The European Economic and Social Committee has been supporting the idea of a European Energy Union from its first inception as a European Energy Community in 2010. The annual State of the Energy Union report is also broadly welcomed by the EESC as a means to keep energy at the top of the political agenda across the European Union and ensure coordinated progress across sectors and Member states. The 2015 version of the State of the Energy Union is a snapshot taken only nine months after the launch of the Energy Union programme, limiting the reports' usefulness to judge progress made towards the Energy Union. However, as is noted in the opinion, the report's publication provides the EESC a welcome opportunity to identify particular aspects in advancing and governing the Energy Union that are of particular importance to Europe's civil society.
Plenary session 27-28 April 2016 - Related Opinions
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9
Przyjęte on 27/04/2016
Sygnatura:
TEN/580-EESC-2015Rapporteur:
Stéphane BUFFETAUT (France)
Przyjęte on 27/04/2016
Sygnatura:
INT/777-EESC-2015-06789-00-00-AC-TRAReferral:
COM(2015) 750 final 2015/0269 CODRapporteur:
The EESC endorses the proposal for a Directive and suggests other measures which it considers could contribute towards increasing citizens' security: the possibility of placing indelible marks on bullets, which facilitates the traceability of arms and ammunition; making data available on interoperable databases at European level; the introduction of a gun buy-back programme; and reviewing the risks related to 3D printing of lethal weapons, without any possibility of verification or traceability.
Przyjęte on 27/04/2016
Sygnatura:
SOC/531-EESC-2016-00258-00-00-ac-traRapporteur:
Co-rapporteur:
The opinion, as adopted by the SOC section, recalled that labour mobility is a cornerstone of the internal market and can help to bring employment opportunities and prosperity to European citizens and companies. When conducted under fair conditions and when it offers a positive option, such mobility can be enriching and beneficial for workers, employers and society as a whole.
Therefore, special effort is needed to guarantee and promote the free movement of workers in the EU abolishing any discrimination based on nationality, avoiding unjustified restrictions for both workers and businesses.
Przyjęte on 27/04/2016
Sygnatura:
ECO/405-EESC-2016-01284-00-00-AC-TRAReferral:
COM(2016) 25 final 2016/0010 CNSCOM(2016) 25 final 2016/0010 CNSCOM(2016) 26 final 2016/0011 CNSRapporteur:
Co-rapporteur:
Roger BARKER (United Kingdom)
The EESC has in numerous opinions urged for a fair, efficient and growth-friendly corporate tax system, based on the principle that companies should pay taxes in the country where profits are generated. Thus, the Committee welcomes the Commission’s initiatives intended to combat aggressive tax planning and broadly supports the proposed measures as regards the essential elements of the two legislative proposals, the Anti-Tax-Avoidance-Directive as well as the Directive on Administrative Cooperation. It advocates for a more precise scope and framework in certain specific areas (such as e.g. the switch-over clause). The Committee urges to finish drawing up the list of countries or regions which refuse to apply good governance standards and considers that the envisaged legislative measures should not apply to SMEs.
Przyjęte on 27/04/2016
Sygnatura:
SOC/532-EESC-2016-00262-00-00-ac-traRapporteur:
Co-rapporteur:
EU Member States face the arrival of many refugees, who need to be integrated into the host societies once their protected status is granted. The EESC is convinced that integration is a necessity for the preservation of social cohesion. This exploratory opinion, drawn up at the request of the Dutch Presidency of the EU, clarifies the meaning of "integration" and looks at comparability with previous refugee movements, successful integration measures applied in the various EU member states, and the financing of integration measures for refugees, resulting in a set of best practices and recommendations.
Przyjęte on 27/04/2016
Sygnatura:
INT/775-EESC-2015-06292-00-00-AC-TRARapporteur:
Jorge PEGADO LIZ (Portugal)
In this Opinion on two proposals for directives (on supply of digital content and online sales), the Committee disagrees with the legal basis chosen by the Commission and proposes Article 169 TFEU instead; as a consequence, the Committee thinks that the measures adopted should be based on minimum harmonisation and would have preferred the use of a regulation instead of a directive.
Przyjęte on 27/04/2016
Sygnatura:
INT/772-EESC-2015-06603-00-00-AC-TRAReferral:
COM(2015) 630 final Rapporteur:
With this opinion the EESC takes the opportunity to comment on how the European market for retail financial services can be further opened up. The EESC welcomes that the Commission is on track and has an ambitious programme for implementing the Action Plan on Building a Capital Markets Union, also endorsing that consumers should be given the opportunity, whenever possible, to compare different products, so they can make an informed choice.
Downloads:
Przyjęte on 27/04/2016
Sygnatura:
NAT/676-EESC-2016-00042-00-01-AC-TRAReferral:
COM(2015) 593 final 2015/0272 CODCOM(2015) 594 final 2015/0274 CODCOM(2015) 595 final 2015/0275 CODCOM(2015) 595 final 2015/0275 CODCOM(2015) 596 final 2015/0276 CODCOM(2015) 596 final 2015/0276 CODCOM(2015) 614 final COM(2015) 614 final Rapporteur:
The EESC fully backs the objective of switching to a greener, resource-efficient and circular economy. It is happy to see that the Commission has come forward with a broader set of proposals covering all the stages of the product lifecycle compared to the previous circular economy package; however, it raises concern over the lower level of ambition, which is likely to lead to lower economic and environmental benefits.
Przyjęte on 27/04/2016
Sygnatura:
REX/449-EESC-2015Referral:
COM(2015) 497 final Rapporteur:
Jonathan PEEL (United Kingdom)
The European Commission review of EU trade strategy is timely in the first year of a new Commission.
The intense public interest that has been aroused by the TTIP negotiations between the EU and the US demonstrates that trade is no longer an esoteric matter nor the concern of those few who are sufficiently involved to master the finer, highly technical detail that trade involves. It is now a popular issue and part of the public agenda, but because of its technicalities it is also open to wide misunderstanding.
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