European Social Policy articles from January 2007

European Social Policy archives from January 2007

PUBLIC PROCUREMENT : COMMISSION LAUNCHES INFRINGEMENT PROCEEDINGS.
January 17, 2007... The European Commission, on 13 December, announced that is was to open a series of infringement proceedings for breaches of EU public procurement law. Spain: The Commission has decided to send Spain a reasoned opinion for the use of...

EDUCATION : COUNCIL SETS OUT THE KEY SKILLS REQUIRED IN A GLOBALISED WORLD.
January 17, 2007... Member states will henceforth be guided in the development of their education policies by an agreed list of key skills or competences that their citizens need to possess, if they are to compete successfully in a knowledge-based economy. ...

FREEDOM OF ESTABLISHMENT AND PROVISION OF SERVICES : SEVERAL COUNTRIES OUT OF LINE WITH EU RULES.(European Union)
January 17, 2007... The European Commission announced on 13 December that it was pursuing infringement procedures against a number of member states violating EU rules on freedom of establishment (Article 43 of the EC Treaty) and the provision of services (Articles...

EMPLOYMENT : SMALL IMPROVEMENT IN EU EMPLOYMENT FIGURES.(Brief article)
January 17, 2007... The seasonally adjusted number of persons employed in the eurozone rose by 0.4% (517,000 persons) during the third quarter of 2006, according to provisional national accounts estimates published by Eurostat on 14 December. During the same...

SOCIAL HOUSING ICELAND.(Brief article)
January 17, 2007... The EFTA Surveillance Authority has published in the EU's Official Journal notification of an enquiry into state aid in the social sector. It is in connection with the Icelandic Housing Financing Fund (HFF) offering housing loans "at affordable...

OPINION : A STATUTE FOR MUTUAL INSURANCE FIRMS: TOWARDS EU RECOGNITION?(European Union)(Critical essay)
January 17, 2007... In July 2003, the Council of Ministers adopted the European statute of the co-operative, allowing this economic form to develop at the European level without obstacles and without having to choose the statute of European limited company. ...

SUPPLEMENTARY HEALTH INSURANCE : COMMISSION SENDS FORMAL REQUEST TO BELGIUM.(Brief article)
January 17, 2007... The European Commission has decided to send a formal request to Belgium concerning private sickness funds that provide supplementary health insurance. In Belgium, private sickness funds operate under specific national rules and are not...

SOCIAL AND HEALTH SERVICES : CONFERENCE ON THE FUTURE OF HEALTH COVER IN THE EU.(Brief article)(Conference notes)
January 17, 2007... The Social Dimension in the Internal Marketa- Perspectives of Health Care in Europe' was the name given to a conference organised in Potsdam on 15 and 16 January by the German Federal Ministry of Health and the Federal Associations of Statutory...

PROFESSIONAL TRAINING : COURT SLAMS LIMITED ACCESS TO TEACHER COURSE IN SWEDEN.
January 17, 2007... A scheme devised by the Swedish authorities to train more special education teachers has been criticised by the EU Court of Justice for infringing EC treaty rules on the free movement of workers. In a preliminary ruling handed down on 11...

PUBLIC HEALTH : COURT UPHOLDS BAN ON TOBACCO ADVERTISING.(European Union Court of Justice)(Brief article)
January 17, 2007... Germany has lost a case it took to overturn an EU-wide ban on tobacco advertising and sponsorship. The EU Court of Justice on 12 December dismissed all of Germany's arguments, notably that the wrong legal basis was used in adopting the Tobacco...

IMMIGRATION : DIRECT EFFECTS OF NON-DISCRIMINATION PRINCIPLE FOR A TUNISIAN.
January 17, 2007... The European Court of Justice is poised to expand its case law on nationals of third countries with which the EU has association agreements. That will be the impact of the Gattoussi judgment handed down on 14 December 2006 (C-97/05), which is...

DISCRIMINATION AGAINST EU-8.(Brief article)
January 17, 2007... The Commission has decided to refer Austria to the European Court of Justice, on 13 December, over its rules which the EU executive claims discriminate against nationals from eight member states that joined the EU in 2004 who wish to establish...

