European Social Policy articles from September 2006

European Social Policy archives from September 2006

SANTE : TO TRANSLATE (EN) : LE CONSEIL A POSE SES LIMITES AU DEBAT SUR LES SOINS DE SANTE.
September 5, 2006... Sur la question des soins de sante dans l'UE, les Vingt-cinq ont decidement pris de l'avance. Outre les revendications du "groupe Aachen" (voir article separe), la Commission europeenne devra composer avec la declaration du Conseil Sante du 2...

HEALTH SERVICES : AACHEN GROUP MINISTERS CALL FOR A DIRECTIVE.
September 5, 2006... The ministers of health of nine EU member states are determined to get a promise from the European Commission that their prerogatives in matters of public healthcare and social security will be guaranteed. The reason given is that 'very soon...

RESTRUCTURING : ADAPTING TO CHANGE IS COMMISSION'S LINE OF CONDUCT.(Brief article)
September 5, 2006... In his opening speech at the second EU Restructuring Forum on 18 July devoted to sectorial dialogue,aVladimir pidla, the European Commissioner for Employment, Social Affairs and Equal Opportunities, presented his analysis of the restructuring...

HIGHER EDUCATION : BELGIAN STUDENT QUOTA UNDER ATTACK.
September 5, 2006... The European Commission is going to ask Belgium, or more accurately the government of the French Community, for an explanation on the decree passed to limit the number of European students for the 2006-2007 academic year in seven fields...

SOCIAL SECURITY/UNEMPLOYMENT : BENEFITS MAY BE DEPENDENT ON RESIDENCE.
September 5, 2006... The Court of Justice of the European Communities has recognised that imposing resident status on unemployed workers receiving benefits in a member state is not automatically contrary to EU law (verdict delivered on 18 July, De Cuyper,...

BRAIN DRAIN WARNING.(Brief article)
September 5, 2006... The EU risks a brain drain' towards the United States and Asia unless it invests more in education, research and innovation, Finland's State Secretary at the Ministry of Trade and Industry, Anssi Paasivirta, warned at an extraordinary meeting...

HEALTH AND SAFETY AT WORK : BRITS LAUNCH PROGRAMME TO TACKLE NOISE AND VIBRATION.(Brief article)
September 5, 2006... The UK's Health and Safety Executive has launched a programme to protect workers against permanent damage due to excessive noise and hand-arm vibration (Hand Arm Vibration Syndrome - HAVS) or whole-body vibration. It is estimated that more than...

CALL FOR PROPOSALS.
September 5, 2006... The European Commission has launched an open call for proposals (VP/2006/013) for the "analysis of thematic issues related to social situation, demography and family". Projects funded under this call for proposals should deliver...

CAMPAIGN AGAINST HUMAN TRAFFICKING.(Brief article)
September 5, 2006... The President of the Council of European Municipalities and Regions (CEMR) and Mayor of Vienna Michael Haupl is calling on Europe's local and regional governments to support the Council of Europe's Declaration on the Fight Against Trafficking...

HEALTH : CANCER AND CARDIO-VASCULAR DISEASE STILL THE BIGGEST KILLERS.(Brief article)
September 5, 2006... Over the reference period 2001-2003, heart attacks, strokes and other diseases of the circulatory system were the most common cause of death in the EU25, accounting for 41% of all deaths, and 52% of deaths among the over 85s, according to...

HEALTHCARE : COMMISSION APPROVES GENERAL HEALTHCARE GROUP ACQUISITION.
September 5, 2006... The European Commission has cleared the proposed acquisition of joint control of the General Healthcare Group Ltd (GHG), an independent healthcare provider in the UK, by Apax Partners Holdings Ltd, a private equity investment advisor and...

COMMITTEE ON FREE LABOUR MOVEMENT.(Council of the European Union)(Brief article)
September 5, 2006... The Council of Ministers is expected shortly to approve the renewal of its Technical Committee on the free movement of workers. The committee, consisting partly of government representatives and partly of social partners (trade unions and...

