A4-0099/99

Resolution on the Commission report to the Council, the European Parliament, the Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions on 'Social protection in Europe 1997 - Executive summary' (COM(98)0243 - C4-0375/98)

The European Parliament,

- having regard to the Commission report (COM(98)0243 - C4-0375/98),

- having regard to Articles 2, 3, 117 and 118 (future Articles 2, 3, 136 and 137) of the Treaty establishing the European Community,

- having regard to the Agreement on social policy concluded between the Member States of the European Community with the exception of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, in particular Articles 1 and 2 thereof, and to the declaration by the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland at the Amsterdam Intergovernmental Conference that it would accede to this Agreement,

- having regard to the Treaty of Amsterdam, in particular future Article 13 and Article 118 (future Article 137) of the EC Treaty,

- having regard to the Community Charter of the Fundamental Social Rights of Workers,

- having regard to Council Recommendation 92/441/EEC of 24 June 1992 on common criteria concerning sufficient resources and social assistance in social protection systems ((OJ L 245, 26.8.1992, p. 46.)) and Council Recommendation 92/442/EEC of 27 July 1992 on the convergence of social protection objectives and policies ((OJ L 245, 26.8.1992, p. 49.)) and to the Commission's report on the implementation of the first mentioned Council Recommendation (COM(98)0774),

- having regard to the Council Resolution of 30 June 1993 on flexible retirement arrangements ((OJ C 188, 10.7.1993, p. 1.)),

- having regard to the Commission Green Paper on Supplementary Pensions in the Single Market (COM(97)0283 - C4-0392/97),

- having regard to its resolutions of 19 February 1997 on the Commission communication 'The future of social protection: a framework for a European debate' and on the report from the Commission on social protection in Europe 1995 ((OJ C 85, 17.3.1997, p. 63.)) and of 6 November 1997 on the Commission communication on modernising and improving social protection in the European Union ((OJ C 358, 24.11.1997, p. 51.)),

- having regard to its resolution of 12 March 1998 on the Commission report on the demographic situation in 1997 ((OJ C 104, 6.4.1998, p. 222.)),

- having regard to its legislative resolution of 30 April 1998 embodying its opinion on the proposal for a Council Directive on safeguarding the supplementary pension rights of employed and self-employed persons moving within the European Union ((OJ C 152, 18.5.1998, p. 65.)),

- having regard to the petitions addressed to the European Parliament concerning freedom of movement and recognition of social security entitlements in the European Union,

- having regard to the report of the Committee on Employment and Social Affairs and the opinion of the Committee on Women's Rights (A4-0099/99),

A. whereas the European model of social protection based on solidarity is crucial for the preservation of social peace, is a significant precondition for lasting economic development and has to be seen as a positive competitive factor,

B. whereas current population trends require social protection systems to be adapted, although the fundamental principles on which they are based, particularly the principle of social solidarity, must not be restricted,

C. whereas, if Member States encourage citizens to make their own supplementary pension arrangements in order to cover social risks, such arrangements must be voluntary and must not result in different degrees of social security or encroach upon the principle of solidarity; whereas in particular the strengthening of market mechanisms in the area of medical and hospital care must not result in a two-tier health service,

D. whereas increasing the proportion of those in gainful employment, particularly women and older workers, is a key factor in guaranteeing the financing of social protection systems in the future and whereas the expansion of minding facilities and the modernisation of working arrangements can make a major contribution to attaining this objective,

E. whereas an appropriate level of social protection must be guaranteed for atypical forms of work,

F. whereas implementation of the single market and of economic and monetary union, the forthcoming enlargement of the European Union and the European employment strategy will in future require closer cooperation between Member States in the area of social protection,

G. whereas an individual approach to entitlements would enhance the independence and autonomy of the individual,

H. whereas the trend towards employment-oriented social protection systems cannot disguise the fact that it is not possible to integrate all sections of the population through active labour market measures and that welfare safety nets, set at a high level, must therefore remain in place and/or be expanded, including for persons who are temporarily unable to find employment and for those permanently excluded from the labour market,

I. whereas the abovementioned Commission's report on the implementation of Council Recommendation 92/441/EEC underlines the need to optimise the social protection given to the sections of the population most in need, to increase their access to employment and to develop their social and economic integration,

General remarks

1. Takes note of the Commission report on social protection in Europe in 1997 and of the communication submitted at the same time and welcomes the Commission's intention to continue the political debate on the future of social protection by presenting a strategic communication in 1999 which should contain specific legislative proposals and also take account of the situation of the social protection systems in the Central and Eastern European applicant countries;

Social convergence

2. Calls on the Commission to use the evaluation announced in its social action programme for 1998-2000 of the implementation of abovementioned Council Recommendation 92/442/EEC to set in motion a process of voluntary alignment of objectives and policies in the area of social protection modelled on the European employment strategy;

3. Calls on the Commission to present, by way of preparation for this process, an action plan on social protection in which:

- the effects of the different social protection systems in the Member States on competitiveness in the internal market and on the social conditions in which citizens live are analysed;

- the correlation between increased productivity and the evolution of social protection systems is set out;

- a figure is put on the economic damage arising from the evasion of social security contributions;

- inconsistencies in the design of taxation and social protection systems are identified;

- the criteria for a benchmarking process in the area of social protection are defined;

- a code of conduct for avoiding harmful competition via social security systems is presented, through which closer cooperation between the Member States is ensured in these areas;

- on the basis of Article 118 (future Article 137)(3) of the EC Treaty, minimum standards are proposed for certain areas of social protection;

- on the basis of a uniform method and definition for determining the poverty line, guidelines are presented for determining an acceptable minimum level of subsistence in the Member States;

Social protection and employment

4. Calls on the Commission to submit a proposal for a directive setting minimum standards of contractual social protection for all forms of atypical work;

5. Calls on the Commission to initiate consultation between the social partners on the issue of flexible transition to retirement with the aim of securing either a framework agreement or collective bargaining agreements at the appropriate level of social partners;

6. Calls on the Council to include in the employment policy guidelines specific targets for the expansion of child-minding facilities and facilities for relatives in need of care; calls on the Commission to look at the possibility of setting binding common minimum standards in this area;

Pension systems including aspects relating to equal treatment between men and women

7. Calls on the Commission and Member States, within the limits of their competences, to attempt, in the medium term, to coordinate social and retirement pension schemes and eliminate inconsistencies between employment insurance and social insurance provisions; calls on the Member States, in particular, in this connection, to improve their work on ensuring mutual recognition of social and retirement pension schemes by implementing existing legislation;

8. Calls on the Commission to press for the adoption of a code of conduct on the tax treatment of pension contributions and pension schemes and on the taxation of the profits of pension funds and, on this basis, to put forward a proposal adapting Directive 98/49/EC of 29 June 1998 on safeguarding supplementary pension rights of employed and self-employed persons moving within the Community ((OJ L 209, 25.7.1998, p. 46.)) by regulating the transferability of entitlements from supplementary pension schemes;

9. Calls on the Commission to look at the separate systems of social protection to see how an individual approach to entitlements can be implemented without persons who on family grounds interrupt or do not engage in gainful activity being placed at a disadvantage;

Social exclusion

10. Calls on the Commission to prepare proposals to combat discrimination and social exclusion on the basis of future Article 13 and Article 118 (future Article 137) of the EC Treaty in line with the results of its report on the implementation of abovementioned Council Recommendation 92/441/EEC and, as a matter of urgency, to present a coherent plan for drastically reducing the number of people in the European Union living below the poverty line;

11. Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council, the Commission, the Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions.