Brussels, 01/09/2013 (Agence Europe) - The agreement is not yet official and several points are still pending but the negotiators from the European Parliament and Council of the EU did manage to reach a temporary compromise on Monday 30 September on the European Globalisation Adjustment Fund (EGF). The results of this final round of negotiations between the institutions will be presented by the Lithuanian president of the Council to COREPER on Wednesday 2 October, and the final compromise text on 11 October. It is important to point out that the agreement stipulates a higher co-financing rate than was originally planned.
The parliament and the Lithuanian presidency are so far remaining rather discreet on the question but the trilogue meeting on 30 September, as more or less expected (see EUROPE 10925), was a “success” that has allowed negotiations to be concluded. Informal talks still, however, have to take place on the subject of several technical questions. The reaction from certain member states regarding the compromise is still uncertain and the negotiators involved in this important dossier are remaining cautious and awaiting the meeting of the permanent representatives from the member states to the European Union at the end of next week.
The main EGF guidelines for 2014-2020 have therefore been outlined. One of the most controversial points in these negotiations involved the level of co-financing. In June 2013, member states agreed on a single rate of 55%, although Parliament wanted a gradual approach with two or even three different rates. The compromise now includes a single rate but it is higher than the Council wanted, at 65%. The planned budget of €150 million is on an annual basis, whereas between 2007 and 2013 it was €500 million. A ceiling for individual case bases has also been set out at 35% of the total costs of funding action.
The EGF's scope has also been expanded. This will include exemptions in the event of crises, together with the primary objective of tackling the obvious effects of globalisation on European business and the inclusion of workers on fixed contracts, temporary and self-employed workers. This inclusion was made possible by exchanging the terms “worker” and “beneficiary” in the fund operation regulation. This compromise also includes the possibility of funding specialist training for workers that want to buy out the company from which they have been made redundant.
As stipulated in the Franco-German compromise on the EGF, the objective in the fight against youth unemployment in the actions advocated in the fund, were also added. Nonetheless, this is not expected to affect young people who are unemployed but rather those “Not in Education, Employment, or Training” (NEETs) in the region where the EGF is supposed to intervene, as well as neighbouring regions, although Parliament opposed the latter option. The age limit for young people has still not been agreed because this question is currently and directly linked to the inter-institutional negotiations on the European Social Fund (ESF), where Parliament is fighting to have the age limit set at 30 (see EUROPE 10925). (JK/transl.fl)