EDUCATION/TRAINING : COMMON POSITION ADOPTED ON FUTURE FUNDING FOR STUDIES ABROAD.(Brief article)
September 5, 2006... Future funding arrangements for Erasmus, as well as other EU education initiatives, have taken a step closer to being settled following the adoption by Ministers on 24 July of a common position on the future lifelong learning' programme. ...

FAMILY : COMMON RULES ON WHOSE DIVORCE LAW TO APPLY PROPOSED.
September 5, 2006... Separated couples would have greater choice over how they get divorced, under a new European Commission proposal. A draft Regulation tabled on 17 July allows them to choose both the court that will hear the case (jurisdiction) and the law that...

SERVICES DIRECTIVE : COMPROMISE DEAL GETS COUNCIL RUBBERSTAMP.(Brief article)
September 5, 2006... The draft Services Directive has come a step closer to fruition with the EU Council of Ministers' adoption of its common position on 24 July. The decision, taken unanimously with Belgium and Lithuania abstaining, was a formality as the...

HEALTHCARE : COUNCIL PLACES LIMITS ON HEALTHCARE DEBATE.
September 5, 2006... The member states have clearly stolen a march on the issue of healthcare in the EU. In addition to the demands of the Aachen Group' (see separate article), the European Commission also had to take account of the declaration by the Health...

LIVING STANDARDS : DUBLIN FOUNDATION: COHESION POLICY SHOULD ALSO COVER HOUSING.(European Union's cohesion policy)
September 5, 2006... The results of a recent survey on European housing conditions have led the Dublin Foundation to the conclusion that the EU's cohesion policy should also be used for the improvement of the Union's housing situation. The foundation has also...

FREE MOVEMENT OF PERSONS : ECAS REVIEWS FIRST RESULTS OF CITIZENS' RIGHTS HOTLINE.(European Citizen Action Service)(Brief article)
September 5, 2006... Set up at the beginning of August, the hotline on free movement rights has received hundreds of calls, e-mails and replies, according to a first review by ECAS, the European Citizen Action Service. The project is part of the European Year of...

LABOUR MARKET : EMPLOYMENT RATES EDGING UPWARDS IN THE EU.(European Union)
September 5, 2006... According to a quarterly Eurostat publication presenting the main results of the European Union Labour Force Survey for all EU member states, the employment rate in the EU25 increased by 0.4 percentage points in the fourth quarter of 2005...

MIGRATION/DEVELOPMENT : EU FOREIGN MINISTERS SET OUT PRIORITIES.
September 5, 2006... Managing migratory flows better globally looks set to be one of the key issues on the political agenda in the months and years ahead. Meeting in Brussels on 17 July, EU Foreign Ministers recognised the "growing importance" of migration policy...

IMMIGRATION : EU INVITES SPAIN TO USE FUNDS TO STOP ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS.(European Union)
September 5, 2006... 'We are going to call an urgent meeting of European countries bordering the Mediterranean' to seek agreement on maritime border controls to halt illegal immigration from Africa, Spain's First Deputy Prime Minister Maria Teresa Fernandez de la...

EUROZONE INFLATION DOWN IN JULY.(Brief article)
September 5, 2006... According to a flash estimate released on 31 August by Eurostat, annual inflation in the eurozone is expected to be 2.3% in August 2006, down from 2.4% in July. The Monetary Union Index of Consumer Prices (MUICP) flash estimate includes early...

IMMIGRATION : EU SET TO EASE VISA PROCEDURES.(European Union)
September 5, 2006... The EU has finally launched moves to make it easier for citizens of the Western Balkans to travel to the bloc. The European Commission proposed to EU member states draft mandates for negotiations on visa facilitation' with Albania, Bosnia and...

LABOUR MARKET : EU UNEMPLOYMENT STABLE AT 8%.(European Union)(Brief article)
September 5, 2006... Seasonally-adjusted unemployment in the eurozone was 7.8% in July 2006, unchanged compared to June (8.6% in July 2005) and 8% in the EU25, also unchanged compared to June (8.7% in July 2005), according to figures released by Eurostat on 1...

