The EESC is urging the EU to adopt a dedicated long-term strategy and boost funding for its eastern border regions, warning that they face growing security, economic and demographic pressures that existing policies cannot fully address. In an opinion adopted at its June plenary, the EESC calls for regions bordering Russia, Belarus and Ukraine to be recognised as strategic frontlines rather than peripheral areas. 

It recommends that there be a dedicated funding stream in the next EU budget, more investment in transport, energy and digital infrastructure, measures to boost competitiveness and address demographic decline, and greater involvement of local authorities and civil society.

"The challenges require more than incremental reform and call for a long-term strategic framework beyond the current budget cycle", said rapporteur Katrina Zarina. Co-rapporteur Ionut Sibian added that eastern border regions were "strategic assets whose resilience underpins EU security, cohesion and long-term prosperity". The plenary debate featured Belarusian opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, Lithuanian Vice-Minister of Finance Neringa Rinkevičiūtė-Laurinaitienė, and European Commission Deputy Director-General Hugo Sobral, who all stressed the strategic importance of strengthening the EU's eastern frontier. The EESC argues that investing in these regions is essential not only for their development, but also for Europe's security, resilience and long-term prosperity. More.

The EESC is calling for a stronger role for the social partners and civil society in shaping national reforms through the European Semester. In an information report and resolution adopted at its June plenary, the EESC proposes a European code for structured consultations and mandatory assessments of partnership practices to improve transparency, participation and democratic legitimacy. 

Based on consultations involving stakeholders from all 27 Member States, the EESC report found broad support for the 2025 country-specific recommendations but highlights persistent implementation gaps, insufficient stakeholder involvement and an imbalance between economic priorities and social objectives. 'We reiterate our call for the establishment of a European code setting out how to conduct consultations within the framework of the European Semester,' said rapporteur Gonçalo Lobo Xavier. Rapporteur Andrea Mone stressed that stronger government action is needed to improve the design, implementation and evaluation of reforms, while rapporteur Luca Jahier said that closer links between the European Semester and the next EU budget should preserve 'flexibility, multilevel governance and national ownership' and rely on positive incentives rather than punitive conditionality. The EESC also supports closer links between the European Semester and the next EU long-term budget, provided safeguards protect subsidiarity, national ownership and democratic accountability. It advocates positive incentives to support reforms rather than punitive conditionality, arguing that stronger partnerships with the social partners and civil society are essential for more effective policy-making. More here.

The EESC has called for the European Semester to evolve into a more results-oriented framework that strengthens sustainable competitiveness, social inclusion and economic resilience while ensuring that reforms deliver tangible benefits for citizens. 

Speaking at the Annual European Semester Group Conference on 30 June, participants stressed that the Semester will play a key role in linking national reforms and investments with the next EU long-term budget. 

'The European Semester should evolve beyond a coordination mechanism into a genuine delivery framework,' said European Semester Group president Gonçalo Lobo Xavier. EESC President Seamus Boland added that lasting European prosperity depends on advancing 'prosperity, economic resilience and social cohesion together', while ECO section president Elena Calistru stressed the need for a coherent framework that better connects reforms, investments and public resources. The conference also highlighted the importance of strengthening the role of the social partners and civil society, arguing that meaningful stakeholder participation is essential for effective economic governance and the successful implementation of future EU reforms and investments. More here. 

Priorities including housing, competitiveness, tech regulation, and more effectively including citizens in democratic decision-making among areas of joint work launched.

The European Economic and Social Committee (EESC), the EU body representing organised civil society, officially launched its cooperation with the Irish Government for the upcoming Irish Presidency of the Council of the European Union at a high-level event in Dublin Castle. The event brought together Taoiseach Micheál Martin TD, Minister of State for European Affairs Thomas Byrne TD and EESC President Séamus Boland.

The Irish Government has asked the EESC to contribute to several key presidency priorities, including housing, competitiveness, digital regulation, tackling poverty and the EU's approach to livestock policy. The aim is to ensure that the perspectives of civil society, employers and workers are reflected in EU policy-making. The presidency is particularly significant as it will coincide with the first Irish presidency of the EESC.

The Taoiseach highlighted the importance of dialogue between governments and society, stating: 'The ability of governments, employers, trade unions and organised civil society to engage constructively with one another is fundamental to democratic stability and to effective policy-making. The EESC is a vital link between civil society and the European institutions.'

He added: 'The voice of civil society matters. It matters because Europe cannot succeed through institutions alone. It succeeds when citizens feel ownership of the European project – when workers, farmers, entrepreneurs, voluntary organisations and local communities all feel that they have a stake in shaping Europe’s future.'

Minister Byrne underscored the role of citizen engagement in the presidency's priorities of competitiveness, security and values. 'Europe succeeds when people feel heard and represented. The work of the EESC remains central to that effort,' he said, adding that the Committee plays a valuable role in ensuring that a wide range of societal voices are heard in European decision-making.

