Responsibility for preventing cyberbullying must rest primarily with digital platforms rather than with children and young people. This is the central message of a new opinion in which the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) calls for stronger platform accountability, straightforward reporting procedures and meaningful youth participation in the fight against harmful online behaviour.
Europe is facing a pivotal moment. Social and economic inequalities, rapid technological change, anti-democratic forces and geopolitical instability are straining the foundations of the European project.
With democracy and civic space under mounting pressure, civil society organisations, human rights defenders and free media face growing constraints - from restrictive laws and disinformation campaigns to underfunding and public distrust. Deepening polarisation and eroding trust in institutions further undermine Europe’s democratic model.
This report proposes the creation of a Public EU Rating Agency focused on environmental and social sustainability and human rights, aiming to support EU sustainability efforts by setting standards, accrediting auditors, and centralizing data
The EESC assesses how the EU’s sustainable finance framework can be made more robust and fit for purpose given its importance for the EU’s economic, social and climate objectives. The EESC affirms that simplification should not come at the cost of ambition. While administrative streamlining is needed, the focus should be on how requirements can be implemented more effectively, not on weakening standards. The EU’s regulatory strength and predictability are important competitive advantages that should be preserved amid growing geopolitical and economic uncertainty.
This document seeks to provide input to the Global Coalition for Social Justice. It highlights key messages from EESC opinions on the six priority areas identified by the International Labour Organization (ILO) for immediate action.
With this debate, the ECO section is providing ex-ante input to the European Commission, in preparation for the upcoming 2023 strategic foresight cycle that wants to shed light on the strategic decisions needed to ensure a socially and economically sustainable Europe with a stronger role in the world in the coming decades.
Between June 2021 and March 2022, the EESC held a series of events on the updated new industrial strategy. Each event was organised by a different section of the EESC and focused on a specific aspect of the strategy, with the aim of hearing the views of civil society organisations on the future of European industry.
A proposed review of EU banking rules aims at ensuring that EU banks become more resilient to potential future economic shocks, while contributing to Europe's recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic and the transition to climate neutrality. The public hearing will provide the views of institutional and civil society stakeholders, and will help form the policy recommendations the EESC is drawing up on the legislative proposals currently under discussion.
The EESC welcomes the implementation of the remaining elements of the international standards agreed by the Basel Committee for Banking Supervision, from the perspective of both timing and substance, as they are meant to enhance the stability of the financial market in the EU, and thus not to expose European citizens to increased financial market risks. The EESC also stresses that financial market stability is a crucial prerequisite for overall economic stability, whereas the sound regulation and surveillance of the banking sector is essential in order to prevent the threat of turbulences and crisis.