FREE MOVEMENT OF WORKERS : DUTCH RESTRICTIONS ON POSTING OF WORKERS DEEMED ILLEGAL.(Brief article)
January 17, 2007... The European Commission has decided to issue a formal request - in the form of a reasoned opinion - to the Dutch authorities to revise the rules in force concerning the posting on Dutch territory of workers from certain new member states in the...

FREE MOVEMENT OF WORKERS : ECJ BOLSTERS RESIDENCE RIGHTS OF NON-EU NATIONALS.
January 17, 2007... A Chinese pensioner who has applied to reside in the EU by virtue of her family links to an EU national does not have to have a residence permit before arriving in the EU, the European Court of Justice has found. The fact that the woman only...

EMPLOYMENT : EMPLOYMENT RATE UP IN FIRST QUARTER OF 2006.
January 17, 2007... The employment rate in the EU-25 has increased by 0.7 percentage points in the first quarter of 2006 compared with the same quarter of 2005. In the first quarter of 2006, 63.9% of the working age population (15-64 years of age) had a job or...

EDUCATION : ERASMUS ANNIVERSARY LEADS TO CALLS FOR INCREASED FUNDING.
January 17, 2007... The EU's Erasmus programme for student and teacher mobility is approaching its 20th anniversary, and the European Commission decided to start the celebrations early, with a launch event in Brussels on 7 December. Education Commissioner Jan...

EDUCATION : ERASMUS MUNDUS TO BE ENHANCED IN THE EU'S NEIGHBOURHOOD.(Brief article)
January 17, 2007... Students from the Middle East, as well as the EU's more immediate neighbours, are to be targeted by a new scholarship scheme encouraging them to come study in the EU, the European Commission announced on 11 December. A call for proposals...

FREE MOVEMENT OF WORKERS : EU RELUCTANT TO OPEN JOB MARKETS TO ROMANIANS AND BULGARIANS.
January 17, 2007... The European Commission, on 21 December, felt it necessary to recall the different rules which apply to the free movement of Romaniansand Bulgarians in the 25 current member states. NO NOTIFICATION OBLIGATION During the first phase,...

EUROPEAN MINIMUM WAGE.(Brief article)
January 17, 2007... 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...

PUBLIC HEALTH : EXPERTS CALL FOR A TOTAL BAN ON MERCURY.
January 17, 2007... EU health and environment experts are demanding that all use of mercury, particularly in medical devices, be banned. A report (1), presented on 10 January at the European Parliament, again highlighted the toxic nature of mercury, to which one...

SOCIAL SECURITY - HEALTH CARE : EXPERTS EMPHASISE LACK OF TRANSPARENCY IN EUROPE'S HEALTH SPENDING.
January 17, 2007... EU member states need to open up the black box' of their health care systems, according to Pat Cox, former President of the European Parliament, who addressed a press conference on 7 December. Cox was speaking at the presentation of the...

FISCAL PROCEEDINGS AGAINST SPAIN CLOSED.(exemption of pension contributions from income tax)(Brief article)
January 17, 2007... The European Commission has closed the case against Spain over its tax rules relating to pension contributions paid to non-Spanish funds. It considers that the changes introduced in the Spanish legislation, amended by Law 22/2005 of 18 November...

FORMAL WARNINGS FOR DISCRIMINATION.(Brief article)
January 17, 2007... The European Commission, on 20 December, addressed formal warnings to 17 member states for failure to transpose in time or incorrect transposition of the Directive 2000/78 on discrimination in the work place. aThe member states concerned are...

FRANCE IS THE BABY CHAMPION'.(Brief article)
January 17, 2007... With 63.4 million inhabitants on 1 January 2007, the population of France continued to rise in 2006 thanks to a record number of births and a fertility rate of two children per woman, the highest in Europe, according to the latest demographic...