FREE MOVEMENT HOTLINE LAUNCHED.(European Citizen Action Service's hotline offers advice for Europeans regarding the Freedom of Movement)(Brief article)
September 5, 2006... The European Citizen Action Service (ECAS) launched a hotline on 31 July on the theme of EU citizens' rights to move freely within the Union. The aim is to advise citizens on their rights and gather evidence on the situation on the ground,...

IMMIGRATION : FUNDING EARMARKED FOR INTEGRATING NON-EU NATIONALS.
September 5, 2006... The European Commission published the 2006 INTI call for proposals on 28 August for preparatory measures designed to promote the integration of third-country (non-EU) nationals. A sum of 5 million has been allocated to the INTI programme for...

SOCIAL SECURITY/ANALYSIS : HEALTHCARE REIMBURSEMENT, AS DEFINED BY THE TREATY.
September 5, 2006... The patient and healthcare mobility dossier is closely linked to that on social security. In this area, the principal problem is not the freedom of movement (entry and residence in a member state, right to services, etc) as pointed out by the...

RECOGNITION OF QUALIFICATIONS : ITALY AVOIDS FINE IN FOREIGN LANGUAGE ASSISTANTS' CASE.(Brief article)
September 5, 2006... For the second time in a week, the European Commission has come out with something akin to a Pyrrhic victory in a legal tussle. On 18 July, the EU Court of Justice found that Italy had, as the Commission claimed, failed to apply in time a...

FREE MOVEMENT OF WORKERS : ITALY LIFTS RESTRICTIONS ON LABOUR MOVEMENT FROM THE EAST.(Brief article)
September 5, 2006... The Council Presidency announced on 21 July that Italy was to lift its restrictions aimed mainly at workers from eight countries in Eastern Europe that recently joined the European Union. 'We have put an end to discrimination against the new EU...

KEY PUBLIC SERVICES VOTE POSTPONED.(Brief article)
September 5, 2006... The European Parliament is trying to forge consensus within its ranks on the hugely important issue of Services of General Interest. A vote on the European Commission's May 2004 White Paper was due to take place in Parliament's Economic and...

KYPRIANOU'S HEALTH DILEMMA.(Markos Kyprianou)(Brief article)
September 5, 2006... Following the agreement by MEPs to leave health services out of the Services Directive, they have become a real headache for the European Commission, which will debate the issue on 5 September. From a political viewpoint, there is now a need to...

EDUCATION : LANGUAGES A KEY ELEMENT OF THE EUROPEAN DIMENSION'.
September 5, 2006... Ensuring that children are taught at least two languages from a 'very early age" is one idea put forward by MEPs in the European Parliament's Culture and Education Committee to improve the way the European dimension' is addressed in school...

IMMIGRATION/DEVELOPMENT : LOUIS MICHEL CONDEMNS SELECTIVE IMMIGRATION'.(Brief article)
September 5, 2006... A few days after the first Euro-African Ministerial conference on immigration in Rabat, Morocco, which he was unable to attend, Commissioner for Development and Humanitarian Aid Louis Michel adopted a critical stance. During a press conference...

JUSTICE AND HOME AFFAIRS COUNCIL : MIGRATION DEBATE DOMINATED BY MEDITERRANEAN TROUBLES.
September 5, 2006... Eyes were directed decidedly southward when EU Justice and Home Affairs Ministers debated illegal immigration on 24 July. "Our primary focus should be on the Mediterranean and Africa, although we should not forget our Eastern neighbours", said...

PUBLIC HEALTH : MORE ACTION NEEDED ON MENTAL HEALTH.(Brief article)
September 5, 2006... The European Parliament's Committee on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety unanimously adopted the report by John Bowis (EPP-ED, UK) on 13 July on mental health. The amendments adopted notably emphasise the links between mental...

IMMIGRATION : MOVE TO PUT BOLIVIA ON VISA BLACKLIST.
September 5, 2006... An overhaul of the EU's list of visa-requiring and visa-exempt non-EU countries has been proposed by the European Commission. Bolivian nationals should henceforth need a visa to come to the EU - even for a short holiday - while nationals of...

