CONFERENCECONCLUSIONS

Drafted by the EU2020 Steering Committee of the EESC

"Europe 2020 – paths for reinventing Europe's future"

On 6 July 2015, over 200 representatives from European civil society met at the European Economic and Social Committee to analyse the current situation and make proposals on how civil society can participate more efficiently in the EU's reform framework. As the socio-economic situation is changing rapidly and the Europe 2020 strategy is currently undergoing revision, policy-makers, civil society organisations, academics and national economic and social councils brought multiple perspectives to the debate, giving a fresh view outlining concrete propositions with respect to economic, environmental and social challenges, while addressing governance as a cross-cutting issue.

Towards a relaunch of the Europe 2020 Strategy

Currently the Europe 2020 strategy – five years after its launch – is not ensuring smart, sustainable and inclusive growth. The mid-term evaluation of the strategy is taking place at a time of profound disenchantment and disappointment with the European Union, as severe inequalities between and within Member States are growing, thereby aggravating economic, social and territorial fractures. These negative developments are in turn exacerbating a deep political crisis.

Europe is facing a new situation, dominated by rising complexity, uncertainty and rapid change. The new century brought along changes produced by economic crises, globalisation, the technological revolution and social and geopolitical challenges. This calls for a paradigm shift and bold new political commitments.

The upcoming mid-term evaluation of the EU2020 Strategy represents an important opportunity to ensure its effective relaunch. On the basis of continuous monitoring by the Europe 2020 Steering Committee, we request that the European Commission take into account the following conclusions and recommendations.

A relaunch has to be based on a reshaping of the EU2020 strategy by:

the transition from the concept of economic growth to sustainable development in terms of economic, social, environmental and intergenerational changes, on the basis of Article 3 of the EU Treaty;

reinforcing the anchoring of the EU2020 Strategy within the European Semester, implying: the identification of a set of verifiable indicators of the economic, social,

environmental and intergenerational development of the EU; enhanced involvement of economic and social partners as well as representatives of

organised civil society at the national and European level, to be achieved through increased flexibility of the streamlined European Semester. This would allow for systematic feedback from the stakeholders and an adequate system of social impact assessment of the policies prepared at national and European level.

linking the targets of the strategy to a set of national policies coordinated at European level; linking the targets of the strategy to the European Fund for Strategic Investments.

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It is critical that the Commission keeps the EU2020 target of reducing poverty by 20 million people by focusing on quality employment and on social investments. EU social funds should support EU social priorities, concentrating on a limited number of key social investment areas, such as the modernisation of vocational training systems or increased effectiveness of labour market policies with the elimination of precariousness in the labour market (which should be clearly reflected in the National Reform Programmes and the Country Specific Recommendations (CSRs)). In order to increase funding, public and private investments should be increased considerably. Strong efforts are needed from all the Member States to launch targeted reforms in this area in order to ensure that they reach critical mass and that their impact is maximised.

Relaunching the strategy requires a paradigm shift to make the economic, environment and social targets interdependent, using a holistic approach intended to secure a better balance between the qualitative and quantitative aspects of development. At the same time the targets have to be binding for the Member States. This is the way to build a resilient system that can give European civil society "protection and development", managing and even anticipating crises and economic as well as social change. Resilience has to be given a more central position in the processes for supporting the transition from crisis to recovery and development.

The EU has to regain its competitiveness by increasing productivity, focusing on quality investments, increasing exports, and strengthening research and development, while restoring the social dimension at the same time. The EU needs to boost its innovation capacity so that it can drive forward an effective industrial policy based on a more sustainable, inclusive and resource-efficient economy. In this context the 7 flagship initiatives need to be reviewed and upgraded to be able to respond to new challenges. The new vision for growth and jobs has to be built on the following pillars:

Completion of the single European market (including an effective digital single market); An industrial policy based on strong innovation as well as appropriate research and

development; An Energy Union; A transition to a low carbon and resource efficient economy; An investment plan that includes social investment; A lifelong learning strategy providing relevant skills.

