BRUSSELS — The European Commission will not set up a new financing scheme to expand abortion access in Europe, rejecting a proposal backed by nearly 1.2 million European citizens. The Commission however said countries could use an existing fund to help women pay for abortion services. But first they may need to amend programs covered by this fund. The My Voice, My Choice citizens’ initiative called for the EU to establish a voluntary, opt-in financial mechanism to help countries provide abortion care to women who can’t access it in their own country and who choose to travel to one where they can. The European Parliament voted to support it in December. Some MEPs who opposed it said it infringed upon EU and national rules. The Commission said Thursday it “it is not necessary to propose a new legal instrument” because “EU support can already be provided relatively quickly by Member States willing to do so under existing instruments.” Countries can use the European Social Fund plus, the Commission said, “if in accordance with their national laws, to provide such support.” This has a budget of €142.7 billion and is largely used to support employment and welfare services. “The ESF+ can support the efforts of these Member States, while granting them autonomy to determine how and under what conditions access to safe and legal abortion will be provided,” the Commission said. “The Commission and My Voice, My Choice want the same thing: the highest standards of health for women in Europe,” Equality Commissioner Hadja Lahbib told POLITICO. “We are reaching our shared goal by using the tools in our hands. Until now, these tools had not been used. From now on, we will use them.” “The funding is there. Member States can act immediately, and we are ready to support them,” Lahbib said.

A new EU-backed study sheds light on the gender gap in investments across Europe, with a particular focus on deep tech — a category of innovation that is central to Europe’s long-term competitiveness, security and economic resilience. Deep tech refers to companies built on scientific breakthroughs and advanced engineering, often emerging from research laboratories and universities. These include firms working in areas such as artificial intelligence, advanced materials, semiconductors, robotics, quantum technologies, climate and energy systems, health and biotech, and industrial technologies. Unlike many consumer-facing digital startups, deep-tech companies typically require long development timelines, specialized talent and significant upfront capital before reaching market. For the EU, deep tech is strategic. It underpins the green and digital transitions, strengthens industrial leadership, and reduces dependence on external technologies in critical areas such as energy, health and security. Ensuring that talent can access capital in these sectors is therefore not only a question of fairness — it is a question of Europe’s ability to compete globally. > Gender equality isn’t just a fairness goal. It’s a competitiveness goal. > Europe can’t afford to waste talent — especially in deep tech. > > Katerina Svíčková, Head of Gender Sector, DG RTD, European Commission Two objectives: Measure the gap — and understand how to close it The project was designed around two complementary goals. First, to identify and consolidate data that can be used to measure the gender investment gap in a consistent and transparent way across Europe. Second, to engage directly with founders, investors and policymakers to understand why the gap persists — and what could help bridge it, particularly in deep tech. While gender-disaggregated data exist, they are often fragmented, based on different definitions or not publicly comparable. This makes it difficult for policymakers, investors and ecosystem actors to assess progress or design targeted interventions. A prototype repository: The Gender Gap in Investments Dashboard A central output of the project is the Gender Gap in Investments Dashboard, developed by Dealroom. The dashboard is a prototype repository that already presents a clear picture of the current state of the gender investment gap using Dealroom data. It brings together information on company founding teams and venture funding outcomes across Europe in a single, accessible interface. The dashboard is not an endpoint. It is designed as a foundation that can, over time, incorporate additional data sources, improve coverage, and offer a more nuanced view of how gender, sector, funding stage and geography interact. The long-term ambition is to support the development of a credible, shared European data infrastructure on gender and investment. What the data show: Deep tech remains highly skewed Even at this early stage, the dashboard reveals persistent imbalances. Across Europe, startups with at least one woman founder raise just 14.4 percent of all venture capital (VC) rounds and 12 percent of total VC funding. In deep tech, the imbalance is even starker. Around 80 percent of deep-tech companies are founded by all-male teams, which receive nearly 90 percent of venture funding. > Investing through diverse teams helps unlock deal flow that would otherwise > remain