European Social Policy articles from December 2006

European Social Policy archives from December 2006

RESTRUCTURING : CAR INDUSTRY SHOULD BE RESTRUCTURED BUT IN LINE WITH RULES.
December 11, 2006... European Employment Commissioner Vladimir pidla is to visit the Volkswagen plant in Forest/Vorst (Brussels region) on 28 November to meet the management and workers to discuss the situation following the announcement of large-scale job cuts....

CIVIL LAW : ECJ CONSIDERS REMIT IN GREEK NAZI MASSACRE CASE.(European Union Court of Justice)(Brief article)
December 11, 2006... A lawsuit aimed at making Germany pay compensation for a massacre the Nazis carried out during their four-year occupation of Greece has ended up in the EU Court of Justice's lap. On 8 November, Advocate-General Damaso Ruiz-Jarabo concluded...

HEALTH : EU CALLED ON TO TACKLE MALNUTRITION.(European Union)(Brief article)
December 11, 2006... With obesity currently looming large in the forefront of EU concerns, there is also a concern about the problem of malnutrition, which is currently a threat to more than 50 million Europeans. This was the message passed on by the European...

GERMAN PRESIDENCY : GLOBALISATION ADJUSTMENT FUND: WHY NOT PROVIDED THERE ARE STRICT RULES.(Interview)
December 11, 2006... With just a few weeks to go before Germany takes up the EU Presidency over the first half of 2007, Gerd Andres, Secretary of State for Employment and Social Affairs in Angela Merkel's CDU-SPD coalition government, has reviewed the issues likely...

INTERNATIONAL HEALTH AGREEMENT.(Brief article)
December 11, 2006... Health ministers agree with the objectives of the new International Health Regulation (IHR) - adopted by the World Health Organisation (WHO) in 2005 - and will show no opposition when it enters into force on 16 June 2007. This was decided by EU...

UNEMPLOYMENT : JOBLESS RATE UNCHANGED IN EU, DOWN IN EUROZONE.(Brief article)
December 11, 2006... In the eurozone, seasonally adjusted unemployment stood at 7.7% in October 2006, compared to 7.8% in September, according to figures released on 1 December by Eurostat. The rate was 8.5% in October 2005. The EU25 unemployment rate was 7.9% in...

HEALTH : KYPRIANOU DEFENDS VOLUNTARY APPROACH TO FIGHTING OBESITY.(Health Commissioner Markos Kyprianou)(Brief article)
December 11, 2006... Following the pan-European conference organised in Istanbul for 15 to 17 November, EU Health Commissioner Markos Kyprianou reconfirmed his desire to 'challenge industry' on the subject of responsible advertising with regard to children and...

JUSTICE AND HOME AFFAIRS : MAINTENANCE OBLIGATIONS:aPARLIAMENT LEFT OUT.
December 11, 2006... The European Parliament's Committee on Legal Affairs discussed improving enforcement of maintenance obligations on 20 November. Currently, as draftsperson Diana Wallis (ALDE, UK) notes, a divorcee in the EU, with a husband resident in another...

MASSIVE JOB CUTS AT VW IN BELGIUM.
December 11, 2006... Danuta Hubner is busy trying to organise an emergency meeting with the regional authorities of Brussels to assess whether there is a need for Community aid following the announcement by the Volkswagen (VW) group of massive job cuts in its...

EDUCATION : MINISTERS BACK PLANS FOR QUALIFICATIONS FRAMEWORK.
December 11, 2006... Strong backing was given by EU education ministers for the European Commission's proposals to create a European Qualifications Framework (EQF), at the Council's meeting on 14 November. Ministers adopted a general approach which differs only...

UNEMPLOYMENT : SIGNIFICANT VARIATIONS IN UNEMPLOYMENT BETWEEN REGIONS.
December 11, 2006... Regional unemployment rates varied widely across the EU25 in 2005, from 2.6% in the region of Herefordshire, Worcestershire and Warwickshire in the United Kingdom, to 30.1% in Reunion in France. In the EU25 as a whole, unemployment fell from...

