tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-64064307664246427732024-03-14T06:27:49.391+03:00GrahnlawFuture of Europe: The lawyer Ralf Grahn writes about a more perfect union - of Europeans and fit for the 21st centuryRalf Grahn http://www.blogger.com/profile/02156293782163802007noreply@blogger.comBlogger2570125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6406430766424642773.post-69508049633993704732021-06-06T09:37:00.001+03:002021-06-06T12:55:04.677+03:00Liberum veto curse<p><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">The union of the European Council, by the European Council, for the European Council, shall perish from the earth. </span></p><span id="docs-internal-guid-48b2fa7c-7fff-1770-6fc8-f67be6a1211a"><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The Future of Europe address: democratic government and sufficient powers instead of liberum veto </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="background-color: white; color: #202122; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; white-space: pre-wrap;">What does European power mean? </span></p><br /><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The necessity of a Constitution, at least equally energetic with the one proposed…It rests upon axioms as simple as they are universal: the means ought to be proportioned to the end… (Hamilton, The Federalist Papers XXIII) </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Ralf Grahn </span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></p><p dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">P.S. [Update 6 June 2021] Here is what I mean, the proposal to the Conference on the Future of Europe: </span></p><div><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-east-asian: normal; font-variant-numeric: normal; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></div></span><h3 class="heading3 title-proposal" style="background-color: white; box-sizing: inherit; color: #06060b; font-family: Roboto, sans-serif; font-size: 1.688rem; line-height: 1.2; margin: 1.25rem 0px; padding: 0px; text-rendering: optimizelegibility;"><a href="https://futureu.europa.eu/processes/Democracy/f/6/proposals/178?fbclid=IwAR0CKUXxfa2ZG73TyHXO6ny4WQYfgyerfmtDWTNG9tJVODUGLcT2UX9FHFY&locale=en" target="_blank">Stronger together: A democratic European Federation</a></h3>Ralf Grahn http://www.blogger.com/profile/02156293782163802007noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6406430766424642773.post-27442197849425387242017-11-13T05:31:00.000+02:002017-11-13T05:31:29.752+02:00EU free trade agreements: implementation and future<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The blog post </span><a href="https://grahnlaw.blogspot.fi/2017/11/reflection-paper-on-globalisation.html" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Reflection paper on globalisation: Opportunity or threat?</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> introduced the European Commission’s reflection paper on harnessing globalisation </span><a href="http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=CELEX:52017DC0240&qid=1510370782758&from=EN" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">COM(2017) 240</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> and the entry </span><a href="https://grahnlaw.blogspot.fi/2017/11/fair-competitive-and-resilient-eu.html" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Fair, competitive and resilient: EU responds to globalisation</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> indicated paths for rules, firms and societies. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Here, as part of the discussion about the future of Europe - </span><a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/futureofeurope?f=tweets&vertical=default&src=hash" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">#FutureOfEurope</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> on Twitter - we go beyond the reflection paper to look at facts and opinion regarding globalisation - European and world integration - especially international trade.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">A fresh report about existing EU trade agreements offers us substance on current issues and avenues for the future of international trade. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">EU trade agreements </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">On Thursday, 9 November 2017, the European Commission published an assessment of existing trade agreements, with suggestions for future improvement </span><a href="http://europa.eu/rapid/press-release_IP-17-4486_en.htm" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">IP/17/4486</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">. The press release was accompanied by a three-page </span><a href="http://trade.ec.europa.eu/doclib/docs/2017/november/tradoc_156362.pdf" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">factsheet on the implementation report</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, which groups the 25 agreements in force into four categories depending on their scope and economic and political objectives (page 3): </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">"First generation agreements"</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, e.g. those concluded in the past with Switzerland, Mediterranean countries, South Africa or Chile, that focussed on increasing EU exports through elimination of customs duties; </span></div>
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<li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Much more recent, </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">"New Generation agreements"</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, like those with Korea, Andean countries and Central America, that extend to new areas and include rules ensuring that trade goes hand in hand with sustainable development; </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Areas</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> created to support close economic relations with EU's neighbours, such as Ukraine, Georgia and Moldova; </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Economic Partnership Agreements</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> focused on development needs of African, Caribbean and Pacific regions. </span></div>
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<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Increasingly, sustainable development goals (SDGs) are taken into account, as we are going to see later.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">For those interested, here are the </span><a href="http://ec.europa.eu/trade/policy/countries-and-regions/negotiations-and-agreements/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">EU trade agreements in force</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> and here is an overview of free trade agreements </span><a href="http://trade.ec.europa.eu/doclib/docs/2006/december/tradoc_118238.pdf" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">FTAs and other trade agreements being negotiated</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, complemented by a blog post </span><a href="https://ec.europa.eu/commission/commissioners/2014-2019/malmstrom/blog/reviewing-our-trade-agreements_en" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Reviewing our trade agreements</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, by the trade commissioner Cecilia Malmström.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The perception of the European Commission being in cahoots with corporations, while keeping the public in dark, used to lead to much suspicion and resistance among Europeans. In addition to more comprehensive and fairer rules, the Juncker Commission has promised more </span><a href="http://trade.ec.europa.eu/doclib/press/index.cfm?id=1395" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">transparent trade negotiations</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The Council’s web page on </span><a href="http://www.consilium.europa.eu/en/policies/trade-policy/trade-agreements/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">EU trade agreements</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> offers a quick view of the role of the Council and names the ongoing trade agreement negotiations with Japan, Mercosur, Mexico, Chile, Australia and New Zealand. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Implementation of EU free trade agreements </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">More detailed information is on offer in the </span><a href="http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?qid=1510470770015&uri=COM:2017:654:FIN" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">FTA implementation report</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, which is already available on Eur-Lex in all the official EU languages, except Irish Gaelic; here the English language version: </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Report from the Commission on Implementation of Free Trade Agreements 1 January 2016 - 31 December 2016; Brussels, 9.11.2017 </span><a href="http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=COM:2017:654:FIN&qid=1510470770015&from=EN" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">COM(2017) 654 final</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> (41 pages) </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The Commission staff working document accompanying the FTA implementation report has been published only in English: </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Country reports and info sheets on implementation of EU Free Trade Agreements; Brussels, 9.11.2017 </span><a href="http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=SWD:2017:364:FIN&qid=1510471472790&from=EN" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">SWD(2017) 364 final</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> (136 pages) </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Future of EU trade </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">On Friday, 10 November 2017, the EU trade ministers were informed about the FTA implementation report (page 6) at the </span><a href="http://www.consilium.europa.eu/media/31506/st14193en17-v2.pdf" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Foreign Affairs Council (Trade)</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Looking forward to the future of Europe, according to the provisional version of the conclusions, the trade ministers were briefed about the WTO ministerial conference in Buenos Aires, the state of play of negotiations with Mexico and Mercosur, the home stretch of the economic partnership agreement to be concluded with Japan, </span><a href="http://trade.ec.europa.eu/doclib/press/index.cfm?id=1689" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">trade and sustainable development (TSD) chapters</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> in EU trade agreements (including the Commission’s July 2017 </span><a href="http://trade.ec.europa.eu/doclib/docs/2017/july/tradoc_155686.pdf" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">TSD non-paper</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">), and trade relations with Colombia and Peru. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The European Commission’s announcement about the upcoming </span><a href="http://trade.ec.europa.eu/doclib/events/index.cfm?id=1733" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">EU Trade Policy Day</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> and the enlightening </span><a href="http://trade.ec.europa.eu/doclib/docs/2017/october/tradoc_156127.pdf" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Trade Policy in a Turbulent World programme</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> for the 5 December 2017 provide additional information about topical issues.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Ralf Grahn</span></div>
Ralf Grahn http://www.blogger.com/profile/02156293782163802007noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6406430766424642773.post-61538588049929510432017-11-12T05:35:00.000+02:002017-11-12T05:35:05.694+02:00Fair, competitive and resilient: EU responds to globalisation<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The blog post </span><a href="https://grahnlaw.blogspot.fi/2017/11/reflection-paper-on-globalisation.html" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Reflection paper on globalisation: Opportunity or threat?</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, which introduced the European Commission’s reflection paper on harnessing globalisation </span><a href="http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=CELEX:52017DC0240&qid=1510370782758&from=EN" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">COM(2017) 240</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, left me with a desire to present the reasons of the Commission and how it wants to handle the internal and external pressures of globalisation, as part of the discussion about the future of Europe - </span><a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/futureofeurope?f=tweets&vertical=default&src=hash" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">#FutureOfEurope</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> on Twitter. </span></div>
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<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Profound changes </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">We may be well or ill prepared, but profound changes await us. As the EU Commission writes about our interconnected future (page 11): </span></div>
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<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 36pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">We are still in the early phase of the transformation where digitalisation, robots, artificial intelligence, the internet of things, 3D printing will revolutionise how we produce, work, move and consume.</span></div>
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<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The UK and the USA have both upset long traditions of integration, European and global. China increasingly acts like an economic and a military great power, but not based on the values of democracy, human rights and the rule of law many of us believed were becoming universal. </span></div>
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<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">In the emerging tri-polar (or multipolar?) world, the relative weight of Europe in world affairs continues to decrease, to say nothing about the dwindling relative size of individual EU member states (page 12): </span></div>
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<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 36pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">In 2025, 61% of the world's 8 billion-population will be in Asia, predominantly in China and India. Europe's relative share of the world population will decline, with the EU27 accounting for 5.5 %. This may bring about a multipolar world order with different political, technological, economic and military powers. But it also means large new markets for European companies.</span></div>
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<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Isolationism and protectionism - closing minds and borders, building physical and mental walls, creating obstacles to trade and investment - may entice individuals, communities, regions and countries feeling left behind, but the relief is shortlived (page 14): </span></div>
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<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 36pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Changes associated with globalisation can lead to calls for countries to isolate and insulate themselves from what is happening around them. This is particularly acute in regions that have been left behind. Some want to put up barriers and close borders.</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">--- </span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 36pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">However, a majority of European citizens recognise that protectionism does not protect. It may provide short-term relief, but history shows that it never had lasting success, and has often led to disastrous outcomes. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">--- </span></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 36pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Protectionism would disrupt production and increase costs and prices for consumers. European exports would become less competitive putting even more jobs at risk. An increase in trade restrictions by 10% is estimated to lead to a 4% loss of national income. We would lose access to new products, services, technologies and ideas. By hitting the poorest hardest with price increases, protectionism would have the opposite of its desired effect. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Harnessing globalisation </span></div>
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<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">In a nutshell, for the sake of the citizens of Europe and the world, the Commission sketches the road to follow (page 14): </span></div>
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<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 36pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">To better harness globalisation, we need more global governance and global rules. And we need to support that with domestic policies that boost our competitiveness and resilience at home.</span></div>
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<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Chapter 3 about the EU’s external response is dedicated to promoting a fairer international economic order (pages 15-18). Chapter 4 deals with the internal response of the EU: how to enhance innovation and competitiveness, as well as to bolster the resilience of those who otherwise fall behind (pages 19-23). </span></div>
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<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The thoughts about life-long learning and active labour market and social policies are closely related to the future of Europe </span><a href="https://grahnlaw.blogspot.fi/2017/10/future-of-europe-social-dimension.html" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">reflection paper on the social dimension</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, the </span><a href="https://grahnlaw.blogspot.fi/2017/10/establishing-european-pillar-of-social.html" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">European pillar of social rights</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> to be proclaimed and the </span><a href="https://www.socialsummit17.se/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Social Summit for Fair Jobs and Growth</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> the coming week, 17 November 2017 in Gothenburg (Sweden). - For more information you can follow </span><a href="https://twitter.com/search?f=tweets&vertical=default&q=%23SocialRights&src=typd" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">#SocialRights</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> and </span><a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/socialsummit17?f=tweets&vertical=default&src=hash" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">#SocialSummit17</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> on Twitter. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">EU level action </span></div>
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<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Individuals and firms make their own choices in a changing world, but the reflection paper is about how the political sphere should tackle globalisation. There are challenges for each political level - local, regional, member state and EU - as summarised on page 24. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Here we are interested primarily in a sketch of how the EU institutions should should invest their time and energy regarding globalisation: </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Trade agreements to open markets and enforce level-playing field </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Measures to ensure global tax justice and transparency </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Promotion of higher global regulatory standards </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Trade Defence Mechanism </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">European Budget (such as EFSI, ESIF, GAF, Horizon) </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">European External Investment Plan </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Development Assistance </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Product and Food Safety </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">If this succeeds in inviting blog followers to read about the EU’s external and internal responses to globalisation - fair, competitive and resilient - it may be better to continue with the expert assessments I promised in a separate blog post. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Ralf Grahn</span></div>
Ralf Grahn http://www.blogger.com/profile/02156293782163802007noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6406430766424642773.post-87784620731930301112017-11-11T08:12:00.000+02:002017-11-11T08:12:03.585+02:00Reflection paper on globalisation: Opportunity or threat?<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The Commission’s White paper on the future of Europe: Reflections and scenarios for the EU27 by 2025 </span><a href="http://eur-lex.europa.eu/resource.html?uri=cellar:b739b382-ff4f-11e6-8a35-01aa75ed71a1.0001.02/DOC_1&format=PDF" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">COM(2017) 2025</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> invited the citizens of the European Union to discuss our common future ahead of the elections to the European Parliament in 2019. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">In the White paper, published 1 March 2017, the European Commission promised to contribute to the discussion during the coming months with a series of reflection papers on the following topics: </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">• developing the social dimension of Europe; </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">• deepening the Economic and Monetary Union, on the basis of the Five Presidents' Report of June 2015; </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">• harnessing globalisation; </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">• the future of Europe’s defence; </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">• the future of EU finances. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">As promised, the European Commission published a paper discussing the economic and societal challenges of rapid integration: </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Reflection paper on harnessing globalisation; Brussels, 10.5.2017 </span><a href="http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=CELEX:52017DC0240&qid=1510370782758&from=EN" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">COM(2017) 240</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> final (25 pages) </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">For those who prefer the less readable pastel coloured “printed” versions, with annexes, the European Commission’s web page </span><a href="https://ec.europa.eu/commission/white-paper-future-europe-reflections-and-scenarios-eu27_en" style="text-decoration-line: none;"><span style="color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; text-decoration-line: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">White paper on the future of Europe and the way forward</span></a><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> serves as a convenient channel to the </span><a href="https://ec.europa.eu/commission/sites/beta-political/files/white_paper_on_the_future_of_europe_en.pdf" style="text-decoration-line: none;"><span style="color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; text-decoration-line: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">White paper</span></a><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> and the five reflection papers, including the one on </span><a href="https://ec.europa.eu/commission/sites/beta-political/files/reflection-paper-globalisation_en.pdf" style="text-decoration-line: none;"><span style="color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; text-decoration-line: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">harnessing globalisation</span></a><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> in the official EU languages.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Opportunity of threat? </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">One of the difficulties for building coherent policies and action is that people in the EU are divided: 55 per cent see globalisation as an opportunity, while 45 per cent consider globalisation as a threat overall (page 10). </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Even worse, fear of globalisation is the main cause for voters to abandon mainstream political parties and to turn to populist parties, especially on the Right, but also on the Left, according to the 2016 study from the Bertelsmann Stiftung </span><a href="https://www.bertelsmann-stiftung.de/fileadmin/files/user_upload/EZ_eupinions_Fear_Studie_2016_DT.pdf" style="text-decoration-line: none;"><span style="color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; text-decoration-line: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Globalisierungsangst oder Wertekonflikt?</span></a><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> The lower the level of education, the less the income and the higher the age of people, the more likely they are to perceive globalisation as a threat. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Majorities in Austria and France experienced globalisation as a threat, while the proportion of people fearing globalisation was particularly low in Italy, Spain and the United Kingdom. Public opinion in the Netherlands, Germany and Hungary formed a middle group between the extremes. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">However, in May 2017, along with stronger economies in the EU and the euro area, the Bruegel blog found that </span><a href="http://bruegel.org/2017/05/europeans-rediscover-enthusiasm-for-globalisation/" style="text-decoration-line: none;"><span style="color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; text-decoration-line: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Europeans rediscover enthusiasm for globalisation</span></a><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, even in France, as Uuriintuya Batsaikhan and Zsolt Darvas wrote. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Tri-polar world? </span></div>
