A majority of MEPs gave a lukewarm reception to the outcome of the Porto Social Summit presented by the European Commission and the Portuguese Presidency of the EU Council, during an exchange in plenary session on Wednesday 9 June (see EUROPE 12716/3).
The most enthusiastic MEPs were from the S&D group, from which the European Commissioner for Jobs and Social Rights, Nicolas Schmit, comes, and from the Renew Europe group.
The Social Summit is an important signal to speed up the implementation of the European Pillar of Social Rights, said Pedro Marques (S&D, Portugal) and Lucia Nicholsonová (Renew Europe, Slovakia). The fact that the social partners were actively involved in the Summit (see EUROPE 12715/2) was repeatedly stressed and appreciated.
On the other hand, many MEPs, especially in the Greens/EFA and EPP groups, regretted the lack of ambition of the Social Summit and of the final Summit Declaration, especially in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic.
While trying to see “the glass as half full”, Dennis Radtke (EPP, Germany), noted that the European Parliament had been “much more ambitious” than the Commission and the heads of state or government in its resolution adopted in December 2020 (see EUROPE 12626/27).
Cindy Franssen (EPP, Belgium) pointed out the lack of ambition expressed in the area of poverty reduction. She insisted on legislative action and the introduction of new criteria as part of the ‘European Semester’ budget process. Here, José Manuel Fernandes (EPP, Portugal) called for binding poverty reduction targets per Member State.
Kira Marie Peter-Hansen (Greens/EFA, Denmark) deplored the fact that the Commission and Member States are not really equipping themselves with the necessary instruments to fight poverty. She called for the presentation of a directive on minimum income.
Sara Matthieu (Greens/EFA, Belgium) denounced the fact that Poland and Hungary had won their case on the deletion of the reference to gender equality in the final declaration (see EUROPE 12710/14).
Mounir Satouri (Greens/EFA, France) said he hoped that the European Commission would correct the lack of quantified social targets in national recovery plans. And he called for a thorough review of the Budget Pact. Leïla Chaibi (The Left, France) deplored the absence of certain topics, notably the issue of housing and the galloping inflation of rents.
Unsurprisingly, the sovereignist group ECR and the far-right group Identity and Democracy denounced any attempt by the Commission to take over competences in the social field. Guido Reil (ID, Germany) welcomed the letter from 11 Member States reaffirming, ahead of the Summit, that social issues were a national prerogative (see EUROPE 12710/14).
At the end of the speeches, Nicolas Schmit showed some irritation, raising his fist above the lectern. He recalled that nine out of ten citizens want a stronger social Europe (referring to a Eurobarometer survey - see EUROPE 12668/7) and do not care about “ideologies, preconceptions”. “They don’t discuss competences a priori, they want results”, he said.
“Have there been no concrete actions since this Commission took office? Is the 100 billion SURE fund that has preserved millions of jobs, protected millions of workers, maintained their income, their work, their prospects not a concrete action?”, he challenged the MEPs. And he stressed the role of the Member States in the fight against poverty. (Original version in French by Pascal Hansens)