Summay of Opinions Adopted

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European Economic and Social Committee

Brussels, 4 January 2010

Registry CESE 134/2009 EN-FR/CD/ym

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Summary:

1.FOOD SECURITY

2.ECONOMIC AND FINANCIAL CRISIS

3.EMPLOYMENT AND MOBILITY

4.EDUCATION AND VOCATIONAL TRAINING

5.RESEARCH AND TECHNOLOGICAL DEVELOPMENT

6.SUPPORT FOR BUSINESS

7.TAXATION AND CUSTOMS UNION

8.AREA OF FREEDOM, SECURITY AND JUSTICE

9.ENERGY AND TRANSPORT

10.AGRICULTURAL POLICY

11.HEALTH

12.CONSUMER PROTECTION

The plenary assembly of 16 and 17 December 2009 was attendedon the Wednesday by MrJacquesDiouf, Director-General of the FAO, Mr Olivier De Schutter, United Nations Special Rapporteur on the right to food, andMr Stephen Muchiri, Director-General of the East Africa Farmers' Federation (EAFF); a thematic debate was also held on strategies to ensure food security.

The plenary session continued on the Thursday and was attended by MrLalko Dulevski, President of the network of national ESCs and president of the Bulgarian ESC, who presented the report on the meeting of the presidents and secretaries-general of the national ESCs and the EESC, which took place on 27 November in Sofia,as well as the review of the Bulgarian presidency.

The following opinions were adopted at the session:

1.FOOD SECURITY

• Trade and food security

Rapporteur: MrCampli(Various interests – IT)

Co-rapporteur: MrPeel (Employers – UK)

Reference: Exploratory opinion – CESE 1953/2009

Key points:

Recommendations and conclusions:

The EU should incorporate the principles of the right to food in its trade policies, and to ensure with the other WTO members that these principles are mainstreamed into the multilateral negotiations.

The EU should also include an institutional role for civil society in future economic partnership agreements and other free-trade agreements, as already provided for in the CARIFORUM-EC agreement.

The international financial bodies should establish appropriate regulation of financial markets so as to prevent speculation on agricultural commodities. Also, the international community should set up an international food reserve system and to work in close coordination with the FAO's early warning system.

The EU should work for enhanced regional integration in Africa in particular, as a tool for promoting both development and food security, and as a defining element in the revision of the Cotonou Agreement due in 2010.

WTO members should ensure that the strategic review of trade policy serves to relaunch the debate on the form of future agriculture trade negotiations, giving food security specific status, and on future forms of technical assistance for developing countries. Also, WTO members should conclude the Doha Development Round by 2010, as called for by the G20, in order to demonstrate the underlying commitment both to development and to the MDGs.

Contact:Ms Tuula Turunen

(Tel.: 00 32 2 546 93 68 – email: )

2.ECONOMIC AND FINANCIAL CRISIS

• The financial crisis and its impact on the real economy

Rapporteur: Mr Cedrone (Employees– IT)

Reference: Own-initiative opinion – CESE 1935/2009

Key points:

A significant willingness to coordinate action is needed to stimulate recovery and avoid a repetition of the events that caused the current difficulties.

Eliminating tax havens, banking secrecy and a return to a distinction between retail banks and investment banks is needed;

it would be helpful to take steps towards establishing a third international currency (from China);

a second, more ambitious European support plan is needed;

radically reform the various policies for which the EU is responsible, starting with the simplification of procedures and regulations;

finance a system of European networks (energy, transport, communication) by launching a Community loan;

agree a common approach to intervention for European banks to stimulate them to restore lines of credit to businesses, with special conditions for SMEs, for example by deferring debt, establishing a guarantee fund, or direct funding from the state and the EIB;

where this does not happen, enable employees of SMEs to access "social shock absorbers", i.e. employment support measures;

agree fiscal policy measures to stimulate demand, recovery and employment, in conjunction with macroeconomic and monetary measures;

make the labour market, which is currently too fragmented, "more European";

bring about a European pact for growth, competitiveness and employment;

provide for means of worker participation in the life of businesses to create and/or extend "economic democracy"; social dialogue should also be improved and expanded;

promote a change in consumer policy, from private to public consumption, e.g. big networks, through investments to improve the quality and availability of services;

increase the globalisation fund; implement a programme for young people (with universities), and for workers who have lost their jobs, who want to set up their own businesses, including through social economy enterprises as an alternative;

agree measures to reduce taxation on work;

extend the Erasmus programme, progressively expanding it to all those university students who want to take part in it;