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<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">A fresh post on the Bruegel blog, </span><a href="http://bruegel.org/2017/11/european-worries-about-isolationalist-trends/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">European worries about isolationist trends</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, reasons that despite populist shocks in the UK and US, withdrawing from the world is no solution, but that Europe needs to reassess the future of globalisation. </span></div>
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<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Internal EU reform is long overdue, and Europe’s allies are withdrawing, while European integration and globalisation both build on the idea </span><span style="background-color: #f8f8f4; color: #2f2f2f; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">‘</span><span style="background-color: #f8f8f4; color: #2f2f2f; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">work together, as a way of doing better</span><span style="background-color: #f8f8f4; color: #2f2f2f; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">’</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">. Maria Demertzis discusses both economic inequality in Europe (the UK and US) and the rise of a China promoting different values than the EU. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Can the EU overcome populist and protectionist pressures? Is the European Union going to be able to conclude constructive deals with China? </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">*** </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Let us return with a blog entry on how the European Commission wants to handle the internal and external pressures of globalisation and at a few expert comments about the reflection paper. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Ralf Grahn</span></div>
Ralf Grahn http://www.blogger.com/profile/02156293782163802007noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6406430766424642773.post-23568461567200688852017-11-06T10:14:00.001+02:002017-11-06T10:21:28.524+02:00Future of Europe: European Parliament’s vision<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">It is possible to find overviews in Reader’s Digest style of the most notable </span><a href="http://grahnlaw.blogspot.fi/2017/11/future-of-europe-initiatives.html" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Future of Europe initiatives</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The annotated version of president Jean-Claude Juncker’s State of the Union 2017 address, with the sub-heading </span><a href="https://ec.europa.eu/commission/sites/beta-political/files/soteu-explained_en.pdf" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Proposals for the future of Europe that can be implemented on the basis of the Lisbon Treaty</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, demonstrates how the flexibilities of the EU treaties can be used to improve the effectiveness of European Union action, without embarking on a formal process of treaty reform. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">European Parliament and Juncker proposals </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Already at headline level we notice a high degree of similarity with one of the EU reform resolutions from the European Parliament: </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">European Parliament resolution </span><a href="http://www.europarl.europa.eu/sides/getDoc.do?pubRef=-//EP//NONSGML+TA+P8-TA-2017-0049+0+DOC+PDF+V0//EN" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">P8_TA(2017)0049</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> of 16 February 2017 on improving the functioning of the European Union building on the potential of the Lisbon Treaty (2014/2249(INI)) [rapporteurs Elmar Brok and Mercedes Bresso] </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The </span><a href="http://www.europarl.europa.eu/thinktank/en/home.html" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">European Parliament Think Tank</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> did a bit more, by comparing Juncker’s SOTEU proposals with the resolution by the EP plenary. For our purposes it is enough to recall the general drift of the document </span><a href="http://www.europarl.europa.eu/RegData/etudes/BRIE/2017/610993/EPRS_BRI(2017)610993_EN.pdf" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The European Council and the 2017 State of the Union proposals</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, which describes Juncker’s vision for a more united, stronger and more democratic Europe: </span></div>
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<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 36pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">His vision consists of five proposals which would require a decision by the European Council, as well as one suggestion which would directly impact on the composition and working methods of this EU institution. The five proposals are: 1) using the general passerelle clause to shift from unanimity to qualified majority voting (QMV) in the Council on remaining internal market issues and aspects of taxation policy; 2) moving to QMV in the field of Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP); 3) setting up a European Defence Union; 4) extending the competences of the European Public Prosecutor's Office; 5) agreeing on a new composition for the European Parliament, including transnational lists. The additional suggestion is to merge the positions of President of the European Council and European Commission. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">In principle, all proposed initiatives could be carried out without a Treaty change. The Treaty on European Union (TEU) and the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU) include a series of clauses enabling the European Council to go beyond the current status quo. In three cases, the European Council would need the consent of the European Parliament before taking its decision. A comparison between President Juncker's proposals and the views of the European Parliament indicates that their opinions overlap regarding four of the ideas, while on one of them, discussions in the Parliament are still ongoing (see Table 1 below).</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></div>
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<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">In each case, the Juncker proposal, the treaty basis and the European Parliament view are presented. </span></div>
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<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Since the directly elected European Parliament represents the citizens of the union, and the European Commission promotes the general interest of the EU, their views are often similar. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Juncker and Macron </span></div>
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<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The in-house think tank of the European Commission, the </span><a href="http://ec.europa.eu/epsc/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">European Political Strategy Centre </span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">EPSC, published a </span><a href="https://ec.europa.eu/epsc/publications/other-publications/two-visions-one-direction---plans-for-the-future-of-europe_en" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Juncker-Macron comparison available in English, French and German</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">: T</span><a href="https://ec.europa.eu/epsc/sites/epsc/files/epsc_-_two_visions_one_direction_-_plans_for_the_future_of_europe.pdf" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">wo Visions, One Direction: Plans for the future of Europe as laid out in President Juncker’s </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">State of the Union</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> and President Macron’s </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Initiative for Europe</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The summary of this comparative assessment is telling (page 2):</span></div>
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<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 36pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Out of the proposals put forward by President Macron in his speech of 27 September, about </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">80% are already proposed or foreseen in the European Commission’s work programme</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, as outlined on 13 September in President Juncker’s Letter of Intent to European Parliament President Antonio Tajani and to Estonian Prime Minister Jüri Ratas. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Naturally, each proposal is compared and commented on. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">European Parliament vision </span></div>
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<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The EP has presented its view on the need for EU reform in the publication </span><a href="http://www.europarl.europa.eu/resources/library/media/20171023RES86651/20171023RES86651.pdf" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Future of Europe: European Parliament sets out its vision</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">President Antonio Tajani states the view of the European Parliament (page 1): </span></div>
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<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 36pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">If the EU is to be more responsive to citizens’ expectations and democratically accountable, it must first boost its capacity to act and make the euro zone more resilient to economic shocks, whilst making full use of the Lisbon Treaty. But to go further, it needs to reform itself more substantially.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The views of the European Parliament in various policy areas are at the centre, but these opinions are compared with the proposals from Juncker and Macron. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">*** </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I have not yet found other language versions of the publication about the EP’s vision on the future of Europe, but maybe one of my queries will receive a response. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Ralf Grahn</span></div>
Ralf Grahn http://www.blogger.com/profile/02156293782163802007noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6406430766424642773.post-18401469099797979522017-11-05T12:04:00.000+02:002017-11-05T12:04:27.391+02:00Future of Europe initiatives<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The European Parliament, the European Commission and its president Jean-Claude Juncker, as well as the French president Emmanuel Macron, have provided substantive initiatives for the ongoing debate about the future of Europe. </span></div>
<b id="docs-internal-guid-576273bc-8b94-a26d-5e5a-436138a0c195" style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">This blog post provides the main references for contemplation, discussion and engagement. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">European Parliament</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The directly elected European Parliament, which represents the citizens of the union, launched a real discussion, by setting out its vision for the </span><a href="http://www.europarl.europa.eu/news/en/press-room/20170210IPR61812/parliament-sets-out-its-vision-for-the-future-of-europe" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">future of Europe in three resolutions</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">:</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">European Parliament resolution </span><a href="http://www.europarl.europa.eu/sides/getDoc.do?pubRef=-//EP//NONSGML+TA+P8-TA-2017-0049+0+DOC+PDF+V0//EN" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">P8_TA(2017)0049</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> of 16 February 2017 on improving the functioning of the European Union building on the potential of the Lisbon Treaty (2014/2249(INI)) [rapporteurs Elmar Brok and Mercedes Bresso] </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">European Parliament resolution </span><a href="http://www.europarl.europa.eu/sides/getDoc.do?pubRef=-//EP//NONSGML+TA+P8-TA-2017-0048+0+DOC+PDF+V0//EN" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">P8_TA(2017)0048 </span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> of 16 February 2017 on possible evolutions of and adjustments to the current institutional set-up of the European Union (2014/2248(INI)) [rapporteur Guy Verhofstadt] </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">European Parliament resolution </span><a href="http://www.europarl.europa.eu/sides/getDoc.do?pubRef=-//EP//NONSGML+TA+P8-TA-2017-0050+0+DOC+PDF+V0//EN" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">P8_TA(2017)0050</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> of 16 February 2017 on budgetary capacity for the euro area (2015/2344(INI)) [rapporteurs Reimer Böge and Pervenche Berès]</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">White Paper and reflection papers </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The European Commission, which promotes the general interest of the union, invited the EU institutions and all EU citizens to a broad debate, by publishing its </span><a href="https://ec.europa.eu/commission/white-paper-future-europe-reflections-and-scenarios-eu27_en" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">White Paper on the Future of Europe and the five reflection papers</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> about the social dimension, globalisation, the economic and monetary union (EMU),European defence and EU finances: </span></div>
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<a href="https://ec.europa.eu/commission/sites/beta-political/files/white_paper_on_the_future_of_europe_en.pdf" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">White Paper on the future of Europe: Reflections and scenarios for the EU27 by 2025</span></a></div>
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<a href="https://ec.europa.eu/commission/sites/beta-political/files/reflection-paper-social-dimension-europe_en.pdf" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Reflection paper on the social dimension of Europe </span></a></div>
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<a href="https://ec.europa.eu/commission/sites/beta-political/files/reflection-paper-globalisation_en.pdf" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Reflection paper on harnessing globalisation</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></div>
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<a href="https://ec.europa.eu/commission/sites/beta-political/files/reflection-paper-emu_en.pdf" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Reflection paper on the deepening of the economic and monetary union </span></a></div>
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<a href="https://ec.europa.eu/commission/sites/beta-political/files/reflection-paper-defence_en.pdf" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Reflection paper on the future of European defence</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></div>
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<a href="https://ec.europa.eu/commission/sites/beta-political/files/reflection-paper-eu-finances_en.pdf" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Reflection pages on the future of EU finances </span></a></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">President Jean-Claude Juncker promised to take the ideas in the White Paper and the reflection papers forward in his State of the Union 2017 speech. The Future of Europe debate is open for everyone and it continues until the elections to the European Parliament in June 2019. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The European Commission’s </span><a href="https://ec.europa.eu/commission/state-union-2017_en" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">State of the Union 2017 web page</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> offers us access to the references we need, president Jean-Claude Juncker’s State of the Union (SOTEU) address </span><a href="http://europa.eu/rapid/press-release_SPEECH-17-3165_en.htm" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">SPEECH/17/3165</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> with the </span><a href="https://ec.europa.eu/commission/sites/beta-political/files/letter-of-intent-2017_en.pdf" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">letter of intent and the roadmap</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> for a more united, stronger and more democratic union. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">On 24 October 2017 the SOTEU speech and the Commission’s letter of intent with the roadmap graduated into the Commission Work Programme 2018: An agenda for a more united, stronger and more democratic Europe </span><a href="http://eur-lex.europa.eu/resource.html?uri=cellar:92be9f6e-b98e-11e7-a7f8-01aa75ed71a1.0001.02/DOC_1&format=PDF" style="text-decoration-line: none;"><span style="color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; text-decoration-line: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">COM(2017) 650</span></a><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, with five annexes and the related communication on better regulation </span><a href="http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=CELEX:52017DC0651&qid=1509782413308&from=EN" style="text-decoration-line: none;"><span style="color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; text-decoration-line: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">COM(2017) 651</span></a><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, accompanied by the staff working document </span><a href="http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=CELEX:52017SC0675&qid=1509782583331&from=EN" style="text-decoration-line: none;"><span style="color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; text-decoration-line: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">SWD(2017) 675</span></a><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The communications are still available only in English, French and German, but </span><a href="https://twitter.com/EURLex" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">@EurLex</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> kindly informed me that translation work is ongoing, so new language versions may appear. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I presented the CWP 2018 in the blog entries </span><a href="http://grahnlaw.blogspot.fi/2017/10/commission-work-programme-2018.html" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Commission Work Programme 2018</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> and </span><a href="http://grahnlaw.blogspot.fi/2017/10/new-and-refit-initiatives-in-commission.html" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">New and REFIT initiatives in Commission Work Programme 2018 </span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">plus </span><a href="http://grahnlaw.blogspot.fi/2017/10/many-eu-priority-proposals-pending.html" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Many EU priority proposals pending</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">President Macron </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">You can find links to the </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Initiative pour l’Europe</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> by the president of France, Emmanuel Macron, in the original French at the Elysée Palace website, as well as two translations of his full motivational Sorbonne speech in the blog post </span><a href="http://grahnlaw.blogspot.fi/2017/11/macrons-initiative-for-europe-in.html" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Macron’s Initiative for Europe in English and German</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">European Council </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">In the European Union designed by the heads of state or government, they (the European Council EUCO) should provide the union with the necessary impetus for its development and define the general political directions and priorities, according to Article 15(1) TEU.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Why have I neglected their role in the debate about the future of Europe until now? </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">After the Brexit vote in the United Kingdom, the presidents and prime ministers of EU27 started their own reflection period. Their </span><a href="http://g7.europa.eu/en/policies/eu-future-reflection/bratislava-declaration-and-roadmap/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Bratislava Declaration and Roadmap</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> promised to make their union a success, and it evoked a number of important challenges to tackle. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">But they reflected only among themselves and saw the 25 March 2017 as the end of the discussion, which petered out into the </span><a href="http://www.consilium.europa.eu/en/press/press-releases/2017/03/25/rome-declaration/?+Rome+Declaration" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Rome Declaration</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Does the European Council participate in the future of Europe debate in an open manner, even when a discussion becomes unavoidable? Has the European Council acted effectively in line with suggestions from the European Parliament, proposals from the European Commission, recommendations from international organisations and assessments form think tanks and researchers? Has EUCO listened to and engaged with the citizens of the union? Has it based its reasoning on the best interests of the citizens or the general interest of the union? Has EUCO ever honestly confronted the structural flaws of the European Union?</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">There are no signs that the European Council has even discussed the European Parliament’s resolutions or the Commission’s White Paper ahead of the Rome Declaration, or the reflection papers later, as part of the ongoing, open Future of Europe debate. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Only after president Juncker’s State of the Union and roadmap proposals and president Macron’s initiative for Europe gained a foothold inside the European Council, did the heads of state or government after an informal discussion endorse a </span><a href="http://grahnlaw.blogspot.fi/2017/10/european-council-leaders-agenda.html" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Leaders’ Agenda for 2017-2019</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> proposed by EUCO president Tusk, a timetable without any political reform commitments. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">For these reasons it is hard to see the European Council as a genuine provider of needed impetus for the future of the European Union, but more of a receiver. How constructive EUCO is going to be in that reduced role, remains to be seen. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Ralf Grahn</span></div>
