On 9 September we celebrate the 18^th European Day for Organ Donation and Transplantation. I am in Lithuania at an event marking the 30^th anniversary of the first heart transplant in the country. It is an emotional moment for me because 30 years ago, as a young surgeon, I had the privilege to take part in that operation. Since then, the number of transplantations, of all types, has increased a lot in the EU and worldwide, only between 2010 and 2015 the increase was 14 per cent.

A large part of this is thanks to higher donation rates. Therefore we should honour the contribution of the countless everyday heroes in the EU who have helped extend and save hundreds of thousands of lives. Improvements are also due to surgical advances, better coordination between clinical teams, improved transport and safety standards for organs, and an increase in the cross-border exchange of organs.

The EU has also contributed. We have EU-wide legislation on quality and safety standards for organ transplantation. When it comes to cutting waiting list times, we have developed a European IT tool that enables doctors in one Member State to find suitable donors for their patients in another Member State. In just two years, almost 90 transplants have taken place, mainly for children, which would not have been possible without this. We will soon publish a report that will clearly illustrate that pooling resources and knowledge across the EU can significantly improve clinical outcomes. No country alone has the capacity to treat all rare and complex diseases. This is why earlier this year we launched a new initiative to improve the sharing of knowledge across Europe. The virtual European Reference Networks allow healthcare providers across Europe to share information on complex or rare diseases and conditions that require highly specialised treatment and a concentration of resources.

Unfortunately, nevertheless 16 patients die every day waiting for an organ in the EU; thousands of patients remain on transplant waiting lists. As a doctor, I know exactly how far we have come, medically speaking. As a European Commissioner I know the fundamental importance of coordination at a European level when we’re talking about organ donation and transplantation. I believe that together with our Member States we can do more. Where there is a will there is a way.

​The Hague, 7 September 2017

Solveig Wollstad was appointed for a second term as National Member for Sweden at Eurojust, commencing June 2017.

After receiving an LL.M. from the University of Lund in 1983, Ms Wollstad began her career as a prosecutor in 1987, when she joined the Swedish Prosecution Authority.

Ms Wollstad was promoted in 2001 to Chief Public Prosecutor and Head of the International Public Prosecution Office in Linköping, leaving to become National Member for Sweden at Eurojust from January 2004 through September 2007. She was then Eurojust´s representative at the EU Police Chiefs Task Force, as well as involved with relations with Europol and third States and a member of the Trafficking Team.

From September 2007 to September 2014, Ms Wollstad returned to Sweden as Chief Public Prosecutor and Head of the International Public Prosecution Office for the south of Sweden in Malmö, dealing with serious organised national and transnational crime, mutual legal assistance in criminal matters, arrest warrants and extradition.

Ms Wollstad then served as Head of the East Public Prosecution Area (Eastern Region) of the Swedish Prosecution Service and as Head of  five District Prosecution Offices from October 2014 to May 2017, before returning to Eurojust in June 2017.

In her very long and varied legal career, Ms Wollstad has served as expert in several EU projects on judicial cooperation, contact point for Sweden with the EJN, member of the National Supervisory Board of the Swedish Customs Authority, member of the National Council on Police and Judicial Cooperation, the Swedish Public Prosecution Authority’s contact person for the IAP, Member of the Swedish Board of the AIDP, and Member of the Prosecutor General of Sweden’s National Management Board for the Swedish Prosecution Authority.

Ms Wollstad has also served as expert on many Swedish governmental committees.

On her second appointment to Eurojust, Ms Wollstad said:

‘I am very happy to return to Eurojust after 10 years, especially in this beautiful new building. I have always been a supporter of the work of Eurojust, and at this time, with the EPPO and Brexit, we have additional challenges to face.

We must use our wealth of experience to focus on practical casework, operational issues and teamwork, and how to change legal instruments. Eurojust is fortunate in having a large administrative support staff, including a new Operational Unit, allowing the National Members to focus on their core tasks. I am optimistic that we can achieve much more by working together.’

​The Hague, 7 September 2017

Solveig Wollstad was appointed for a second term as National Member for Sweden at Eurojust, commencing June 2017.

After receiving an LL.M. from the University of Lund in 1983, Ms Wollstad began her career as a prosecutor in 1987, when she joined the Swedish Prosecution Authority.

Ms Wollstad was promoted in 2001 to Chief Public Prosecutor and Head of the International Public Prosecution Office in Linköping, leaving to become National Member for Sweden at Eurojust from January 2004 through September 2007. She was then Eurojust´s representative at the EU Police Chiefs Task Force, as well as involved with relations with Europol and third States and a member of the Trafficking Team.

From September 2007 to September 2014, Ms Wollstad returned to Sweden as Chief Public Prosecutor and Head of the International Public Prosecution Office for the south of Sweden in Malmö, dealing with serious organised national and transnational crime, mutual legal assistance in criminal matters, arrest warrants and extradition.

Ms Wollstad then served as Head of the East Public Prosecution Area (Eastern Region) of the Swedish Prosecution Service and as Head of  five District Prosecution Offices from October 2014 to May 2017, before returning to Eurojust in June 2017.

In her very long and varied legal career, Ms Wollstad has served as expert in several EU projects on judicial cooperation, contact point for Sweden with the EJN, member of the National Supervisory Board of the Swedish Customs Authority, member of the National Council on Police and Judicial Cooperation, the Swedish Public Prosecution Authority’s contact person for the IAP, Member of the Swedish Board of the AIDP, and Member of the Prosecutor General of Sweden’s National Management Board for the Swedish Prosecution Authority.

Ms Wollstad has also served as expert on many Swedish governmental committees.

On her second appointment to Eurojust, Ms Wollstad said:

‘I am very happy to return to Eurojust after 10 years, especially in this beautiful new building. I have always been a supporter of the work of Eurojust, and at this time, with the EPPO and Brexit, we have additional challenges to face.

We must use our wealth of experience to focus on practical casework, operational issues and teamwork, and how to change legal instruments. Eurojust is fortunate in having a large administrative support staff, including a new Operational Unit, allowing the National Members to focus on their core tasks. I am optimistic that we can achieve much more by working together.’

EFSA’s EU-FORA initiative is up and running. The fellowship programme supports the building of the EU’s scientific assessment capacity and knowledge community. It gives early and mid-career scientists the opportunity to increase their expertise in food safety risk assessment within a European national risk assessment institute.

Fifteen young scientists from 11 EU countries have started training at EFSA, Parma, as part of their fellowship placements under the EU-FORA programme. The fellows will then complete a year of on-the-job learning at food safety risk assessment institutes across Europe, gaining first-hand experience and contributing to the work of the host institutes.

Bernhard Url, EFSA’s Executive Director, said: “This programme will help us to get hold of the best brains in Europe and build the next generation of EU risk assessors. It will keep EFSA at the forefront of scientific advancement in risk assessment. We will face the challenges of the future only by sharing knowledge and methodologies.”  

Preparing for the next round

In October 2017 young and mid-career scientists will be invited to apply for the next round of the EU-FORA fellowship programme, which starts in September 2018. Food safety risk assessment organisations will also be invited to act as hosts.