Φίλες, φίλοι, αυτό είναι ένα απόσπασμα από το νέο πολιτικό πρόγραμμα του κόμματος σε πανευρωπαϊκό επίπεδο. Μπορείτε να στείλετε σχόλια και απόψεις στην διεύθυνση [email protected]. This is our Europe! We as Europeans are slowly losing our grip on our democracies. The Eurocrisis has shown the limitations of today’s European Union and of its member states in tackling the crisis, while the rise of emerging economic powers has further weakened the economies of European countries. To face these challenges we clearly need a more united Europe. However, unlike the politicians who are currently in power, we stand for a united Europe that is fully democratic and accountable to citizens. We as Europeans need to face the fundamental question of what we share and what we want to achieve together. Addressing these problems requires a deep pan-European political debate engaging every citizen within and across member states, since only truly European solutions will enable us to tackle today’s challenges. This sort of participatory approach is necessary to nurture a genuine sense of ownership of the European projectamong citizens and to reinforce the democratic legitimacy of decisions taken at European level. We as Europeans want to ensure that our quality of life, and that of future generations, regains a central role in the political debate. Workers and employers, retired and students are all closely interdependent. Together we have the strength to overcome our current difficulties and project Europe into a “new Renaissance”. In light of the above, the European Federalist Party shall take part in the 2014 European Parliament elections with the following political programme. 1. Giving a voice to 500 million citizens! The European project has ensured peace and prosperity acrossEurope for the last 60 Years. However in this process, the participation of citizens has been all too often neglected. In failing to battle the crisis, government leaders in the European Council have taken decisions affecting all Europeans, without being accountable to the totality of the European citizens, but only to their national constituencies. Values Our main objective is therefore to create a genuine European democracywhose authority is restricted to things that enhance our common values of social justice, quality of life and security for every European citizen, and that call for pan-European solutions based on sound public finances. The ownership of this transnational democracy should lie fully in the hands of European citizens. At all times respect for diversity in language, religion, culture and individual identity - in all its facets –must be ensured among European citizens. This diversity constitutes the richness of our continent and represents the freedom of individual expression. With full respect for this diversity, we shall aim touniteEurope’s citizens in reaching our common goals. Representation & Accountability Half of all European citizens do not believe that their voice has any impact in European elections. We therefore propose the creation of a representative European government, headed by a democraticallyelected President and accountable to a bicameral European parliament. One chamber shall represent European citizens, the other shall represent member states. Both chambers shall have the right to initiate legislation. To ensure that citizens’ voices and opinions are heard and are taken into consideration, the European citizens’ initiative should be strengthened. If more than a million Europeans subscribe to such an initiative, the European parliament should vote on its proposal. A European Constitution European citizens do not support the currenttreaties because of their complexity. We therefore wish to establish a European constitution that is simple and transparent. It shall set out the essential rights of each citizen, the division of responsibilitiesbetween the local, national and European governments, and the creation of accountable and transparent institutions. The process of drafting this constitution should involve the participation of European citizens. This constitutional text should be ratified by popular referendum. The essential rights of each European citizen should be embodied in this constitution. The current fundamental rights attached to the Lisbon treaty should serve as its starting point. We believe that the division of powers between local, regional, national and European levels should follow the principle of subsidiarity. Therefore responsibilities should lie with the institution closest to citizens. Enhancing social justice, ensuring higher quality of lifeand providing security for each European citizen requires coordination at European level in the fields of social standards, higher education, defence and foreign policy, immigration and asylum policy, energy supply and environmental protection. Starting point Given the existing challenges to tackle the ‘euro crisis’, the creation of a transnational European democracy is likely tobegin withthe Eurozone. The citizens of each member state should have the right to be consulted on whether his/her country should be part of the European federation,or ratheran intergovernmental Europe that is mostly based on the principle of free trade among its members. 2. A dynamic European economy for more and better jobs! Many people in Europe have lost their jobs during the crisis, while on the other hand some countries struggle to fill vacant posts. We therefore want to go farther towardseliminating obstaclesto people moving abroad when looking for a job. In this way we aim to motivate people to reach their full potential throughout Europe, while keeping the welfare net sustainable and spurring economic growth. The younger generations are those that have been hit the hardest by the crisis, and arefacing massive unemployment. Young people are those who could benefit most from such reforms. Jobs across Europe One of the main measures that needs to be implemented is the strengthening of the European labour agencyto give imformation about job opportunities and supply abroad. In addition, a deeper coordination between social systems is necessary to ensure the transferability of social rights for citizens throughout their life. The recognition of professional qualifications throughout Europe needs to be simplified and quickened (see under section 5). Finally, a social mobility fund could further motivate people to look for opportunities elsewhere in Europe, by reducing the costs of relocation. Internal market: unfinished business The common market has been the greatest force for economic development and job creation within Europe but it is far from complete. We therefore want to create a truly European market where enterprises are free to provide goods and services, such as electricity, communication and financial products, in other member states in the same way that they do domestically. This would have positive effects on the spread of technologies and best practice within the EU, reduce overall production costs and allow a better and cheaper choice for consumers. Support for Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) The vast majority of businesses in Europe are small and medium-sized enterprises. SMEs provide the majority of private sector jobs in Europe. However, they face very difficult times in financing their investments, not least because the banking sector is ineffective. We therefore promote initiatives by the ECB and the European Investment Bank to lower the borrowing cost of small and medium sizedenterprisesthat contribute to the wealth of the local economy. Trade and industrial policy The EFP wishes to establish a common European vision with regard to trade and industrial policy, with full respect for the agreements made within the World Trade Organization. Trade liberalization with third countries is not good or bad per se, but must take into account the strength, weaknesses and specificities of European enterprises (especially SMEs). In terms of trade agreements, the quality of products and decent working conditions in the third countries should be guaranteed. In doing so, we promote our values of human rights protection and social justice through mutually beneficial trade without incurring job losses in our home market through unfair competition. 