Priorities of the Luxembourg Presidency of the Council of the EU

Monday, 14 September 2015, the Luxembourg presidency of the Council of the European Union is going to present and the General Affairs Council (GAC) is going to discuss the programme of the presidency:

A Union for the citizens – Priorities of the Luxembourg Presidency of the Council of the European Union 1 July-31 December 2015 (to English, French, German version)

EU citizens

Whatever the realistic opportunities, EU citizens can take heart from this declaration of principle by the Luxembourg presidency (page 6):

European citizens are at the heart of the European project. The Luxembourg Presidency, in keeping with its traditions and convictions, will endeavour to put the citizen at the heart of its initiatives and ensure that all EU policies really benefit its citizens.

Luxembourg priorities

At headline level the government of Luxembourg makes the following presentation of what we could call its seven pillars of wisdom (page 7):

The priorities of the Luxembourg Presidency for the second semester of 2015 are presented under the following sections:

• Stimulating investment to boost growth and employment
• Deepening the European Union’s social dimension
• Managing migration, combining freedom, justice and security
• Revitalising the single market by focusing on its digital dimension
• Placing European competitiveness in a global and transparent framework
• Promoting sustainable development
• Strengthening the European Union’s presence on the global stage

On thirty pages plus the presidency programme offers perspective on the current aspirations and challenges of the European Union.

Ralf Grahn