The European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) was asked by the upcoming Hungarian Presidency of the Council of the EU to produce an exploratory opinion on paving the way to EU accession for the Western Balkans, underlining the benefits of the future enlargement to the region from a holistic point of view.
Download — Γνωμοδότηση της ΕΟΚΕ: Paving the way to EU accession for the Western Balkans
Consumers are increasingly mindful of environmental and social issues when buying products, emphasizing the importance of information on product origin and distribution in their decision-making process.
Download — Γνωμοδότηση της ΕΟΚΕ: Strengthening Consumer Information Requirements in the EU
EESC with this Resolution, calls on the Member States of the European Union and its leaders, the European institutions and the EU citizens, to safeguard and protect the economic, social and territorial cohesion of the EU according to Article 174 of the TFEU.
The fundamental principle of cohesion policy, according to which ‘no one should be left behind’, remains sound and valid. Civil society partners are ready to continue working towards it by means of a solid EU investment policy.
Εγκριθείσα on 10/07/2024 - Bureau decision date: 18/01/2024
This own-initiative opinion focuses on two industrial sectors, maritime and aviation, to assess the uptake of low-carbon sustainable fuels. This is of particular importance in the context of the European Climate Action Plan, which aims to reduce CO2 emissions by at least 55% by 2030. The opinion will analyse the current industrial capacities to produce sustainable fuels (non-fossil origin) at affordable costs.
Download — Γνωμοδότηση της ΕΟΚΕ: Low-carbon and renewable fuels: building the capacity of European industry to decarbonise the aviation and maritime sectors in a spirit of European autonomy
In this opinion, the EESC is calling for additional measures both at EU and national level, to better protect informal carers and recognise their important contribution to society. These measures include setting up a Platform for the exchange of best practices, the provision of high-quality, accessible community-based services to alleviate their charge, respite services and flexible working conditions to avoid that they have to quit their job to attend their family members.
On 27 February 2024, the European Commission published a Communication setting out a European strategy to ensure industrial leadership in advanced materials. Advanced materials are an important factor for the competitiveness of European industries and constitute crucial building blocks for the EU’s resilience and strategic autonomy. The EESC will provide input to the European Commission on how to create a dynamic, secure and inclusive ecosystem for advanced materials in Europe that ensures our continent's leadership in this area and supports the competitiveness of EU industries.
Download — Γνωμοδότηση της ΕΟΚΕ: Advanced materials for industrial leadership – a coordinated plan with Member States
Download — Γνωμοδότηση της ΕΟΚΕ: How to ensure the social, environmental and economic sustainability of the EU agri-food sector with future enlargement?
On 13 June 2023 the EC proposed a Council Recommendation on developing social economy framework conditions and noted that taxation policies can have "a significant role in fostering the social economy and ensuring that social economy entities can afford to operate alongside mainstream businesses, creating a more equitable business environment while contributing to social inclusion and improved access to employment". Given the wide and general approach of EC proposal – including inter alia references to the role of State aid, public procurement, and European funds – the above-mentioned taxation aspects need to be analysed and considered by the EESC.
Download — Γνωμοδότηση της ΕΟΚΕ: Taxation Framework for Social Economy Entities
The EESC supports the proposal’s objective to ensure that all forms of sexual abuse and sexual exploitation of children, including those enabled or facilitated by technological developments, are criminalised. It underlines the importance of having common minimum standards for the definition of criminal offences and the severity of related penalties in order to prosecute offenders effectively and to ensure the protection of victims across the EU. The EESC calls for the international exchange of data relating to child sexual abuse and exploitation to be specifically regulated and for the possibilities for data retention to be expanded in all Member States with the development of an EU Research Centre.
Download — Γνωμοδότηση της ΕΟΚΕ: Combating the sexual abuse and sexual exploitation of children and child pornography