EMPLOYMENT POLICY - UNEMPLOYMENT : GERMAN LAW ON PAYMENT FOR EMPLOYMENT AGENCIES MUST BE REVISED.
January 17, 2007... The Court of Justice of the European Communities has ruled against German legislation on payment by member states to private-sector recruitment agencies (judgement of 11 January, C-208/05). In 2002, Germany introduced legislation...

GLOBAL EUROPE, SOCIAL EUROPE.(Brief article)(Book review)
January 17, 2007... This book makes an essential contribution to the debate now opening up over the future of Europe in the wake of the demise of the Constitution. Since 1989 much about the European Union has changed, including the very definition of Europe'...

JEAN-PAUL COSTA/ECHR.(European Court of Human Rights)(Brief article)
January 17, 2007... The European Court of Human Rights elected on 29 November Jean-Paul Costa (French) as its new President for a three-year term, beginning on 19 January 2007. Costa replaces Luzius Wildhaber (Swiss), who has been the Court's President since 1...

EMPLOYMENT - GLOBALISATION : KEY FEATURES OF THE GLOBALISATION ADJUSTMENT FUND.
January 17, 2007... Established in the context of the EU's Financial Perspective for January 2007 to December 2013, the Globalisation Adjustment Fund, which is due to be endorsed by the European Union Council of Ministers on 19 December, is based on a dual...

THREE QUESTIONS FOR LEONARD ORBAN, COMMISSIONER FOR MULTILINGUALISM : LANGUAGE A "FUNDAMENTALLY DEMOCRATIC ISSUE".(Interview)(Brief article)
January 17, 2007... Isn't multilingualism something of a minor portfolio? No. It's a portfolio with a very important political dimension. Linguistic diversity is a very sensitive issue for the member states. The dossier also ties in with a great many other key...

JUSTICE AND HOME AFFAIRS : LEGAL MIGRATION, POLICE DATA SHARING HOT TOPICS FOR 2007.
January 17, 2007... Since the landmark EU summit in Tampere in October 1999, Justice and Home Affairs has been the single most prolific policy area for EU lawmakers. 2007 is unlikely to prove any exception. The European Commission will propose the first ever EU...

CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY : MEPS WANT TO MAKE BUSINESS MORE RESPONSIBLE.(Member of the European Parliament)(Brief article)
January 17, 2007... "The increase of social and environmental responsibility by business, linked to the principle of corporate accountability, represents an essential element of the European social model and of Europe's strategy for sustainable development,"...

EDUCATION - FREE MOVEMENT OF PERSONS : NEW QUALITY CHARTER AIMS TO IMPROVE STUDY PERIODS ABROAD.
January 17, 2007... Improvements are needed in the quality of opportunities provided to EU citizens to study or train in another member state, according to the Council of Ministers and the European Parliament, which have agreed on a new European Charter addressing...

ONLINE PROTECTION.(European Commission's plans to protect minors against harmful Internet content)(Brief article)
January 17, 2007... MEPs, on 12 December, approved on second reading the measures intended to protect minors against harmful content on the internet. The Parliament and the Council reached an agreement on 28 November. They welcomed the European Commission's...

ASYLUM AND IMMIGRATION : PARLIAMENT ADOPTS IMMIGRATION PACKAGE.
January 17, 2007... On 14 December, the European Parliament adopted, by a show of hands in first reading, proposals for a European Return Fund (ERF) that will help, with a budget of 676 million for 2008-2013, share the costs of return policies aimed at illegal...

EMPLOYMENT - GLOBALISATION : PARLIAMENT GIVES GREEN LIGHT FOR GLOBALISATION ADJUSTMENT FUND.(European Globalisation Adjustment Fund)
January 17, 2007... The European Parliament voted on 13 December to adopt the proposal for a regulation to establish a European Globalisation Adjustment Fund. The motion was passed by a large majority and by a show of hands. This was its first (and single)...

PARTY OF EUROPEAN SOCIALISTS : PES LISTS TEN PRINCIPLES FOR A NEW SOCIAL EUROPE'.(Party of European Socialists)
January 17, 2007... "Tomorrow's Europe will be social or nothing at all," was a refrain at the seventh congress of the Party of European Socialists in Porto (Portugal) on 7 and 8 December. So much so that members of the European Socialist family adopted a...

