Strasbourg, 15/03/2001 (Agence Europe) - During Wednesday's debate in plenary on the European Council of Stockholm of 23 and 24 March, EU Council President Anna Lindh recalled that this summit had to focus on the moderinsation of the European economic and social model. Stressing that there were still 14 million unemployed in the EU, she placed emphasis on the need to strengthen the already ambitious goals adopted at the Lisbon Summit, and pleaded in favour of measures to: - bolster the strategy for employment; - promote lifelong learning and training; - develop the quality of work. Among the other priorities, she mentioned biotechnologies, the opening up of the gas and electricity markets, the postal services, the railways and air transport, as well as the creation of a genuine financial services market, the strategy to tackle the ageing of the population, the preservation of the social protection system and better social inclusion for the elderly. The Swedish Presidency would also like to see "the ecological strategy missing in Lisbon included", Ms. Lindh recalled, adding that "Sweden would like the introduction of the euro to be a great success".
President Romano Prodi welcomed the fact that a meeting with President Putin (before the Summit) would enable them to discuss economic reform in Russia and improvements of conditions relating to investments which are "vital for the success of the energy dialogue" (on this, see EUROPE of 8 March, p.11). After Lisbon, we recorded success but today we must progress in sectors where we have run up against the resistance of certain Member States, Prodi explained, stating that "we must provide renewed impetus", especially for the Community patent, which the EU urgently needs and which, as requested at the Feira Council, should be available by the end of this year (see EUROPE of 14 March, p.8, for the deadlock in the Internal Market Council on this issue). Member States must also assume their responsibility. "Other problem: the Galileo project which, with a modest injection of public funds, would make Europe self-sufficient in satellite navigation signals for all purposes - civilian, military and scientific", said Prodi, recalling that the Kosovo war had showed only too clearly Europe's total dependence on the American GPS satellite navigation system (see EUROPE of 12/13 March, p.8, for the differences within EcoFin over Galileo). "Effective social protection for an ageing population", this is another topic which "is particularly close to my heart", and which we must tackle, said Prodi, stressing that, currently in the EU, there were four people of working age for every person over 65. In 20 years time, there will only be three and in forty years time only two. We shall have to modernise our social and pension systems to render them "sustainable", he said, before adding: "I want Europe to be not only the most competitive region in the world, but also the region with the highest level of social inclusion (…) European demographic development may lead to a crisis that in a few decades could seriously jeopardize the EU's competitiveness, the workings of EMU and our social model. We must act immediately to safeguard the European social model for future generations (…) From around 2007, our labour force will become inadequate to satisfy all our economic requirements and the EU will have to resolve the problem of a lack of labour (…) In future, all generations will have to work longer". In its communication for Stockholm, the Commission urges Member states to step up women's participation in the labour market, Prodi recalled, also placing emphasis on the need to reconcile working and family life, while encouraging people to have children. We must also urgently provide ourselves with a European-wide immigration policy, he said, before recommending measures to preserve a high level of social protection, guarantee the perennial nature of pension schemes, the protability of rights and finally create a single market for pension funds. "In Stockholm, Member States will have to remove the tax barriers that prevent cross-border payments of pension contributions and the cross-border management of pension funds. Coordination between national tax systems is essential in this matter and the Commission will soon be presenting proposals on the subject" declared Mr. Prodi. "The effects of ageing on our social systems must strengthen or determination to reduce the public debt", he said, before envisaging the inclusion of the long-term viability of public finances among the demands of the Pact on Stability and Growth. Healthy and viable public finances must be part of the "comprehensive sustainable development strategy in Europe" that the Commission is to present to the Gothenburg Summit in June. He then concluded: "There is no and there will be no single model of social inclusion in the enlarged Union".
Each Member State will make its own choices according to its own traditions, its culture and the determination of its population. Nonetheless, the general framework must be sound. And this can only be the case at Union level".
The debate: catching up, but no unbridled liberalisation
Speaking for the EPP/ED Group, Ilkka Suominen (Finland) urged for greater flexibility on the labour market. Modernisation of the European social model must continue and competition must be strengthened, she said, also insisting on enhancing research. Luxembourg Socialist Robert Goebbels felt "our Union is not doing too badly" and that "in 2000 Europe become the pole of world growth". Mr Goebbels considered Europe could do better in many areas, but affirmed that unbridled liberalisation is not the solution. Spanish Liberal Carles-Alfred Gasoliba i Böhm acknowledged the fact that the liberalisation process has begun but added it is now necessary to step up the pace to make up the gap that still separates us from the United States. Belgian Green member Pierre Jonckheer said that, for the V/ALE group, the problem of "needs" must finally be tackled. Speaking of saturation of portable phones when there is inadequate housing, he explained that one should ask oneself what the real and most urgent needs are. Speaking on behalf of the GUE/NGL group, Herman Schmid said Stockholm's social profile is quite weak as it seems that focus will be far more on deregulation. Gerard Collins (UEN, Ireland) deplored the fact that there is still no sufficient strategy in the field of information technologies, and insisted on better vocational training for the young and for the unemployed. He went on to state that the aim of full employment may be reached in the EU. Gunilla Carlsson (EPP/ED, Sweden) criticised the policy conducted in Sweden where the rate of unemployment has increased because tax pressure on companies has increased (she said unemployment is 17% of the active population and not 5% as official figures say).