invisible. > > Ulrike Kostense, Investment Principal, Invest-NL Given the capital intensity of deep tech, these disparities matter. Who receives early and follow-on funding today shapes which technologies Europe brings to scale tomorrow. Listening to the ecosystem: Evidence beyond the numbers To complement the data work, the project placed strong emphasis on qualitative research and ecosystem engagement. Over 11 months, the team conducted: * 81 in-depth interviews with founders, investors, fund managers, public banks and EU policymakers * 12 ecosystem events across Europe, engaging more than 1,000 participants Across countries and sectors, participants consistently pointed to structural barriers, including difficulties accessing early and scale-up capital, credibility gaps in fundraising — particularly in deep tech — fragmented support landscapes, and limited diversity in investment decision-making roles. From insight to action: Priorities for Europe Drawing on both the data and the ecosystem input, the report highlights several areas for action: * Build a permanent European data hub on gender and investment, starting with the Dealroom dashboard and gradually adding more public and private data sources. * Make investment data easier to compare and understand, by using shared definitions and reporting standards across EU and national funding programs. * Close the gap between early support and growth funding, so that startups — especially deep-tech companies that take longer to develop — are not lost before they can scale. * Use public investment to shape the market, drawing on the EU’s role as a major investor — including the European Innovation Council (EIC) and its investment arm, the EIC Fund, which provide public funding and equity to high-potential startups — to attract private capital and set better incentives. * Improve connections across the ecosystem, helping founders find the right funding routes and reach key decision-makers. A foundation for long-term change The central conclusion of the study is clear: Europe does not lack women innovators — it lacks the systems needed to measure, fund and scale them consistently. By combining a shared data foundation with direct engagement across the ecosystem, the project lays the groundwork for more informed policymaking, better investment decisions and a stronger, more inclusive European deep-tech ecosystem. Final Report: Gender Gap in InvestmentsDownload -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Disclaimer POLITICAL ADVERTISEMENT * The sponsor is EISMEA – European Innovation Council and SME Executive Agency * The ultimate controlling entity is EISMEA – European Innovation Council and SME Executive Agency More information here.

The European Commission has warned that Donald Trump’s latest restrictions on foreign aid are dangerous and threaten global health — while saying the EU can’t fill the funding gap alone. The Trump administration revealed further conditions on foreign aid last week, which seek to restrict NGOs, governments and agencies in receipt of U.S. funding from promoting not only abortion but also “gender ideology” and “discriminatory equity ideology.” The measures come as lower-income countries face catastrophic health impacts after many donors, led by the U.S., dramatically cut funding last year, leaving them with little choice but to accept conditional funds. The policies have appalled health experts who say they are an unprecedented attack on sovereignty and confirm the weaponization of aid under Trump, whose administration is seeking more direct influence over global health programs. Europe has also criticized the expanded policy, stepping up its response compared with more restrained positions to the Trump administration’s other diverging health policies. “Limiting international assistance through restrictive funding conditions undermines joint efforts for human rights, global health, peace and stability. It makes funding more unpredictable and increases the vulnerability of those already most at risk,” European Commission spokesperson Anitta Hipper told POLITICO. “Ultimately, this risks our goal of saving lives,” Hipper said. The EU would assess the implications for the programs it funds and will remain a “credible, reliable, principled and predictable partner,” but Europe “cannot fill the gap left by others,” Hipper added. The new policy is the widest expansion of the Mexico City Policy — which international groups have called the ‘global gag rule’ because of the restrictions it imposes — that the U.S. has ever imposed. U.S. Vice President JD Vance said last week the Trump administration was “expanding this policy to protect life, to combat [diversity, equity and inclusion] and the radical gender ideologies that prey on our children.” He said it would increase the reach of the Mexico City Policy, which has traditionally only applied to abortion advocacy, threefold. It’s the latest policy that underlines the Trump administration’s explicitly strings-attached foreign aid agenda. The U.S. has rolled out a series of bilateral deals with 14 African countries, requiring them to guarantee the U.S. access to pathogen samples and data in