News

Key events taking place in Brussels are marking important steps for the future of the EU.  Last Friday the European Council set the strategic agenda for the next five years and in two weeks Brussels will host the sixth round of negotiations on the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP).

The strategic agenda set by the EU Summit recognised that unemployment, in particular youth unemployment, and poverty and social exclusion remain major concerns for Europe. However, the proposed solution is that “fiscal consolidation must continue in a growth-friendly and differentiated manner”.  While this strategic agenda should take the EU forward, we should be very cautious that it does not lead to dropping the social objectives member states committed themselves too under the Europe 2020 Strategy (you can read our press release). It seems that Europe is regressing by 15 years – back to when the Lisbon agenda was launched with a focus on economic growth without ensuring that it was sustainable and inclusive.

The same trend can be observed if someone looks at what is going on in relation to TTIP. On June 17, Social Platform, together with its members SOLIDAR and the European Public Health Alliance (EPHA), and in cooperation with the European Public Service Union (EPSU), organised an event on the possible impacts of TTIP on essential services such as social and health services. At first glance, the enormity of this deal should be good news for people living in Europe given that further integration of transatlantic businesses could bring job opportunities and better consumer choices. As recently leaked documents show, the EU seems to be aware of the need to provide protection to education, social and health services, but it seems that a considerable number of member sstates are seeking to remove rules that underpin universal access to quality services. (Read more in the Parliament Magazine article and the joint press release).

In the frame of the Spring Alliance, Social Platform has called for the exclusion from the scope of trade agreements and in particular TTIP, of all public services and social, health, educational and cultural services provided by private providers. We also want to guarantee that the recognition of the specificities of social, health and other services provided to the person ensured by EU legislation (new public procurement directive, state aid Almunia package, services directive) is not undermined by this agreement.

The TTIP negotiations are re-proposing the same debate that happened 10 years ago with the services directive. Services of General  (Economic) Interest, including social, health and education, are shared values of the Union and their role is to promote social and territorial cohesion (art. 14 TFEU and Protocol 26). They are also an essential component of the European Social Model, in respect of the different cultural traditions of the member states: many countries foresee a predominant not for profit or public provision that should not be put in jeopardy by this agreement, as profit making should not be the driving force in the provision of these services.

On the contrary it seems that a liberalisation agenda is driving the TTIP talks, including in relation to these essential services, which so far haven’t been excluded from the scope of the agreement. Economic growth and job creation should not be achieved at the expense of social rights.

It is time for a rebalancing between economic, internal market and social policies, in the name of the “social market economy” that is enshrined in our Treaties. In the last decade we have seen a lot of market economy and very little of social policies. Therefore, we are ready to mobilise civil society and politicians to restore this balance. 

Valentina Caimi 

Policy and Advocacy Adviser