SIMPLIFY all Community procedures as far as possible.

Contact: Mr Gilbert Marchlewitz

(Tel.: 00 32 2 546 93 58 – email: )

• Supporting developing countries in coping with the crisis

Rapporteur: Mr Jahier (Various interests – IT)

References: COM(2009) 160 final – CESE 1954/2009

Key points:

• The EESC welcomes the Commission's Communication, but notes that the two main limitations of the Communication lie in the failure to schedule additional resources and the fact that the impact of the decisions on the crisis will be short-lived (e.g. the frontloading of aid commitments);
• it is vital to honour all the commitments which have been made in recent years and for significant extra appropriations to be committed, in view of the double impact of the energy and food crisis on developing countries. Within this context, the EESC supports the proposal to earmark for developing countries at least 0.7% of the sums mobilised by the international community for tackling the crisis;
• it is the view of the Committee that agriculture, food security and climate change should be strategic priorities for the sustainable development of developing countries;
• the EESC calls on the new Commission to play a leading role internationally to radically reform the development aid and investment system, taking into account the challenges of green growth and migration, and launching a new drive to make the aid system more effective, transparent and efficient;
• the EESC highlights the pivotal role of non-state actors in supporting developing countries in dealing with the crisis and deplores the Communication's failure to make any reference to their role;
• the Committee supports the creation and adoption of new, innovative development funding mechanisms, such as a Tobin tax. It is especially important to recognise the key role of migrants' remittances by implementing the G8 decision to halve remittance transfer costs and devising strategies to protect migrant workers more effectively during the crisis;
• measures to open markets should be continued, by re-launching the Doha negotiations, supporting regional integration processes, and strengthening mechanisms for financing trade, with special attention to the needs of the poorest countries regarding fair trade;
• a key priority at the global level should be given to the fight against corruption and tax fraud (avoidance and evasion), with a view to gleaning major new resources for development schemes. The EESC urges the Commission to address this issue forthwith and to draw up appropriate proposals.

Contact: Ms Susanna Baizou

(Tel.: 00 32 2 546 98 45 – email: )

3.EMPLOYMENT AND MOBILITY

• Promoting the learning mobility of young people (Green Paper)

Rapporteur working alone: Ms Päärendson (Employers – EE)

References: COM(2009) 329 final – CESE 1940/2009

Key points:

The EESC fully supports the Commission's efforts towards promoting the learning mobility of young people;

the learning mobility targets can only be met if there is full and widespread cooperation and efforts are made at all levels;

the link between learning mobility and employability needs to be further explained and emphasised;

promoting the mobility of young Europeans is important in maintaining Europe's competitiveness: serious efforts should simultaneously be directed towards avoiding a brain drain from Europe and at making Europe an attractive location both for scientists of European origin and those from outside Europe;

in order to improve funding, the EU should mobilise all existing mechanisms and partners and mainstream mobility in all relevant policies;

all mobility programmes should adhere to the European Quality Charter for Mobility and that the current mobility programmes are reformed to simplify procedures;

the commitment to mobility should be expressed in an ambitious Benchmark on mobility in the new strategic framework for European cooperation in education and training;

a single European web portal where all information about pan-European learning mobility programmes could be readily found should be established;

to promote learning mobility, language teaching should become a priority in the curricula of education and training institutions at all levels.

