The treaty modifying the treaty on the European Union and the Treaty establishing the European Community was signed on 13th December 2007 in Lisbon by the Heads of Government of the 27 Member States of the European Union. Ireland is the only European state to submit its ratification to referendum, a procedure that is made obligatory by articles 46 and 47 of the Irish Constitution. The referendum will take place on 12th June next. To date the country has had six referenda on European issues: the first in 1972 with regard to the country's accession to the European Economic Community (83.1% voted in favour), the second came in 1987 with regard to the Single Act (69.9% approved it), the third focussed on the Maastricht Treaty in 1992 (69.1% voted "yes"). During the 5th referendum in 2001 the Irish initially rejected the Nice Treaty (53.87% voted "no") before approving it by 62.89% in another referendum in 2002. The most recent poll by Red C between 3rd and 7th May, published on 11th May last by the Sunday Business Post reveals that 38% of voters support the "yes" vote. Slightly over a quarter of those interviewed (28%) say they support the "no" vote (- 3 points) and finally one third (34%) say they have not decided.

Representatives of the European Community and its Member States met with representatives of the United States 15th-16th May for the initial round of negotiations toward a second stage Air Transport Agreement, which follows a first agreement established on 30th March. This enables all airlines to fly directly to the USA from any airport in Europe. The joint goal of both sides is now to open up national markets, to work for the benefit of consumers and airlines and to create jobs on either side of the Atlantic. Both parties have developed a roadmap that focusses on the liberalisation of airspace, the abolition of restrictions with regard to foreign investments, future access to State funded air services and the guarantee of provding crews on planes. The next round of talks will take place in Washington in September 2008.

On 13th May the European Ombudsman, P. Nikiforos Diamandouros,launched a consultation process within the European Network of Ombudsmen on access to information contained in databases. This follows a complaint from a Danish journalist about the refusal of the European Commission to disclose data on beneficiaries of EU agricultural subsidies. In light of the anticipated reform of the EU's rules on public access to documents, the Ombudsman has decided to consult his national colleagues in the European Network of Ombudsmen on how the issue of access to information in databases is dealt with in their respective countries. The Ombudsman himself has already proposed a general obligation for the EU administration to make new databases as easily accessible as possible. He hopes to be informed until the end of May by his colleagues of national "best practices" aimed at guaranteeing maximum public access to information stored in databases.

The European Union has decided to celebrate the achievements and potential of Europe's ocean and seas by declaring 20th May as a dedicated "European Maritime Day". The official launch ceremony will be held in Strasbourg, where Commission President José Manuel Barroso, European Council President Janez Janša and the President of the European Parliament Hans-Gert Pöttering will sign a Joint Tripartite Declaration. European Maritime Day will provide an occasion to highlight the crucial role that oceans and seas play in the everyday life not only of coastal communities, but of all EU citizens, and for Europe's sustainable growth and jobs at large. Based on a proposal from the Commission, this dedicated Maritime Day will also encourage better stewardship of coastal zones, seas and oceans by all citizens and actors concerned. This first day will be marked by a vote in the European Parliament on the report pertaining to the EU's integrated maritime policy.

Cohesion Policy programmes for 2007-2013 published on 14th May are set to boost jobs and growth throughout the EU's Member States and regions. Member States and regions have radically shifted their priorities, earmarking significant investment for competitiveness, jobs and growth in line with the Lisbon Strategy. The EU is investing a total of 347.4 billion euros through Cohesion Policy for the 2007-2013 cycle. Research and innovation are now major priorities with a budget of over 86 billion euros, or 25% of cohesion policy resources. Information and communication technologies (ICT) are recognised as important drivers to boost regional development. Cohesion Policy investment in ICT services and infrastructure is expected to more than double compared to the previous programming period (2000-2006), to reach 15.3 billion euros. Aid given to companies, notably SME's represents nearly 27 billion euros.

On 19th May the European Commission published statistics relating to counterfeit and piracy showing a significant increase in customs activity last year. In 2007, customs registered over 43,000 cases of fake goods seized at the EU's external border, compared to 37,000 in 2006. This results notably from improved co-operation between customs and industry, enabling customs to better target suspected shipments and to recognize counterfeit goods. China manufactured around 58% of the goods seized in 2007 and has taken the lead in almost all sectors. Some countries distinguish themselves with regard to the manufacture of counterfeit goods but lie far behind China: Turkey (nearly 5%), India, Georgia, Switzerland, the United Arab Emirates, Hong Kong (all between 2% and 3%), and Bulgaria (1.6%).

