The State of the Union speech was made this morning by the President of the European Commission Jean-Claude Juncker. It will give important pointers for the priorities of the Commission so benefits from careful reading. There is one section about protecting the European way of life. One of the distinctive contributions of Europe is our…
1 September 2016, an exchange of views on a European Pillar of Social Rights was organised in the European Parliament. It was planned in the framework of the preparation of the draft European Parliament report. Diverse representatives participated: the European Commission, International Labour Organisation (ILO), European Trade Unions Confederation (ETUC), BusinessEurope, University of Amsterdam and SOLIDAR. Rapporteur…
“Armut und Gesundheit in Deutschland” is the association that Gabi Bischoff President of the Workers’ Group at the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC), proposed last year, and which won. Awarded annually and worth a total of EUR 50 000, the prize is intended to reward initiatives by civil society or private organisations that have made…
The ESF (European Social Funds) funds many thousands of projects across the EU. Find out what is happening in your country! Access the database here.
The European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) has launched the eighth edition of its Civil Society Prize: the subject of this edition is Migrants. Europe is experiencing an unprecedented influx of refugees and migrants: those who stay have to deal with multiple challenges linked to a new start in a foreign country; they also have…
On June 17 the EPSCO Council adopted the Council Conclusions on an integrated approach to combating poverty and social exclusion. The Dutch Presidency has published the addendum in the form of a booklet containing valuable best practices from all over Europe. Read the addendum here!
In light of World Refugee Day, Juliane Schmidt takes stock of the EU’s approach to the current refugee crisis and how it’s affecting the Union’s cohesion and image. Unfortunately, until now, the EU and its member states have failed to come up with a common approach to find a solution for the increased number of…
The Council calls on the Commission and the Member States to develop an integrated approach to combat poverty and social exclusion by combining adequate income support, access to quality services and inclusive labour markets, while ensuring equal opportunities for women and men. This is stated in the Conclusions on ‘Combating poverty and social exclusion: an…
18/05/2016 – Commissioner Thyssen delivers a speech on the 2016 European Semester package: “There are still more than 20 million people unemployed in the EU. While unemployment is consistently going down, this trend is still too slow. The level of poverty across Europe has stabilised for the first time, but it is still too high.…
08/06/2016 – One year on from its launch, MEPs voiced sharply divided verdicts on the progress of the €315 billion investment plan for Europe, or “Juncker plan”, in Wednesday’s debate with EU Commission Vice-President Jyrki Katainen. While the EPP and S&D broadly welcomed the work of the “European Fund for Strategic Investment” (EFSI) and the…