Ralf Grahn http://www.blogger.com/profile/02156293782163802007noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6406430766424642773.post-83833327920467495092017-11-04T05:37:00.000+02:002017-11-04T05:37:26.339+02:00Macron’s Initiative for Europe in English and German <div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The </span><a href="http://www.elysee.fr/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Elysée website of the French president</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> seems to offer a single language choice: French. It may be an excellent reminder of the importance and glories of the French language, but for a president keen on proselytising in Europe it has some drawbacks. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I checked </span><a href="http://www.elysee.fr/declarations/article/initiative-pour-l-europe-discours-d-emmanuel-macron-pour-une-europe-souveraine-unie-democratique/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Macron’s Initiative pour l’Europe</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> speech many times for possible translations I could mention to the readers of my blogs, but only found the same English summary of </span><a href="http://www.elysee.fr/assets/Initiative-for-Europe-a-sovereign-united-democratic-Europe-Emmanuel-Macron.pdf" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">A sovereign, united and democratic Europe</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> with mainly the concrete reform proposals. (In my opinion the strongest part of Macron’s marathon speech was the inspiration he offered Europeans about the Whys? of European sovereignty, unity and democracy. If people understand the strategic choices, the concrete reforms will follow.) </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">It therefore took a long time, before I found out through a French Embassy web page that probably the same “Service de presse” which kept the Elysée page clean from foreign languages, had provided an English translation of the 26 September 2017 </span><a href="https://www.diplomatie.gouv.fr/IMG/pdf/english_version_transcript_-_initiative_for_europe_-_speech_by_the_president_of_the_french_republic_cle8de628.pdf" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Initiative for Europe speech</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Soon after I stumbled across a German version of </span><a href="https://www.diplomatie.gouv.fr/IMG/pdf/rede_von_staatsprasident_macron_cle415ad4.pdf" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Rede von Staatspräsident Macron an der Sorbonne: Initiative für Europa</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, provided by the French Embassy in Berlin. </span></div>
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<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">To the people still interested in Macron’s full speech text in English or German after more than a month, I say </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">s’il vous plaît</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">If president Macron and his press service want to draw their own conclusions, go ahead. (I’ll just add that there is a reason for the European Union having 24 official languages.) </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Ralf Grahn</span></div>
Ralf Grahn http://www.blogger.com/profile/02156293782163802007noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6406430766424642773.post-55194249049463341112017-11-03T11:05:00.000+02:002017-11-03T11:05:03.493+02:00When opinion polls useful for the Future of Europe?<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">In the blog post </span><a href="http://grahnlaw.blogspot.fi/2017/09/state-of-union-public-opinion.html" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">State of the Union: public opinion</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> I wondered at the usefulness of the latest </span><a href="http://ec.europa.eu/commfrontoffice/publicopinion/index.cfm/Survey/getSurveyDetail/instruments/STANDARD/surveyKy/2142" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Standard Eurobarometer 87</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> (fieldwork in May 2017), and the timing and value of the three reports of the special Eurobarometer 461 opinion poll purportedly dedicated to </span><a href="http://ec.europa.eu/commfrontoffice/publicopinion/index.cfm/Survey/getSurveyDetail/instruments/SPECIAL/surveyKy/2173" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Designing Europe’s Future</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> (fieldwork in April 2017).</span></div>
<b id="docs-internal-guid-53f0ace2-811b-60fa-72ca-b04839d19e17" style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Great if people value the European Union and its policy areas more, but why do the opinion polls not ask the citizens of the EU about the kind of union they want for the future? </span></div>
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<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Do the citizens of the union want an undemocratic state-owned European Union or a democratic EU? Given (an understanding of) the external threats and internal challenges, do they want to give the European Union or Eurozone effective powers, or do they prefer to hide their heads in the sand? Which powers should belong at the European level, which should be left with member states, regions, municipalities and individuals, according to an evidence-based view of value added, proportionality and subsidiarity? Are citizens prepared to trust their directly elected European Parliament, the European Commission promoting the general interest, or the European Council and Council (of ministers), which primarily guard their own turf? What do the citizens of the union think about the reform initiatives of the European Parliament, Commission president Jean-Claude Juncker and the French president Emmanuel Macron? </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I decided to phrase these questions in a incisive manner, in order to show the kind of questions and answers a real debate about the future of Europe requires. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Parlemeter 2017</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The fresh opinion poll commissioned by the European Parliament, </span><a href="http://www.europarl.europa.eu/external/html/parlemetre/eb88_v2.pdf" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Parlemeter 2017: A stronger voice: Citizens’ views of Parliament and the EU</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, confirms the positive general trends regarding public opinion on the European Union and confirms observations about their views on rights and priority policies. </span></div>
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<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">With regard to the questions I posed, the Parlemeter 2017 (page 26) makes two additional observations. The first one is a bit mystifying; it concerns something I must have failed to see in the (“first results” of the) Eurobarometer 87, even if the footnote on the page links to the same survey: </span></div>
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<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 36pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">According to the European Commission Standard Eurobarometer 87, the European Parliament is the European institution with the highest level of confidence expressed by Europeans: 45% of citizens tend to trust this institution. 41% trust the European Commission, while 37% trust the European Central Bank. Overall, 42% of respondents declare their trust in the European Union. Confidence in the EU and the European Parliament is therefore also higher than the one held for national parliaments (36%) and for national governments (37%). </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Even here we see no separate score for the European Council or the Council of the European Union. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The second additional remark shows clearly more positive perceptions of the European Parliament during the last year: </span></div>
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<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 36pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Even though many respondents (42%) keeps a “neutral image” of the European Parliament, the number of people who have a positive view of the institution is undoubtedly on the rise (33% compared to 25% in September 2016). This increase results in a direct decline of respondents who have a negative opinion of this institution, while the share of those who hold a neutral view remains rather stable between 41% and 46% during the past ten years.</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Useful, or at least interesting fragments, but we are still left with the question: When are the European Commission and the European Parliament going to provide opinion polls useful for the debate about the future of Europe? </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Or should I have looked elsewhere? </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Ralf Grahn</span></div>
Ralf Grahn http://www.blogger.com/profile/02156293782163802007noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6406430766424642773.post-46014952418108202542017-10-30T05:51:00.000+02:002017-10-30T05:51:19.336+02:00Many EU priority proposals pending <div dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 3pt; margin-top: 3pt; padding: 3.75pt 0pt 3.75pt 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">After the blog post </span><a href="http://grahnlaw.blogspot.fi/2017/10/commission-work-programme-2018.html" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Commission Work Programme 2018</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> looked at the CWP 2018 communication, the entry </span><a href="https://grahnlaw.blogspot.fi/2017/10/new-and-refit-initiatives-in-commission.html" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">New and REFIT initiatives in Commission Work Programme 2018</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> glanced at the first two annexes, with ordinary legislative and political initiatives plus future of Europe proposals in the first annex, and REFIT proposals in the second annex, but widening through a new </span><a href="http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?qid=1509254580430&uri=CELEX:52017DC0651" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">communication on better regulation</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, an accompanying </span><a href="http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=CELEX:52017SC0675&qid=1509257750733&from=EN" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">SWD(2017) 675</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> and a fresh </span><a href="http://publications.europa.eu/webpub/com/refit-scoreboard/en/index.html" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">REFIT Scoreboard</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Here we look at the priority proposals still pending. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Priority pending proposals </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">There was the </span><a href="https://ec.europa.eu/commission/sites/beta-political/files/joint-declaration-legislative-priorities-2017-jan2017_en.pdf" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Joint Declaration on the EU’s legislative priorities for 2017</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> conferring </span><a href="https://ec.europa.eu/commission/sites/beta-political/files/state-union-2017-brochure_en.pdf#page=80" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">priority status on 58 proposals</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, but slow progress caused my choice of headline 22 September 2017 to </span><a href="https://grahnlaw.blogspot.fi/2017/09/state-of-union-legislative-worries.html" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">State of the Union: legislative worries</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">. I am not less worried now. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">A month later we get this 14-page compilations of 66 pending proposal packages, all told: </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Annex to the CWP 2018 communication; Strasbourg, 24.10.2017 </span><a href="http://eur-lex.europa.eu/resource.html?uri=cellar:92be9f6e-b98e-11e7-a7f8-01aa75ed71a1.0001.02/DOC_4&format=PDF" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">COM(2017) 650 final ANNEX 3</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">If brevity is the soul of wit, the </span><a href="https://ec.europa.eu/info/sites/info/files/cwp_factsheet_annex_iii_en.pdf" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Annex III infographic</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> should be commended for condensing the 66 pending proposal packages into just two pages. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Withdrawals and repeals </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Withdrawal from the EU seems to be the only process and Article 50 TEU the only provision in the EU treaties of interest among English mass circulation tabloids (and consequently, of what many people in Europe and America read about the European Union nowadays). Any other EU stories in these tabloids seem to support the purpose of creating horror images of the European Union in order to keep Leavers happy, despite their foolish decision and the government’s disastrous handling of Brexit. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">However, we encounter the term ‘withdrawals’ in another context. The fourth annex of the Commission Work Programme for 2018 is: </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Annex to the CWP 2018 communication; Strasbourg, 24.10.2017 </span><a href="http://eur-lex.europa.eu/resource.html?uri=cellar:92be9f6e-b98e-11e7-a7f8-01aa75ed71a1.0001.02/DOC_5&format=PDF" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">COM(2017) 650 final ANNEX 4</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Annex to the CWP 2018 communication; Strasbourg, 24.10.2017 </span><a href="http://eur-lex.europa.eu/resource.html?uri=cellar:92be9f6e-b98e-11e7-a7f8-01aa75ed71a1.0001.02/DOC_6&format=PDF" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">COM(2017) 650 final ANNEX 5</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Via the legal portal </span><a href="http://eur-lex.europa.eu/homepage.html" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Eur-Lex</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> with COM(2017) 650 as your reference, or the web page </span><a href="https://ec.europa.eu/info/publications/2018-commission-work-programme-key-documents_en" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">2018 Commission work programme - key documents</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, you can look out for possible new language versions of the CWP 2018 documents. The </span><a href="https://twitter.com/search?f=tweets&vertical=default&q=%23FutureOfEurope&src=typd" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">#FutureOfEurope</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> hashtag on Twitter yields an occasional gem for interested EU citizens. </span></div>
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<span id="docs-internal-guid-36087a14-6b62-c6e5-03c9-f26d6fa27879"></span><br />
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Ralf Grahn http://www.blogger.com/profile/02156293782163802007noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6406430766424642773.post-27953681539920703452017-10-29T06:52:00.000+02:002017-10-29T06:52:06.745+02:00New and REFIT initiatives in Commission Work Programme 2018<div dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 3pt; margin-top: 3pt; padding: 3.75pt 0pt 3.75pt 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The Juncker Commission has been strategic and steadfast in its work, matter of fact in its communication. In the blog post </span><a href="http://grahnlaw.blogspot.fi/2017/10/commission-work-programme-2018.html" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Commission Work Programme 2018</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> we looked at the CWP 2018 communication, which offers a State of the Union 2017 (SOTEU) update, useful references and an overview of the coming initiatives: </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Commission Work Programme 2018: An agenda for a more united, stronger and more democratic Europe; Strasbourg, 24.10.2017 </span><a href="http://eur-lex.europa.eu/resource.html?uri=cellar:92be9f6e-b98e-11e7-a7f8-01aa75ed71a1.0001.02/DOC_1&format=PDF" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">COM(2017) 650 final</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">However, for this EU “Navigation App” for 2018 to serve practical purposes and offer detail, we have to make use of one or more of the five “add ons”, namely the annexes that followed the communication. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">You can find all the documents through the web page </span><a href="https://ec.europa.eu/info/publications/2018-commission-work-programme-key-documents_en" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">2018 Commission work programme - key documents</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, but mostly still only in English, French and German, the internal working languages of the European Commission. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I mention the Commission’s press release </span><a href="http://europa.eu/rapid/press-release_IP-17-4002_en.htm" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">IP/17/4002</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> and the fact sheet </span><a href="http://europa.eu/rapid/press-release_MEMO-17-4003_en.htm" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">MEMO/17/4003</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> because, for substance and terminology, they are the only documents already published in all the official EU languages. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">This blog post offers alternative links to the annexes in English through the legal portal Eur-Lex, as well as a short presentation of each annex.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The first CWP 2018 annex presents the planned new initiatives, neatly ordered according to the ten priorities of the Juncker Commission: </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Annex to the CWP 2018 communication; Strasbourg, 24.10.2017 </span><a href="http://eur-lex.europa.eu/resource.html?uri=cellar:92be9f6e-b98e-11e7-a7f8-01aa75ed71a1.0001.02/DOC_2&format=PDF" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">COM(2017) 650 final ANNEX 1</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">There is something under each priority. On six pages in all, the Commission presents 26 packages with future legislative proposals (mentioning the legal base) or non-legislative initiatives, indicating the planned quarter for publication. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Graphically, the ordinary legislative and political initiatives are presented on white, whereas grey matter offers the background for the future of Europe initiatives, to be launched “with a 2025 perspective”. The same colour scheme prevails in the </span><a href="https://ec.europa.eu/info/sites/info/files/cwp_factsheet_annex_i_en.pdf" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Annex I infographic</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, which reduces the 26 packages to a one page view. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">If Annex 1 was about delivering on the Commission’s ten priorities, or thinking ahead to a better union by 2025 (future of Europe), the </span><a href="https://ec.europa.eu/info/law/law-making-process/overview-law-making-process/evaluating-and-improving-existing-laws/reducing-burdens-and-simplifying-law/refit-making-eu-law-simpler-and-less-costly_en" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Regulatory Fitness and Performance</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> (REFIT) programme is part of the Commission’s better regulation agenda. The proclaimed REFIT aim is for EU legislation to deliver results for citizens and businesses effectively, efficiently and at minimum cost. REFIT aims to “keep” (make?) EU law simple, remove unnecessary burdens and adapt existing legislation without compromising on legislative objectives. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Annex to the CWP 2018 communication; Strasbourg, 24.10.2017 </span><a href="http://eur-lex.europa.eu/resource.html?uri=cellar:92be9f6e-b98e-11e7-a7f8-01aa75ed71a1.0001.02/DOC_3&format=PDF" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">COM(2017) 650 final ANNEX 2</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The Commission’s CWP 2018 web page offers links to an impressive amount of additional material about better regulation efforts, much of it from the same day the CWP 2018 was published: the fresh </span><a href="https://ec.europa.eu/info/sites/info/files/regulatory-fitness-and-performance-programme-refit-scoreboard-summary_en_4.pdf" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">REFIT Scoreboard Summary</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> 24 October 2017 (36 pages), the </span><a href="http://publications.europa.eu/webpub/com/refit-scoreboard/en/index.html" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">REFIT scoreboard web page</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> with first vice-president Frans Timmermans, the new communication Completing the Better Regulation Agenda: Better solutions for better results </span><a href="https://ec.europa.eu/info/sites/info/files/completing-the-better-regulation-agenda-better-solutions-for-better-results_en.pdf" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">COM(2017) 651</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> (14 pages) and the accompanying Commission Staff Working Document Overview of the Union's Efforts to Simplify and to Reduce Regulatory Burdens </span><a href="https://ec.europa.eu/info/sites/info/files/overview-union-efforts-tosimplify-and-to-reduce-regulatory-burdens_en.pdf" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">SWD(2017) 675</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> (45 pages). </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">As part of its better regulation agenda the Commission invites citizens and stakeholders to share their views: </span><a href="http://ec.europa.eu/info/law/better-regulation/have-your-say_en" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Have your say</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">. The CWP 2018 web page offers a link to the ongoing evaluations and impact assessments on the </span><a href="http://ec.europa.eu/info/law/better-regulation/initiatives_en?facet__select__field_brp_inve_resource_type%3Aparents_all=743&field_brp_inve_fb_status=All&field_brp_inve_leading_service=All" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Published initiatives page</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">We look at the remaining annexes in a later blog post. </span></div>
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<span id="docs-internal-guid-36087a14-6672-ba63-9e09-96d76215bae8"></span><br />
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Ralf Grahn</span></div>
Ralf Grahn http://www.blogger.com/profile/02156293782163802007noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6406430766424642773.post-35089089177185550062017-10-28T09:30:00.000+02:002017-10-28T09:30:51.287+02:00Commission Work Programme 2018<div dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 3pt; margin-top: 3pt; padding: 3.75pt 0pt 3.75pt 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The web page for the </span><a href="https://ec.europa.eu/info/publications/2018-commission-work-programme-key-documents_en" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Commission Work Programme 2018</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> (CWP 2018) offers access to the communication, the five official annexes and additional documents, but at this stage mainly in the three internal working languages of the Commission (English, French and German). </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">At this point in time, the language choice is no wider if we access the official documents through the legal portal Eur-Lex. However, let us fetch the exact reference there: </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Commission Work Programme 2018: An agenda for a more united, stronger and more democratic Europe; Strasbourg, 24.10.2017 </span><a href="http://eur-lex.europa.eu/resource.html?uri=cellar:92be9f6e-b98e-11e7-a7f8-01aa75ed71a1.0001.02/DOC_1&format=PDF" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">COM(2017) 650 final</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">2018 and Future of Europe</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">There are legislative proposals in the ordinary manner, as well as initiatives with a Future of Europe perspective aiming at 2025. This CWP 2018 presentation in a nutshell (pages 2-3) is worth reading: </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The focus of the work programme for 2018 is two-fold. First, the work programme sets out a limited number of targeted legislative actions to complete our work in priority policy areas over the next months. The Commission will table all legislative proposals no later than May 2018. This will allow the European Parliament and Council the time and space to complete the legislative work before Europeans give their democratic verdict in the European elections of June 2019 on what we have achieved together. </span></div>
