Brexit and the European Council
Wednesday 27 March
Udo Bullmann udo.bullmann@europarl.europa.eu +33(0) 388 1 75342
“The European Council has shown leadership where Theresa May has failed. Her proposal of extending to the end of June, without a clear plan of what she would do with the extra time, was clearly unworkable and would have created an even steeper cliff edge. Brexit was apparently about taking back control, instead we are witnessing a UK Prime Minister abdicating essential decisions and trying to place the blame on others. This is now an emergency situation. This is the final shot for May.”
S&D press officer: Angelika Pentsi +32 473 93 00 60
Financial crimes, tax evasion and tax avoidance
Monday 25 March
Jeppe Kofod jeppe.kofod@ep.europa.eu +33(0)388 1 75463
"We want companies to pay a minimum effective tax rate of absolutely no less than 18%. While workers in OECD countries pay more than one quarter of wages in tax, multinationals often pay close to 0% tax or even avoid taxes entirely. This has to change! The EU needs to get serious about its systemic money-laundering problem, and realise that the current institutional framework is not fit for purpose. Cooperation between member states’ authorities on cross-border cases of financial crimes continues to be slow, inefficient and ad hoc at best. That is why we need EU-level mechanisms to ensure that the European Single Market and the free movement of capital, will be properly supervised and scrutinised.”
S&D press officer: Markus Wolschlager +32 484 12 73 31
Protection of workers from the risks related to exposure to carcinogens or mutagens at work
Wednesday 27 March
Marita Ulvskog marita.ulvskog@europarl.europa.eu +33(0)388 1 75443
“S&Ds fought hard to ensure better protection of workers from carcinogenic and mutagenic substances. The new rules are expected to improve the health of over one million workers and prevent over 22.000 cases of work-related illness. This is an important step forward that shows we will never stop fighting to improve health and safety in the work place.”
S&D press officer: Victoria Martín De La Torre +32 473 23 41 73
European Regional and Development Fund and Cohesion Fund
Tuesday 26 March
Andrea Cozzolino andrea.cozzolino@europarl.europa.eu +33(0)388 1 75517
"The European Regional and Development Fund and Cohesion Fund is now more flexible as we shifted the focus from the national to the regional level. We nearly doubled investments for cities and their urban sustainable development from 6 to 10%. For the first time, a minimum of 5% could also be allocated to small villages and rural areas which were hit hard by the crisis. The investment clause offers further national flexibility to support key areas in the interest of our citizens. This is a huge success for more jobs and sustainable growth in our European regions."
S&D press officer: Markus Wolschlager +32 484 12 73 31
Mobility package
Wednesday 27 March
Ismail Ertug MEP ismail.ertug@europarl.europa.eu +33(0)388 1 75547
“This is a very difficult package affecting the well-being of 3.6 million professional drivers in Europe. The S&Ds are the best-placed group to find the right balance between protecting workers’ rights and safety and leaving enough room for enterprises to thrive, especially SMEs. The balance is not always easy but in the market access report we show how many loopholes can be closed in order to avoid abuses, such as creating fake letterbox companies to avoid fair salaries for drivers. We will not allow flexibility at the expense of drivers and we found a way to significantly improve the enforcement of rules. We S&Ds are working for a more socially just Europe, and for the economic rapprochement between the East and West.”
S&D press officer: Victoria Martín De La Torre +32473234173
Seasonal change of time
Monday 25 March
Marita Ulvskog marita.ulvskog@europarl.europa.eu +33(0)388 1 75443
“Member states choose if they want wintertime or summertime as permanent standard time. But it is very important for the EU internal market to work and to keep a harmonised approach within the internal market, with for example transport and communications. We want a coordinated mechanism, where member states need to cooperate and coordinate between themselves to avoid a patchwork of different times in the EU.”
S&D press officer: Victoria Martín De La Torre +32 473 23 41 73
Internal market for electricity
Monday 25 March
Flavio Zanonato MEP flavio.zanonato@europarl.europa.eu +33(0)388 1 75363
“Even where markets and systems function well, an electricity crisis can start for a variety of reasons such as extreme weather conditions, malicious attacks including cyber-attacks, or just a fuel shortage. Furthermore, where crises occur, they often have a cross-border effect because the electricity system is already integrated. Therefore, circumstances such as a prolonged cold spell or a heat wave might affect several member states, and even incidents that started locally may rapidly spread across borders. That’s why we need to be ready and fill the regulatory gap that we have today.”
S&D press officer: Victoria Martín De La Torre +32 473 23 41 73