The 15 Finance Ministers of the Euro Area who met on 13th May assessed the economic situation. A debate was launched on the budgetary policies practised in the Euro Area and on developments in remuneration and salaries in Europe. In a joint declaration they stressed that "most of the Member States have achieved their mid-term target" in terms of balancing public finance and that "reaching this- by 2010 should be possible by most of the others." They did however warn France and Italy whose deficits are increasing dangerously. They also discussed the European Commission's communication of 7th May 2008 on the state of the Economic and Monetary Union ten years after it was launched. The custom of some high ranking executives of certain companies comprising the award of bonuses and golden handshakes came under heavy criticism.

The 27 Foreign Ministers who met on 13th May assess the humanitarian situation in Burma in the wake of the cyclone Nargis. Welcoming the solidarity shown by member states and the Commission in providing funds and assistance, it called on the Burmese authorities to offer free and unfettered access to international humanitarian experts and to take urgent action to facilitate the flow of aid. They said that without the co-operation of the Burmese authorities, an even greater tragedy is threatened. The Council also expressed its condolences for the loss of life and devastation caused by the earthquake in China on 12th May.

The deputy Minister for European Affairs, Günter Gloser travelled to Poland 14th-17th May. In Wroclaw he spoke of the climate, investments, cross-border co-operation and the effects of lifting customs restrictions between Germany and Poland, effective since Poland's entry into the Schengen Area on 21st December 2007. In Krakow he spoke to the Polish Academy for Science on future European challenges. Finally he visited the former concentration camp of Auschwitz-Birkenau where he paid tribute to the victims of the Nazi dictatorship.

On 15th May the German Interior Minister, Wolfgang Schäuble presented the 2007 Report for the Protection of the Constitution together with the Chairman of the German Constitution Protection Service, Heinz Fromm. The Minister recalled the main government measures taken to fight against Islamic terrorism that is still the principal threat. He spoke of the fight against far right and far left extremism and welcomed the work undertaken by the German security forces. This report also looks into the criminality policy, espionage activities, non-Islamic terrorism and the activities of the Church of Scientology.

According to figures published by the Federal Statistics Office on 15th May the upward trend of the German economy continued in the first quarter of 2008: the gross domestic product (GDP) rose by 1.5% in the first quarter of 2008 - this had not occurred in 12 years. German Economy Minister Michael Glos said he was pleased with this result but called for continued reforms to improve growth and employment. The main factors for this growth are investments and consumption was well as a mild winter that favoured activities in the building industry. Although exports remain high, imports have also increased which slightly weakens the trade balance. Finally the consumer price index increased by 2.4% in one year 0.7 points of which are due to oil product price increases.

On 13th May, Bernard Kouchner and Jean-Pierre Jouyet, Foreign Minister and State Secretary for European Affairs held a joint press conference to round up with regard to the preparation for the French Presidency of the Council of the European Union. One of the main priorities will be the implementation of the Lisbon Treaty, planned for January 2009.

According to figures published on 15th May by INSEE (the National French Statistics Institute) the GDP in France in 2007 increased by 2.2% annually on average as in 2006 and after a growth rate of 1.9% in 2005. After correction total activity has decreased slightly from one year to another: down to 2.1% after 2.4% in 2006. Domestic demand is still the driver of French growth. Just three days before the start of preparations for the French budget 2009 public deficit was confirmed at 2.7% of the GDP. This figure is dangerously close to an excessive deficit set at 3% by the European Commission. This will probably encourge the community authorities to address a warning to France. The European executive is anticipating a deficit of 2.9% in 2008 and 3% in 2009. However the growth rate which is now believed to be on the rise enabled a decrease in public debt to 63.9% last year instead of 64.2% as previously announced.

On 16th May French President Nicolas Sarkozy received Norwegian Prime Minister, Jens Stoltenberg. Although Norway is not a member of the European Union its establishment in Europe and the leading role it plays in the continent's affairs are unarguable facts. The meeting also focussed on environmental issues and on a certain number of international questions, notably the peace process in the Middle-East and the situation in Afghanistan.

The "yes" vote with regard to the Lisbon Treaty is rising as the referendum that Ireland is organising on 12th June draws closer but the number of the undecided remains high, reveals a survey that was published on 17th May in the daily "The Irish Times". 35% of the 1000 people interviewed (13th and 14th May) said they were ready to vote "yes", whilst 18% planned to vote "no" according to a TNS MRBI survey. But 47% of those interviewed still did not know or said they would not vote. The most recent survey by the same institute says that 24% will vote "yes", versus 10% for the "no" and 64% are undecided.