The community method should stay as the basis of the renewed strategy, and the implementation of it should be based on a new calendar, which will boost civil society's participation in the EU policy cycle (see Annex I).

1. Refining growth

1.1. Changing the economic reality

1.1.1.The economic landscape has shifted dramatically, given the fall in the value of the euro against the US dollar when compared to the beginning of the year, the 50% fall in the price of oil, and historically low interest rates.

1.1.2.The challenge for Member States is to engage in balanced and responsible economic governance while pursuing the goals of fiscal responsibility and social accountability.

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1.1.3.A sustainable economy should be fostered by focusing on and supporting new production processes and technologies, as well as creating new green jobs, all in the 21 st

century framework, where competitiveness is systemic rather than specific. Considerable efforts are needed to raise the EU's industrial base and to make it more competitive.

1.1.4.Widening the social economy, supported by new financing models like crowd funding, should be seen as an important driver for employment creation at local and regional level

1.2. Using the Investment Plan as a tool

1.2.1.The Europe 2020 strategy and the Investment Plan must be linked, since social investment is necessary for the promotion of welfare and the eradication of poverty and exclusion. Social partners and organised civil society should have a clearly defined role to play in selecting and implementing projects financed as part of the Investment Plan.

1.2.2.As the biggest job provider in the EU, SMEs must have access to funding as part of the Investment Plan.

1.3. Realising the potential of the Digital Single Market

1.3.1.In implementing the Digital Single Market strategy, the Commission should set digital infrastructure and digital literacy as its priorities, both of which are vital for the efficient functioning of the Digital Single Market.

2. The social dimension – addressing poverty and unemployment

2.1. Tackling the social crisis and the costs of transition to a smart and sustainable economy must be an explicit policy priority for the Member States, as well as for the EU institutions. Strengthening social protection, active labour market policies, skills development, life-long learning, vocational training as well as requalification programmes and targeted programmes for disadvantaged groups are goals in themselves, but they are also prerequisites for sustained growth in the long run. Therefore, financial and human resources must be guaranteed to facilitate this transition.

2.2. Due to the depth of the crisis the Social dimension of the EMU needs to be mainstreamed into all NRPs.

2.3. First and foremost the EU should focus on creating sustainable quality jobs.

2.4. The European Semester has to concentrate on: - stronger emphasis on social inclusion policies in the Annual Growth Survey;- dedicating chapters of the National Reform Programmes to the social inclusion

objectives;

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- more extensive CSRs for all Member States as regards tackling poverty and social exclusion, and social impact assessments of all economic recommendations, to ensure their consistency with social inclusion objectives.

2.5. All measures under the European Semester – in accordance with the horizontal social clause, must be subject to a social impact assessment, the results of which should be published and discussed at national and European level.

2.6. NRPs should be supported by National Social Reports (NSRs) which would outline detailed national strategies to reduce and prevent poverty and social exclusion;

2.7. To avoid having a lost generation, special measures must be taken to combat youth unemployment and structural long-term unemployment; phenomena that risk becoming self-reinforcing. Specific indicators for these two phenomena should be included in the 2020 strategy. Investments in life-long learning and training systems can equip workers with new skills, making them competitive in the evolving marketplace and contributing to long-term sustainable growth.

2.8. Changes in the labour market, unemployment and demographic change affecting the EU are increasing the need for stronger social safety nets and stable pensions systems. This requires more resources in order to finance welfare systems.

2.9. Social inclusion for migrants and ethnic minorities require specific integration plans set up by all Member States.

3. The environment – concentrating on strategic coherence with the Post-2015 Agenda, climate and energy

3.1. The relevant Sustainable Development Goals proposed by the United Nations (those relating to poverty, life-long education, sustainable economic growth, decent work, sustainable consumption, and fighting climate change) must be taken into account when reviewing the Europe 2020 strategy. The objectives of the strategy should be updated with indicators for green growth and the outcome of the approaching COP21 conference.

3.2. A common EU energy policy should be promoted, fostering principles such as adjusting and reducing differences in energy prices, improving conditions for the internal energy market, reducing energy dependency on non-EU States and promoting renewable energies.