HEALTH : STUDY POINTS TO BENEFITS OF FLU VACCINATION.(Brief article)
December 11, 2006... Generalised and seasonal flu vaccination for people at risk might save the lives of more than half a million individuals in the EU. This is the claim set out in a recent study published by the Belgian pharmaceutical company Solvay (1). The EU...

ACTION URGED ON HEPATITIS C.(Brief article)
December 11, 2006... Five MEPs sent a written declaration to the European Commission and the Council of Ministers on 30 November urging them to take action on the issue of hepatitis C. Hepatitis C affects some 200 million people around the world and 12 million in...

SOCIAL SERVICES OF GENERAL INTEREST : CLARIFYING THE FRAMEWORK FOR SOCIAL SERVICES.
December 11, 2006... The European Parliament's Employment Committee1 began reviewing, on 22 November, the draft report by Joel Hasse Ferreira (PES, Portugal) on social services of general interest (SSGI) in the European Union. The report follows on from the...

PUBLIC HEALTH : COMMISSION LAUNCHES AWARENESS-RAISING CAMPAIGN ON AIDS.
December 11, 2006... In response to an upsurge in new cases of AIDS in the European Union, the European Commission has launched an awareness-raising campaign culminating in a Night of HIV/AIDS TV Commercials at the Kinepolis cinema complex in Brussels on 30...

SOCIAL POLICY : COMMISSION OPENS ONLINE CONSULTATION ON LABOUR LAW.
December 11, 2006... The European Commission, on 22 November, launched a widespread open public debate on the revision and adaptation of labour law to meet the challenges of the 21st century. New types of contractual arrangements, different from permanent,...

IMMIGRATION : COMMISSION SEEKS TO DEVELOP EUROPE'S MIGRATION POLICY.
December 11, 2006... Ahead of the European Council on 14 and 15 December, the European Commission presented, on 30 November, two communications on, firstly, migration policy and, secondly, reinforcing the EU's southern borders. In the awkwardly entitled...

EMPLOYMENT AND SOCIAL AFFAIRS COUNCIL : DAPHNE III AND SOCIAL SECURITY ON THE AGENDA.
December 11, 2006... The Council of the EU's employment and social policy ministers met on 1 December, with Finland's Labour Minister Tarja Filatov and Social Affairs and Health Minister Tuula Haatainen chairing the event. Several items were on the agenda, leading...

MODERNISING LABOUR LAW : EMPLOYERS AND UNIONS CROSS SWORDS.
December 11, 2006... Following the European Commission's publication of its Green Paper on modernising labour law, the European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC) is satisfied that "the Commission has resisted the lobbying attempts of certain employers". The ETUC...

PUBLIC HEALTH : EP DEMANDS MORE FUNDING IN THE FIGHT AGAINST AIDS.(European Parliament)(Brief article)
December 11, 2006... In their common resolution on AIDS adopted on 29 November by 546 votes for, 24 against and 36 abstentions, the EPP-ED, PES, ALDE, Greens/EFA and GUE/NGL Groups all denounce the sales tax and import duties imposed by certain African governments...

RESTRUCTURING : EP: VW AFFAIR' UNDERSCORES NEED FOR A MORE SOCIAL EUROPE.
December 11, 2006... The restructuring at the Volkswagen site in Forest (Brussels) was included in the plenary session of the European Parliament on 29 November. A mini-debate on this subject replaced the planned discussion on the European Globalisation Adjustment...

EU-INDIA SOCIAL AGREEMENT.(European Union)(Brief article)
December 11, 2006... The European Commission and the Indian Ministry of Labour and Employment have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to strengthen dialogue and exchange on employment and social affairs issues of common interest. It follows a decision at...

EUROPEAN MINIMUM WAGE.(Brief article)
December 11, 2006... Launched on 8 February, the consultation on active inclusion, embracing the wider problem of social minimums has been wound up and the first results are now available. The European Commission received 73 contributions. The majority of...

