The European Council fails to agree on a response to the coronavirus

Workers' Group Declaration on the European Council meeting of 26th March on the COVID19 crisis It is with great preoccupation that we receive the news of Thursday’s meeting. As infections and deaths rise in Europe and Health Systems are increasingly saturated, the European Council failed again to provide a united response to the situation. Moreover, the position of some member states showed that little has been learnt since the 2008 crisis. While we welcome the decisions on joint procurement of medical products and the steps taken to ensure normal flow of protective material and the needs of cross-border workers, the part of socio-economic measures is still lacking. Now, more than ever, an agreement is necessary providing a common debt solution, such as the so-called coronabonds, to allow member states to finance the necessary measures to protect their citizens and economies. The coronavirus knows nothing of borders, and it is a common threat first and foremost to the lives of our citizens. But the problem is larger, as the needed response will likely drain member states’ resources and send the EU into recession. The arguments for austerity and fiscal restraint, rejecting solidarity at EU level, brought a decade of scarce economic growth, poverty, mounting inequality and rising populism. Another attempt of this will directly endanger the survival of the European Union and condemn to death dozens of thousands of people.

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Workers' Group Declaration on European Council Summit 26M on Coronavirus
Déclaration du groupe des travailleurs sur le sommet européen du 26 mars sur le coronavirus
European Response against Coronavirus and Labour Rights under attack