SOCIAL POLICY : NOBODY RESPONSIBLE WHERE PENSION FUNDS PROVE INSUFFICIENT.
September 5, 2006... What guarantee do employees have that their company pension will be paid in full in the event of the business folding? This is an important question not only for those concerned but for the future of all company pensions. Directive 80/987 of 20...

TURKISH ECONOMY : "NO PROGRESS" ON TRADE UNION RIGHTS, REPORT FINDS.
September 5, 2006... Turkey has made no significant progress on trade union rights and there does not seem to be much immediate prospect of it doing so. This is the message from a draft report on the trade union rights situation in Turkey drawn up for the meeting...

JUSTICE AND HOME AFFAIRS : PLANS TO COMBAT ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION UNVEILED BY COMMISSION.(European Commission)
September 5, 2006... National border guards would join forces under an EU banner to help countries facing mass influxes of illegal immigrants, under new European Commission proposals. A Regulation to create Rapid Border Intervention Teams was tabled by the...

IMMIGRATION : POLICE CONFEDERATION SLAMS EU FOR CANARY ISLANDS OPERATION.(Brief article)
September 5, 2006... European Confederation of Police (EuroCOP) President Heinz Kiefer has very modest expectations following the start of the EU operation to support Spanish border guards in preventing illegal immigration to the Canary Islands (Spain). "If the EU...

PORTUGAL TO INVEST MORE IN VOCATIONAL EDUCATION.(Brief article)
September 5, 2006... Portuguese Prime Minister Jose Socrates has announced that Portugal will allocate a more significant part of its financial aid from the EU to vocational education. Between 2007 and 2013, Portugal should thus devote 37% of aid ( 6 billion)...

RIGHT TO ASYLUM/LEBANON : POSSIBLE REFUGEE INFLUX RAISED AT JHA COUNCIL.(Justice and Home Affairs)(Brief article)
September 5, 2006... What could be done in the event of a large influx of refugees to the EU fleeing from the Hezbollah-Israeli conflict in Lebanon was discussed by EU Interior Ministers in Brussels on 24 July. While their Foreign Minister counterparts are...

POSTING OF WORKERS: VOTE DEFERRED.(Brief article)
September 5, 2006... The European Parliament's Employment and Social Affairs Committee decided to defer its vote on the report by Elisabeth Schroedter (Greens-EFA, Germany) on the posting of workers until after the summer recess. The various political groups have...

PROGRESS: VOTE AFTER THE SUMMER RECESS.(postponement of the European Parliament's vote on the employment and social solidarity program)(Brief article)
September 5, 2006... The European Parliament's Employment and Social Affairs Committee decided to postpone its vote on the report by Karin Jons (PES, Germany) on the employment and social solidarity programme (Progress) until September. It failed to receive the...

PUBLIC HEARING ON TRANSPARENCY.(Brief article)
September 5, 2006... The creation of a registration system and the introduction of a common code of conduct for civil society organisations and other interest groups were the two items debated at a public hearing on transparency staged on 11 July by the European...

TRUCK DRIVERS/WORKING TIME : RULES FOR PUBLIC TRANSPORT DRIVERS TO REMAIN UNCHANGED.(Brief article)
September 5, 2006... The European Commission will not be proposing any changes to current rules on working time for drivers employed in public transport. The scope for adapting existing legislation was examined in the context of a report which the Commission was...

SOCIAL AFFAIRS: CALLS FOR TENDERS.
September 5, 2006... The European Commission's Employment Directorate General has published two open calls for tenders for studies concerning The role of migrant women in the labour market: current situation and future prospects' (VT/2006/050) and Actions to...

SOLIDARITY GRANT NOT EXPORTABLE.(Brief article)
September 5, 2006... Supplementary funding from National Solidarity Funds (NSF) delivered by authorities can, according to Advocate-General L.A. Geelhoed, be subject to a condition of residence in France. "It is a particular allowance of non-contributory kind" in...

EMPLOYMENT : STATUTORY MINIMUM WAGES VARY WIDELY ACROSS THE EU.(Brief article)
September 5, 2006... In January 2006, eighteen of the 25 member states of the EU had national legislation setting statutory minimum wages. The level at which these were set varied widely, from 129 per month in Latvia to 1,503 per month in Luxembourg. It should be...