According to figures published by Eurostat on 15th May Euro area annual inflation was 3.3% in April 2008, down from 3.6% in March. A year earlier the rate was 1.9%. European Union annual inflation was 3.6% in April 2008, down from 3.8% in March. A year earlier the rate was 2.2%. In April 2008, the lowest annual rates were observed in the Netherlands (1.7%), Portugal (2.5%) and Germany (2.6%), and the highest in Latvia (17.4%), Bulgaria (13.4%) and Lithuania (11.9%). The main components with the highest annual rates in April 2008 were food (6.0%), housing and transport (4.8% each), while the lowest annual rates were observed for communications (-1.6%), recreation & culture (-0.4%) and clothing (0.8%).

According to Eurostat figures published on 15th May GDP grew by 0.7% in both the euro area and the European Union during the first quarter of 2008, compared with the previous quarter. In the fourth quarter of 2007, growth rates were +0.4% in the euro area and +0.5% in the European Union. Compared with the same quarter of the previous year, seasonally adjusted GDP grew by 2.2% in the euro area and by 2.4% in the European Union in the first quarter of 2008, after +2.2% and +2.5% respectively in the previous quarter.

According to figures published by Eurostat on 16th May the first estimate for the euro area trade balance with the rest of the world in March 2008 gave a 2.3 bn euro deficit, compared with +7.5 bn in March 2007. The first estimate for the March 2008 external European Union trade balance was a deficit of 20.5 bn euro, compared with -10.5 bn in March 2007. To be more precise the European Union's energy deficit increased (-58.1 bn euro in January-February 2008 compared with -42.0 bn in January-February 2007), while the surplus rose for machinery and vehicles (+22.0 bn compared with +12.6 bn). European Union trade with most of its major partners grew, with the exception of imports from the USA (0% in January-February 2008 compared with January-February 2007) and Japan (-2%). The largest increases were recorded for exports to Russia (+33%) and Brazil (+30%), and imports from Norway (+27%) and Russia (+26%).

The Centre for European Reform has published a study on the relations between France, NATO and European Defence. Author Tomas Valasek shows that changes in French strategy with regard to NATO are bringing France closer to the British position. In his opinion this will significantly improve relations between the EU and NATO.

The Konrad Adenauer Foundatin has published a study by Patrick Keller and Thomas Kunze on the future of NATO. The anlaysis looks into NATO's present position and the definition of its role in the world of tomorrow. The authors also address the issue of the limits of enlargement and the strategy to adopt towards candidates for membership as well as other world partners.

The 2007 report by the European Data Protection Supervisor published on 15th May stresses that the enhancement of the data protection must be guaranteed. It shows that significant progress has been made by the EDPS in its role and highlights the increase in the number of prior checks made with personal data processing operations in the EU's institutions and in areas associated with medical data, recruitment and the selection of candidates, staff assessment and OLAF procedures. The EDPS has given new impetus to its consultative role in EU legislative texts that have an impact on data protection: emphasis has been placed on the need for a coherent, effective framework for data protection in the 1st and 3rd pillars and on the need for a specific legal framework with regard to data protection in the area of radiofrequency identification technology.

Germany is the world's third exporter of military equipment after the USA and Russia and its export volume is rising according to the annual report by the Bonn International Centre for Conversion published on 15th May. According to the report German export volumes rose from 6.2 billion euros in 2005 to 7.7 billion in 2006, 933 million of which went to developing countries. The organisation maintains that its aim is to "promote peace and development via the transformation of military structures, property, operations and procedures". According to the report world armaments are continuing to rise with an increase in military spending of 30% between 2001 and 2006 reaching 1.179 billion dollars (762.8 billion euros).

The Centre for Applied Policy Research in Munich has published a paper by Wolfgang Wessels: "Das politische System der Europäischen Union" by VS Verlag Wiesbaden. This work looks into the EU's institutions and organisations and its decision making process.

On 17th May the fourth "European Museum Nights" took place. 2000 museums across Europe took part in this event. For the first time the Museum Nights included Scottish, Northern Irish and Copenhagen museums with major participation on the part of establishments in Belgium, Serbia and Romania.

Fifty years after the creation of James Bond, the Imperial War Museum in London pays tribute to his creator, Ian Fleming on the occasion of his centenary. From 17th April 2008 to 1st March 2009 the exhibition "For Your Eyes Only" explores the writer's life, in an attempt to reveal to visitors the links between real events and fiction in his work. You will also discover furniture that belonged to Ian Fleming and James Bond film accessories.