Algus

In accordance with Article 7 of Regulation (EC) No 1339/2008 establishing a European Training Foundation (ETF), the agency has a Governing Board to which participate also "three non-voting experts appointed by the European Parliament".

 

The term of office of the 3 experts appointed on 26.03.2009 coming to its end in March 2012, the following candidates were invited for a hearing to the posts in question:

• M. Jean-François Mézières, Directeur Général délégué Education Formation - Conseil Régional du Centre, France
• Ms. Sara Lamb Parkin Obe, Founding Programme Director - Forum for the Future, United Kingdom
• M. Jan Andersson, former Chair of the Committee on Employment and Social Affairs.

 

Two of the candidates, Mr Jan Andersson and Mr Jean-François Mézières, were present, while Ms.Sara Parkin was unable to attend and sent a written statement.

 

The two candidates made a short presentation and answered to questions submitted by Members, in particular on how to improve their contribution to the EP activities and enhance its role.

 

The committee supported their candidacies and will transmit their names to the President, in view of the designation by the Conference of Presidents.

The Committee adopted an oral question on the EGF crisis derogation with 37 votes in favour and 2 votes against.

 

The Commission proposed to extend the crisis derogation relating to the European Globalisation Adjustment Fund (EGF). While Parliament has endorsed the proposal, the EPSCO Council did not reach a political agreement on it. Consequently, the Member States will not be able to apply for the support for workers made redundant as a direct result of the global financial and economic crisis as provided for in article 1 (1a) of Regulation No 1927/2006. The oral question inquires about the reasons for blocking the proposal, about the calendar established to make progress on this dossier under the Danish Presidency and about the impact of the disagreement on the debate concerning the proposal for a regulation on the EGF for the period 2014-2020.

Ms. Frederiksen (Minister for Employment) and Ms. Haekkerup (Minister for Social Affairs and Integration) presented their priorities in the context of the Danish Presidency. They both stressed the importance attached to cooperation with the EP namely in times of crisis and underlined their strong will to maintain on the values and the principles of the EU. They indicated that employment and employability, the youth unemployment, upgrading of skills and retraining workforce, demographic trends, ensuring equal status of men and women, social inclusion, the ESF and the implementation of the EU 2020 Strategy are some of the core subjects that would constitute the highlights of their respective portfolios. They also underlined that the Council Presidency Troika (Polish-Danish-Cypriot Presidency) has chosen ''demographic trends'' as a common theme to focus upon. It was also underlined the importance attached by the Presidency to the posting of workers and to the antidiscrimination directives as well as to the modifications to the regulation on the coordination of the social security systems and to the draft directive on the protection of workers from electromagnetic fields.

 

Members generally reserved a good reception to the presentation given and reiterated the importance attached by the EP for the achievement of the objectives of the 2020 Strategy as regards employment and social inclusion. The also stressed the importance for an agreement on legislative files under consideration.