Each year, the European Commission makes up to € 500 million available via the European Globalisation Fund to assist employees, who have lost their job as a result of the world economic crisis or due to globalisation. The analysis of the applications received for the Fund, however, now show that even in the crisis year 2009 only financial assistance amounting to about € 166.6 million was applied for. In 2010, about € 92 million had been applied for by September.

In its current Consultation on the future of the Trans-European Transport Network policy, the EU Commission is asking for notes and proposals, including the working document of the Commission Departments „TEN-T policy - Background Papers“. The objective of the TEN and the TEN Revision respectively is the promotion of the creation of an integrated European transport system, which is better equipped to deal with the problems concerning environmental protection and climate change in connection with the Europe 2020 strategy.

During the Euro crisis, the lack of economic coordination at European level became the focus of the debate. If prior to the introduction of the Euro the individual states had still been able to control their competitiveness individually by currency adjustments, this is now no longer possible. Countries like Germany that adopt an aggressive export strategy to keep wages at a low level, now put the rest of the Eurozone massively under pressure.

Eurostat, the Statistical Office of the European Communities, proudly reports that between 2000 and 2008 the tax and contribution ratio in the EU27 has fallen. In particular concerning the corporation tax, there would be a continuous decline of the top tax rate. What Eurostat regards as hardly worth mentioning: taxes on consumption during the same period have risen from 20.9 and 21.5 percent. Good news for business, bad news for consumers.

The regulation of the financial markets has reached a sad high point. Last weekend, the heads of government of the 20 largest economies met in Canada to discuss stricter rules for financial markets. The result, however, was nothing more than the declaration of intent to half budget deficits by 2013. No agreement was reached with regard to the bank levy, the Financial Transaction Tax or the introduction of stricter equity rules. In view of the meagre results, leading politicians have already voiced doubts about the usefulness of expensive monster meetings.

Every six months, another Member State takes over the Presidency of the European Union. From July 2010, it is the turn of Belgium. Since yesterday, the Belgian Presidency is officially at the helm. An own programme has been developed and presented. Under the motto “Europe in Action!”, the Belgian Presidency is prepared to meet future challenges.

Even now, many HGV and bus drivers are groaning under their workload. Many of them are so-called pseudo self-employed, which means that they are officially registered as self-employed drivers, whereby they in reality drive for a company, from which they in some cases even have leased the lorry they are driving. The Commission even wanted to go one better and exempt self-employed drivers from the Working Time Directive. The European Parliament has now rejected this proposal in a plenary vote. A success, which is the result of the awareness-raising activities of the labour representatives.

This week, the Commission presented plans for Vocational Education and Training, which are related to the EU 2020 Strategy. The plans also form a contribution of the Commission to a new ten-year programme for reforms within the scope of the Copenhagen Process. The Commission has reached the conclusion that the vocational training sector had to be modernised to make vocational education and training a more attractive and qualitative option.

After months of hesitating and waiting, the Greece debt crisis and the Euro crisis have proved to be real eye openers for the Member States and the Commission. The point is to use hard and efficient rules to put the financial markets in their place. And the causers of the crisis must be asked at last to foot the bill. This week, the European Commission has once again made important announcements and promised to significantly increase the pace with regard to regulating the financial markets. And the Commission President has for the first time said something almost revolutionary.

The EU Commission will release a Green Paper on Pension Policy at the end of June. First details, however, have already been leaked. The EU Commission strongly warns that the future will bring a “painful combination of lower payments and higher contributions”, should the Member States fail to follow the advice of the EU Commission. Thus, the Commission indirectly addresses the extension of working life – a very sensitive issue throughout the EU!