Contact:Ms Irina Fomina

(Tel.: 00 32 2 546 80 91 – email: )

• Concerted action to improve the career and mobility of researchers in the EU

Rapporteur:Mr Almeida Freire (Employers – PT)

Reference: Own-initiative opinion – CESE 1941/2009

Key points:

Given the revision of the Lisbon Strategy, the launch of a new European plan for innovation and the European Research Area renewed vision for 2020, and against the backdrop of the economic crisis, there is a pressing need to set common objectives at the EU level and encourage measures aimed at securing the level of human resources in science and technology.

The EESC recommends:

that human resources in science and technology in Europe are boosted and mobility promoted, as these are key factors to ensure that the EU remains competitive globally;

that coordination between policies on education, research, labour and social security is rapidly improved;

that existing programmes in the field of human resources be strengthened and better coordinated and that mobility be promoted;

that a monitoring centre for human resources in science and technology in Europe be set up, to gather, analyse and provide consistent and comparable information on national human resources policies both in Europe and worldwide;

that concerted action to improve the career and mobility of researchers in the EU be taken, in terms of working conditions, career development and social rights;

that the new European Innovation Pact and the future revision of the Lisbon Strategy take due account of the need to increase human resources in the field of science and technology and ensure that they are properly qualified.

Contact:Ms Maria Judite Berkemeier

(Tel.: 00 32 2 546 98 97 – email: )

4.EDUCATION AND VOCATIONAL TRAINING

• University business cooperation

Rapporteur: MrBurns (Employers – UK)

References: COM(2009) 158 final – CESE 1937/2009

Key points:

oUniversity – Business Forum should concentrate on issues relating to degree level or above. Only when they gained this experience, should they expand their influence to other educational institutions.

oThe engagement with businesses and the creation of Forum has to be meaningful and not become a mechanism which has little value other than to raise more money for present university activities.

oThe EESC would encourage a more equal partnership between universities and businesses where both are encouraged to become ‘drivers’ for change and both have valued contributions.

oLife Long learning - Empirical research needs to be done to clearly identify what tasks are done in businesses and the identified outcomes before the Forum develop any objectives concerning vocational education and training.

oBusinesses have to take responsibility in defining any outcomes in relation to what is done or needs to be done, in the workplace.

oAccess to Life Long Learning programmes must not be limited to previous academic achievements or the attainment of specific qualifications. Life Long Learning must be based upon the practical needs of the employee and their workplace. All workplace training should be outcomes based. The attainment of qualifications should not be the main objective of Life Long Learning.

oIn business there is no substitute to practical experience. Forum should therefore include proposals on how academics can get hands on experience with both large and small businesses.

oSMEs and micro businesses should be encouraged to become more active in the Forum.

Contact:Ms Irina Fomina

(Tel.: 00 32 2 546 80 91 – email: )

5.RESEARCH AND TECHNOLOGICAL DEVELOPMENT

• Moving the ICT frontiers – a strategy for research on future and emerging technologies in Europe

Rapporteur: MsDarmanin (Employees – MT)

Co-rapporteur: MrWolf (Various interests – DE)

References: COM(2009) 184 final – CESE 1932/2009

Key points:

The EESC fully supports the proposals set out in the Commission Communication on future and emerging technologies. The EESC also supports the proposed increase of the FET budget within ICT of 20% per annum.

However, while the above-mentioned increase is merely in line with the foreseen increase of the ICT-programme as a whole and thus would not change the relative share of the FET-programme, the EESC recommends that the present relative FET share be raised incrementally to 15% in FP7, and that this trend be continued in FP8.

Regarding the “Rules for Participation for the Seventh Framework Programme”, the EESC appeals to Member States and their funding organisations to contribute their required share to ensure the programme can be implemented successfully.

The Committee appeals to Commission and Member States to attract toptalent to this field of research and to avoid a brain drain of the most talented young scientists. The Committee notes with satisfaction that some research organisations have already implemented successful programmes to face this challenge.

