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The ECA examined the Commission proposal for a directive on the protection of whistleblowers. It generally welcomes the legislative initiative, but believes that the Directive could become too complex and possibly ineffective in some points.

On 20 November 2018, MEPs from the Legal Affairs Committee (JURI) adopted their position on the Commission proposal for a directive on the protection of whistleblowers (COM(2018) 218 final).

On 24 October 2018, the plenary of the European Parliament backed the position of the LIBE Committee regarding legislative proposals on the interoperability between EU information systems in the area of justice and home affairs. EP negotiators have now green light to enter into informal talks with the Council and the Commission.

On 2 October 2018, the CJEU delivered another important judgment on data protection and on access by public authorities to retained provider data. The CJEU concluded that law enforcement authorities can also access personal data retained by providers of electronic communications in cases of criminal offences that are not particularly serious. It is a pre-condition, however, that access does not constitute a serous infringement of privacy.

On 19 September 2018, the CJEU rendered a judgment on the interpretation of Directive (EU) 2016/343 on the presumption of innocence and Arts. 47 and 48 CFR (Case C-310/18 PPU – Emil Milev).

On 27 September 2018, the Commission presented its annual report on EU customs enforcement of intellectual property rights in 2017. The report contains statistical information about the detentions made under customs procedures and includes data on the description, quantities, and values of the goods; their provenance; the means of transport; and the type of intellectual property right (IPR) that may have been infringed.

On 26 September 2018, the ECB presented figures on card fraud in 2016. It is the fifth report of this kind.

As a follow up to the Paradise Paper leaks, the Commission launched infringement proceedings against Italy and the United Kingdom on 8 November 2018. The proceedings concern VAT practices in the yacht and aircraft sectors that are not considered in line with EU rules.

On 20 December 2018, the Council adopted a Directive amending Directive 2006/112/EC on the common system of value added tax. It concerns the temporary application of a generalised reverse charge mechanism in relation to supplies of goods and services above a certain threshold.

On 8 November 2018, the Commission sent a formal opinion to the Maltese anti-money laundering supervisor (Financial Intelligence Analysis Unit − FIAU), in which it calls for compliance with the obligations under the 4th Anti-Money Laundering (AML) Directive.