WORKING CONDITIONS : SURVEY ON WORKING TIME IN EUROPE.
September 5, 2006... The European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions (Eurofound), a European Union agency based in Dublin, has released the findings of its latest survey on working conditions throughout Europe. Carried out every...

TRUCK DRIVERS/WORKING CONDITIONS : TRUCK DRIVERS UNDER TIME PRESSURE, EXPERTS TELL EP HEARING.
September 5, 2006... The European Commission has started a legal action against nine EU member states for failing to put limits on working time into effect. The revelation came on 29 August at a hearing on international road transport organised by the European...

ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION : UNIONS CALL FOR ENFORCEMENT OF MINIMUM LABOUR STANDARDS.(Brief article)
September 5, 2006... "The protection of human rights and labour standards for migrant workers - whatever their nationality or legal status - is the top priority if the EU genuinely wants to address the exploitation of irregular migrants", maintains the European...

RESTRUCTURING : UNIONS DEMAND SUSTAINABLE EMPLOYMENT.(European Metalworkers' Federation)(Brief article)
September 5, 2006... "The European automotive industry must ensure sustainable employment", states the European Metalworkers' Federation (EMF) in a press release, commenting on the ongoing restructuring at General Motors, which EMF says is now "put to the test"....

STRUCTURAL FUNDS : URBAN-HOUSING INTERGROUP IN FUNDING APPEAL TO EU MINISTERS.(Brief article)
September 5, 2006... The European Parliament's URBAN-Housing Intergroup, chaired by Jean-Marie Beaupuy (ALDE), is continuing its close monitoring of the evolution of the EU's future cohesion policy. It is concerned about the "danger of the misuse of the Structural...

IMMIGRATION/MOLDOVA : VISA AND READMISSION AGREEMENTS IN THE OFFING.(Brief article)
September 5, 2006... Moldova could be about to join the ever-growing list of non-EU countries with which the EU wants to have visa facilitation and readmission agreements. Meeting in Brussels on 24 July, EU Justice and Home Affairs Ministers have given their...

EQUAL OPPORTUNITIES/TURKEY : WOMEN STILL DISADVANTAGED, SAYS REPORT.
September 5, 2006... Turkey may have made considerable progress in legislative reforms in recent years concerning gender equality but achieving this in practice still seems to be a major challenge. A report, drafted by members* of the EU-Turkey Joint Consultative...

ENLARGEMENT/BULGARIA/ROMANIA : WORKERS MAY FACE RESTRICTIONS, REPORT WARNS.
September 5, 2006... Most of the old' EU15 member states could impose transitional measures restricting the access of Bulgarian and Romanian workers to labour markets after their upcoming EU accession. This is according to a recent report from the European Citizen...

YOUTH IN ACTION ON COURSE FOR 2007.(European Parliament's proposed Youth in Action program)(Brief article)
September 5, 2006... The European Parliament can now proceed with its second reading on the proposed Youth in Action' programme, which will allocate 785 million (at 2004 prices) over 2007-2013 to activities aimed at supporting the development of young people,...

EUROPE MUST BECOME A GLOBAL POWER.
September 5, 2006... With general elections in France just eight months off, Catherine Colonna outlines her vision of the Europe of tomorrow. I am convinced the future of the European project involves real changes. We need to change the scale of our response in...

IMMIGRATION : FUNDING EARMARKED FOR INTEGRATING NON-EU NATIONALS.
September 5, 2006... The European Commission published the 2006 INTI call for proposals on 28 August for preparatory measures designed to promote the integration of third-country (non-EU) nationals. A sum of 5 million has been allocated to the INTI programme for...

ALCAN: SUPPRESSION D'EMPLOIS.(Brief article)
September 5, 2006... Alcan, numero deux mondial de l'aluminium, va supprimer 506 emplois en Europe, en se retirant d'une usine en France et en fermant deux autres en Grande-Bretagne. La raison : "les conditions difficiles du marche", a explique le president...