The panel debate involving Sian Jones, EAPN, Karl Pichelman for DG ECFIN; Rossana Dettori, General Secretary of FP-CGIL explored further these challenges.
EAPN underlined the contradictory EU economic narrative, as public spending hadn’t caused the crisis, but welfare states and the poor are still paying for it, as well as the governance and democratic deficit of the economic governance and Semester process.
Sian Jones, EAPN, also highlighted the new research (Picketty/ IMF, Hall, OECD) and called for the widening wealth and inequality gap between rich and poor to be recognized as the major obstacle to inclusive recovery and increased support for the European project. underlined the need for an integrated solutions focused on distribution/redistribution issues – closing the wage gap and redistribution through tax justice and reinforced access to key public services and benefits.
For more information see here, also www.epsu.org