Contact:Ms Claudia Drewes-Wran

(Tel.:00 32 2 546 8067– email: )

6.SUPPORT FOR BUSINESS

• Combating late payment in commercial transactions (recast)

Rapporteur:MsBontea (Employers – RO)

References: COM(2009) 126 final – 2009/0054 COD – CESE 1930/2009

Key points:

The EESC welcomes and supports the improvement of the legislative framework to combat late payment and reduce payment periods.

The existing legislative measures are not sufficient; a range of complex measures needs to be developed together with increased cooperation at all levels, such as setting short, mandatory payment periods for all authorities and public institutions.

The Committee

believes that the proposal for a directive requires certain improvements, for public procurement contracts and for all commercial transactions;

emphasises that in order to fully achieve the aim of the directive, measures are needed to increase SMEs' access to public procurement;

believes thatcooperation and quality social dialogue between public authorities, social partners and organisations of SMEsare needed for the successful transposition of the directive;

proposesto develop a specialist website, gathering information pertaining to each Member State on the transposition of the directive, legal framework, and applicable procedures for debt recovery – including arbitration and mediation – or other useful information.

Contact:Ms Magdaléna Carabin Belarova

(Tel.:00 32 2 546 8303 – email: )

• How to support SMEs in adapting to global market changes

Rapporteur: MrCappellini (Various interests – IT)

Co-rapporteur: MrPaetzold (DE – Cat. 1)

Reference: Own-initiative opinion – CESE1942/2009

Key points:

The Opinion lays out eight recommendations to guide actions to support SMEs in adapting to global market changes.

Recommendation 1: Respect Entrepreneurs, their right to take decisions and their need to bear the consequences of these decisions. Business support should assist entrepreneurs in tackling global market changes but must not substitute either the entrepreneurial decision itself nor shield the entrepreneur from the risk derived from the decision.

Recommendation 2: Reduce barriers to trade. Pursuing open markets, enforcing global trading standards and maintaining the Internal Market, remain the most effective ways of supporting exporting SMEs.

Recommendation 3: Encourage trade competitiveness through raising quality. The benefits of respecting European standards and of full participation in quality enhancing programmes, need to be made known in marketing campaigns in third countries.At the same time, it should be stressed that respecting EU standards is a condition for importing goods and services into the EU.

Recommendation 4: Trade policy must "Think Small First". If partnerships are to be developed to deliver market access, SMEs need to be coordinated more closely to match the complex process of trade negotiations.

Recommendation 5: Tailor Policies to SME needs. There is a divergence between the experiences of SMEs of obstacles to internationalisation and the perception of these obstacles by policy makers. Support needs to be delivered through local and national intermediaries that are familiar with SMEs and in practical and accessible forms.

Recommendation 6: Support SMEs through their workers .The aim is to ensure that SMEs are able to draw upon a skilled and committed workforce in the labour market.

Recommendation 7: Networks matter to SMEs especially as they become global. Networks provide opportunities for SMEs but also present specific problems related to intellectual property and dominating customers which can be better addressed through a sectoral approach.

Recommendation 8: Innovate and Evaluate. Policy makers need to innovate in the real economy. Policy has to respond quickly to new challenges, be evaluated on sound quality evidence and engage with representative stakeholders to learn from success stories and changes in performance.

Contact:Ms Aleksandra Wieczorek

(Tel.: 00 32 2 546 9389 – email: )

7.TAXATION AND CUSTOMS UNION

• Suspension of autonomous Common Customs Tariff duties on imports of certain industrial products into the autonomous regions of Madeira and the Azores

Rapporteur-general: MrSoares (Employees – PT)

References: COM(2009) 370 final – 2009/0125 CNS – CESE 1933/2009

Contact:Ms Amelia Munoz Cabezon

(Tel.: 00 32 2 546 8373 – email: )

• Promoting good governance in tax matters

Rapporteur: MrBurani (Employers – IT)

References: COM(2009)201 final – CESE 1936/2009