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<div dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 3pt; margin-left: 36pt; margin-top: 3pt; padding: 3.75pt 0pt 3.75pt 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Secondly, the work programme also presents a number of initiatives that have a more forward-looking perspective, as the new Union of 27 shapes its own future for 2025. These initiatives reflect the debate kick-started by the Commission's White Paper on the Future of Europe and the State of the Union address. They can all be achieved by making full use of the untapped potential of the Lisbon Treaty. We will deliver all of these initiatives by the end of the mandate. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Better regulation</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Better regulation is the third main aspect of the CWP 2018 (page 3): </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">As in previous years, the work programme also proposes a number of proposals that follow on from regulatory fitness and performance (REFIT) reviews of current laws, taking into account the opinions of the REFIT platform. To allow the co-legislators to focus on delivering the proposals that really matter, this work programme contains a significant number of pending proposals that we suggest to withdraw given that there is no foreseeable agreement in the European Parliament and the Council or they no longer serve their purpose or are technically outdated. This work programme also continues the process of repealing pieces of legislation that have become obsolete. In parallel, we are publishing an overview of the Commission's better regulation agenda and its results together with the REFIT Scoreboard, which sets out in detail how we are following-up on REFIT platform opinions and on-going efforts to evaluate and review existing laws.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Ten priorities </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The Juncker Commission has been strategic and steadfast in its work, matter of fact in its communication. In Section II (pages 3-10), the situation regarding each of the Commission’s ten priorities is presented briefly (with further references), before the planned initiatives are mentioned. Since the European Parliamentary Research Service (EPRS) publication </span><a href="http://www.europarl.europa.eu/RegData/etudes/IDAN/2017/607287/EPRS_IDA(2017)607287_EN.pdf" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The European Commission at mid-term</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> was mentioned in the CWP 2018 communication, and can be used as a reference for assessing progress in more detail, let us utilise it also to lift the Commission’s ten priorities here as a reminder (from page 3): </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">1. A new boost for jobs, growth and investment </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">2. A connected digital single market </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">4. A deeper and fairer internal market with a strengthened industrial base </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">5. A deeper and fairer economic and monetary union (EMU) </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><span style="background-color: transparent; font-size: 12pt;">6. Originally, A reasonable and balanced free trade agreement with the United States, nowadays A balanced and progressive trade policy to harness globalisation </span> </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">7. An area of justice and fundamental rights based on mutual trust </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">8. Towards a new policy on migration </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">We move into Future of Europe territory through Section III Delivering by 2025: A more united, stronger and more democratic union (pages 10-13). The Commission optimistically presents that its State of the Union 2017 (SOTEU) </span><a href="http://grahnlaw.blogspot.fi/2017/09/state-of-union-2017-letter-of-intent.html" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">roadmap for a More United, Stronger and More Democratic Union</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> is now reflected in the </span><a href="http://grahnlaw.blogspot.fi/2017/10/european-council-leaders-agenda.html" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Leaders' Agenda</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, endorsed by the European Council 19-20 October. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The European Commission promises to use “the still untapped potential of the current Treaties which allows us to move forward with ambition and speed” (page 10), meaning flexibilities including </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-variant-caps: normal; font-variant-ligatures: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><i>passerelle clauses</i></span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">. The Commission is going to work with the other EU institutions and with national parliaments, but also invites all the citizens of the European Union to contribute to the discussion about the future of Europe. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Last December the Commission, the European Parliament and the Council of the European Union agreed on the legislative priorities for the coming year in a Joint Declaration. The Commission hopes that the three institutions will reach a similar agreement this time around. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">*** </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The 15 pages of the communication Commission Work Programme 2018 COM(2017) 650 are worth reading as a reminder and update of the State of the Union 2017 materials, as well as a provider of a number of useful document references. </span></div>
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<span id="docs-internal-guid-36087a14-61d3-8f2a-9c2e-7a7997683e05"></span><br />
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Ralf Grahn</span></div>
Ralf Grahn http://www.blogger.com/profile/02156293782163802007noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6406430766424642773.post-12601773681299878212017-10-23T05:53:00.000+03:002017-10-23T05:53:56.624+03:00Future of Europe: Leaders’ Agenda for Gothenburg <div dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 3pt; margin-top: 3pt; padding: 3.75pt 0pt 3.75pt 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Our discussion about the European Council (EUCO) and the new Leaders’ Agenda for thematic meetings continued with a look at the briefings from the European Parliamentary Research Service (EPRS) and the EUCO conclusions of 19 October and EU27 conclusions 20 October 2017 (Article 50 TEU), in </span><a href="http://grahnlaw.blogspot.fi/2017/10/eprs-keeping-tabs-on-european-council.html" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">EPRS: keeping tabs on the European Council</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The </span><a href="http://www.consilium.europa.eu/en/infographics/leaders-agenda/" style="text-decoration-line: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; text-decoration-line: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Leaders’ Agenda timetable</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> was described by president Tusk as a living document, apt to change over time, but let us take a look at the near future. Less than four weeks from now, the heads of state or government are going to convene in Gothenburg (Sweden). </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Sweden’s prime minister Stefan Löfven and the president of the European Commission Jean-Claude Juncker have invited the leaders to a </span><a href="http://www.government.se/government-policy/social-summit-for-fair-jobs-and-growth/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Social Summit for Fair Jobs and Growth</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> in Gothenburg, 17 November 2017. The </span><a href="https://www.socialsummit17.se/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Social Summit website</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> already offers some information and the </span><a href="https://twitter.com/search?f=tweets&vertical=default&q=%23SocialSummit17&src=typd" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">#SocialSummit17</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> hashtag on Twitter provides occasional updates ahead of the gathering. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">As a background, most of my spring and autumn 2017 blog posts about the social market economy, the social pillar and the reflection paper on the social dimension of the European Union can be found through the blog post </span><a href="http://grahnlaw.blogspot.fi/2017/10/future-of-europe-social-dimension.html" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Future of Europe: social dimension</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, except three later ones in Swedish, which look at the Nordic EU-members in the discussion about the future of Europe: the general orientation in </span><a href="http://grahnblawg.blogspot.fi/2017/10/norden-i-eu-utkanten.html" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Norden i EU-utkanten?</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, then the introductory entry about the Commission’s White Paper </span><a href="http://grahnblawg.blogspot.fi/2017/10/vitboken-om-eus-framtid-i-norden.html" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Vitboken om EU:s framtid i Norden</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> and the article about the reflection paper on the social dimension </span><a href="http://grahnblawg.blogspot.fi/2017/10/diskussionsunderlaget-om-eus-sociala.html" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Diskussionsunderlaget om EU:s sociala dimension i Norden</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Ahead of the Social Summit, readers interested in the </span><a href="https://epthinktank.eu/2017/10/17/eu-labour-markets-what-think-tanks-are-thinking/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">labour markets in the EU</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> and related social pillar and dimension matters, can find a handy compilation on the EPRS Blog about what think tanks have produced lately. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">*** </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The other issue on the Leaders’ Agenda for this meeting is described as Education and Culture (30th anniversary of Erasmus). </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The European Parliament and the European Commission already celebrated the </span><a href="https://ec.europa.eu/programmes/erasmus-plus/anniversary/european-celebration-30th-anniversary-erasmus_en" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">30th anniversary of the Erasmus Programme</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> in Strasbourg, 13 June 2017. The Council of the European Union provides an overview of ongoing issues in the </span><a href="http://www.consilium.europa.eu/en/council-eu/configurations/eycs/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Education, Youth, Culture and Sport Council</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> configuration (EYCS) during the Estonian Council presidency, as well as the main results of the previous </span><a href="http://www.consilium.europa.eu/en/meetings/eycs/2017/05/22-23/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">EYCS Council meeting</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> 22-23 May 2017. The </span><a href="http://www.consilium.europa.eu/en/council-eu/configurations/epsco/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Employment, Social Policy, Health and Consumer Affairs Council</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> configuration (EPSCO) is another potential source of issues for the European Council in Gothenburg under the headline Education and Culture (30th anniversary of Erasmus). </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">In the context of the Social Summit, perhaps the European Council wants to deal with the </span><a href="http://ec.europa.eu/social/main.jsp?catId=1176" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Youth Employment Initiative</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> (EYI), supporting the </span><a href="http://ec.europa.eu/social/main.jsp?catId=1079&langId=en" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Youth Guarantee</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> efforts in distressed regions with high youth unemployment, or show interest in matters rarely seen on its agenda, but let us leave guessing and look at possible EUCO value added later, when there is something more concrete to work with.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Ralf Grahn</span></div>
Ralf Grahn http://www.blogger.com/profile/02156293782163802007noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6406430766424642773.post-71968862517883240732017-10-22T11:52:00.000+03:002017-10-22T11:52:23.644+03:00EPRS: keeping tabs on the European Council<div dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 3pt; margin-top: 3pt; padding: 3.75pt 0pt 3.75pt 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The blog posts </span><a href="http://grahnlaw.blogspot.fi/2017/10/european-council-united-were-stuck.html" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">European Council: United we’re stuck?</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> and </span><a href="http://grahnlaw.blogspot.fi/2017/10/european-council-leaders-agenda.html" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">European Council: Leaders’ Agenda</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> presented facts and expressed doubts regarding the efforts of the EUCO president Donald Tusk to overcome paralysis or stagnation among the heads of state or government. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">It remains to be seen, if the Bratislava implementation report, the description in the invitation letter and the timetable downloadable from EUCO’s </span><a href="http://www.consilium.europa.eu/en/policies/talinn-leaders-agenda/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Leaders’ Agenda</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> web page, are going to turn the European Council into the </span><a href="http://grahnlaw.blogspot.fi/2017/10/future-of-europe-to-meet-european.html" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">impetus provider</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> they imagined in Article 15(1) TEU, or remain an impetus taker and the main obstacle among the EU institutions and others in the quest for a better future of Europe. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The European Parliament is not only an initiator of EU reform, but the institution representing the citizens of the union keeps tabs on what the European Commission (promoting the general interest) and the intergovernmental institutions - the Council of the European Union and the European Council - do. Instrumental is the </span><a href="http://www.europarl.europa.eu/atyourservice/en/20150201PVL00031/European-Parliamentary-Research-Service" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">European Parliamentary Research Service</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> (EPRS), which publishes studies, evaluations, fact sheets and briefings.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Ahead of the October 2017 European Council and with a view to the proposed Leaders’ Agenda, the European Parliamentary Research Service Blog published a background post on </span><a href="https://epthinktank.eu/2017/10/18/the-european-council-what-makes-it-to-the-agenda-and-why/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">what makes it to the EUCO agenda and why</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, as well as an </span><a href="https://epthinktank.eu/2017/10/19/outlook-for-the-european-council-meeting-on-19-20-october-2017-and-the-european-council-article-50-meeting-on-20-october-2017/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">outlook for the European Council meeting 19-20 October 2017</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> (including the Article 50 TEU, i.e. Brexit part), also in a more easy to read briefing form (pdf), plus links to three other publications: an updated check-list of European Council conclusions, a briefing on the European Council and the 2017 State of the Union proposals, and a list of the current members of the European Council. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">They are all relevant references beyond the EUCO meeting, although here I single out the </span><a href="https://libraryeuroparl.files.wordpress.com/2017/10/eprs_brie_610996_outlook_october-final.pdf" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Pre-European Council briefing</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> (outlook), which can be read as a background note to the European Council conclusions 19 October 2017 </span><a href="http://data.consilium.europa.eu/doc/document/ST-14-2017-INIT/en/pdf" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">EUCO 14/17</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> and 20 October 2017 (Article 50) </span><a href="http://data.consilium.europa.eu/doc/document/XT-20014-2017-INIT/en/pdf" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">EUCO XT 20014/17</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, regarding migration, digital Europe (in the aftermath of the Tallinn Digital Summit, the jewel in the crown of the Estonian presidency of the EU Council), security and defence with a view to launching a Permanent Structured Cooperation (PESCO) before the end of the year, and external relations, which were discussed during the first day. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The briefing note (outlook) point 7 and the EU27 conclusions regarding the Article 50 TEU UK withdrawal (Brexit) negotiations can also be read in parallel. However, for this blog the EPRS briefing point 6, regarding the Future of Europe (discussed informally by EUCO), is of special interest, although by now we have the Leaders’ Agenda.</span></div>
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Ralf Grahn http://www.blogger.com/profile/02156293782163802007noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6406430766424642773.post-22588554929953043022017-10-21T10:13:00.000+03:002017-10-21T10:13:41.687+03:00European Council: Leaders’ Agenda<div dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 3pt; margin-top: 3pt; padding: 3.75pt 0pt 3.75pt 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The blog post </span><a href="http://grahnlaw.blogspot.fi/2017/10/european-council-united-were-stuck.html" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">European Council: United we’re stuck?</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> noted the effort of the EUCO president Donald Tusk to cut the Gordian knots among the heads of state or government (and more generally the governments of the member states), by a structured approach to difficult issues. At the same time, the entry doubted if a schedule for thematic meetings would be more successful now than at the time of Herman Van Rompuy. What if sub-optimal procedures and outcomes for EU citizens and enterprises are inevitable consequences of a basically intergovernmental union the member states have designed to suit themselves? </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Do we find anything to add to our knowledge about the Leaders’ Agenda after the EUCO meeting? </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The customary introductory speech by the president of the European Parliament touched on a number of issues. On the </span><a href="http://www.europarl.europa.eu/the-president/en/newsroom/speech-by-the-president-of-the-european-parliament-antonio-tajani-to-the-european-council-meeting-on-19-october-2017" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">future of Europe Antonio Tajani reminded</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> the national leaders: </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Europe is thinking hard about its own future. We have to find answers to two fundamental questions: what it is that we want to do together in the future, and how we want to do it.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">As you will remember, Parliament was the first to contribute to this reflection process, through the Brok-Bresso, Böge-Bérès and Verhofstadt reports.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">President Juncker has presented the Commission White Paper setting out the possible scenarios and, more recently, President Macron put on the table a range of ideas and proposals that warrant in-depth consideration.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Parliament, as a democratic and open forum for debate, aims – and has the institutional duty – to be at the centre of the debate.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">That is why the Conference of Presidents has decided to devote a series of debates in plenary to the future of Europe, and to invite the Heads of State and Government and leading European figures who wish to speak to outline their vision and debate with us.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I have already extended that invitation to some of you in person, and will be sending everyone a written invitation in the next few days.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">We have noted that one of the items on the Leaders’ Agenda concerns the Spitzenkandidaten. I am sure that your aim is to make that arrangement the norm.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Thank you for listening. I look forward to your coming to Parliament to talk about Europe.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The European Council informs us that the </span><a href="http://www.consilium.europa.eu/en/policies/talinn-leaders-agenda/" style="text-decoration-line: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; text-decoration-line: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Leaders’ Agenda</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> was endorsed. During the coming two years, the national leaders are going to deal with the most contentious issues, such as the Eurozone reform, migration crisis, internal security, trade and the future financing of the EU, according to Tusk. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Tusk’s added </span><a href="http://www.consilium.europa.eu/en/press/press-releases/2017/10/20-tusk-final-remarks-european-council/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">remarks on the Leaders’ Agenda</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> described the new work method as somewhat more direct and more informal than normally. Naturally, he expressed his satisfaction that the leaders are going to work united, hand-in-hand, with all the member states aboard. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">According to the </span><a href="http://www.consilium.europa.eu/en/meetings/european-council/2017/10/19-20/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">EUCO meeting page</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, the leaders met informally to endorse the Leaders’ Agenda, “a concrete work programme to guide EU’s action in the future”. This seems to explain why there is nothing in the European Council conclusions, but we have Tusk’s remarks (above), plus the downloadable </span><a href="http://www.consilium.europa.eu/en/policies/talinn-leaders-agenda/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Bratislava implementation report and Leaders’ agenda</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, as well as the description in the EUCO invitation letter, mentioned in the previous blog entry. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">In light of the video recordings of the joint </span><a href="https://tvnewsroom.consilium.europa.eu/event/european-council-art.-50-october-2017-181f7" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">press conference of Donald Tusk and Jean-Claude Juncker</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, Tusk repeated his written statement on the Leaders’ Agenda verbatim, but there is no indication that the journalists showed any interest. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The European Council has offered an initial response to the Future of Europe debate, with EU reform calls from the European Parliament, the European Commission, the French president Emmanuel Macron, think tanks, civil society organisations and individual EU citizens. </span></div>
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<span id="docs-internal-guid-36087a14-3dbf-f963-e018-0d0c5173fc1b"></span><br />
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Will anything come out to the EUCO timetable? - The proof of the pudding is in the eating. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Ralf Grahn </span></div>
