PES Manifesto

Scandinavian PES activists on New Social Europe

Published Wednesday, March 26, 2008 at 16:33
by Editor (758 views and 0 comments)

Here is the last of four reports from the manifesto debate in Denmark:

The manifesto theme 'New Social Europe' was one of the topics of discussion when PES activists from Denmark, Sweden and Norway met in Jørlunde, Denmark on March 1st and 2nd 2008. Here are the conclusions from this dedicated discussion group:

Ole Christensen, MEP, introduced the workshop by speaking about labour market policy in a new social Europe. One of the main focuses was the role of Court of Justice in connection to the Vaxholm case regarding the labour market models in the Nordic countries.

The case was seen in connection to the increased mobility, out posting of labour and the terms offered the employees as well as the competition between foreign and domestic labour in relation to collective bargaining.

The focus was also on the Danish labour market model and flexicurity, the role of the parties within the labour market, the social dialogue, rights and duties.

These great social democratic challenges were highlighted during the discussion:

• 72 million poor in the EU
• Vast inequality
• Big difference between old and new countries
• Big difference between men and women
• Discrimination against immigrants
• Problems faced by young and elderly in the labour market
• Demographic problems
• The need for education because of new technology and globalisation
• The difference between the profit of the companies and the salaries of the workers

Ole Christensen found that Europe is becoming more right wing and that important labour market issues regarding work time, pensions, and fixed term labour has ended up in the European Council. The social democratic challenges are great.

After this ten principles were selected for the PES ahead of the next European Parliamentary elections:

1. Rights and duties for all.
2. Full employment
3. Investing in people
4. Societies with cohesion
5. Child care for all
6. Equality
7. Social Dialogue
8. To make diversity a strength
9. Sustainable societies
10. An active Europe for all

Ole Christensen had to leave the meeting and Claus Larsen-Jensen then led the debate. The group then prioritised the 3-4 areas, which the participants found to be the most important issues for the forthcoming elections.

Each participant voted for the principles of highest priority. This resulted in the following:

1. A tie in votes between Investing in people and a society of cohesion.
2. Equality
3. Social Dialogue
4. A tie in votes between rights and duties for all and full employment
5. A tie in votes between childcare for all and an active Europe for all

This survey like prioritisation is of course not very useful for making policy, but it was a catalyst for the debate and for a clarification of the opinions of the participants.

The process showed that the 10 rights are so general that they can be understood and defined very much at will, and therefore it also became a bit random, which reached the highest priority.

The participants understood the headlines very differently, which sparked a discussion of how valuable they are for gaining the support of the Europeans at the forthcoming elections; especially when it does not clearly depict a social democratic project to be excited about.

Therefore the group also spend time on creating a more visionary framework around a social democratic strategy for Europe.

Many Danes feel that the EU is a threat towards Danish welfare and the Danish welfare model; this is an obstacle for a forward looking discussion about the future of Europe.

A social Europe is seen by many as a threat of harmonisation of social standards and attacks on the labour market model, and as a vision of stretching the social democratic welfare model from being a state model to a common fundamental principle for all of the countries in Europe and for common European policy.

That is why social democrats must create a forward thinking social political vision for Europe, so people can be excited and see a purpose by voting social democratic at the European elections.

The new Lisbon Treaty is the first treaty, which so clearly creates the grounds to do so. Therefore it must be used as a great asset in the campaign. EU is no longer just a market place, but is about people and their possibilities.

The group then decided the following:
The Social Democrats want a Europe of solidarity. The Group gives priority to the following main priorities:

1. Social rights and equal opportunities for all
1. Equality: inequality and poverty must be fought
2. Social dialogue and respect for the role of the labour market actors.
3. Full employment for all.
4. Integration available for all.

This is a classic social democratic agenda, but with the new perspective that now the aim is to make it the agenda for the future Europe.

In comparison to the first priorities of the group the sustainability is missing; not as regards the social sustainability, but the environmental sustainability. Judging from the debate it is, however, implicit in the concretisation, which is to be done regarding the individual prioritised areas.

In conclusion, the group felt that the voters must be presented for a European Social Democratic vision, where the European cooperation inspires the confidence, which today cannot be achieved in any one nation state.

Tags: childcare, employment, equality, social dialogue, wages, welfare