EUROPE'S DEMOGRAPHIC FUTURE.(Brief article)
December 11, 2006... The European Union's Social Protection Committee is to present its opinion to EU employment and social policy ministers on 30 November on the European Commission's communication entitled Europe's Demographic Future, Transforming a Challenge...

HUMAN RIGHTS / RACISM : FINAL GREEN LIGHT TOaFUNDAMENTAL RIGHTS AGENCY.
December 11, 2006... The Fundamental Rights Agency received general agreement at the Justice and Home Affairs Council on 4 December, pending only approval by the Dutch Senate and formal examination of the European Parliament's opinion. This should enable the Agency...

SOCIAL EXCLUSION : HOUSING BODIES SPELL OUT THEIR COMMUNITY CREED.
December 11, 2006... The French social housing lobby Union sociale pour l'Habitat has launched a debate on the Community framework for social housing after the sector was left out of the Services Directive. The lobby says that this framework is slowly coming...

SOCIAL SECURITY : HOW TO GAIN A BETTER UNDERSTANDING OF BENEFITS.(Brief article)
December 11, 2006... The European Parliament voted by a show of hands on 30 November to approve the report by Jan Andersson (PES, Sweden) on the European System of Integrated Social Protection Statistics (ESSPROS). The regulation aims to establish a framework...

INSTITUTE FOR GENDER EQUALITY GOES TO VILNIUS.(Lithuania)(Brief article)
December 11, 2006... The Employment and Social Affairs Council settled, on 1 December, the question of the seat of the Institute for Gender Equality. It chose Lithuania, one of the three candidate countries along with Slovakia and Slovenia. The Institute for Gender...

INTEGRATION OF WOMEN.(immigrants; employment)(Brief article)
December 11, 2006... The German towns of Dresden and Cologne are making preparations for two pilot projects on integration into professional life for young female immigrants. The project is driven by the Federal ministry for Family Affairs, Senior Citizens, Women...

FAMILY : MAINTENANCE OBLIGATIONS:aPARLIAMENT LEFT OUT.
December 11, 2006... The European Parliament's Committee on Legal Affairs discussed improving enforcement of maintenance obligations on 20 November. Currently, as draftsperson Diana Wallis (ALDE, UK) notes, a divorcee in the EU, with a husband resident in another...

LABOUR MOBILITY : MASS MIGRATION A MYTH IN AN ENLARGED EUROPE.
December 11, 2006... Only 4% of European citizens have ever moved to another country in the European Union and less than 3% to another country outside the EU, a study on Mobility in Europe by the European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working...

PUBLIC HEALTH : MEMBER STATES PLEDGE TO INTEGRATE HEALTH INTO ALL EU POLICIES.(European Union)(Brief article)
December 11, 2006... Gathered for a Health Council on 30 November, EU health ministers pledged to integrate health considerations into all EU policies. 'The conclusions highlight EU Treaty obligations to guarantee a high standard of public health,' said the Finnish...

PUBLIC HEALTH : MENTAL HEALTH MAY GET A EUROPEAN STRATEGY.
December 11, 2006... The results of the consultation on mental health back up the European Commission's objective: launching a European strategy' on the subject. This is the principal conclusion drawn by the EU executive from responses received between October...

GLOBALISATION ADJUSTMENT FUND : MEPS AND COUNCIL AIMING FOR FIRST READING AGREEMENT.(Brief article)
December 11, 2006... The European Parliament has decided to defer its vote (initially scheduled for the current session) on the proposal to establish a Globalisation Adjustment Fund. The aim, according to rapporteur Roselyne Bachelot (EPP/UMP, France), is to secure...

PUBLIC HEALTH : MINISTERS AGREE ON 2007-2013 HEALTH PROGRAMME.(Brief article)
December 11, 2006... Meeting in Brussels on 30 November, the Council of EU Health Ministers reached a political agreement' on the EU Health Programme 2007-2013. The Council is expected to adopt a formal common position in early 2007, before the text is submitted...

EDUCATION AND TRAINING : MINISTERS BACK PLANS FOR QUALIFICATIONS FRAMEWORK.
December 11, 2006... Strong backing was given by EU education ministers for the European Commission's proposals to create a European Qualifications Framework (EQF), at the Council's meeting on 14 November. Ministers adopted a general approach which differs only...