3. Ensuring social justice for everyone! Everyone aspires to having a joband a decent income to provide for themselves and their families. Nevertheless we rely on anadequate safety net when troublesome times arrive, be it regarding our health or during economic downturns. This system, applied throughout Europe has ensured in general a fair redistribution of resources and opportunities while empowering all people to exercise self-determination and realize their full potential. European Social Model The current crisis has however plunged Europe into a deep recession, putting an enormous strain on the welfare systems of some countries. The unequal distribution of the burden of this crisis is depriving many people, especially younger ones, of a decent job while pushing them into poverty. Inequalities are increasing within and across member states because of the crisis. In today’s globalized world, in order to safeguard the improvements in well-being brought about by the European social models we need further European coordination. Only with the necessary reforms and with consideration of future challenges will Europeans be in the condition to build a strong, leading-edge and efficient economy. To support these private efforts, well-designed social spending and investments to support competitiveness must go hand in hand. Given the diversity of our social systems throughout Europe, sustaining our welfare systems must remain, in principle, the responsibility of local governments. However three particular policy areas should be addressed at European level to maintain the viability of our shared principles in an ever-increasingly integrated Europe. These are: minimum socio-economic standards, labour mobility and European solidarity. Minimum Standards IncreasingEuropeanintegrationhas increased the wealth of each citizen but also exposedthe large differences that exist insocial standards betweenthe east and thewest,southand north. Within a union where workers can move freely, this may lead to social dumping and races to the bottom, especially when competition becomes fierce between member states. We therefore believe that alongside the reforms that need to be made because of the crisis, minimumsocialstandards such as a minimum revenue indexed to the cost of living at local level and decent working conditionsfor each citizen should be an integral part ofEurope’s social dimension. European solidarity During the crisis we have seen that the European Union was paralyzed when trying to address the unemployment problem as (i) it does not have a budget of the scale needed to ensure social equality and (ii) it is not able to respond adequately and sufficiently quickly to economic shocks because of institutional inertia. Most currency unions have the ability - through a strong national or federal budget - to help particular regions of the monetary union facing asymmetric macroeconomic difficulties. This is beneficial for everyone, because in interlinked economies, a social problem in one country can quickly become economically troublesome for others, just as progress in one country can boost economic growth in others. Indeed, since theprofits of the internal market are shared throughout Europe, the burden of economic hardship should also be shared. We need to promote cross-community cohesion and solidarity in times of economic distress to ensure that an excessive gap in the living standards and opportunities of citizens is not allowed to expand. Therefore, alongside an internal market that ensures efficiency through competition between European regions and businesses, aEuropean complementary safety net should also be in place. We would also like to see arenewed focus onthose budget itemsthat promotegreater territorial and socialcohesion, as these are crucial to developing a competitive and inclusive European society. This also involves a better framework for ensuringintergenerational cooperation among young and older people in order to facilitate know-how transfer and development. At a later stage we wish to promote a solidarity scheme at European level that works as an automatic stabilizer, such as a European-wide unemploymentbenefit scheme or an unconditional basic income guarantee scheme for each European citizen. 4. Improving Europeans’ quality of life! Restoring economic growth and social stability for our citizens is closely linked to the general improvement of the quality of life of Europeans, which ought to be the ultimate goal of a sustainable society. Indeed, by focusing on technologies that incorporate environmental protection and renewable energy, an economic revolution that improves our wellbeing can be achieved. This requires significant innovations throughout Europe that can only start bottom up, helping member states by providing the best quality education for every European, regardless of his or her socio-economic background. Education Education is at the heart of the development of a sustainable and successful society. Apart from university-level education, which should benefit from further cooperation at European level, lower-level education should remain theresponsibility of local and national authorities, and only students’ exchanges and ad hoc initiativeswould involve action at European level. At the same time, education should not only been seen as a tool for fostering economic growth. It is in the first place a means to achieve personal development while lessening the chances of social exclusion and poverty. In this process of personal development, in order to ensure that each citizen is aware of the rights, duties and opportunities available in Europe, we would propose the development ofEuropean citizenship courses aiming to reinforce those skills that are necessary for a functioning democratic, cohesive and economically strong society. Recognition of Diplomas and Academic Exchanges In addition to teaching our students second and third foreign languages, we advocate furtherdevelopment of exchange programmes, starting from high school. Such programmes will strengthen our common understanding, and develop the personal skills our students need to tackle challenges in different cultural environments. In a context where emerging countries are rapidly catching up on the provision of higher education, these skills are indispensable for Europe to remain competitive. Remaining a step ahead requires much more collaboration in the field of higher education. One necessary measure is the improvement of the comparability and transferability of European diplomas. Furthermore the creation of fully integrated European professional schools and universities dedicated to specific research themesis needed to pool our knowledge. Increasing the use of scholarships to attract foreign academics to European universities and accommodating immigration rules should render our economies more innovative. Ευχαρίστως να δεχθούμε τα σχόλιά σας και τις απόψεις σας στην διεύθυνση [email protected] μέχρι τέλη Σεπτεμβρίου ενόψει του συνεδρίου στις Βρυξέλλες στις 9 και 10 Νοεμβρίου 2013. Ιδού η ευκαιρία να προτείνετε τις απόψεις σας και να συνδιαμορφώσουμε το πολιτικό μας πρόγραμμα. Ευχαριστούμε. ΕΦΕΚ
Posted on: Wed, 24 Jul 2013 15:53:37 +0000
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