Ralf Grahn http://www.blogger.com/profile/02156293782163802007noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6406430766424642773.post-47019786252068894062017-10-20T10:37:00.000+03:002017-10-20T10:37:07.139+03:00European Council: United we’re stuck?<div dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 3pt; margin-top: 3pt; padding: 3.75pt 0pt 3.75pt 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">After the 18 October 2017 </span><a href="http://www.consilium.europa.eu/en/press/press-releases/2017/10/18-tusk-remarks-tripartite-social-summit/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">tripartite social summit</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> the president Donald Tusk offered an optimistic view on the role of the European Council (EUCO) for the future of Europe in general and the deepening of the economic and monetary union (EMU) in particular: </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">From all quarters, there is now a new willingness to energise and enrich our work, draw on new ideas, maintain our unity and increase the dynamism of the EU. I will be calling on leaders to work together according to a strict timetable on the issues we have identified as the most pressing, from migration to EMU reform, where we are deadlocked and where the Gordian knot needs to be cut.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The day before, Tusk had presented his </span><a href="http://www.consilium.europa.eu/en/policies/talinn-leaders-agenda/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Leaders’ Agenda</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, based on how the heads of state had implemented the tasks they had set themselves in Bratislava last autumn and in their Rome declaration in March 2017. On twelve pages the document Implementing the Bratislava Roadmap ticks off various actions without analysis of effectiveness or efficiency, nor does it offer a critical framework for evaluating if the goals and actions are commensurate with the the challenges. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">On the basis of this implementation report, who would know that due to the member state governments the economic and monetary union (EMU), with a euro area population of 341 million and the second most important reserve currency in the world, still stands on clay feet: feeble, complicated, opaque and undemocratic? </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">As an indirect, but honest admission of the failings of the national governments, Tusk’s Leaders’ Agenda proposed to the European Council that </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">“we should further step up our efforts and re-energise our work, and, to this effect, set out clearly what we intend to deliver.”</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">According to the so called Leaders’ Agenda being discussed by the European Council right now, between now and June 2019, thirteen regular EUCO meetings or summits are supposed to deal with a number of subject headlines, a few EU reform issues for each meeting. For the deadlocked issues - quite a lot of them there are - decision notes are promised along the road. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The idea of a longer period of thematic European Council meetings was tried, as proposed by Herman Van Rompuy, the then president of EUCO. Even if I appreciate a systematic and structured approach to strategic issues, I really don’t know if the interests of EU citizens and businesses were better served by these thematic meetings (or the erratic crisis summitry which was the imprint of the Sarkozy era in France). </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Let us see if president Tusk’s optimistic description and principles in the </span><a href="http://www.consilium.europa.eu/en/press/press-releases/2017/10/17-tusk-invitation-letter-euco/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">EUCO invitation letter</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> are going to make the heads of state or government change their spots more easily than the leopard. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Is it going to be easier, or even possible to advance according to </span><a href="http://www.consilium.europa.eu/en/press/press-releases/2017/10/19-tusk-remarks-european-council/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Tusk’s unity mantra</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">; he keeps repeating: </span><span style="background-color: white; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">as long as I am here, I will be the guardian of European unity. It is not only my formal role as the President of the European Council, but - above all - it is my true belief. Because unity is, in fact, our most important strength.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">It is great that all member states of the European Union are invited to participate and to advance. But does Tusk mean that treaty reform and flexibility are excluded, leaving only enhanced or structured cooperation as a way forward for a group of frustrated member states? (Opaque, ineffective and anti-democratic intergovernmental cooperation is not exactly the future of Europe model I would want to see.)</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Tusk’s invitation letter and Leaders Agenda discuss issues as if EUCO were part of the solution. But what should be done if the union of heads of states or government (member state governments) is the cause of poor outcomes for EU citizens and businesses, powers at the European insufficient for real security and progress for Europeans, and if the European Council is an obstacle on the road to full democratic rights for the citizens of the union? </span></div>
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<span id="docs-internal-guid-36087a14-38af-b2c3-c051-bff93c4f9269"></span><br />
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Ralf Grahn</span></div>
Ralf Grahn http://www.blogger.com/profile/02156293782163802007noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6406430766424642773.post-88045590339651961202017-10-16T05:09:00.000+03:002017-10-16T05:09:40.463+03:00EMU progress references<div dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 3pt; margin-top: 3pt; padding: 3.75pt 0pt 3.75pt 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">After the blog entry </span><a href="https://grahnlaw.blogspot.fi/2017/10/reflection-paper-on-emu-future.html" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Reflection paper on EMU future</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> we take a look at what has happened regarding the priority ‘a deeper and fairer economic and monetary union’ during the first half of the European Commission’s term in office. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">In July 2017 the EPRS European Parliamentary Research Service published </span><a href="http://www.europarl.europa.eu/RegData/etudes/IDAN/2017/607287/EPRS_IDA(2017)607287_EN.pdf" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The European Commission at mid-term: State of play of President Juncker’s ten priorities</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> (35 pages; available also in French), where the text on priority 5, A deeper and fairer economic and monetary union, on pages 17-19, offers a clear summary of developments. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Since then, the European Parliament’s </span><a href="http://www.europarl.europa.eu/legislative-train/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Legislative Train Schedule</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> has been updated until the end of September 2017. It offers a general </span><a href="http://www.europarl.europa.eu/legislative-train/theme-deeper-and-fairer-economic-and-monetary-union/fiche" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">description of the EMU priority</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> and a table with access to </span><a href="http://www.europarl.europa.eu/legislative-train/theme-deeper-and-fairer-economic-and-monetary-union" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">individual EMU proposals</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, including demands for legislation by the Parliament, explanatory text and further references. There is also a print/pdf version for each priority.</span></div>
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<span id="docs-internal-guid-36087a14-22ee-8fc4-5fc1-1acd7192f965"></span><br />
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Ralf Grahn http://www.blogger.com/profile/02156293782163802007noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6406430766424642773.post-84905128474284917592017-10-15T10:26:00.001+03:002017-10-15T10:26:47.492+03:00Reflection paper on EMU future <div dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 3pt; margin-top: 3pt; padding: 3.75pt 0pt 3.75pt 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: white; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Cristo si è fermato a Eboli: </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Why do I remember Carlo Levi and the saying </span><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christ_Stopped_at_Eboli" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">“Christ stopped short of here, at Eboli”</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, when facing the conflict between a European level currency and national economic policies, as well as when following the many efforts to correct the design and to advance on the road to a robust, resilient and democratically legitimate euro area? In the blog post </span><a href="https://grahnlaw.blogspot.fi/2017/10/a-better-future-for-emu.html" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">A better future for the EMU?</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> we saw how the Five Presidents’ Report outlined the unfinished work and the road ahead. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Two years after Completing Europe’s Economic and Monetary Union - the Five Presidents’ Report - as part of the ongoing </span><a href="https://twitter.com/search?f=tweets&vertical=default&q=%23FutureOfEurope&src=typd" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">#FutureOfEurope</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> process, the European Commission published an update: </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The “printed” versions of the White Paper and the thematic reflection papers on the future of Europe (with annexes, but in pastel colours not designed for online reading) can also be downloaded through the Commission web page </span><a href="https://ec.europa.eu/commission/white-paper-future-europe-reflections-and-scenarios-eu27_en" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">White paper on the future of Europe and the way forward</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">In a nutshell the aim of the EMU reflection paper is (page 2): </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">This reflection paper – the third in the series – sets out possible ways forward for deepening and completing the Economic and Monetary Union up until 2025. It does so by setting out concrete steps that could be taken by the time of the European Parliament elections in 2019, as well as a series of options for the following years. Building on the Five Presidents’ Report, it is intended both to stimulate the debate on the EMU and to help reach a shared vision of its future design. </span></div>
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<div dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 3pt; margin-left: 36pt; margin-top: 3pt; padding: 3.75pt 0pt 3.75pt 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Our Economic and Monetary Union still falls short on three fronts. First, it is not yet able to reverse sufficiently the social and economic divergences between and within euro area members that emerged from the crisis. Second, these centrifugal forces come with a heavy political price. If they remain unaddressed, they are likely to weaken citizens’ support for the euro and create different perceptions of the challenges, rather than a consensus on a vision for the future. Finally, while the EMU is stronger, it is not yet fully shock-proof. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The euro is the currency for 341 million people in 19 Eurozone countries, as well as the second most used (reserve) currency around the world (page 5). It is hardly an exaggeration to say (page 6): </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The functioning and future of the Economic and Monetary Union (EMU) is a matter of interest for all European citizens</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> from whichever Member State they come from, including those who will join the euro area in the future. After the departure of the United Kingdom from the EU, the economies of euro area countries will represent 85% of the total GDP of the EU. This highlights the euro’s central role in the future EU at 27. Given its importance for the world, it is just as important to international partners and investors.</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Relatively speaking, this means that the countries outside the euro area are going to become even more marginal after Brexit. No wonder that the president of the European Commission Jean-Claude Juncker used his State of the Union 2017 address for a more united, stronger and more democratic union, </span><a href="http://europa.eu/rapid/press-release_SPEECH-17-3165_en.htm" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">SPEECH/17/3165</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, to try to entice the stragglers to adopt the euro:</span></div>
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<div dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 3pt; margin-left: 36pt; margin-top: 3pt; padding: 3.75pt 0pt 3.75pt 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">If we want the euro to unite rather than divide our continent, then it should be more than the currency of a select group of countries. </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The euro is meant to be the single currency of the European Union</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">as a whole</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">. All but two of our Member States are required and entitled to join the euro once they fulfil the conditions.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Member States that want to join the euro must be able to do so. This is why I am proposing to create a </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Euro-accession Instrument</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, offering technical and even financial assistance.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">It is interesting to note how negative people in some non-euro countries are according to the </span><a href="http://ec.europa.eu/commfrontoffice/publicopinion/index.cfm/Survey/getSurveyDetail/instruments/STANDARD/surveyKy/2142" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Standard Eurobarometer 87</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, when 73% of the people in the Eurozone support the euro currency (pages 33-34). In EU27 outside the euro area, the proportions of people against the common currency were: </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Denmark 66% (the only country with an opt-out when the UK has left) </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The monetary union still searching for an economic union is far from a real democracy, where the people vote in (an out) the government, but at least the reflection paper glances in this direction (page 19): </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Most notably, the involvement of the European Parliament and the democratic accountability for the decisions taken for or on behalf of the euro area should be enhanced.</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">... the common interest of the euro area is still not sufficiently represented in public debate and decision-making</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">. Without a common understanding of the challenges or vision of the future, the euro area will struggle to overcome the legacies of the crisis and will not make progress on the tools it needs to address common challenges. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Four principles should guide the way forward:</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Jobs, growth, social fairness, economic convergence and financial stability</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> should be the main objectives of our Economic and Monetary Union. The EMU is not an end in itself. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Responsibility and solidarity, risk reduction and risk-sharing go hand-in-hand</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">. Greater incentives for risk reduction and conditional support should go together with designing risk-sharing measures, especially in the financial sector, and the conduct of structural reforms. </span></div>
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<li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; margin-left: 36pt; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><div dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt; padding: 3.75pt 0pt 3.75pt 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The EMU and its completion must remain open to all EU Member States.</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> The integrity of the single market must be preserved. This is also key for a well-functioning single currency. According to the Treaty, except for Denmark and the United Kingdom, all EU Member States are expected eventually to join the euro. </span></div>
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<li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; margin-left: 36pt; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><div dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 3pt; margin-top: 0pt; padding: 3.75pt 0pt 3.75pt 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The decision-making process needs to become more transparent and democratic accountability needs to be ensured.</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> Citizens expect to know how and by whom decisions are made and how they impact on their lives.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Regarding the last bullet point, in a real democracy the voters would actually do more, namely set the course of government. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">On page 34 the reflection paper sketches two phases (further elaborated in annex 1), with the first one now reaching to the end of 2019: </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The first phase runs to the end of 2019</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">. This time should be used for completing the Banking Union and Capital Markets Union with those elements that are already on the table today. This includes the financial backstop to the Single Resolution Fund, measures to reduce risks in the financial sector further, and the European Deposit Insurance Scheme. A number of new instruments, such as better economic and social convergence standards, could also be tested. The democratic accountability and effectiveness of the EMU architecture would be gradually improved. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The second phase, over 2020-25, would be for completing the EMU architecture</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">. It would include more far-reaching measures to complement the Financial Union, possibly with a European safe asset and a change in the regulatory treatment of sovereign bonds. Additionally, a fiscal stabilisation function could be envisaged. As a result, the institutional architecture could be changed more substantially.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Please, act on the words of the European Commission, especially if you want a capable and democratic union for yourself and the euro: </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">This reflection paper is an invitation for everyone to express their views on the future of our Economic and Monetary Union, as part of the broader debate on the future of Europe.</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> - Remember the Twitter hashtag </span><a href="https://twitter.com/search?f=tweets&vertical=default&q=%23deepeningEMU&src=typd" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">#deepeningEMU</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> besides the general #FutureOfEurope linked to above. </span></div>
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<span id="docs-internal-guid-36087a14-1edb-fe79-fb53-49ccc6a0f184"></span><br />
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Ralf Grahn</span></div>
Ralf Grahn http://www.blogger.com/profile/02156293782163802007noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6406430766424642773.post-69798502264786560362017-10-15T05:45:00.000+03:002017-10-15T05:45:13.359+03:00A better future for the EMU?<div dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 3pt; margin-top: 3pt; padding: 3.75pt 0pt 3.75pt 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The fifth among the ten priorities in the </span><a href="https://ec.europa.eu/commission/sites/beta-political/files/juncker-political-guidelines-speech_en.pdf" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">political guidelines for the Juncker Commission</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> is a deeper and fairer economic and monetary union (EMU). The blog post </span><a href="http://grahnlaw.blogspot.fi/2017/10/future-of-europe-introducing-deepening.html" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Future of Europe: introducing deepening EMU</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> mentioned the Five Presidents’ Report, officially </span><a href="https://ec.europa.eu/commission/sites/beta-political/files/5-presidents-report_en.pdf" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Completing Europe’s Economic and Monetary Union</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, from June 2015. On pages 4-5 the presidents set out the basic elements: </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Progress must happen on four fronts: first, towards a </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">genuine Economic Union</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> that ensures each economy has the structural features to prosper within the Monetary Union. Second, towards a </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Financial Union</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> that guarantees the integrity of our currency across the Monetary Union and increases risk-sharing with the private sector. This means completing the Banking Union and accelerating the Capital Markets Union. Third, towards a </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Fiscal Union</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> that delivers both fiscal sustainability and fiscal stabilisation. And finally, towards a </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Political Union</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> that provides the foundation for all of the above through genuine democratic accountability, legitimacy and institutional strengthening. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Stage 1 (1 July 2015 - 30 June 2017)</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">: In this first stage </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">(‘deepening by doing’)</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, the EU institutions and euro area Member States would build on existing instruments and make the best possible use of the existing Treaties. In a nutshell, this entails boosting competitiveness and structural convergence, completing the Financial Union, achieving and maintaining responsible fiscal policies at national and euro area level, and enhancing democratic accountability. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Stage 2:</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> In this second stage </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">(‘completing EMU’)</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, concrete measures of a more far-reaching nature would be agreed to complete EMU’s economic and institutional architecture. Specifically, during this second stage, the convergence process would be made more binding through a set of commonly agreed benchmarks for convergence that could be given a legal nature. Significant progress towards these standards – and continued adherence to them once they are reached – would be among the conditions for each euro area Member State to participate in a shock absorption mechanism for the euro area during this second stage. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Final Stage (at the latest by 2025):</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> At the end of Stage 2, and once all the steps are fully in place, a deep and genuine EMU would provide a stable and prosperous place for all citizens of the EU Member States that share the single currency, attractive for other EU Member States to join if they are ready to do so. </span></div>
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<span id="docs-internal-guid-36087a14-1de7-938c-e68d-8d4b43f1ea43"></span><br />
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Ralf Grahn</span></div>