3.3. Substantial efforts must be made to promote green energy and the move towards a low carbon economy, including progressive changes in power infrastructure to accommodate renewable energy.

3.4. An ambitious climate policy should be reflected in a strong EU position for the COP21 conference, as well as in the subsequent implementation of the international agreement by assigning clear national responsibilities and increasing the level of ambition in a dynamic way.

3.5. The importance of the flagship initiative on resource efficiency and the circular economy must be underlined.

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4. Improving governance

4.1. Focusing on relations with EU institutions, national ESCs and similar organisations

4.1.1.The dialogue between organised civil society on the one hand and public administration on the other hand is important at all levels, but in particular at a national level. To this effect, alliances between social partners and other civil society organisations are necessary in order to establish common positions;

4.1.2.It is essential that Member States guarantee timely involvement of all key stakeholders (i.e. social partners, NGOs, academics and researchers, people experiencing poverty and social exclusion, etc.) in the development, implementation and monitoring of NRPs, NSRs and CSRs (all Member States could be asked to report on this involvement in an annex to their NRP);

4.1.3.The network of national economic and social councils and similar organisations could improve its operations by including new and more diverse civil society organisations. A broader network could contribute to strategy assessment, identify bottlenecks and implement best practice more effectively;

4.1.4.The input of civil society to the European Parliament and the European Commission regarding the Europe 2020 strategy must be coordinated at a European level in order to ensure efficiency. The EESC is the ideal forum for this task;

4.1.5.Public awareness and the political profile of the Europe 2020 Strategy should be raised through much more proactive communication strategies and through greater involvement of national (and regional) parliaments in monitoring and debating the strategy's implementation.

4.2. Reviewing the assessment

4.2.1.The Europe 2020 indicators are simple and quantifiable. For this reason they are easy to use but are not accurate enough. In order to reflect the complexity of the situation more accurately, composite indicators will be needed. These should factor in e.g. citizens' wellbeing and quality of life, thus going beyond GDP. Stakeholder involvement in the system design and collection of data for composite indicators would be important.

4.2.2.It is essential that certain social welfare indicators are made binding and are put on an equal footing with the macroeconomic indicators in the European Semester process. For this to be possible, they must be defined and made measurable. These could for example be: percentage of workforce covered by collective bargaining agreements, protection of women and of the young, social and health security systems.

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4.3. Further streamlining the European Semester

4.3.1.The European Semester is the main tool for achieving the Europe 2020-objectives. Therefore, it must be modified. A modified European Semester should be about more than fiscal consolidation and should aim for sustainability.

4.3.2.The existing tools in the "6-pack" should be used to make the European Semester framework more binding for the Member States.

4.3.3.Fewer objectives should be proposed in the CSRs to the Member States but their follow-up should be reinforced.

4.3.4.Special targeted communication activities should be developed by the EU for social partners and other civil society organisations as regards the European Semester and more specifically the CSRs.

4.3.5.The streamlined European Semester should be improved by implementing the 'civil society calendar'1, guaranteeing greater involvement of social partners and other civil society organisations in order to increase the efficiency and credibility of the policies introduced.

4.3.6.When assessing the European Semester, due importance should also be given to the Multiannual Financial Framework of the EU.

5. Looking towards the future

Extensive conference discussions led to the general conclusion that the Europe 2020 strategy is not delivering the expected results and specific steps are needed to move towards a more sustainable, fairer Europe, looking beyond the 2020-horizon. An integrated strategy for a sustainable Europe in a globalised world should have a longer time timeframe. Economic, environmental, social and governance issues are inextricably interconnected and only a holistic approach towards them may bring about sustainability, which should be one of the key priorities of all policy measures. By following this path, the EU will also have a chance to gain resilience, enabling it to adapt more effectively to the fast-changing socio-economic environment. Revising the strategy with regard to the recommendations outlined above can offer the EU and its citizens at large a brighter future.

Brussels, 6 July 2015

1 See Annex I.7

APPENDIX Ito

the "Europe 2020 – paths for reinventing Europe's future" draft conference conclusions