Spanish Presidency ministers outline Council Presidency priorities

Spanish Presidency ministers this week outline their EU Council Presidency priorities to a range of parliamentary committees and will field MEPs' questions on most EU policy areas. On Tuesday they faced the committees on Civil Liberties, Public Health, Culture, and Economic and Monetary Affairs. This release will be updated throughout the week.

Civil Liberties

The EU's Spanish Presidency will focus on defining an action plan to implement the EU's “Stockholm” justice and home affairs co-operation programme, setting up an internal security committee, and resolving technical problems with  the Schengen and visa information-sharing systems SIS II and VIS, Spain's home affairs minister Alfredo Pérez Rubalcaba told the Civil Liberties Committee on Tuesday.

He advocated an internal security strategy, to be defined “in a simple, brief and concise document” in order to “explain which risks and threats the EU countries are sharing” and the possible solutions. The Presidency would seek to give new impetus to transatlantic relations in the fight against terrorism, he added.

Mr Pérez Rubalcaba also proposed to focus on setting up joint police co-operation teams and an “Erasmus” programme for policemen. He underlined the Presidency's commitment to fighting gender violence, cyber-crime, money laundering and drug trafficking.

Spain's labour and immigration minister Mr Celestino Corbacho Chaves said he was committed to a “broad, long-lasting and integral” migration policy which takes account of labour market needs. The Immigration and Asylum Pact is the most appropriate basis for this, he said, stressing the need to work on legal immigration, integration policies, an action plan for unaccompanied minors, the permit directive and the seasonal workers directive. “Europe will need more immigration in the future”, he acknowledged, but added that it must be “regular” and “controlled”.

In the chair: Juan Fernando López Aguilar (S&D, ES)

Public health

“We want to use the strong points of the European health model - universality, equality and solidarity and access to safe and high quality health care - and to build a common European health area,” Spain's health minister Trinidad Jiménez told the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety Committee on Tuesday. Organ donation and transplantation, the pharmaceuticals package and food safety are the priorities for the Spanish Presidency, she added.

Cross-border health care was on the minds of many MEPs - Dagmar Roth-Behrendt (S&D, DE), asked whether the Presidency planned to “act as an honest broker” and Antonyia Parvanova (ALDE, BG), wanted to know how the minister planned to achieve results. Ms Jiménez replied that she would meet the new Commissioner in the coming days to discuss the issue and that she herself was committed to seeking consensus on the directive.

Elżbieta Łukacijewska (EPP, AT) and Michèle Rivasi (Greens, FR), asked whether the EU's response to H1N1 flu was proportionate. Ms Jiménez replied that decisions had been taken on the available data and that it was possible that they had prevented a wider epidemic.

In the Chair: Jo LEINEN (S&D, DE)

Culture

Promoting the “European heritage” label and supporting creative industries and the digitalisation of cultural content are the Presidency's cultural priorities, Spain's minister of culture Ms Ángeles González-Sinde told the Education and Culture Committee on Tuesday. Investing in culture can contribute significantly to Europe's recovery from economic crisis, she said.

Ms González-Sinde promised to strengthen access to cultural content on the internet and pursue the “Europeana” digital library project. It was feasible to widen online access to cultural works while protecting their copyright, the minister said in a reply to Helga Trüpel (Greens/EFA, DE).

While backing Spain's plans to foster cinema digitalisation, many MEPs stressed the need to promote European cinema in general, e.g. by establishing a European actor training centre (Lothar Bisky, GUE/NGL, DE), or providing financial support for young filmmakers (Piotr Borys, EPP, PL). Ms González-Sinde promised to take the MEPs' proposals into account, while not forgetting more traditional cultural activities, such as concerts, theatres or circuses.

“We have been flooded with cheap American cinema products. Can we combat that?” asked Chrysoula Paliadeli (S&D, EL). Committee chair Doris Pack (EPP, DE), suggested that the EU diplomatic service should help spread European culture. Ms González-Sinde agreed, promising to discuss this with the High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Catherine Ashton.

