·
During the meeting held this Friday by
the Social Economy Inter-group of the European Parliament called ´Towards a
recommendation of the Council on Social Economy: promoting the convergence of
European social economy frameworks´
·
This virtual meeting was attended by
political representatives responsible for the business model of social economy
in Europe, such as the Secretary of State for Employment and Social Economy,
Joaquín Pérez Rey; as well as the president of the employers´ association of
social economy in Spain and of Social Economy Europe, Juan Antonio Pedreño
·
The President of CEPES and Social
Economy Europe, pointed to the need for the recommendation of the Council on
Social Economy, which should be approved in 2023, to include "a common and
inclusive concept adapted to the diversity of different national
traditions". In addition, he recalled that from Social Economy Europe,
work is being done to ensure that the social economy represents at least 10% of
European employment in 2030 (compared to 6.7% in 2017), which would represent
around 22 million jobs
·
The MEP and Vice-President of the
Inter-group, Jordi Cañas opted for an "ambitious" European Action
Plan for the Social Economy and pointed out that "the current Plan adopted
by the European Commission is a good plan but we need the European Parliament
to complete it to respond to the needs of the sector"
·
The Secretary of State for Employment
and Social Economy, Joaquín Pérez Rey said "We are going to make the
social economy one of the priorities of the Spanish presidency of the European
Union. To this end, we will intensify contacts with the Inter-group of the
European Parliament."
Madrid, March 07, 2022 .-
"The first objective of the
European Social Economy Action Plan is to promote a common and inclusive legal
definition adapted to the diversity of territories." This was stated by the President of CEPES and
Social Economy Europe, Juan Antonio Pedreño during the meeting of the Social
Economy Inter-group of the European Parliament held this Friday, called
´Towards a recommendation of the Council on Social Economy: promoting the
convergence of European frameworks of social economy´.
He also appealed to the Council
of the EU to include in its recommendation this common concept, which should be
approved in 2023, since, as he assured "the existence of a legal framework
is the first stone of a social economy ecosystem in Europe".
In addition to this common
concept, the President of CEPES and Social Economy Europe pointed to other
public policies and instruments that, depending on the sector, should include
the Council´s recommendation: "taxation and State aid; socially
responsible public procurement; and education, visibility and dialogue as
crucial elements or satellite accounts, among other areas".
At the meeting, which was held
virtually, Pedreño highlighted the important work of the Inter-group and the
role of the European Action Plan for the Social Economy as a catalyst for this
business model. "We need to have a catalytic strategy so that we all
cooperate together in a common social economy strategy," said the
president of CEPES.
He also recalled some of the
objectives for which Social Economy Europe is working, among which is to
achieve that the social economy represents at least 10% of European employment
in 2030 (compared to 6.7% in 2017), which would represent around 22 million
jobs. Other objectives he pointed out are to overcome the legal obstacles faced
by some social economy companies in various countries, as well as the
implementation and consolidation of powerful representative organizations of
the social economy, especially in those countries where their ecosystem is less
developed.
The MEP and Vice-President of the
Social Economy Inter-Group of the European Parliament, Jordi Cañas, stressed
that "The take-off of the European Action Plan for the Social Economy goes
through a joint legal definition of this business model and its endowment with
financial and advisory instruments".
Cañas opted for an
"ambitious" European Action Plan for the Social Economy and pointed
out that "the current Plan adopted by the European Commission is a good
plan but we need the European Parliament to complete it to respond to the needs
of the sector".
The European Action Plan for the
Social Economy was adopted last December by the European Commission and is due
to receive the european Parliament´s report by the end of March.
Cañas highlighted three areas in
which, in his opinion, the European Parliament must deepen its report so that
this business model advances throughout Europe. In the first place, he pointed
to the need for a common legal definition of social economy to "collect
the set of sensitivities that the realization of a European framework
requires". Secondly, the need to provide this model with financial
instruments and, thirdly, with training and advisory instruments, "which
allow it to access the possibilities offered by Europe to face the current
challenges". He also insisted on the importance of having monitoring
instruments to measure the results of the plan.
The Secretary of State for
Employment and Social Economy, Joaquín Pérez Rey, highlighted the European Action
Plan for the Social Economy: "It places the social economy in the place it
deserves and gives it the definitive impetus after the declarations of
Luxembourg, Madrid and Toledo".
He also said: "We are going
to make the social economy one of the priorities of the Spanish presidency of
the European Union. To this end, we will intensify contacts with the
Inter-group of the European Parliament." In addition, he assured that the
Government is already working intensively for the social economy, and gave as
examples the name of the Ministry of Labor and Social Economy, as well as the
work that the Executive is already doing in the Spanish Strategy for the Social
Economy 2021-2027.
Finally, he pointed out that the
social economy will have a prominent role within the framework of the funds of
the Recovery, Transformation and Resilience Plan, with specific items for the
social economy and the care economy and will be very present in the agenda of
the European Presidency of the EU that Spain will preside over in 2023.
The Secretary of State also
referred to the Government´s willingness to renew the legal instruments that
regulate cooperatives or insertion companies, as Minister Yolanda Díaz
announced a few days ago, "which will be key in our strategies, both
employment and for the access of our workers to the protagonist of business
projects."
"We believe that it is a
crucial moment to boost the social economy from the institutions and we will
put everything necessary to advance in its regulatory framework," he
concluded.
Finally, the Secretary of State
for Social and Solidarity Economy, Olivia Gregoire stressed that within the
framework of the current Presidency of the EU that France assumes this
semester, the Social Economy is having a great role. He recalled the recent
agreement of 23 governments towards this business model and also reported that
the recommendation of the Social Economy will be discussed at the next meeting
of EU Ministers.