exchange for health funding — much of which the U.S. had withdrawn last year through USAID cuts. It has also offered to restore funding to global vaccine program GAVI, but only if the organization stops using a common mercury-based preservative that Trump’s top health officials have linked to autism, without evidence. The latest policy is part of a “much larger project by the Trump administration to advance this radical anti-rights agenda,” Beirne Roose-Snyder, a senior policy fellow at the Council for Global Equality, told reporters this week. Desirée Cormier Smith, a former U.S. diplomat, said she hoped governments in the EU and elsewhere would “push back” and deliver a bracing message to the Trump administration: “We refuse to leave all of our people behind. You’re not going to export your domestic culture wars and the division that plagues the U.S. to our own countries.” The new rules, which come into effect Feb. 26, will also increase pressure on European governments over their own levels of global health funding. Major donors such as France, Germany and the Netherlands have trimmed their own contributions, as part of the global crunch in aid spending. Lisa Goerlitz, head of the Brussels office at global health NGO DSW, said Europe must keep foreign aid spending at levels needed “to allow a credible transition towards domestic resources and new financing mechanisms”. The New York-based Center for Reproductive Rights, meanwhile, said the EU faced a “clear test of its leadership and credibility on equality and human rights.” Claudia Chiappa contributed reporting.

Vice President JD Vance on Friday said the United States will stop funding any organization working on diversity and transgender issues abroad. Vance called the policy, which has been widely expected, “a historic expansion of the Mexico City Policy,” which prevents foreign groups receiving U.S. global health funding from providing or promoting abortion, even if those programs are paid for with other sources of financing. President Donald Trump reinstated the Mexico City Policy last year, following a tradition for Republican presidents that Ronald Reagan started in 1984. Democratic presidents have repeatedly rescinded the policy. “Now we’re expanding this policy to protect life, to combat [diversity, equity and inclusion] and the radical gender ideologies that prey on our children,” Vance told people attending the March for Life in Washington, an annual gathering of anti-abortion activists on the National Mall. The rule covers non-military U.S. foreign assistance, making the Mexico City Policy “about three times as big as it was before, and we’re proud of it because we believe in fighting for life,” Vance said. That means that any organizations receiving U.S. non-military funding will not be able to work on abortion, DEI and issues related to transgender people, even if that work is done with other funding sources. POLITICO reported in October that the Trump administration was developing the policy. The State Department made the rule change Friday afternoon. Vance accused the Biden administration of “exporting abortion and radical gender ideology all around the world.” The Trump administration has used that argument to massively reduce foreign aid since it took office a year ago. Vance said the Trump administration believes that every country in the world has the duty to protect life. “It’s our job to promote families and human flourishing,” he said, adding that the administration “turned off the tap for NGOs whose sole purpose is to dissuade people from having kids.” Chris Smith, a New Jersey Republican who chairs the House Foreign Affairs Africa Subcommittee, called the new aid restrictions “the best and most comprehensive iteration” of the Mexico City Policy since Reagan. Smith, who opposes abortion, was also speaking at the March for Life. But domestic and international groups deplored the expanded policy, noting that it would make women and girls in some parts of the world more vulnerable. “History shows that the Mexico City policy not only diminishes access to essential services for women and girls, but also breaks down networks of organizations working on women’s rights, and silences civil society,” the International Crisis Group, which works to prevent conflicts, said in a statement. “This expansion will amplify those effects and is set to compound the global regression on gender equality that we have seen accelerate in the last year,” the group added. The expanded Mexico City Policy, which international groups have called the ‘global gag rule’ because of the restrictions it imposes, will limit how humanitarian groups and other organizations “can engage in advocacy, information dissemination and education related to reducing maternal mortality, sexual and reproductive health, and reducing stigma and inequalities anywhere in the world, with any funding they receive,” said Defend Public Health, a network of volunteers fighting against the Trump administration’s health policies. “This would effectively coerce them into denying that transgender, nonbinary, and intersex people exist,” the group said. Alice Miranda Ollstein contributed to this report.