POLAND: FREEDOM OF ESTABLISHMENT.(Brief article)
January 17, 2007... The EU Court of Justice is to consider an appeal concerning Poland's failure to comply with EU rules on the freedom to provide services (Case C-422/06). The European Commission accuses Poland of failing to transpose Council Directive 74/557/EEC...

PRISONS : POLISH OBJECTIONS TO THE TRANSFER OF SENTENCED PERSONS.(Brief article)
January 17, 2007... Following the rejection of the Framework Decision on the transfer of sentenced persons in the Justice and Home Affairs Council of 5 December, Parliament's rapporteur Ioannis Varvitsiotis (EPP, Greece) called for a more positive approach during...

POSTING OF WORKERS.(Brief article)
January 17, 2007... The Commission decided to send Germany, on 13 December, a reasoned opinion requesting it to comply "immediately" with a 2006 Court judgement concerning the posting of third-country nationals by EU companies.

PROFESSIONAL QUALIFICATIONS : PROCEEDINGS OVER NON-RECOGNITION OF DIPLOMAS.(Brief article)
January 17, 2007... The European Commission announced in 12 December that it has decided to refer France to the EU Court of Justice for infringing Articles 39, 43 and 49 of the EC Treaty and Directive 92/51/EEC on a general system for the recognition of...

WORKING CONDITIONS : QUALITY OF WORK ON THE INFORMAL COUNCIL MENU.(Brief article)
January 17, 2007... The 27 employment and social affairs ministers of the EU will meet on 18 and 19 January in Berlin for an informal Council. Uniting forces for a social Europe and a social world' is the slogan of the German Presidency of the EU. One of the...

ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL POLICY : RECOMMENDATIONS ON LISBON NATIONAL REFORM PLANS.
January 17, 2007... The European Commission presented, on 12 December, recommendations for each member state to help it achieve the goals of the relaunched Lisbon strategy: Lithuania : the Commission recommends that Lithuania should acontinue its efforts in...

REGRETS ABOUT WORKING TIME.(Brief article)
January 17, 2007... Once his presidency of the European Union comes to an end, Finnish Prime Minister Matti Vanhanen's biggest regret will be the failure of the negotiations on the revision of the Working Time Directive, he told the AFP in the margins of the EU...

WORKING TIME : REPORT ON THE SITUATION OF OFFSHORE WORKERS.
January 17, 2007... 'No changes need to be made to the rules on the organisation of working time for offshore workers' (people working on oil rigs) indicated the European Commission in a report on the implementation of the 1993 directive on working time (1)....

ROYAL AMBITIONS FOR A MORE SOCIAL TREATY.(Brief article)
January 17, 2007... Often mentioned, never achieved, the idea of adding a social addendum to the Constitutional Treaty has been relaunched, at least in words. Segolene Royal, the socialist candidate for the French Presidency, evoked the idea clearly in Luxembourg...

INTERVIEW WITH WOLFGANG SCHAUBLE AND BRIGITTE ZYPRIES : SCHAUBLE: "IT IS OUR DUTY TO INTEGRATE IMMIGRANTS".
January 17, 2007... Interviewed by journalists from several European publications, among them Europolitics, German Home Affairs Minister Wolfgang Schauble and Justice Minister Brigitte Zypries set out some of the priorities of the German EU Presidency,...

GROSS DOMESTIC PRODUCT : SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCES IN PURCHASING POWER BETWEEN MEMBER STATES.(Brief article)
January 17, 2007... Per capita GDP in Luxembourg, expressed in terms of purchasing power standards (PPS(1)), was more than twice the 25 EU member states' average in 2005, while Ireland was about 40% above the average. The Netherlands, Austria, Denmark, Belgium,...

SOCIAL DIALOGUE.(Brief article)
January 17, 2007... The European Commission has launched a call for proposals (VP/2007/003) for projects relating to the consultation and participation of employee representatives in companies. For the financial year 2007 two categories of projects will be...

