eu pillar

European Commission launches consultation package on a European Pillar of Social Rights

EAPN News, News, News and publications

08/03/2016 – the European Commission launched a public consultation on a European Pillar of Social Rights. EAPN welcomes an initiative that is rooted in a rights-based perspective. We hope that it can be an important step towards rebalancing the European Union agenda and giving social considerations, including the fight against poverty and social exclusion, their due place in the European architecture. EAPN particularly welcomes commitments on a wide number of key topics, grouped under three main headings: Equal opportunities and access to the labour market (education and training, security of contracts, supporting transitions, work-life balance, gender equality and equal opportunities), Fair working conditions (employment rights, wages, health and safety, social dialogue), and Adequate and sustainable social protection (social benefits – minimum income, unemployment, health and sickness, disability, pensions; services – care, child-, health- and long-term care, housing, transport, energy, financial, communications). EAPN will work closely with its members over the coming months to prepare a full response to the consultation and the initiative. 

MEPs to Commission: make member states share tax information and protect whistle-blowers

EU Institutions News

14/12/2015 – Tax evasion costs the EU €1 trillion a year in lost tax revenue, according to the European Commission. The Lux leaks scandal showed that EU countries sometimes court multinationals with advantageous tax schemes. These practices were investigated by the Parliament’s special committee on tax rulings. MEPs adopted its report last month and on 15 December MEPs will debate another report, demanding that the Commission introduces legislation to restrain tax competition between EU countries.

2015 QE for people campaign 2

New campaign launches, calling on ECB’s quantitative easing to “serve the people”

Other News

25/11/2015, Brussels – A coalition of eurozone campaigners, civil society organisations and economists is today calling on the European Central Bank (ECB) to radically change its approach to the current Quantitative Easing (QE) programme. In other words, the money created currently going to the financial sector which caused the crisis, should be used to help everyday people and contributes to a sustainable recovery.