STRASBOURG — The European Parliament has voted today to set up an EU fund to expand access to abortion for women across the bloc, in a historic vote that divided lawmakers. The plan would establish a voluntary, opt-in financial mechanism to help countries provide abortion care to women who can’t access it in their own country and who choose to travel to one with more liberal laws. European citizens presented the plan in a petition — through the campaign group “My Voice, My Choice.” Lawmakers in Strasbourg voted 358 in favor and 202 against the proposal, and 79 MEPs abstained. The topic sparked animated discussions in the European Parliament plenary on Tuesday evening. MEPs with center-right and far-right groups tabled competing texts to the resolution put forward by Renew’s Abir Al-Sahlani on behalf of the women’s rights and gender equality committee. Supporters of the scheme argued it would help reduce unsafe abortions and ensure women across the bloc have equal rights; those who oppose it, mostly from conservative groups, dismissed it as an ideological push and EU overreach into national policy. Abortion laws vary greatly across the EU, from near-total bans in Poland and Malta to liberal rules in the Netherlands and the U.K. The fund could be a game changer for the thousands of European women who travel every year to another EU country to access abortion care. The European Commission now has until March 2026 to give a response. This story is being updated.

PARIS — French President Emmanuel Macron’s wife Brigitte apologized for being caught calling feminist activists sales connes — which roughly translates to “stupid bitches”— but said she should be able to speak her mind away from the cameras. Interviewed by online news outlet Brut, Macron insisted that her remarks were made in private — she was attending a show by comedian Ary Abittan, who had been accused of rape in a case which was later dismissed — and that she would not have used these words in public. “I’m sorry if I hurt female victims [of sexual assault],” Macron said. She then added: “I’m the president’s wife, but I’m also myself, and in a private context, I can let myself loose in a way which isn’t appropriate … people have the right to [freely] speak and think.” In a since-deleted clip published by gossip outlet Public, Macron is seen asking comedian Abittan, before his performance, how he is doing, to which he responds that he is “afraid,” likely referring to the possibility of protesters interrupting his show. The French first lady then responds: “If there are stupid bitches, we’ll toss them out.” A small group of activists wearing cardboard masks with Abittan’s face attempted to interrupt a show in Paris, yelling “Abittan rapist” while being pushed back by security, video published by French outlet Le Média showed. Macron’s comments drew outrage from French politicians, feminist organizations and film industry celebrities alike. The hashtag #JeSuisUneSaleConne (#IAmAStupidBitch), launched in solidarity with the protesters, was shared by several high-profile figures, including Judith Godrèche — a French actress who has played a central role in confronting sexual violence in the film industry — and Oscar winner Marion Cotillard. Abittan is on his first tour since investigating judges decided not to charge him with a crime after he was accused of rape. While the plaintiff was found to have suffered post-traumatic stress, justice officials said they could not establish sufficient grounds to determine that the sexual encounter had been forced. Abittan has denied wrongdoing and said the act was consensual.

