of hardware that a consumer is using, in order to gain an understanding of your processing power. This will also be used to gain an understanding of when and where you choose to access different sites. If a user uses his computer mainly at home for recreative purposes then sites will store this information. This information is most often sold back to tech companies so they themselves can understand how their hardware processes different sites and software in the field.

If you are looking for extra safety then perhaps read the list of companies – fcra compliance site, and remember to always read the small print of any agreement, it truly does not matter how small it may seem. The agreements will usually come in the form of website cookies, and though they may seem innocent they do allow for far wielding access to your internet habits and personal information.

Travel law is one of the most complex, and scrutinised, forms of law on the planet. Mainly due to the fact that our planet is now covered with transport modes. Aeroplanes. Trains. Busses. Cars. You can hardly move for different methods of transport. And with that comes tight regulations and laws surrounding their use, availability and who can use them and when. So for someone moving into the world of law, or for someone just simply learning more about their field, transport law is something you need to brush up on. But this article is going to look at a very specific section of transport law. Electric scooters. It might seem far-fetched that there would be laws based around electric scooters. You might not even know what an electric scooter is. If that’s the case, visit https://www.adultelectricscooters.co.ukand see what this article concerns. Below we are going to touch on a few of the basic ideas surrounding transport law and how it relates to electric scooters.

Transport Law

Now there is no one-size-fits-all law for electric scooters. A lot of the time it will be a state by state basis. States such as NY have heavier regulations on electric scooters, whereas others are much laxer. So for more specifics, you will need to turn directly to your states information on the matter. In general, though most states will require the rider to make sure their scooter is street legal. This means it will need to meet requirements with tires and suspension, rearview mirrors and horn. Due to the scooter being electric, it is scrutinised more than a regular scooter or a normal bike. In the same way, a motorbike is. These standards are often decided at a federal level.

Speed

Speed is an important factor concerning electric scooter law. Most countries, the USA included, often say that, as long as a scooter keeps to under a maximum speed of 25MPH, then it is classified as street legal. This can vary in different states, but as a general rule, it holds. Going a step further there is often a guideline for the total power of the motor on the scooter. A good rule of thumb is 750W but, again, this can change depending on location.

Safety and Claims

Saftey when looking at electric scooters is paramount. A lot of countries require that a rider wear a helmet, even if they are going below a certain speed, they must have a helmet on. And these factors become important in cases involving electric scooters. If you have a client that is claiming against an electric scooter driver, or if they were in an accident while on their own scooter, you will want to take a look at how they were handling their personal safety and the safety of those around them. Due to the nature of an electric scooter, it often won’t be covered by normal insurance when a person is out and about, and they will want to look at getting special insurance. If you have a client looking for more information this is something you will want to tell them.