Brussels, 11/01/2011 (Agence Europe) - The plenary session of the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC), to be held in Brussels on Wednesday 19 and Thursday 20 January under the chairmanship of Staffan Nilsson, will be enhanced by a debate between the vice-president of the Commission, Neelie Kroes (digital agenda), and the members of the European Economic and Social Committee on the latest developments in the field of digital.
This is not the first time that the digital agenda has been the full focus of the attention of the EESC, which adopted the opinion of Thomas McDonogh (Employers' Group, Ireland) on the digital agenda at its session of December 2010. In so doing, the Committee welcomed the highly coherent action plan which is the agenda. It calls upon the Commission and member states to begin applying it as a matter of urgency. More specifically, the Committee recommends tackling the principal obstacles of e-inclusion, increasing the funds for innovation in ICT, speeding up the development of and facilitating the use of online services, ensuring respect for privacy and guaranteeing that personal data are stored safely, paying particular attention to e-commerce involving children. Additionally, the Commission has already announced that it wishes to take part in the assembly on the digital agenda in June 2011. Neelie Kroes is expected to announce that her “Information Society” Directorate will ask the EESC to prepare an exploratory opinion on e-inclusion.
The work of the plenary will continue with the presentation of the priorities of the programme of the Hungarian Presidency of the EU, by Secretary of State to the National Economy Ministry Zsolt Becsey.
Some 15 opinions will also be put forward for examination, for the adoption of the members, on such issues as: - creating European contract law for consumers and businesses (Antonello Pezzini, Employers' Group, Italy); - corporate governance in financial establishments and remuneration policies (Michael Smyth, Various Activities group, UK); - suitability and viability of pensions (Petru Sorin Dandea, Workers' Group, Romania; Krzysztof Pater, Various Activities group: ). For the full agenda, see eesc.europa.eu (G.B./transl.fl)