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez rejected the growing outcry over sexual harassment complaints and corruption cases involving members of his Socialist Party, defiantly declaring that its commitment to feminism and clean government is “absolute.” During his annual end-of-year speech on Monday, Sánchez boasted that his party had been the first in Spain to adopt anti-harassment protocols, and that his government had greenlit legislation to ensure gender balance in key sectors, fight gender-based violence and promote gender equality abroad. “Like everyone else, we have made mistakes,” he said. “But we cannot forget that everything this country has achieved in its quest to ensure equality between men and women has been thanks to the work of its progressive governments.” The prime minister added that he would not accept any “lessons” from the country’s right-wing opposition, which he said behaved like the legendary Spanish inquisitor Tomás de Torquemada while failing to adopt legally required mechanisms to tackle sexual misconduct within its own ranks. Sánchez also rejected criticism regarding the corruption investigations that have resulted in the arrest of several former allies — among them former Transport Minister José Luis Ábalos, who maintains his innocence — and recent police raids on several ministry buildings. During the address, Sánchez was at pains to contrast the scandals with those of his predecessor, conservative Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy, who was ousted in 2018 after losing a no-confidence vote over the corruption scandals affecting his center-right People’s Party. “Systemic corruption — the sort that was affecting our country’s entire democratic system — ended when the People’s Party left the Spanish government in 2018,” Sánchez said, insisting that there is no evidence of widespread rot within the Socialist Party. NOT GOING ANYWHERE Sánchez’s minority government relies on the support of parliamentary allies who are increasingly uncomfortable with the barrage of sexual harassment and corruption scandals affecting the Socialist Party. The Basque Nationalist Party’s president, Aitor Esteban, this weekend said Sánchez needed to either halt the “daily hemorrhage of news stories” or call snap elections. The Republican Left of Catalonia’s Gabriel Rufián on Monday urged the Socialist Party to “stop playing the victim and drop the ‘whataboutism’ tactics,” adding that his continued support depended on the prime minister’s ability to “reform his party and his government.” Sánchez used his address to the nation to clarify that he does not plan to hold snap elections and is thinking solely of the legislative wins his government can notch by the end of its term in 2027. He added that it is his duty to continue fighting for progressive measures, and urged his allies to respect the will of the voters who made it possible for him to secure another term as prime minister when elections were last held. The Socialist leader also rejected Deputy Prime Minister Yolanda Díaz’s call for a “profound Cabinet reshuffle” to make a clean break with the rot, insisting all members of his government are instrumental to its current success. That intransigent stance angered members of Díaz’s Sumar party, the left-wing junior partner in Spain’s coalition government, with Culture Minister Ernest Urtasun urging the prime minister to reconsider his stance in order to “restart” the stalled legislative term. Throughout his address, Sánchez stressed that the fall of his government would result in a “historic shift” in Spain that would see the far-right Vox party come to power. “We are facing the most sterile, destructive, and I would say the most extreme opposition in recent times.” Sánchez’s parliamentary allies recognize that the next elections are likely to result in a right-wing government that will depend on Vox’s backing, if not its active participation. But that increasingly does not seem to be enough to ensure their continued support for the prime minister. “Is it worth it to endure this situation in order to stop the right and the far-right from taking office?” the Republican Left of Catalonia’s Rufián asked rhetorically. “Yes.” “But we also have to ask ourselves if this situation is going to make the far-right grow,” he added. “And if it will permit the far-right to not only come to power, but remain there for years.”

French President Emmanuel Macron’s wife Brigitte sparked outrage after calling feminist protesters sales connes — roughly translated as “stupid bitches” — backstage at a comedy show. In a since-deleted clip published by gossip outlet Public, Brigitte Macron is seen asking comedian Ary Abittan before his performance how he is doing, to which the former responds that he is “afraid,” likely referencing the possibility of protesters interrupting his show. Abittan is on his first tour since investigating judges decided not to charge him with a crime after he was accused of rape. While the plaintiff was found to have suffered post-traumatic stress, justice officials said they could not establish sufficient grounds to determine that the sexual encounter had been forced. Abittan has denied wrongdoing and said the act was consensual. After Abittan said he was afraid, the French first lady responded: “if there are stupid bitches, we’ll toss them out.” Abittan’s return was protested by the feminist group Nous Toutes, whose members disrupted the show to denounce what they called a “communication campaign aimed at portraying him as a traumatized person while humiliating and belittling the victim.” In a statement to French newswire AFP published Monday, Macron’s office said the remark should be understood as “criticism of the radical methods used by those who disrupted and obstructed Ary Abittan’s show.” Condemnation came from political figures across party lines, as well as activists and film industry professionals. Marine Tondelier, head of the French Greens, called the remark “extremely grave” and conservative Senator Agnès Evren described it as “very sexist.” Prisca Thévenot, a lawmaker from the president’s party and former government spokesperson, deemed the comment “inelegant.” “When it comes to women fighting against violence against women, we don’t speak that way,” former President François Hollande said Tuesday on RTL. Judith Godrèche, the French actress who has played a central role in confronting sexual violence in the film industry, took to Instagram to criticize Macron. “I too am a stupid bitch. And I support all the others,” she wrote.