PUBLIC HEALTH : MINISTERS WELCOME STRATEGY ON ALCOHOL ABUSE.
December 11, 2006... The strategy of alcohol abuse in the EU, proposed by the European Commission 24 October, received unanimous backing at the Health Council on 30 November. The Commission will provide a first report on implementation of the strategy in 2008. 'The...

PUBLIC HEALTH : MONITORING CENTRE WARNS AGAINST COMBINED DRUG CONSUMPTION.
December 11, 2006... The European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction (EMCDDA), on 23 November, presented its Annual Report 2006 highlighting, in particular, the risks of combining the use of illegal drugs with legal drugs such as alcohol. "Our centre is...

SERVICES DIRECTIVE : NO SURPRISES AT FINAL ADOPTION.
December 11, 2006... After almost two years of discussion in the European Parliament, a large majority of MEPs finally adopted the Services Directive in Strasbourg on 15 November. The second reading only saw three technical changes, with the plenary rejecting all...

PUBLIC HEALTH : PATIENT MOBILITY YES, BUT NOT TO THE DETRIMENT OF SERVICES.
December 11, 2006... The Council of EU Health and Social Affairs Ministers devoted 22 minutes of its time on 30 November to a public debate on the issue of patient mobility. A short debate, but a sufficient one nevertheless, the issue having been discussed the...

PROFESSIONAL QUALIFICATIONS : SOCIAL PARTNERS LAUNCH INITIATIVE TO HELP YOUNG EUROPEANS.(Brief article)
December 11, 2006... The European social partners for commerce - EuroCommerce and UNI-Europa Commerce - launched, on 29 November, an initiative for an occupational qualification in European commerce in Brussels. This initiative will help young Europeans to find...

SOCIAL SECURITY AMENDMENTS.(Brief article)
December 11, 2006... The European Parliament adopted on 14 November a report by Maria Matsouka (PES, Greece) on a proposal amending Council Regulation 1408/71 on social security schemes to employed persons and members of their families moving within the Community....

SOCIAL SERVICES OF GENERAL INTEREST : SSGI ALSO HAVE DUTIES,SAYS THE COMMISSION.(Brief article)
December 11, 2006... The debate held at the offices of the French Permanent Representation on 22 November between the SSIG-France Group, a body comprising 14 French federations providing health and social services, and representatives of the European Parliament and...

PUBLIC SERVICE : SUPREME COURT HIGHLIGHTSHIATUS IN EUROPEAN INTEGRATION.
December 11, 2006... The latest ruling from France's Constitutional Council merits careful reading. Over and above the question it settles - a conditional go-ahead for the privatisation of Gaz de France, prior to its merger with the Suez group - it above all offers...

FAMILY : TOWARDS A SIMPLIFICATION OF CROSS-BORDER INHERITANCE.
December 11, 2006... Sitting in plenary session in Strasbourg on 16 November, the European Parliament adopted an own-initiative report in which it calls on the European Commission to bring forward a proposal for a regulation covering inheritance problems in the...

EDUCATION COUNCIL : VOCATIONAL TRAINING AND EQUALITY OCCUPY MINISTERS' AGENDA.
December 11, 2006... Ministers have set out priorities for further action on improving vocational education and training (VET) in Europe, in conclusions adopted at Council on 14 November. The conclusions note that the Copenhagen process for improving the...

RESTRUCTURING : VW AFFAIR: ALL POSSIBILITIES ARE BEING EXAMINED IN DETAIL.
December 11, 2006... What action can the EU take following the announcement by Volkswagen of its decision to centralise its activities in Germany, which means the loss of 4,000 jobs in Belgium? There is only one sure answer at this stage: it can redirect part of...

CIVIL STATUS : WHAT'S IN A NAME?
December 11, 2006... With more and more EU citizens moving abroad and having dual nationality, Europe's often archaic laws governing the giving of surnames are being stretched to the limit. Despite clear European Court of Justice rulings, member states continue to...