The EESC proposes to launch a European Care Guarantee, which would ensure life-long access to affordable quality healthcare and care services for everyone living in the EU. It also underlines the importance of supporting families in their fundamental role as caregivers and asks for adopting specific measures to tackle Gender equality, namely addressing gender stereotypes, attracting more men in the sector and ensure better distribution of care within households.
In addition, the Committee highlights the need for a life cycle approach promoting healthy and active ageing and calls for the development of a European Strategy for Older Persons.
Download — Mnenje EESO: The European Care strategy
The Commission initiative proposes to adapt rules on products to take account of developments linked to the move towards a circular and digital economy on liability for damage caused by new and refurbished products. It also aims at reducing obstacles to getting compensation for damage in order to ensure that injured parties are equally protected throughout the EU.
Download — Mnenje EESO: Revision of the product liability directive
The purpose of the AI Liability Directive is to lay down uniform rules for access to information and alleviation of the burden of proof in relation to damages caused by AI systems, establishing broader protection for victims (be it individuals or businesses), and fostering the AI sector by increasing guarantees. It will harmonise certain rules for claims outside of the scope of the Product Liability Directive, in cases in which damage is caused due to wrongful behaviour.
The Covid-19 pandemic is strongly affecting the Euro-Mediterranean region, creating new challenges and exacerbating pre-existing ones. The pandemic has highlighted fundamental weaknesses in institutions, economies and health systems. Civil society plays a key role in the reconstruction and resilience of the whole region.
Download — Mnenje EESO: COVID-19: The role of civil society in the reconstruction and resilience of the Euro-Mediterranean region
In 2017, the EESC organised a hearing and adopted a report on the LeaderSHIP 2020 Strategy as regards the maritime technology sector in Europe. This exercise was aimed at paving the way for the adoption of a new LeaderSHIP Strategy beyond 2020. Unfortunately, this strategy was not adopted.
Download — Mnenje EESO: An industrial strategy for the maritime technology sector
This opinion underlines that by creating a fertile ground for women entrepreneurship and the adequate financial and legislative instruments, such as gender budgeting, we can create an inclusive financial ecosystem in the EU and Member States and advance faster towards gender equality. It suggests that diversity of teams with a specific focus on women should be a criterion for receiving public funding. This Opinion also calls for an ambitious vision from the European Commission and the European institutions on gender budgeting and gender lens investing. It suggests that the EC publishes a gender impact assessment of the annual EU budget and creates a task force to include gender mainstreaming EU objectives in the next MFF and in the mid-term review of the current MFF.
Download — Mnenje EESO: Gender lens investing as a way to improve gender equality in the European Union
This own-initiative opinion will offer an overview of how gender equality and economic empowerment has been built into the RRF Regulation and will focus on gender-oriented public investments and programmes foreseen in NRRPs on targeted recovery plans to support women’s participation in the labour market, while giving concrete recommendations to ensure gender-based investments.
Download — Mnenje EESO: Gender-based investments in national recovery and resilience plans
Download — Mnenje EESO: Management, conservation and control measures applicable in the Area covered under the Southern Indian Ocean Fisheries Agreement (SIOFA)
This Opinion welcomes the Commission's ambition to reduce the incidence of cancer, and its specific efforts to minimise exposure to asbestos at work. It recommends that the technical limit value for asbestos exposure under the Directive on the protection of workers from the risks related to exposure to asbestos at work should ultimately be set at a lower level than the Commission is currently proposing. This Opinion also suggests that roadmap of complementary measures over and above the Commission's proposals should be drawn up in order to achieve that objective. It calls on the EU and its Member States to actively promote an international ban on the use of asbestos and protection for workers dealing with existing asbestos during activities such as renovation, demolition and waste management.
Download — Mnenje EESO: Protection from exposure to asbestos at work
This Opinion welcomes the European Media Freedom Act and all the related EU initiatives aiming to address the worrying developments in the area of media freedom over the last years. The Opinion entails a number of recommendations concerning editorial and journalists' independence; the need for financial resources to ensure independence of public media; transparency in the allocation of State advertising; transparency of media ownership. The Opinion also calls for measures to ensure the independence of national regulatory bodies, especially in the context of the future European board for media services. It also considers that EU anti-concentration law should be used where national regulators fail to address media market concentration.
Download — Mnenje EESO: European Media Freedom Act
