Euroopan talous- ja sosiaalikomitea
The European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) adopted a Resolution on its contribution to the European Commission's 2021 work programme at its July plenary session. The document welcomes the proposals made by the European Commission to overcome the COVID-19 crisis and sees the next year as an opportunity to restructure and improve the EU’s economy and society.
At its June plenary session the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) hosted a debate with Michel Barnier, Head of the EU Task Force for Relations with the United Kingdom. Barnier informed of the state of play of Brexit negotiations and expressed his disappointment over the attitude of the British government which, in his opinion, was not respecting the Political Declaration signed in October 2019: "We expect the UK to respect its engagements", said Barnier.
A few days after the European Commission presented its proposal for a major recovery plan to face the consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic, on 2 June the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) held a webinar to assess its suitability. All participants agreed on the importance of this ambitious initiative, an example of the solidarity and the political will of all EU Member States in times of uncertainty.
EU Council summit on February 20 was a double disappointment: no progress in defining a position to start negotiations with the parliament, and severe cuts proposed to the EU Budget, without any mention to EU's own resources.
Looking back to their past experiences as organisers of European Citizens' Initiatives, activists attending the ECI Day 2020 at the EESC on 25 February warned against asking people what Europe they want and then ignoring their input.
[FR bientôt disponible] The European Economic and Social Committee has forcefully reiterated its call for a Multiannual Financial Framework of 1.3% of EU-27 gross national income (GNI) for the period of 2021-2027. The Committee called on the European Parliament to insist on a strong budget in its negotiations with the Council. This call comes at a crucial moment on the way towards an agreement on the next EU long-term budget, with the European Council addressing the issue again on 20 February.
EESC is ready to give a helping hand to Croatian endeavours to strengthen the Union and promote a credible and merit-based EU enlargement policy.
The European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) paid tribute to its British members on 22 January 2020 at the last plenary session they will attend before the UK leaves the EU on 31 January. The 24 members representing the United Kingdom received a commemorative medal in a ceremony that showed the EESC's commitment to maintaining strong ties with British civil society after Brexit.
The European Union should grasp the opportunity of the new political mandate and financial period to improve its economic policy coordination and governance. The European Semester should become the most important element of economic policy coordination and a multi-level and multi-actor governance approach should be implemented, says the European Economic and Social Committee. It suggests that an EESC competence centre for exchange of information could be established to address implementation concerns in relation to a future EU strategy.
At its plenary session in July, the European Economic and Social Committee presented proposals for the economic agenda of the upcoming legislative period (2019-2024) and recommended that they should form the basis of a new European economic strategy. The Committee's proposals seek to develop more resilient and sustainable EU economic policies within an improved governance framework for the Economic and Monetary Union.
