Rome, 03/03/2014 (Agence Europe) - The European Socialists and Democrats are now in order. On Saturday 1 March, they adopted their manifesto unanimously at the congress of the Party of European Socialists (PES) held in Rome. They also put their confidence in current European Parliament President Martin Schulz (Germany) to be the face of their campaign, and - they hope - the next president of the European Commission.
Schulz garnered 368 of the 404 valid votes - with two votes against and 34 abstentions. Although the vote is secret, British daily newspaper The Guardian claimed on the sidelines of the vote that the British socialist party, the Labour Party, would vote against Schulz's candidacy. Labour Party leader Ed Miliband was, moreover, one of the only absentees not to send his wishes by videolink.
The PES pledges to break the strategy of the European Right, which - in the opinion of the PES - “has created a Europe of fear and austerity”, as the manifesto states. Faced with the anger of citizens, “it is imperative not to say no to Europe but to fight for a better Europe”, said Schulz. In the view of France's Prime Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault, it is important “to convince citizens that the vote must not only express disappointment and anger but must also bring an alternative”.
The priority for the PES is employment. “The legacy of the economic policies conducted over the last five years” is cruel - 27 million Europeans unemployed. “We must convince citizens that our Europe is not one of austerity and unemployment”, said Greece's Deputy Prime Minister Evangelos Venizelos. The PES wants to implement the Youth Guarantee fully, and to extend the Youth Guarantee budget and access to it to all young people under the age of 30. The fight against social dumping is also a priority.
Goodbye to austerity? “But we have to be responsible with the budget. We must not leave the weight of the debt” for future generations, said Belgium's Prime Minister Elio Di Rupo. The PES wants to continue budgetary consolidation in a “sustainable and just” way, says the manifesto. Malta's Prime Minister Joseph Muscat, stated that the governments of the Left were “capable of managing public finances in the soundest way”. The PES wants to give a greater margin of manoeuvre to the member states to enable them to invest in research, education, innovation and smart re-industrialisation. “I want a Europe where one country is not able to impose itself on others because of its economic power”, said Schulz. Speaking about Italy, its new Prime Minister Matteo Renzi expressed his resolve to improve the public debt situation “not because an international institution demands it” but because it is “a question of dignity”.
The Socialists and Democrats also want to pool “responsibilities and rights”. Bulgaria's Prime Minister Plamen Oresharski called for more integration and solidarity. The PES is taking over the demand that the European Parliament wants to make in an own initiative report that will be put to the vote in March as to the future of the troika (the Commission, the ECB and the IMF) which is active in the countries receiving financial assistance. The Socialists and Democrats call for the implementation of a Community instrument instead of the troika. Lastly, they also have the objective of cutting tax evasion by half by 2020. As regards the financial sector, they want to complete its regulation. The PES wants to accelerate implementation of the financial transaction tax (FTT) in which 11 countries participate. The party will insist on a European public ratings agency being set up. In principle, the Commission is due to come back with ideas after the reform adopted last year.
The PES is in favour of the separation of banking activities. “Retail banks can be separated from speculation. An end can be made to dangerous speculation”, said Schulz. The Commission has recently made a proposal on this. The idea of the PES is to bring the banking system back to the service of the economy.
A social Europe. The Socialists want to fight to impose a minimum wage in Europe. PES President Sergei Stanishev called for a “Europe that leaves no one behind”. Schulz said that the battle for equal pay between men and women would become his own. “I want my daughter to have the same chances as my son”, he stated. The PES wants a Europe of diversity - particularly through solidarity between states in the face of migration and through the sharing of responsibility. The party insists on citizens' personal data protection.
Lastly, the EU must be that of the citizens. While leader of the European Parliament's S&D Group, Hannes Swoboda (Austria), has refused to hear about coalition before the elections, the leader of Germany's Social Democratic Party (SPD), Sigmar Gabriel, said that for the first time the president of the Commission would be directly elected by the citizens, which would be “a democratic turning point”, in his opinion. Schulz is ready to see some competences go back down to the local level. However, on the international scene, the PES wants to see the EU speak with a strong voice. (EL)