In the chair: Doris Pack (EPP, DE)

Economic and monetary affairs

All the Spanish's Presidency's priorities for the EU economy will be geared towards “creating a solid base from which to make progress and avoid futures crises” Spain's economic affairs and finance minister Elena Salgado told the Economic and Monetary Affairs Committee on Tuesday.

Arlene McCarthy (S&D, UK), asked whether the EU should be more ambitious on regulating bonuses than the Council has been until now.  Ms Salgado replied that the current draft directive requires that remuneration policies be reviewed so as not to encourage an excessive risk culture.

“Is the Stability and Growth Pact facilitating the recovery of growth or does it need an overhaul?” asked Diogo Feio (EPP, PT).    Ms Salgado replied that the Lisbon Treaty will add some new elements, but in essence, the current pact is the key to economic recovery.

Quizzed on specific legislation in the pipeline and the Presidency's willingness to truly engage with Parliament, Ms Salgado said that she hoped to reach first-reading agreements with Parliament on the supervisory package and investment funds.

In the chair: Sharon Bowles (ALDE, UK)

Education

“Education is an equalising policy” and the “best path out of poverty”, Spanish education minister Angel Gabilondo told Lothar Bisky (GUE/NGL, DE), at a Culture Committee meeting on Monday. Asked by Helga Trüpel (Greens/EFA, DE) about fresh funding for education projects, he replied “We'll be able to open a debate on new funding” only if  “education is among the priorities for the 2020 EU strategy”, i.e. if  it is made an objective for the next six months.

“Any measures foreseen to facilitate mobility of teachers inside the EU?” asked Santiago Fisas (EPP, ES). “We need to recognise the involvement of the education community as a key factor” for the Bologna process, which aims to create a European Higher Education area, replied Mr Gabilondo.

The EU must aim to end “mutual distress between university and business” and back the idea that “social profitability is compatible with economic profitability”, he added in reply to Morten Lokkegaard (ALDE, DK), who observed that “there is lack of harmony between university and the business world”, and Cătălin Ivan (S&D, RO), who asked about making the education system more flexible “to adapt to the changing nature of the job market”.

In the chair: Doris Pack (EPP, DE)

Regional Development

Disparities between Member States and regions could be exacerbated by the economic crisis, and EU cohesion policy is an important tool for mitigating them, by restructuring economies and making regions more sustainable, Spain's secretary of state for finance Carlos Ocaña y Pérez de Tudela told the Regional Development Committee on Monday. He welcomed territorial cohesion's inclusion in the Lisbon Treaty, and promised to fight for its inclusion in the EU 2020 strategy.

The minister stated his commitment to simplifying rules and procedures, and ensuring that the money spent is better tied to stated regional  policy aims. Constanze Krehl (PES, DE), stressed the need to clarify these aims. Oldřich Vlasák (ECR, CZ), said that no tightening of controls on fund recipients should increase their administrative burden. Spain shows how EU cohesion policy can spur economic development, noted Lambert Van Nistelrooij (EPP, NL). Due to the crisis, “there will not be more money”, the minister warned Karima Delli (Greens/EFA, FR) in reply to her question about funding for social inclusion.

In the chair: Georgios Stavrakakis (S&D, EL)

Women's Rights and Gender Equality

Eliminating violence against women, the so-called “Maternity leave Directive”, women's full participation in the labour market on an equal footing with men and reducing gender pay gap were the key issues discussed at the Women's Rights and Gender Equality Committee meeting with Spanish minister for equality Bibiana Aído Almagro on Monday.

MEPs wanted to hear more about specific measures the Spanish Presidency plans to improve the situation of women. By creating a European Observatory on Gender Equality and a European Protection Order for example, comparable data based on a set of common indicators and best practices could be exchanged to further the fight against gender violence, said Ms Aído Almagro.

In the chair: Eva-Britt Svensson (GUE/NGL, SE)