Ralf Grahn http://www.blogger.com/profile/02156293782163802007noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6406430766424642773.post-54397534780213880442017-10-14T09:39:00.000+03:002017-10-14T09:39:25.872+03:00Future of Europe: introducing deepening EMU<div dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 3pt; margin-top: 3pt; padding: 3.75pt 0pt 3.75pt 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">In the blog entry </span><a href="http://grahnlaw.blogspot.fi/2017/10/future-of-europe-to-meet-european.html" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Future of Europe to meet European Council</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> about the winds of change from the European Parliament, the European Commission and president Emmanuel Macron, we saw the: </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">White Paper on the Future of Europe: Reflections and scenarios for the EU27 by 2025; Brussels, 1.3.2017 </span><a href="http://eur-lex.europa.eu/resource.html?uri=cellar:b739b382-ff4f-11e6-8a35-01aa75ed71a1.0001.02/DOC_1&format=PDF" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">COM(2017) 2025 final</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Five President’s Report </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Published in June 2015, the 23-page Five President’s Report, officially </span><a href="https://ec.europa.eu/commission/sites/beta-political/files/5-presidents-report_en.pdf" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Completing Europe’s Economic and Monetary Union</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, was authored by the president of the European Commission Jean-Claude Juncker “in close cooperation with” the president of the European Council and the euro summit Donald Tusk, the president of the Eurogroup Jeroen Dijsselbloem, the president of the European Central Bank Mario Draghi and the president of the European Parliament Martin Schulz. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Reflection paper on the deepening of the economic and monetary union; Brussels, 31.5.2017 </span><a href="http://eur-lex.europa.eu/resource.html?uri=cellar:7a4a43ec-46bd-11e7-aea8-01aa75ed71a1.0023.02/DOC_1&format=PDF" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">COM(2017) 291 final</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> (34 pages) </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Alternatively, access the White Paper and the reflection papers through the Commission web page </span><a href="https://ec.europa.eu/commission/white-paper-future-europe-reflections-and-scenarios-eu27_en" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">White paper on the future of Europe and the way forward</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">In Finnish I looked at the deepening of the economic and monetary union (EMU) and the Five Presidents’ Report in the blog post </span><a href="http://eurooppaoikeus.blogspot.fi/2017/10/euroopan-tulevaisuus-talous-ja.html" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Euroopan tulevaisuus: talous- ja rahaliiton syventäminen</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> and at the </span><a href="http://eurooppaoikeus.blogspot.fi/2017/10/pohdinta-asiakirja-talous-ja-rahaliiton.html" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">EMU reflection paper in the entry Pohdinta-asiakirja talous- ja rahaliiton syventämiseksi</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The Swedish blog post </span><a href="http://grahnblawg.blogspot.fi/2017/10/norden-i-eu-utkanten.html" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Norden i EU-utkanten?</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> described how scattered the Nordic countries are with regard to the defence alliance NATO and the European Union. Iceland and Norway remain outside the EU, and even the EU members Denmark and Sweden continue on the periphery, showing no signs of adopting the euro, while leaving Finland the sole Nordic participant in the euro area, the core group of 19 countries with a total population of 341 million. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">In </span><a href="http://grahnblawg.blogspot.fi/2017/10/vitboken-om-eus-framtid-i-norden.html" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Vitboken om EU:s framtid i Norden</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> I tried to find signs of activity regarding the future of Europe, by the governments or parliaments of the Nordic EU members Denmark, Finland and Sweden, concerning the White Paper from the European Commission. (The article </span><a href="http://grahnblawg.blogspot.fi/2017/10/diskussionsunderlaget-om-eus-sociala.html" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Diskussionsunderlaget om EU:s sociala dimension i Norden</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> moved from the general level to explore the reception of the reflection paper on the social dimension by these three countries. There are also a number of earlier blog posts in Finnish, Swedish or English about the social market economy, the European social pillar and the EU social dimension. Most of them can be found through the entry </span><a href="http://grahnlaw.blogspot.fi/2017/10/future-of-europe-social-dimension.html" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Future of Europe: social dimension</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">.) </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">(The English entries </span><a href="http://grahnlaw.blogspot.fi/2017/10/a-symbolic-opportunity-for-european.html" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">A symbolic opportunity for the European Council</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> and </span><a href="http://grahnlaw.blogspot.fi/2017/10/future-of-europe-to-meet-european.html" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Future of Europe to meet European Council</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> visited the summit level and general EU reform issues in an attempt to lay the groundwork for more specific questions, such as the individual reflection papers, with the creation of a credible EMU next in turn.) </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Twitter reflects at least parts of the multilingual pan-European public debate about the future of the European Union under the hashtag </span><a href="https://twitter.com/search?f=tweets&vertical=default&q=%23FutureOfEurope&src=typd" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">#FutureOfEurope</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, while the Commission web page for the priority </span><a href="https://ec.europa.eu/commission/priorities/deeper-and-fairer-economic-and-monetary-union_en" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">A deeper and fairer economic and monetary union</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> offers a more specific tag </span><a href="https://twitter.com/search?f=tweets&vertical=default&q=%23deepeningEMU&src=typd" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">#deepeningEMU</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, covering the policy areas: economic union, financial union, fiscal union, political union (and the European Pillar of Social Rights). </span></div>
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<span id="docs-internal-guid-36087a14-1995-9a5f-2d31-f941be96cb4a"></span><br />
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Ralf Grahn</span></div>
Ralf Grahn http://www.blogger.com/profile/02156293782163802007noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6406430766424642773.post-35948410025948184752017-10-13T10:05:00.001+03:002017-10-13T10:05:27.455+03:00Future of Europe to meet European Council <div dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 3pt; margin-top: 3pt; padding: 3.75pt 0pt 3.75pt 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">We are approaching the moment of truth. Let us wait for the “Leaders’ Agenda” president Donald Tusk is going to present to the European Council (EUCO), before we definitively state that the EU27 heads of state or government have become impetus takers, instead of impetus providers, as they imagined in Article 15(1) TEU. But the years since the Lisbon Treaty entered into force have revealed the limitations of an intergovernmental EU, while the world has become even more challenging.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">European Parliament </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">In the aftermath of the UK’s Brexit referendum, the European Parliament adopted a 28 June 2016 resolution on the need for a better European Union, based on using the Lisbon Treaty to the full and completed by a revision of the Treaties. On 16 February 2017 the Parliament elaborated on the theme through three resolutions: one on utilising the flexibilities of the Lisbon Treaty, a second on treaty reform proper, and a third one about creating a budgetary capacity for the euro area (</span><a href="http://www.europarl.europa.eu/RegData/etudes/ATAG/2017/607261/EPRS_ATA(2017)607261_EN.pdf" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">EPRS note</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">).</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The one plus three European Parliament resolutions are </span><a href="http://www.europarl.europa.eu/sides/getDoc.do?pubRef=-//EP//NONSGML+TA+P8-TA-2016-0294+0+DOC+PDF+V0//EN" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">P8_TA(2016)0294</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, followed by </span><a href="http://www.europarl.europa.eu/sides/getDoc.do?pubRef=-//EP//NONSGML+TA+P8-TA-2017-0049+0+DOC+PDF+V0//EN" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">P8_TA(2017)0049</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, </span><a href="http://www.europarl.europa.eu/sides/getDoc.do?pubRef=-//EP//NONSGML+TA+P8-TA-2017-0048+0+DOC+PDF+V0//EN" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">P8_TA(2017)0048</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> and </span><a href="http://www.europarl.europa.eu/sides/getDoc.do?pubRef=-//EP//NONSGML+TA+P8-TA-2017-0050+0+DOC+PDF+V0//EN" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">P8_TA(2017)0050</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The president of the European Commission Jean-Claude Juncker used his State of the Union 2017 (SOTEU) address </span><a href="http://europa.eu/rapid/press-release_SPEECH-17-3165_en.htm" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">SPEECH/17/3165</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> to outline proposals for the near future (draft Commission Work Programme for 2018), as well as more long-term initiatives to make the EU more capable, by using the flexibilities of the EU treaties. (The </span><a href="https://ec.europa.eu/commission/state-union-2017_en" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">State of the Union 2017 web page</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> offers a convenient brochure and other references for those interested.) </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Well before the SOTEU speech, starting 1 March 2017, the Juncker Commission launched a public debate on the future of Europe. First came the White Paper: </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">White Paper on the Future of Europe: Reflections and scenarios for the EU27 by 2025; Brussels, 1.3.2017 </span><a href="http://eur-lex.europa.eu/resource.html?uri=cellar:b739b382-ff4f-11e6-8a35-01aa75ed71a1.0001.02/DOC_1&format=PDF" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">COM(2017) 2025 final</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The White Paper contained analysis and five imaginary scenarios based on conflicting ambitions for the future of the European project. The White Paper promised to deliver further food for thought and debate (page 18): </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The European Commission will contribute to that discussion in the months ahead with a series of reflection papers on the following topics: </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">• developing the social dimension of Europe; </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">• deepening the Economic and Monetary Union, on the basis of the Five Presidents' Report of June 2015; </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Known as Reflection papers and stimulating public discussion beyond the </span><a href="http://www.consilium.europa.eu/en/press/press-releases/2017/03/25-rome-declaration/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Rome Declaration</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> from the EU27 leaders, the five documents are: </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Because I have used references to the austere but readable Eur-Lex versions, I owe a mention to those who prefer the pastel coloured “printed” versions of the Commission’s White Paper and Reflection papers (including the annexes) that they can be found through the web page </span><a href="https://ec.europa.eu/commission/white-paper-future-europe-reflections-and-scenarios-eu27_en" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">White paper on the future of Europe and the way forward</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Twitter reflects at least parts of the multilingual pan-European public debate under the hashtag </span><a href="https://twitter.com/search?f=tweets&vertical=default&q=%23FutureOfEurope&src=typd" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">#FutureOfEurope</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">On 26 September 2017 the </span><a href="http://www.elysee.fr/declarations/article/initiative-pour-l-europe-discours-d-emmanuel-macron-pour-une-europe-souveraine-unie-democratique/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Sorbonne speech</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> of the president of France Emmanuel Macron was an eloquent call for European sovereignty in a challenging, even dangerous world. The president sprinkled his speech with examples of reforms to make the European Union more capable and resilient. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">President Macron has told the public that France is going to </span><a href="http://www.oe24.at/welt/Frankreich-will-offizielle-Anerkennung-der-Europaflagge/303432530" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">recognise the symbols of the European Union</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> at the EUCO meeting next week. This probably means a notification to </span><a href="https://www.ouest-france.fr/politique/emmanuel-macron/emmanuel-macron-va-reconnaitre-le-drapeau-europeen-au-nom-de-la-france-5303012" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">join the declaration 52</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> by 16 EU member states annexed to the treaties. This would be an opportunity for ten remaining EU27 to follow suit. You find the declaration on page 355 of the </span><a href="http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=OJ:C:2016:202:FULL&from=EN" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">consolidated EU Treaties</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> (2016). </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">New interventions and discussion regardings Macron’s EU reform ideas may appear under the Twitter hashtag </span><a href="https://twitter.com/search?f=tweets&vertical=default&q=%23InitiativeEurope&src=typd" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">#InitiativeEurope</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The consultative </span><a href="http://www.eesc.europa.eu/en/policies/in-focus/future-europe" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">European Economic and Social Committee</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> (EESC) has taken initial steps in the discussion about the future of Europe, by adopting a preliminary resolution on 5 July 2017 and by publishing a </span><a href="http://www.eesc.europa.eu/sites/default/files/resources/docs/white-paper-on-the-future-of-europe---compilation---en.pdf" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">compilation of national consultations</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> of organized civil society on the White Paper on the Future of Europe (216 pages). The EESC is preparing an opinion. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">According to president Karl-Heinz Lambertz, the consultative European Committee of the Regions (CoR) is preparing an </span><a href="http://cor.europa.eu/en/about/president/Documents/The%20State%20of%20the%20European%20Union%20-%20the%20view%20of%20Regions%20and%20Cities/Seeing%20Europe%20from%20the%20local%20perspective-EN.pdf" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">opinion on the future of Europe</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> to be delivered next year (page 8). </span></div>
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<span id="docs-internal-guid-36087a14-1484-e98f-fbb6-b3376d9a05c3"></span><br />
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Ralf Grahn</span></div>
Ralf Grahn http://www.blogger.com/profile/02156293782163802007noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6406430766424642773.post-33363280019136612212017-10-13T08:51:00.000+03:002017-10-13T08:51:38.518+03:00A symbolic opportunity for the European Council <div dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 3pt; margin-top: 3pt; padding: 3.75pt 0pt 3.75pt 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The European Council (EUCO) meets 19 and 20 October 2017 to agree on how to respond to the reform impulses for the future of Europe. The EUCO president Donald Tusk is consulting with the EU27 heads of state or government to present a “Leaders’ Agenda”. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">President Macron has told the public that France is going to </span><a href="http://www.oe24.at/welt/Frankreich-will-offizielle-Anerkennung-der-Europaflagge/303432530" style="text-decoration-line: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; text-decoration-line: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">recognise the symbols of the European Union</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, including the </span><a href="https://www.ouest-france.fr/politique/emmanuel-macron/emmanuel-macron-va-reconnaitre-le-drapeau-europeen-au-nom-de-la-france-5303012" style="text-decoration-line: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; text-decoration-line: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">European flag</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> with twelve stars, at the EUCO meeting next week. This probably means a notification to join the declaration 52 by 16 EU member states annexed to the treaties (page 355): </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Belgium, Bulgaria, Germany, Greece, Spain, Italy, Cyprus, Lithuania, Luxemburg, Hungary, Malta, Austria, Portugal, Romania, Slovenia and the Slovak Republic declare that the flag with a circle of twelve golden stars on a blue background, the anthem based on the "Ode to Joy" from the Ninth Symphony by Ludwig van Beethoven, the motto "United in diversity", the euro as the currency of the European Union and Europe Day on 9 May will for them continue as symbols to express the sense of community of the people in the European Union and their allegiance to it.</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">This offers an opportunity for ten remaining EU27 members to show engagement for the European Union they have designed, putting themselves at the centre, namely: Croatia, Czechia, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Ireland, Latvia, the Netherlands, Poland and Sweden. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Ralf Grahn</span></div>
Ralf Grahn http://www.blogger.com/profile/02156293782163802007noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6406430766424642773.post-28208795834145087812017-10-08T09:17:00.000+03:002017-10-08T09:17:17.602+03:00Future of Europe: social dimension<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">In the European Commission’s so called (so called, because it did not contain concrete proposals) White Paper on the Future of Europe: Reflections and scenarios for the EU27 by 2025; Brussels, 1.3.2017 </span><a href="http://eur-lex.europa.eu/resource.html?uri=cellar:b739b382-ff4f-11e6-8a35-01aa75ed71a1.0001.02/DOC_1&format=PDF" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">COM(2017) 2025 final</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, the proto-executive promised to contribute to the discussion by publishing five reflection papers: </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">developing the social dimension of Europe; </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">deepening the Economic and Monetary Union, on the basis of the Five Presidents' Report of June 2015; </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">harnessing globalisation; </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">the future of Europe’s defence; </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">the future of EU finances. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">You can follow the discussion or participate under the Twitter hashtag </span><a href="https://twitter.com/search?f=tweets&vertical=default&q=%23futureofeurope&src=fols" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">#FutureOfEurope</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Social dimension: official documents</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">We turn to the first Reflection paper in the series, accompanied by two short annexes, all available in 23 official EU languages: </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Reflection paper on the social dimension of Europe; Brussels, 26.4.2017 </span><a href="http://eur-lex.europa.eu/resource.html?uri=cellar:cea6403b-2b4c-11e7-9412-01aa75ed71a1.0017.02/DOC_1&format=PDF" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">COM(2017) 206 final</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> (33 pages) </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Annex to the Reflection paper; Brussels, 26.4.2017 </span><a href="http://eur-lex.europa.eu/resource.html?uri=cellar:cea6403b-2b4c-11e7-9412-01aa75ed71a1.0017.02/DOC_2&format=PDF" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">COM(2017) 206 final ANNEX 1</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> (2 pages) </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Annex to the Reflection paper; Brussels, 26.4.2017 </span><a href="http://eur-lex.europa.eu/resource.html?uri=cellar:cea6403b-2b4c-11e7-9412-01aa75ed71a1.0017.02/DOC_3&format=PDF" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">COM(2017) 206 final ANNEX 2</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> (2 pages) </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Social Europe reading </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">In February and March, before the Reflection paper was published, I wrote a number of blog posts related to the theme and compiled in the entry </span><a href="http://grahnlaw.blogspot.fi/2017/03/eu-social-market-economy-and-social.html" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">EU social market economy and social pillar</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">A few days ago I posted two blog articles in Finnish, </span><a href="http://eurooppaoikeus.blogspot.fi/2017/10/pohdinta-asiakirja-euroopan.html" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Pohdinta-asiakirja Euroopan sosiaalisesta ulottuvuudesta</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> and </span><a href="http://eurooppaoikeus.blogspot.fi/2017/10/euroopan-sosiaalisten-oikeuksien.html" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Euroopan sosiaalisten oikeuksien pilarin perustaminen</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, followed by two Swedish entries, </span><a href="http://grahnblawg.blogspot.fi/2017/10/europeisk-pelare-for-sociala-rattigheter.html" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Europeisk pelare för sociala rättigheter</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> and </span><a href="http://grahnblawg.blogspot.fi/2017/10/proklamation-av-europeiska-pelaren-for.html" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Proklamation av europeiska pelaren för sociala rättigheter</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">My latest posts, in English, have presented the Social Pillar package, also launched on 26 April 2017: </span><a href="https://grahnlaw.blogspot.fi/2017/10/consultation-report-on-european-pillar.html" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Consultation report on European Pillar of Social Rights</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> and </span><a href="https://grahnlaw.blogspot.fi/2017/10/establishing-european-pillar-of-social.html" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Establishing a European Pillar of Social Rights</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> plus </span><a href="https://grahnlaw.blogspot.fi/2017/10/companion-to-european-pillar-of-social.html" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Companion to European Pillar of Social Rights</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Legal context </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">There is a short overview of UN, ILO and European international conventions in the Commission staff working document, which accompanied the consultation communication: The EU social acquis </span><a href="http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=CELEX:52016SC0050&from=EN" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">SWD(2016) 50</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, page 17. Usually they bind the EU member states, mostly without the union as a party to the conventions. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Here, I am just going to offer a reminder of the main EU provisions. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">One of the main objectives of the European Union is </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">“a highly competitive social market economy, aiming at full employment and social progress”</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, found in Article 3(3) TEU. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Among the horizontal provisions (having general application), we have the social clause Article 9 TFEU, flanked by Article 8 on gender equality and Article 10 on combatting discrimination. Article 18 TFEU prohibits discrimination on grounds of nationality. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Title X Social Policy (Articles 151-161 TFEU) spells out the more operational EU powers and their considerable limitations. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union compiles social rights and principles, applicable to the EU, but to the member states only when they implement union law. