Editorial by Conny Reuter, SOLIDAR Secretary General

New Game or Readjustment?

10 October 2014

Following the end of the parliamentary hearings, Commission President Juncker will now have to take into account not only the rejection of the Slovenian candidate, but also the doubts hanging over other candidates, i.e. the portfolios of the Hungarian FIDESZ candidate. This may result in the redistribution of some portfolios and a new nomination. In his presentation of the nominees the Commission President qualified this new Commission to be the “most political one”. Some nostalgics would expect a “Delors reloaded” Commission, others just reduce it to its institutional aspect and expect a revival of the communitarian method at the expense of the inter-governmental approach which currently rules Europe and provokes disintegration.

The performance of the Commissioner-designates during the hearings should allow us to have a peak at their action plan, however their presentations and answers, even though prepared by a team composed of a highly experienced Commission administration, left many crucial questions untouched; What will be the concrete steps towards better social inclusion? What about education and lifelong learning as a holistic approach? How to balance competition and social progress? How to go beyond the mantra of growth and competitiveness at any price, that has been used in the past to block any social approach? Where are the means for an effective social policy which is more than a loose OMC aimed just at the creation of jobs? How to finance the promised investment package, shall it not be through the privatization of social and public services as recently proposed by neo-liberal think tanks? How to strengthen the social dimension in Europe’s approach toward the Middle East and North A frica? Will the statement not to continue with enlargement not hamper the socio-economic reform process in the Western Balkans?

On these questions civil society is ready to engage and we can only reiterate what we and others have called for in the last weeks: we want a portfolio of civil dialogue (article 11 of the Treaty) similar to the social dialogue portfolio. It should be linked to the Vice-President who will be in charge of fundamental rights and anti-discrimination. Citizens are continuing to lose faith in the European institutions and democracy, they are more and more open to the populist anti-elite speech and their political parties. On top of that, the war in Syria and other parts of the world reflect the current global social and economic imbalances, thus this is the time for a big jump ahead.

A new game, but no time for gambling! What prevents us from investing in a social infrastructure and education at a time when interest rates are as low as they are now?

We call for courage, ambition, determination based on one major objective: policy change to deliver on increasing social and territorial cohesion of the Union!

SOLIDAR News during Hearings Week

The Social Dimension of European Economic Governance – Need for Social Dialogue

06 October 2014

On Monday 6th October 2014, Valdis Dombrovskis was interviewed by the European Parliament as the Commission’s Vice-President for the Euro and the Social Dialogue. Valdis Dombrovskis was Member of the European Parliament (2004-2009), Committee of Budget and economy/monetary affairs). According to his written answers to the European Parliament, he promises to steer and coordinate the ongoing reforms of the European and Monetary Union, the stability of the Euro, the solidity of public finances and social fairness underpinning the necessary structural reforms. This is an amibitious program, SOLIDAR will follow closely what Mr. Dombrovskis will deliver.
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Jobs, growth, investment, yes, but not at any cost

07 October

Jyrki Tapani Katainen has been interviewed by the European Parliament as the Commission’s Vice-President for Jobs, Growth, Investment and Competitiveness. He should coordinate 18 Commissioners overseeing, among others, financial services, economic and monetary affairs, Education-Culture-Youth and citizenship, Employment-social affairs-skills-labour mobility.
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Social Affairs

More Lifelong Learning for the Commission’s Employment and Social Situation Review

06 October 2014

On 6th October 2014, the European Commission published its Employment and Social Situation Quarterly Review: September 2014 and draws a very gloomy picture. Unemployment remains close to historical records, and the long-term unemployed represent a large and growing share of total unemployment, with almost 13 million people having been unemployed for at least one year. Especially the youth unemployment rate in countries like Greece and Spain see no improvement. It is a shame that Member States are still not delivering on the European Youth Guarantee.
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Enlargement Strategy – our policy recommendations to foster inclusion and support social investment

10 October 2014

On the occasion of publication the European Commission’s Progress reports on the Enlargement strategy and challenges 2014 – 2015 on October 8, SOLIDAR would like to present the following policy recommendations on how to foster social inclusion and support social investment in the Western Balkans region:
The recommendations are based on the findings of an extensive consultation carried out by SOLIDAR and members an partners in the Western BalkanS as well as on the on Comparative Analysis of the Role of Civil Society in Providing Social Welfare Services, developed by SOLIDAR with its partners from the IRIS network in April 2014. Five benchmarks have been set based on the EU Active Inclusion strategy to evaluate the European Commission’s 2013 Enlargement package.

These five benchmarks are focusing on: Guaranteeing equal opportunities to fight discrimination and build cohesive societies through enhancing a universal and inextricable approach to social, economic and political rights; Providing the assistance for those who can work to enter or re-enter and stay in employment that best relates to their capacity to work; Recognizing and implementing the right of individuals to adequate resources as part of consistent and comprehensive efforts to fight social exclusion; Ensure that proper social support is given to those that require it, in order to promote social and economic inclusion; and strengthening national lifelong learning programs aimed at personal, social and professional fulfillment.