EESC President Séamus Boland welcomed the shared agenda: 'I am very pleased that these areas of joint engagement – from democratic participation and equality, to competitiveness, small businesses, housing and digital fairness – reflect an EU Council Presidency that seeks to combine economic ambition with a strong social and citizen-centred dimension.' He added that the Committee particularly appreciates the emphasis on inclusive policy-making and democratic resilience.

As part of this cooperation, the EESC will prepare eight exploratory opinions for the Irish presidency covering democratic participation, equality and competitiveness, the EU livestock strategy, inter-generational poverty, simplification, the Single Market Strategy, the Digital Fairness Act and affordable housing construction. These opinions will support policy discussions and legislative work during the presidency.

The programme also included an exchange of views on the Irish presidency with Minister Byrne and a discussion on Maintaining Core Values in a New Europe, featuring representatives of business, trade unions, farming organisations, youth groups, environmental organisations and wider civil society.

In recent years, EU policy has been influenced by what some see as a selective reading of the Draghi and Letta reports on Europe's future. In a nutshell, the narrative is one of European decline vis à vis the United States, leading to a menacing productivity gap that entails a growing divide on GDP and, ultimately, wealth and growth. Only massive reforms and simplification can reverse this decline.

By the EESC's Workers' Group

The relative waning of Europe's weight in the world is impossible to deny, given the development and growth of the rest of the planet. The train of thought from the productivity gap points, nevertheless, to the differences with the US. 

What if, however, there was no such thing as a growing divide? To begin with, the comparisons depend on indicators that are calculated with differing statistical methods, and to continue, they vary depending on the metric we choose. Productivity measured at current prices (year by year) has not declined in the EU compared to the US. Productivity measured at constant prices (one year as reference) has done so. 

Both have their merits, and have sparked a notable discussion among economists, with Krugman questioning the decline narrative and Garicano leading it, among others. As Krugman explains, this apparent contradiction is explained by the role of the IT sector, which contributes little to overall US production, but accounts for half of its productivity gains. This means that Europe's purchasing power, its material standard of living, is holding against the US. It might explain why, despite the growing riches of the US, eight of the ten countries with the highest human development standards are European, with Hong Kong and Australia completing the ranking. 

This demands a more thorough analysis of the simplification and competitiveness narrative, and its fatalistic implications for the economy, welfare, and the environment. If the last two years' worth of EU policy are largely based on a statistical gimmick and a partial and probably biased reading of economic data and reports, the potential destructive consequences of solving the wrong problem could be disastrous for Europe, particularly when they are in and of themselves damaging for social and environmental sustainability in many cases, justified solely for the greater need and the greater good. It might be time to bridge the productivity trap.

On 30 June, the European Economic and Social Committee initiative ‘Empowering youth voices through the EESC Youth Test’ joined three other finalists in the‘ Excellence in diversity and inclusion’ category at the ceremony for the Ombudsman Award for Good Administration. Amidst the shortlisted projects, the winning recognition was awarded to the DiscoverEU Inclusion Action, a European Commission initiative dedicated to opening Europe to young people with fewer opportunities.

The EESC was represented at the ceremony by Vice-President Marija Hanževački, President of the EESC Youth Group Nicoletta Merlo and Secretary-General Isabelle Le Galo Flores. Emphasising the strategic importance of the nomination, Ms Hanževački underlined that youth participation in EU decision-making must become a necessity: ‘They are our present and future. We must remember: nothing about them, without them.’ 

Entries were drawn from 48 nominations and evaluated based on their demonstration of good public administration, a culture of service and a commitment to improving the lives of citizens. Following this review, three finalists were selected for each award category. 

During the ceremony, European Ombudswoman Teresa Anjinho underscored the originality and innovation of the projects, stating: ‘This year’s nominations highlighted the quality of the work of the EU institutions with projects clearly driven by dedication and a strong commitment to public service and good administration.’ 

The EESC Youth Test enables youth organisations to shape the EESC’s agenda and opinions. The initiative was co-created with the European Youth Forum, and has made made the EESC the first EU institution to introduce a structured mechanism for involving young people directly in its core advisory work. At the heart of the Youth Test is a network of 73 youth organisations from across Europe and beyond. Every month, these organisations can express an interest in upcoming EESC opinions. Based on this input, the EESC section bureau select opinions to be ‘youth tested’. Youth representatives then participate in study group meetings, providing concrete contributions that feed directly into the opinion-drafting process.

Since its launch, over 80 EESC opinions have been youth tested. The initiative has also inspired institutional change, with the European Commission introducing its own Youth Check, and other administrations at EU, national, regional and local level looking to the EESC as a reference point for meaningful youth participation.