3 June: Social Platform conference on the Social Dimension of the EU Presidency in Luxembourg

In July 2015 Luxembourg will take over the Presidency of the EU. Social Platform is organising a civil society conference to discuss the social dimension of the Luxembourgish EU Presidency priorities. This event is bringing together a wide range of key stakeholders including governmental representatives and Luxembourgish and EU civil society. The conference is open to members of the public.

Date: 3 June 9.00-14.30

Venue: Neimënster – Centre Culturel de Rencontre Abbaye de Neumünster (Salle Edmon Dune) – 28, rue Münster – Luxembourg-Grund

Interpretation from/into English/French will be provided.

Wifi will be available at the conference venue. Our twitter account is @social_platform and the hash tag for the meeting is #socialeu2015lu

Agenda

9.00-9.30 Arrival and Registration

9.30-10.00 Introduction by Jana Hainsworth, President, Social Platform

Keynote speech by Mr Nicolas Schmit, Minister of Labour, Employment and the Social and Solidarity Economy

10.00-10.45 Presentation of civil society organisation’s key social messages

Luxembourgish and European NGOs will present recommendations relevant to the EU Presidency priorities on the four themes below.

Moderated by Pierre Baussand, Director, Social Platform

  1. Social economy: the role of the EU in setting adequate legal and financial frameworks, including public procurement, to support the development of social economy.
  2. Social investment: the investment in ambitious social policies, including social protection and social services, and the new European investment strategy.
  3. Social governance of the European Union: to ensure a balance between economic and social priorities and serve the well-being of all people, in particular in the context of the European Semester.
  4. Equal treatment: to facilitate the negotiations on the horizontal Equal Treatment Directive COM (2008)426. Vice-President Timmermans and Commissioner Jourová are both committed to adopting it by the end of 2015.

10.45-11.15 Reply by Minister Mr Nicolas Schmit and reaction  by Jana Hainsworth, President, Social Platform

11.15-11.30 Coffee break

11.30-12.25 First panel debate: “An adequate financial framework to support the development of social economy: what are the needs and what are the best instruments?”

Moderator: Valentina Caimi, Policy and Advocacy Adviser, Social Platform

Robert Urbé, President, Union Luxembourgeoise de l’Economie Sociale et Solidaire

Uli Grabenwarter, Deputy Director – Equity Investments, European Investment Fund

Hedda Pahlson-Moller, CEO, OMSINT/TIIME; Board member, European Venture Philanthropy Association (EVPA), European Business Angel Network (EBAN), Luxembourg Business Angel Network (LBAN) and Luxembourg Microfinance and Development Fund (LMDF); co-founder of The Impactory (now NYUKO)

12.25-13.20 Second panel debate: “How can the Luxembourgish EU Presidency deliver the EU antidiscrimination law?”

Moderator: Pierre Baussand, Director, Social Platform

Mario Huberty, President, Centre for Equal Treatment

Laure Amoyel, Chef de Division Intégration et Diversité, Ministère de la Famille, de l’Intégration et à la Grande Région

Silvio Sagramola, Coordinator, European Concept for Accessibility Network (EuCAN); Director, Centre National d’Information et de Rencontre du Handicap – Info-Handicap

13.20-13.30 Concluding remarks by Jana Hainsworth, President, Social Platform

13.30-14.30          Lunch

Contact: Valentina Caimi

Read about our last visit ahead of the Latvian EU Presidency