In order to tackle those concerns from different angles and to engage discussion on the active inclusion and the role of social service providers in the Western Balkans, SOLIDAR and IRIS Network organize a round table on the topic Supporting Social Investments – The Enlargement Perspective. The event will take place in the European Parliament, on 6th November 2014. Click here for more information and registration.

TTIP: our European Social Model under pressure?

10 October 2014

Next week, the Foundation for European Progressive Studies, SOLIDAR, Global Progressive Forum, European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC) and European Public Health Alliance (EPHA) will hold a mission to Washington with members of European and national parliaments including: Jörg Leichtfried (MEP, Austria), David Martin (MEP, UK), Inmaculada Rodríguez Piñero(MEP, Spain), Agnes Jonge rius (MEP, Netherlands), Pedro Silva-Pereira (MEP, Portugal), Andreas Schieder (MP, Austria), John Spellar (MP, UK) and Jean-Marc Germain (MP, France). Not only will these partners organize the conference Transatlantic political and economic reflections on TTIP to develop a transatlantic dialogue, also various meetings will be held with US trade negotiators and the American trade union confederation AFL-CIO. SOLIDAR will underline during these meetings four main questions that are defined in our briefing paper “Transatlantic Trade And Investment Partnership (TTIP): Our ‘Crown Jewels’ For Sale?⍊ and will raise concerns about the impact of the trade and investment partnership on the European Social Model.

During the mission you can follow SOLIDAR on Facebook and Twitter.

Related News
The PES Group in the Committee of the Regions has circulated a press release in which they underline that ‘The regional and local dimension of the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership must be duly recognized’. Read the full version here

Lifelong Learning

SOLIDAR claims for the future priorities of the Education and Training 2020 Strategic Framework for European Cooperation in education and training

08 October 2014

On 9-10 October the European Commission is organising the European Education, Training and Youth Forum 2014 to look at the midterm evaluation of the Education and Training 2020 Framework, and to discuss the challenges and priorities for a new European agenda for Education, Training and Youth. In a time when everyone is looking for possible roads towards a European future with less unemployment and more economic and social stability, the education sector is a given starting point.
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International Cooperation

07 October 2014

SOLIDAR Briefing #67 – THE MISSING PIECE OF THE PUZZLE: Promote Non-Formal and Informal Learning as a driver for Human Development

In recent years, inequality, poverty and social exclusion have been on the rise throughout the world. SOLIDAR calls upon the international community to be ambitious and work together to achieve real change based on social justice. We believe that this is best achieved through initiatives driven by the local community; where people define their own needs and goals based on local circumstances. Non-formal and informal learning (NFIL) is one of the best ways to make necessary change possible, as it creates awareness and it empowers people to make positive life-decisions. While at the same time also enables people to acquire new skills and knowledge.
Read the full version here

World Day for Decent Work: Fighting Mafia is Fighting Slavery

07 October 2014

On the veil of the World Day for Decent Work, celebrated every year on October 7th, the anti-mafia caravan left the port of Lampedusa (the island, in Southern Italy, which is a major point of arrival for thousands of migrants crossing the Mediterranean Sea to reach Europe) and started its trip all around Italy. SOLIDAR member ARCI – in coordination with a wide range of organisations and associations active in the anti-mafia and migrant rights movement – is leading the initiative.
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Towards a Just and Inclusive Asia and Europe

10 October 2014

On 16-17th October 2014, the 10th Asia Europe Meeting (ASEM10) will take place in Milan hosted by The European Union. Heads of State and Government from across Asia and Europe will meet to discuss their future priorities and plans. Just few days before – from 10 to 12 October – the Asia-Europe People’s Forum (AEPF) will hold its biennial People’s Forum under the title “Towards a Just and Inclusive Asia and Europe – Building States of Citizens for Citizens”.

Activists, NGOs, social movements, trade unions, progressive politicians from Asia and Europe countries will come together to demand that the Asia Europe relations are rooted in

• Socially Just Trade and Investment
• Universal and Transformative Social Protection – Guaranteed Decent Work and Sustainable Livelihoods, Access to Essential Services and Social Security for All;
• Food Sovereignty and Sustainable Land and Natural Resource Management;
• Climate Justice, Sustainable Energy Production and Zero Waste; and _*Peace and Security

SOLIDAR will participate to the forum and namely to the discussion on Universal social protection that will also be the topic of the Advocacy Tour organised by SOLIDAR, the FES and BFW between the 4th and 6 November 2014 in Brussels. More information and registration can be found here

To contribute to the debate, SOLIDAR publishes today an interview to Conny Reuter, secretary general of SOLIDAR: “A Global Progressive Paradigm that Pays: Social Protection Floor for All!”.

Related News
UNRWA Gaza situation report (issue No. 64), read the full report here