From left to right: Director of EEA Cooperation at the Ministry for Foreign Affairs Katrín Auður Sverrisdóttir (Iceland), Deputy Head of the Mission to the EU Finnur Þór Birgisson (Iceland), Head of Mission to the EU Ambassador Stefán Haukur Jóhannesson (Iceland), EFTA Secretary-General Kurt Jäger and Ambassador Anders H. Eide (Norway)
On 5 December, the EEA Joint Committee adopted 69 Joint Committee Decisions, incorporating 142 legal acts into the EEA Agreement.
“This is the largest number of acts we have incorporated in several years, which illustrates the good progress made by the EEA EFTA States and EU in reducing the backlog”, stated Icelandic Ambassador Stefán Haukur Jóhannesson, Chair of the EEA Joint Committee on behalf of the EEA EFTA States.
The Ambassador highlighted several acts, including two long-outstanding delegated regulations in the field of energy: one on harmonised efficiency reference values for the separate production of electricity and heat in application, and another on comprehensive assessments of the potential for efficient heating and cooling.
Ambassador Jóhannesson also highlighted the European Single Access Point Regulation, which establishes a digital platform to centralise access to publicly available information about companies and financial products in the EU. This will make sustainability-related information more accessible, support investors and capital markets, and increase visibility for companies, especially SMEs.
In the digital area, the Ambassador highlighted three important acts. The Data Governance Act seeks to increase trust in data sharing, strengthen mechanisms for data availability and overcome technical obstacles to data reuse. Two further regulations provide a legal framework to detect and combat online child sexual abuse, improving internet safety for children across the EEA.
The committee members also discussed the recent EEA EFTA Comment on horizontal issues in the Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF) for 2028–2034. In the comment, the EEA EFTA States welcome the new programme proposals under the MFF and the programmes’ crucial role in boosting a competitive, secure and resilient Internal Market of 30 States. They also make several recommendations related to participation status, eligibility requirements and access to programme committees. Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway participate in EU programmes through the EEA Agreement, which guarantees equal access and obligations for EEA EFTA institutions, undertakings, organisations and nationals vis-à-vis the EU Member States.
This was the final meeting of the EEA Joint Committee under the Icelandic Chair before the EU takes over as Chair in the next meeting on 6 February.