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Political context </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">We should bear in mind the United Nations’ 2015 </span><a href="http://www.un.org/sustainabledevelopment/sustainable-development-goals/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">sustainable development goals</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> (SDGs) and the </span><a href="http://www.un.org/ga/search/view_doc.asp?symbol=A/RES/70/1&Lang=E" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">SDG agenda</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> until 2030, not forgetting the mirror effect of the </span><a href="https://ec.europa.eu/europeaid/sites/devco/files/european-consensus-on-development-final-20170626_en.pdf" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">New European Consensus on Development</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Under the fifth of the Juncker Commission’s ten priorities, </span><a href="https://ec.europa.eu/commission/priorities/deeper-and-fairer-economic-and-monetary-union_en" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">A deeper and fairer economic and monetary union</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> - </span><a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/deepeningemu?f=tweets&vertical=default" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">#deepeningEMU</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> - we find the policy area a </span><a href="https://ec.europa.eu/commission/priorities/deeper-and-fairer-economic-and-monetary-union/european-pillar-social-rights_en" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">European Pillar of Social Rights</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> - </span><a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/socialrights?f=tweets&vertical=default&src=hash" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">#SocialRights</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> on Twitter. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The approaching </span><a href="https://www.socialsummit17.se/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Social Summit for Fair Jobs and Growth</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> on 17 November 2017 - </span><a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/socialsummit17?f=tweets&vertical=default&src=hash" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">#SocialSummit17</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> on Twitter - and the ongoing discussion about the future of the European project keep both short and long term issues of social policy at the forefront. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">A </span><a href="http://www.consilium.europa.eu/en/meetings/european-council/2017/10/18/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Tripartite Social Summit</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> with the social partners is scheduled for 18 October, and the </span><a href="http://www.consilium.europa.eu/en/meetings/european-council/2017/10/19-20/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">European Council convenes 19-20 October 2017</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">. After the Tallinn Digital Summit the EUCO president Donald Tusk promised to consult with all the member states and to present a </span><a href="http://www.consilium.europa.eu/en/press/press-releases/2017/09/29-tusk-press-conference-tallinn/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">“Leaders Agenda 2017/18”</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> regarding the future of Europe issues. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Social dimension reflection </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The really short route is the Commission </span><a href="https://ec.europa.eu/commission/publications/reflection-paper-social-dimension-europe_en" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">web page on the social dimension</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, which sketches three scenarios: only free movement (cross-border issues), willing countries (euro area) doing more, or the whole EU27 doing more together. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The press release </span><a href="http://europa.eu/rapid/press-release_IP-17-1008_en.htm" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">IP/17/1008</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> offers a brief introduction to the reflection on the social dimension of the European Union by 2025. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The Commission hopes that the debate would </span><span style="background-color: white; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">clarify two questions: What challenges should our countries tackle together? What added value can EU level instruments provide?</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Back to the official Reflection paper on the social dimension of Europe </span><a href="http://eur-lex.europa.eu/resource.html?uri=cellar:cea6403b-2b4c-11e7-9412-01aa75ed71a1.0017.02/DOC_1&format=PDF" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">COM(2017) 206</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, which does not take long to refer to the 25 March 2017 </span><a href="http://www.consilium.europa.eu/en/press/press-releases/2017/03/25-rome-declaration/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Rome declaration</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> by the leaders of 27 of the EU member states. Social Europe is sandwiched in as paragraph 3 among the four aims they called the Rome Agenda: a safe and secure Europe, a prosperous and sustainable Europe, a social Europe, and a stronger Europe on the global scene: </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">A social Europe: a Union which, based on sustainable growth, promotes economic and social progress as well as cohesion and convergence, while upholding the integrity of the internal market; a Union taking into account the diversity of national systems and the key role of social partners; a Union which promotes equality between women and men as well as rights and equal opportunities for all; a Union which fights unemployment, discrimination, social exclusion and poverty; a Union where young people receive the best education and training and can study and find jobs across the continent; a Union which preserves our cultural heritage and promotes cultural diversity.</span><span style="background-color: white; color: #3f4a52; font-family: Arial; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Despite the differences between the EU member states, the global and European trends and challenges described are worth reading. At a minimum, the profound - even disruptive - changes should stimulate the interest of the EU countries to learn from each other, pointing to the need for the union to monitor and to coordinate policies.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Besides the human aspects, the need for (upward) euro area convergence and resilience weigh in favour of further steps at the European level. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">It is good to keep in mind that only 0.3% of total public social spending takes place through the EU budget, and the tools of the union are limited in the areas of legislation, funding, guidance and cooperation (pages 24-25). </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The discussion continues about the future options for social Europe: limiting the social dimension to free movement, avant-garde groups doing more in the social field, or the EU27 deepening the social dimension together (from page 26). A healthy reminder of the stakes: </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The political option chosen will have implications beyond the social field, stretching to the competitiveness of Europe, its capacity to harness and shape globalisation, the stability of the Economic and Monetary Union, cohesion within the Union and solidarity between its people. Any political option should also be seen in the light of the identified challenges, asking where the EU level can provide an added value. As each of the three options suggests a number of concrete proposals for action, also the choice among the possible instruments must be made in light of the challenges. Most of the examples given for the second option are also valid for the third and vice versa.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Dear reader, I leave you with the two questions about the EU’s social dimension mentioned earlier: </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">What challenges should our countries tackle together?</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">What added value can EU level instruments provide in this struggle?</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Ralf Grahn</span></div>
Ralf Grahn http://www.blogger.com/profile/02156293782163802007noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6406430766424642773.post-61369126695718762282017-10-07T07:12:00.001+03:002017-10-07T07:12:46.123+03:00Companion to European Pillar of Social Rights<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Under the fifth of the Juncker Commission’s ten priorities, </span><a href="https://ec.europa.eu/commission/priorities/deeper-and-fairer-economic-and-monetary-union_en" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">A deeper and fairer economic and monetary union</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> - </span><a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/deepeningemu?f=tweets&vertical=default" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">#deepeningEMU</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> - we find the policy area a </span><a href="https://ec.europa.eu/commission/priorities/deeper-and-fairer-economic-and-monetary-union/european-pillar-social-rights_en" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">European Pillar of Social Rights</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> - </span><a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/socialrights?f=tweets&vertical=default&src=hash" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">#SocialRights</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> on Twitter. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">With the </span><a href="https://www.socialsummit17.se/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Social Summit for Fair Jobs and Growth</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> on 17 November 2017 approaching, </span><a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/socialsummit17?f=tweets&vertical=default&src=hash" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">#SocialSummit17</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> on Twitter, we already looked at the </span><a href="https://grahnlaw.blogspot.fi/2017/10/consultation-report-on-european-pillar.html" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Consultation Report on European Pillar of Social Rights </span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">and </span><a href="https://grahnlaw.blogspot.fi/2017/10/establishing-european-pillar-of-social.html" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Establishing a European Pillar of Social Rights</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, where I promised to look at the accompanying detailed Commission staff working document. </span></div>
<b id="docs-internal-guid-5579a67b-f502-bdac-0af7-4582344a3d5e" style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b><br />
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The companion SWD(2017) 201 </span></div>
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<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Although I wondered why the Commission made so little hay out of the guiding principles, namely the social aims of Article 3(3) TEU and Article 9 TFEU, the communication </span><a href="http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=CELEX:52017DC0250&qid=1507135009086&from=EN" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">COM(2017) 250</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> is a lucid summary of the Social Pillar. However, for detail people with a professional interest can turn to the accompanying staff working document </span><a href="http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=CELEX:52017SC0201&qid=1507135402632&from=EN" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">SWD(2017) 201</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Even if we have to limit our comments to a few remarks, in this blog post we are going to look at the detailed staff working document, but let us begin by recalling the almost full coordinates of the official document: </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">SWD accompanying the communication Establishing a European Pillar of Social Rights; Brussels, 26.4.2017 </span><a href="http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=CELEX:52017SC0201&qid=1507135402632&from=EN" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">SWD(2017) 201 final</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> (77 pages) </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Twenty principles </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The SWD(2017) 201 is the companion publication to the communication COM(2017) 250, best read in parallel as a detailed commentary, or used as a reference tool for each of the </span><a href="https://ec.europa.eu/commission/priorities/deeper-and-fairer-economic-and-monetary-union/european-pillar-social-rights/european-pillar-social-rights-20-principles_en" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">twenty principles</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> and rights, which constitute the core of the Social Pillar (page 2):</span></div>
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<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 36pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">This document follows the structure of the three chapters of the European Pillar of Social Rights detailing the contents of each principle or right. Each one of these is presented in three main sections, covering the existing social acquis, an explanation of its content and scope, and suggestions with regard to its implementation.</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Here are the principles and rights, and at the same time the main structure of the staff working document, with a few pages dedicated to each principle in a systematic manner: </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Chapter I Equal opportunities and access to the labour market </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Education, training and life-long learning </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Gender equality </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Equal opportunities </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Active support to employment </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Chapter II Fair working conditions </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">5. Secure and adaptable employment </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">6. Wages </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">7. Information about employment conditions and protection in case of dismissals </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">8. Social dialogue and involvement of workers </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">9. Work-life balance </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">10. Healthy, safe and well-adapted work environment and data protection </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Chapter III Social protection and inclusion </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">11. Childcare and support to children </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">12. Social protection </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">13. Unemployment benefits </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">14. Minimum income </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">15. Old age income and pensions </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">16. Health care </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">17. Inclusion of people with disabilities </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">18. Long-term care </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">19. Housing and assistance for the homeless </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">20. Access to essential services </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Comment </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">In this document the European Commission provides a useful full house of detailed provisions of the Charter of Fundamental Rights and the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU), acts and recommendations, plus recent and promised initiatives at an operational level. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Where new forms of employment, including self-employment, or groups outside the scope of current provisions appear, the Commission wants to upgrade the EU </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">acquis</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">. The principles also indicate what national authorities and social partners can do, in processes where the member states can learn from each other. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The systematic character of the staff working document invites use as a reference by people in (national) administrations or teaching EU social policy. </span></div>
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<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">However, as in the other Social Pillar documents, the Commission hardly mentions the strategic level main guiding aims and principles - the North Star of the EU Treaties - namely Article 3(3) TEU (EU objectives) and Article 9 TFEU (horizontal social clause).</span></div>
<b style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b><br />
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Social Pillar progress </span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Readers interested in Social Pillar progress can turn to the Commission staff working document on the Social Scoreboard </span><a href="http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=CELEX:52017SC0200&qid=1507346428771&from=EN" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">SWD(2017) 200</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> monitoring tool, benchmarking performances of EU member states in twelve areas of societal progress. The </span><a href="https://composite-indicators.jrc.ec.europa.eu/social-scoreboard/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Social Scoreboard web page</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> offers a first harvest of findings. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">An update on concrete proposals is offered by the flyer </span><a href="https://ec.europa.eu/commission/sites/beta-political/files/social_dimension_of_europe_overview_of_initiatives_en.pdf" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Social dimension of Europe - overview of initiatives</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, which lists proposals from November 2014 to October 2017, offering links and current status. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Ralf Grahn</span></div>
Ralf Grahn http://www.blogger.com/profile/02156293782163802007noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6406430766424642773.post-49568370521336067312017-10-06T06:07:00.000+03:002017-10-06T06:07:47.024+03:00Establishing a European Pillar of Social Rights <div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Under the fifth priority of the European Commission, to deepen the economic and monetary union (EMU) - </span><a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/deepeningemu?f=tweets&vertical=default" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">#deepeningEMU</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> on Twitter - it is creating a social pillar </span><a href="https://twitter.com/search?f=tweets&vertical=default&q=%23SocialRights&src=typd" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">#SocialRights</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, ahead of the </span><a href="https://www.socialsummit17.se/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Social Summit for Fair Jobs and Growth</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span><a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/socialsummit17?f=tweets&vertical=default&src=hash" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">#SocialSummit17</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> in Gothenburg 17 November 2017. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Social Pillar documents </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">In April the European Commission published a communication, accompanied by two staff working documents in 23 official EU languages: </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Establishing a European Pillar of Social Rights; Brussels, 26.4.2017 </span><a href="http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=CELEX:52017DC0250&qid=1507135009086&from=EN" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">COM(2017) 250 final</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> (10 pages) </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Social Scoreboard; Brussels, 26.4.2017 </span><a href="http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=CELEX:52017SC0200&qid=1507135292251&from=EN" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">SWD(2017) 200 final</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> (6 pages) </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">SWD accompanying the communication Establishing a European Pillar of Social Rights; Brussels, 26.4.2017 </span><a href="http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=CELEX:52017SC0201&qid=1507135402632&from=EN" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">SWD(2017) 201 final</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> (77 pages) </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The eminently readable third staff working document, bridging the transition from the test version to the final proposal, and presented in the blog post </span><a href="https://grahnlaw.blogspot.fi/2017/10/consultation-report-on-european-pillar.html" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Consultation report on European Pillar of Social Rights</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, was published only in English: </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Report of the public consultation; Brussels, 26.4.2017 </span><a href="http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=CELEX:52017SC0206&qid=1507135852686&from=EN" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">SWD(2017) 206 final</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> (53 pages) </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Social pillar communication </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The short communication about establishing the Social Pillar </span><a href="http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=CELEX:52017DC0250&qid=1507135009086&from=EN" style="text-decoration-line: none;"><span style="color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; text-decoration-line: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">COM(2017) 250</span></a><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> contains the Commission’s final proposal for the Pillar. The Pillar is primarily conceived for the euro area but open to all EU Member States (page 2).</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Page 3 offers a summary of the communication (including references to the official documents mentioned above): </span></div>
