On the 28th of February, the European Commission approved Denmark's payment request for €301 million of grants under the Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF), the key instrument for NextGenerationEU.

On the 27th of February an agreement in principle on the Windsor Framework was reached between the European Commission and the United Kingdom government. This provides a wide range of collaborative solutions that intends to ensure citizens and businesses in Northern Ireland with long-term certainty and predictability in addressing their main challenges.

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In September 2022, the European Commission presented the European Care Strategy to ensure quality, affordable, and accessible care services throughout the EU and to improve working conditions for caregivers. The EU ministers called for Member States to adjust the offer of long-term care services to people’s needs, ensure that services are accessible and of high quality, support fair working conditions and ensure adequate skills in the sector, and promote effective and long-term investments, including using EU funds. 

The 31st European Social Services Conference will take place in Malmö, Sweden, on 14-16 June 2023, bringing together leaders in social services to discuss innovative technology and digital means for modernizing social services.

The European Commission has decided to register a European Citizens' Initiative (ECI) entitled 'Ensuring a dignified reception of migrants in Europe'.

European Social Innovation Competition (EUSIC) winners were announced on February 2nd by the European Commission and the European Innovation Council and SMEs Executive Agency (EISMEA). This challenge aimed to attract applications from diverse fields addressing issues related to the current architecture and sustainable solutions of European housing districts.

On the 15th of February, in attempting to ensure that the Single Market for services functions properly, 24 cases were brought by the Commission against several Member States.

To make cross-border services easier for companies, the Commission will continue to use all available tools to remove barriers that are holding back the Single Market's potential. As part of the efforts to strengthen the EU's recovery and resilience, the services sector and persisting obstacles deserve special attention.

The Monitoring Committee has extended the deadline for the First Call for Projects until March 3rd at 1 pm (Portuguese Time). With this decision, applicants will be able to improve the quality of their proposals and submit them in the best possible way.

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Since November 2022, the European Innovation Council Fund (EIC Fund) has made 42 new investment decisions into deep-tech companies for €331 million. A total of 13 companies have already signed investment agreements.

An updated Research in Practice briefing, by Ferguson, Kelly & Gilsenan (2023), discusses the impact of COVID-19 on child protection and its implications for the future.