Brussels, 27/08/2013 (Agence Europe) - Jacques Delors of France, who was president of the Commission from 1985 to 1995, has underlined how urgent it is to strengthen the institutional capacity of the eurozone already under existing treaties. “Further social progress will not be possible without strengthening European governance. Also, in order to move forward, it is necessary to agree to a minimum amount of financial pooling within the eurozone, in exchange of course for strengthened common disciplines. I do not see any possibility for consolidating and strengthening the social model without a political leap forward and without a new foundation for industrial relations” (our translation), the French Socialist said in an interview published by the French daily, Les Echos, on Monday 26 August.
In October, the European Council will take stock of the social dimension as part of the debate on strengthening the economic, social and political strands of Economic and Monetary Union (EMU), mainly through the use of social indicators (for example: unemployment rate, social dialogue) (see EUROPE 10877). The question of competitiveness contracts that a state may sign at European level in order to commit to reforming its economy in exchange for financial aid should be decided this December. (MB/transl.jl)