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<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 36pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">This Communication presents the European Pillar of Social Rights and outlines a way forward for its implementation.</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> The Communication is accompanied by a number of legislative and non-legislative initiatives related to work-life balance, information for workers, access to social protection and working time. In the logic of the Pillar, these proposals, once adopted, will update and complement the EU acquis. The text of the Pillar itself is supported by a staff working document which provides more detailed explanations on each of the principles and rights. Moreover, a social scoreboard has been established to monitor progress on the ground. This will serve to track trends and performances across countries and to inform policy guidance in the context of the European Semester of economic policy coordination. For the EU as a whole, the scoreboard will also serve to assess progress towards its ̔social triple Aʼ.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Euro area convergence </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Even if the Social Pillar is open for willing member states, why does the Commission stress its design for the euro area? After discussing the rapid economic and social changes in our societies, the communication explains (page 5): </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">These challenges take a specific meaning for the completion of Europe's Economic and Monetary Union, as stressed in the Five Presidents' Report of June 2015.</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> This is not just a social necessity, it is also an economic imperative. Employment and social conditions vary widely across the euro area, partly as a result of the crisis but also partly resulting from the imbalances built up in the years before the crisis. As the Report points out, efficient and resilient labour markets that promote a high level of employment and are able to absorb shocks without generating unemployment are essential for the smooth functioning of the Economic and Monetary Union. Over time, they contribute to the convergence of performances between Member States and to more inclusive societies. Beyond labour markets, it is also important to ensure that every citizen has access to adequate education and that an effective social protection system is in place to protect the most vulnerable in society, including a "social protection floor". Finally, the Report highlights the need to go a step further and push for a deeper integration of national labour markets by facilitating geographic and professional mobility. This calls for a fair and enforceable level-playing field for public authorities, workers and business alike.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">For the EMU rationale, here is a link to the Five Presidents’ Report, officially </span><a href="https://www.ecb.europa.eu/pub/pdf/other/5presidentsreport.en.pdf" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Completing Europe’s Economic and Monetary Union</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, and for good measure the strategic note from the European Political Strategy Centre (EPSC) </span><a href="https://ec.europa.eu/epsc/sites/epsc/files/strategic_note_issue_5.pdf" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The Social Dimension of Economic and Monetary Union</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">. Both were published in June 2015 (and both were designed by people in love with pale pastel colours failing the first accessibility test, readable text for ordinary readers).</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The EPSC strategy note started by sounding the clarion call for dynamic and inclusive labour markets: </span></div>
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<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 36pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The social dimension of Economic and Monetary Union (EMU) has too often been neglected, due to the implicit assumption that making EMU more “social” would somehow hamper the economic performance of the euro area. Nothing could be further from the truth. Not coincidentally, the recent financial crisis proved that countries with more dynamic and inclusive labour markets – as well as a better skilled labour force and interventionist social systems – are more resilient: they better withstand shocks and recover more quickly.</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">--- </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Upward convergence must be seen as the unifying common goal and leitmotif of Economic and Monetary Union.</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Investment in skills and a revamped flexicurity are key to resilience and productivity growth. Squeezing the tax wedge, enhancing labour mobility and retargeting the European Semester priorities offer potential gains (often without cost to the public purse), according to the inspirational strategy note, which concluded: </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">In modern, advanced economies, social and economic goals are two sides of the same coin. It is time for Economic and Monetary Union to embrace this logic and put human capital investment, social benchmarks, well-functioning labour markets and mobility at the heart of its focus. This is the only way to rekindle the upward convergence which inspired European integration in the past, and must now guide its future.</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Recommendation and proclamation </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">On 26 April 2017, together with the communication (see page 8), the Commission published a Reflection paper on the social dimension of Europe </span><a href="http://eur-lex.europa.eu/resource.html?uri=cellar:cea6403b-2b4c-11e7-9412-01aa75ed71a1.0017.02/DOC_1&format=PDF" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">COM(2017) 206</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> (as part of the Future of Europe discussion), the Pillar as a temporary </span><a href="http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=OJ:L:2017:113:FULL&from=EN" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Commission recommendation (EU) 2017/761</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> while waiting for the Proposal for a Interinstitutional Proclamation on the European Pillar of Social Rights </span><a href="http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=CELEX:52017DC0251&qid=1507174345923&from=EN" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">COM(2017) 251</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> to become a solemn proclamation by the European Parliament, the Council and the Commission (at the upcoming </span><a href="https://www.socialsummit17.se/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Social Summit for Fair Jobs and Growth</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> in Gothenburg 17 November 2017, at the latest - </span><a href="https://twitter.com/search?f=tweets&vertical=default&q=%23SocialSummit17&src=typd" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">#SocialSummit17</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> on Twitter). </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Social Scoreboard </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Even if EU powers are limited in the social area, the communication presents the role of the union and how it coordinates and supports actions within the Social Pillar (from page 7). The new scoreboard and its relation to the Joint Employment Report as part of the European Semester are sketched on page 9: </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Social considerations have been mainstreamed and reinforced in the European Semester for economic policy coordination since the start of the mandate of this Commision. The analysis and recommendations will reflect and promote the principles enshrined in the Pillar by assessing, monitoring and comparing the progress made towards their implementation. Benchmarking and exchange of best practices will be conducted for a number of areas, such as employment protection legislation, unemployment benefits, minimum wages, minimum income and skills. Monitoring of progress will be supported by the new social scoreboard, which consists of a limited number of existing indicators of importance to assess employment and social trends. The scoreboard will be dicussed with the relevant Council committees, with a view to its incoporation in the annual Joint Employment Report published each autumn in the framework of the European Semester. It could also become a reference point for the efforts made on the social dimension of the euro area and of Europe more generally. </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">For more information, you can go to the Social Scoreboard </span><a href="http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=CELEX:52017SC0200&qid=1507135292251&from=EN" style="text-decoration-line: none;"><span style="color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; text-decoration-line: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">SWD(2017) 200</span></a><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> and its key indicators, while the Commission’s web page </span><a href="https://ec.europa.eu/info/strategy/european-semester_en" style="text-decoration-line: none;"><span style="color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; text-decoration-line: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The European Semester</span></a><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> offers you access to the annual process of economic governance. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Lucid summary </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The communication Establishing a European Pillar of Social Rights </span><a href="http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=CELEX:52017DC0250&qid=1507135009086&from=EN" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">COM(2017) 250</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> is a lucid summary, although I wonder why the Commission mentions the treaty aims only in passing and rarely uses them in its argumentation, namely “a highly competitive social market economy, aiming at full employment and social progress” in Article 3(3) TEU and the horizontal social clause (having general application) Article 9 TFEU. </span></div>
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<span id="docs-internal-guid-5579a67b-efa3-6d42-cea9-b1d3b958dfa7"><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">For detail people with a professional interest can turn to the accompanying staff working document </span><a href="http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=CELEX:52017SC0201&qid=1507135402632&from=EN" style="text-decoration-line: none;"><span style="color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; text-decoration-line: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">SWD(2017) 201</span></a><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> we are going to look at in a coming blog post.</span></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Ralf Grahn</span></div>
Ralf Grahn http://www.blogger.com/profile/02156293782163802007noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6406430766424642773.post-50313376276884879922017-10-05T09:50:00.000+03:002017-10-05T09:50:12.110+03:00Consultation report on European Pillar of Social Rights<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">In February and March I wrote a number of blog posts compiled in the entry </span><a href="http://grahnlaw.blogspot.fi/2017/03/eu-social-market-economy-and-social.html" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">EU social market economy and social pillar</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">. It is time to register the progress of the social dimension and the social pillar of the European Union, but let us first return to the public consultation after a reminder of one of the aims of the EU, as laid down in Article 3(3) TEU: </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">a highly competitive social market economy, aiming at full employment and social progress</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">. </span></div>
<b id="docs-internal-guid-5579a67b-eb42-05d2-d5b1-cb402dd502ca" style="font-weight: normal;"><br /></b>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">While we are at it, why not recall the horizontal clause (provision having general application) Article 9 TFEU? Like this: </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Article 9</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">In defining and implementing its policies and activities, the Union shall take into account requirements linked to the promotion of a high level of employment, the guarantee of adequate social protection, the fight against social exclusion, and a high level of education, training and protection of human health.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Consultation on European Pillar of Social Rights </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">In March 2016 the European Commission launched a public consultation on a European Pillar of Social Rights, presenting four documents for orientation. There was a test version of the Social Pillar in the annex to the communication: </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Launching a consultation on a European Pillar of Social Rights; Strasbourg, 8.3.2016 </span><a href="http://eur-lex.europa.eu/resource.html?uri=cellar:bc4bab37-e5f2-11e5-8a50-01aa75ed71a1.0004.02/DOC_1&format=PDF" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">COM(2016) 127 final</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> (11 pages; available in 23 official EU languages) </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">First preliminary outline of a European Pillar of Social Rights; Strasbourg, 8.3.2016 </span><a href="http://eur-lex.europa.eu/resource.html?uri=cellar:bc4bab37-e5f2-11e5-8a50-01aa75ed71a1.0004.02/DOC_2&format=PDF" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">COM(2016) 127 final ANNEX 1</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> (18 pages; available in 23 official EU languages) </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The communication was accompanied by two commission staff working documents (SWDs):</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The EU social acquis; Strasbourg, 8.3.2016 </span><a href="http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=CELEX:52016SC0050&qid=1507051716083&from=EN" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">SWD(2016) 50 final</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> (17 pages; only in English) </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Key economic, employment and social trends behind a European Pillar of Social Rights; Strasbourg, 8.3.2016 </span><a href="http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=CELEX:52016SC0051&qid=1507051800600&from=EN" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">SWD(2016) 51 final</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> (37 pages; only in English) </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Consultation report </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">This time I am not going to return to the documents which launched the public consultation lasting until the end of 2016, but head for the summary of the contributions during the consultation process. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The Commission staff working document (available only in English) accompanying the Communication Establishing a European Pillar of Social Rights </span><a href="http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=CELEX:52017DC0250&qid=1507050847249&from=EN" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">COM(2017) 250</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> “presents the consultation process and summarises its main findings”: </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Report of the public consultation; Brussels, 26.4.2017 </span><a href="http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=CELEX:52017SC0206&qid=1507050606948&from=EN" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">SWD(2017) 206 final</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> (53 pages) </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The consultation report, which was published on the same day as the Reflection paper on the social dimension of Europe </span><a href="http://eur-lex.europa.eu/resource.html?uri=cellar:cea6403b-2b4c-11e7-9412-01aa75ed71a1.0017.02/DOC_1&format=PDF" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">COM(2017) 206</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> and the launch of the social pillar (link above), reveals how active and organised the consultation process was.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The role of the member states and the EU Council is crucial regarding the establishment of and the Interinstitutional Proclamation on the European Pillar of Social Rights </span><a href="http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=CELEX:52017DC0251&qid=1507089297707&from=EN" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">COM(2017) 251</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, the upcoming </span><a href="https://www.socialsummit17.se/" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Social Summit for Fair Jobs and Growth</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> 17 November 2017 i Gothenburg - </span><a href="https://twitter.com/search?f=tweets&vertical=default&q=%23SocialSummit17&src=typd" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">#SocialSummit17</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> on Twitter - and the chances for practical progress, given the social policy powers vested in the member states. </span></div>
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<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Therefore, it is interesting to see how active the member states were during the public consultation (page 6): </span></div>
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<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 36pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Member States engaged actively in the consultation. The Commission received contributions from 21 national governments or their responsible ministries: Austria, Belgium, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Sweden and the UK. Moreover, five national parliaments (the German Bundesrat, the French Assemblée Nationale, Italy's Camera dei Deputati, the Czech Senate and Romania's Camera Deputaților) and a number of regional governments and authorities handed in their replies.</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></div>
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<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">For the general reader the trends and challenges are valuable. Thus, it is worth quoting (page 7): </span></div>
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<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 36pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">During consultation events and work streams discussions, four key priority trends emerged which the Pillar should address: </span></div>
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<li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; margin-left: 36pt; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The social consequences of the financial crisis, with increasing poverty, social exclusion, inequalities and unemployment, particularly long-term unemployment and among young people, and the long period of economic stagnation, with low growth and competitiveness; </span></div>
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<li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; margin-left: 36pt; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Technological progress and automation; the future of work, the emerging digital labour market, education and reskilling; </span></div>
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<li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; margin-left: 36pt; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Demographic developments, with the ageing of Europe's population; the modernisation of social protection and welfare systems; and </span></div>
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<li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: disc; margin-left: 36pt; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Economic divergence across Member States.</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Citizens first </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Not only do we have the aims of the treaties, we also have the interests of the citizens of the European Union to guide action (page 9): </span></div>
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<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 36pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">For experts, the debate should not be about ‘more or less Europe’, but about putting ‘citizens-first’ to provide security, opportunity and resilience in times of change. The consultation highlighted that the challenges of societies and the world of work are often similar across Member States. Therefore, the Pillar was seen as a means to set the conditions for sustainable convergence towards better employment and social outcomes, by creating a common consensus on social goals against which reforms can be pursued.</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> </span></div>
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<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">How can this be made to contribute to competitiveness and fiscal sustainability? These questions were important for many respondents (page 9). </span></div>
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<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Euro area or beyond? </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Is the European Social Pillar for the euro area, or for the EU27 as a whole? The European Parliament had contributed with its views (page 11): </span></div>
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<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-left: 36pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">In the consultation, it was recognised that more </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">in-depth action to stimulate convergence</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> towards better employment and social outcomes in the euro area would be key to make its single monetary policy suitable for all its members, to improve its functioning, and to reinforce the EMU's economic, social and political resilience. The European Parliament for instance considered that the constraints of euro area membership call for additional specific </span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 700; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">social targets and standards</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> to be established and relevant financial support to be considered at the euro area level, while remaining open to non-euro area Member States on a voluntary basis</span><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> [European Parliament resolution </span><a href="http://www.europarl.europa.eu/sides/getDoc.do?pubRef=-//EP//NONSGML+TA+P8-TA-2017-0010+0+DOC+PDF+V0//EN" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">P8_TA(2017)0010</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> of 19 January 2017 on a European Pillar of Social Rights (2016/2095(INI))] </span></div>
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<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">The reference to the European Parliament resolution reminds us of the keynote call, paragraph 1: </span></div>
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<li dir="ltr" style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; list-style-type: decimal; margin-left: 36pt; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;"><div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: italic; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Calls on the Commission to build on the review of the social acquis and of EU employment and social policies as well as on the outcomes of the 2016 public consultation by making proposals for a solid European Pillar of Social Rights (EPSR) that is not limited to a declaration of principles or good intentions but reinforces social rights through concrete and specific tools (legislation, policy-making mechanisms and financial instruments), delivering a positive impact on people’s lives in the short and medium term and enabling support for European construction in the 21st century by effectively upholding the Treaties’ social objectives, supporting national welfare states, strengthening cohesion, solidarity and upward convergence in economic and social outcomes, ensuring adequate social protection, reducing inequality, achieving long overdue progress in reducing poverty and social exclusion, facilitating national reform efforts through benchmarking and helping to improve the functioning of the Economic and Monetary Union (EMU) and of the EU’s single market;</span></div>
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<div dir="ltr" style="line-height: 1.38; margin-bottom: 0pt; margin-top: 0pt;">
<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">After an introductory part, the consultation report discusses the role and the nature of the Social Pillar, with the second half dedicated to the principles (under the headlines equal opportunities and access to the labour market, fair working conditions and adequate and sustainable social protection). </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">I am impressed by the process, as well as the presentation. Complex issues are presented clearly as a valuable background for EU </span><a href="https://twitter.com/search?f=tweets&vertical=default&q=%23SocialRights&src=typd" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">#SocialRights</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> and the upcoming </span><a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/socialsummit17?f=tweets&vertical=default&src=hash" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">#SocialSummit17</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">, as well as the Commission’s priority to deepen the economic and monetary union (EMU) - </span><a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/deepeningemu?f=tweets&vertical=default" style="text-decoration: none;"><span style="background-color: transparent; color: #1155cc; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: underline; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">#deepeningEMU</span></a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;"> on Twitter. </span></div>
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<span style="background-color: transparent; color: black; font-family: Georgia; font-size: 12pt; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline; white-space: pre-wrap;">Ralf Grahn</span></div>
Ralf Grahn http://www.blogger.com/profile/02156293782163802007noreply@blogger.com0