Latvia could become the first EU country to withdraw from a landmark international treaty to combat domestic abuse and violence against women following a parliamentary vote Thursday. Lawmakers voted by a margin of 56 to 32, with two abstentions, to withdraw from the Istanbul Convention — a Council of Europe treaty intended to standardize support for women who are victims of violence — just a year after it came into force. “It’s a shameful decision for the parliament,” Andris Šuvajevs, parliamentary group leader for the center-left Progressive Party, told POLITICO shortly after the vote, which took place after an intense 14-hour debate. The legislation to withdraw from the treaty was introduced by a right-wing opposition party, Latvia First, but passed with support from one of the three parties in the ruling coalition. The centrist Union of Greens and Farmers broke ranks with Prime Minister Evika Siliņa to help push the bill through. Ingūna Millere, a representative of Latvia First, told POLITICO in a written comment that the Istanbul Convention was a “product of radical feminism based on the ideology of ‘gender’” and that Latvia’s ratification of the treaty was “political marketing that has nothing to do with the fight against violence.” The push to withdraw from the convention has been sharply criticized by human rights groups, which warned that it would roll back women’s rights in Latvia. A day before the vote, around 5,000 people demonstrated outside the parliament, carrying signs reading “Hands off the Istanbul Convention” and “Latvia is not Russia.” Tamar Dekanosidze, the Eurasia regional representative for women’s rights NGO Equality Now, said the bill attempted to reframe gender equality initiatives as pushing an “LGBTQ agenda,” adopting a Kremlin-style narrative that allows politicians to portray themselves as defenders of “national values” ahead of elections.  “This would mean that, in terms of values, legal systems and governance, Latvia would be more aligned with Russia than with the European Union and Western countries,” she said, adding that this “directly serves Russia’s interests in the country.” Latvia’s withdrawal would require the support of President Edgars Rinkēvičs, who said before the vote that he would review the law and announce his decision within 10 days. Latvia would be only the second country to quit the convention following Turkey’s exit in 2021.

PARIS — French lawmakers approved legislation Wednesday that introduced the concept of consent in the legal definition of rape following the shocking Gisèle Pelicot trial last year. While advocates have been pushing for years for France to change the definition of rape and sexual assault to outlaw nonconsensual acts, Pelicot’s case, where 51 men were accused of raping her with the help of her now ex-husband, who had drugged her, gave new impetus and got the ball rolling. Until now, French law defined sexual assault — including rape — as acts performed through “violence, coercion, threat, or surprise.” Some of the lawyers in the trial had unsuccessfully centered their defense on the argument that the definition did not explicitly require seeking a partner’s consent, claiming their clients believed they were taking part in a sexual fetish shared by the couple. The newly-written law states that “any non-consensual sexual act … constitutes sexual assault.” Consent must be “free and informed,” given for one specific act prior to it taking place, and it must be “revocable,” it adds. Crucially, it is explicitly stated that consent cannot be “inferred solely from the victim’s silence or lack of reaction.” Véronique Riotton, a centrist lawmaker who coauthored the bill and wrote a report on the issue in 2023, told POLITICO that the bill’s passage was a “positive moment” proving that parliament could still move forward on major issues despite the political gridlock currently crippling France. Several lawmakers had tried to pass similar legislation in recent years, but the issue drew little attention until Pelicot’s case. In 2022, a European Commission proposal to require all member countries to classify any nonconsensual sex as rape was dropped from a wide-ranging draft law on violence against women due to opposition from several countries, including France. French President Emmanuel Macron later clarified that he supports the legal redefinition but does not see it as a European prerogative.