| Welcome to the Brussels Edition, Bloomberg's daily briefing on what matters most in the heart of the European Union. The European Commission will unveil a legislative proposal later this month for a "Digital Green Pass," which will provide proof that a person has been vaccinated, recovered from Covid-19 or has received a negative test. This may allow the return to some semblance of normalcy for those considered immune, including quarantine-free travel. The move will be cheered by the EU's tourism-dependent economies (here's what Portugal's secretary of state for tourism told us). But when you see reactions like this tweet from Belgium's foreign minister, Europeans would be right to wonder whether they'll get to go on a much-needed vacation this summer amid the prospect of months of bickering over the use and technical specifications of such immunity certificates. Not much will be clarified until we have the actual proposal from the Commission. And besides, holidays will remain a distant dream for as long as member states can't get this acute stage of the pandemic under control. — Nikos Chrysoloras What's HappeningVaccine Scams | It's getting increasingly difficult to explain to most Europeans why the U.S. has administered three times as many vaccine doses as the EU (when adjusted for population). Fraudsters have predictably tried to take advantage of the bloc's despair, offering more than 900 million doses at a price tag of almost 13 billion euros. This is an internal briefing note on the scams. Ease Up | German Economy Minister Peter Altmaier joined a chorus of politicians calling for a faster move toward normalcy, adding pressure on Chancellor Angela Merkel to ease the lockdown. He told a business conference yesterday that "the longer the lockdown lasts, the bigger the risk that Germany's economy will suffer long-lasting damage." Polish Ruling | The EU's top court will today give its binding decision on one of several disputes stemming from a string of controversial judicial reforms in Poland, which have cast doubt on the rule of law. An adviser to the court in the latest case criticized the way applications by judges seeking a post with the nation's Supreme Court are overseen. Trade Reform | EU trade ministers will today begin discussions on the proposals tabled by the Commission to review the bloc's trade policy. Don't expect anything concrete just yet — governments will only formulate a joint position in May. Here's a reminder of the proposals. Russian Sanctions | EU ambassadors approved sanctions against four senior Russian law enforcement officials over the jailing of opposition leader Alexey Navalny. The U.S is also poised to announce punitive measures over Navalny as soon as today in what appears as a coordinated move between Brussels and the Biden administration. In Case You Missed ItSarkozy Ruling | Former French President Nicolas Sarkozy's chances of returning to office suffered a blow after he was found guilty by a Paris court of corruption. The judgment puts the former president on the back-foot weeks before he's due back in court on separate charges that he illegally exceeded campaign-spending limits ahead of his electoral defeat. Georgian Crisis | European Council President Charles Michel appealed to Georgians to end a confrontation over the detention of the country's main opposition party leader, which has plunged the Caucasus nation into political crisis. Opposition parties are boycotting parliament and demanding fresh elections after a disputed vote in October. European Bauhaus | It's not often that the Commission, a sprawling bureaucracy housed in an ugly building, triggers someone's aesthetic imagination. But it happened to our columnist, Andreas Kluth, when President Ursula von der Leyen declared that she wanted to bring to life a "new European Bauhaus." Here's a first glimpse of what he thinks that might look like. Hey Boss | As the pandemic has slowed growth and increased inequality, there's a new push to re-engineer economies, social structures and workplaces. Although many companies resist the idea of cutting hours without reducing pay, those that have adopted a four-day week say employee productivity has increased. Send this story to your boss. Chart of the Day The European Central Bank slowed the pace of pandemic bond-buying last week even as officials warned that a global rise in yields could derail the economic recovery. But investors didn't appear troubled at all that the ECB did nothing to prevent borrowing costs from rising. This is why. Today's AgendaAll times CET. - 9:30 a.m. EU's highest court issues binding ruling on Poland's judicial reforms
- 10 a.m. Senior EU officials speak at EPC Climate Adaptation event
- 10:30 a.m. Press conference by EU Commissioner Didier Reynders on the Safety Gate alert system for dangerous products
- 11 a.m. Euro-area flash inflation reading for February
- 12:30 p.m. Press conference following informal video conference of EU trade ministers
- 1 p.m. Press conference by Commissioner Elisa Ferreira on the Technical Support Instrument to support reforms in 27 Member States
- Commission President von der Leyen speaks at German diversity conference
- German top court rules on ratification of the CETA trade agreement
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