SOCIAL EUROPE : SOCIAL PLATFORM SETS NINE TESTS FOR THE GERMAN PRESIDENCY.
January 17, 2007... NGOs in the social sector are counting on the German EU Presidency to prepare the ground for social security reforms which will ensure that 'economic competitiveness, environmental sustainability and social justice are mutually supportive'. The...

SOCIAL REFORMS IN AUSTRIA.(Brief article)
January 17, 2007... Austria's new Social Democrat Chancellor, Alfred Gusenbauer, who heads a coalition with outgoing Chancellor Wolfgang Schussel's Christian Democrats (OVP), presented to parliament, on 16 January, a government programme with a decidedly social...

EUROPEAN COUNCIL - IMMIGRATION : SUMMIT APPROVES NEW MIGRATION MEASURES.
January 17, 2007... The European Council on 15 December gave clear approval to stronger EU policies to tackle migration issues. There should be a "global approach" with closer links to other policy areas, especially development, reinforced border control, a...

TAXATION : SWEDEN TAKEN TO COURT OVER PENSION FUNDS.(Brief article)
January 17, 2007... The European Commission, on 9 January, decided to refer Sweden to the EU Court of Justice for its discriminatory pension tax legislation. Premiums paid by employers for pension insurance taken with insurers established in other EU member states...

TAX DISCRIMINATION IN BELGIUM.(Brief article)
January 17, 2007... The European Commission, on 21 December, sent Belgium a reasoned opinion asking that it put an end to the tax discrimination against foreign charities. Belgium allows tax relief for gifts to charities, on condition that they are established in...

PUBLIC HEALTH : THE EU STUDIES CIGARETTES THAT GO OUT BY THEMSELVES.(European Union)
January 17, 2007... A coalition of consumer defence, public health and anti-tobacco groups has kicked off a campaign to urge the EU to impose a standard for cigarettes that go out when not being puffed by the smoker. The member states are discussing the issue in...

GLOBALISATION ADJUSTMENT FUND : THE FOUR PRINCIPLES, ACCORDING TO EP RAPPORTEUR ROSELYNE BACHELOT.(European Parliament)
January 17, 2007... "Four principles have guided us in our work," explained Roselyne Bachelot-Narquin (EPP-ED, France), speaking to MEPs in the European Parliament's plenary session, and "we have stuck to them scrupulously throughout our negotiations with the...

INTERVIEW WITH VLADIMIR SPIDLA, COMMISSIONER FOR EMPLOYMENT AND SOCIAL AFFAIRS : THE GLOBALISATION FUND: FAST, EASY, EFFECTIVE AND INGENIOUS.(Interview)
January 17, 2007... Is this fund more than just a gadget'? Don't we already have enough Community social instruments? No, in fact, there are not enough instruments. Take the example of Volkswagen. To raise resources, we would have to change the projects...

WORKING CONDITIONS AND FREEDOM TO PROVIDE SERVICES : THE MARKET VERSUS UNIONS IN TWO CASES BEFORE THE COURT.
January 17, 2007... Freedom to provide services or freedom of establishment versus labour law and trade union action: that in short is the highly political question the EU Court of Justice is grappling with in two different cases. The first pits a Latvian...

UNEMPLOYMENT : UNEMPLOYMENT IN THE EU SLIGHTLY DOWN.(European Union)(Brief article)
January 17, 2007... Eurozone seasonally-adjusted unemployment stood at 7.6% in November 2006, compared to 7.7% in October. It was 8.4% in November 2005. The EU25 unemployment rate was 7.7% in November 2006, compared to 7.8% in October and 8.6% in November 2005,...

EMPLOYMENT STRATEGY : USE OF RURAL DEVELOPMENT FUNDS TO CLOSE JOBS GAP.(Brief article)
January 17, 2007... Europe's rural areas must exploit their potential or risk falling further behind urban areas in meeting Lisbon employment targets, particularly in the remotest and most agricultural areas, according to a Commission communication published on 21...