European Economic and Social Committee

What is the European Union (EU)? 28 Member States 508 million inhabitants Candidates for EU membership: Iceland, Turkey, Serbia, the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia and Montenegro

What are the EU's main principles? Common values: respect for human dignity, freedom, democracy, equality, rule of law, human rights, pluralism, non-discrimination, tolerance, justice, solidarity (Art. 2 TEU) Aim: to promote peace, the Union's values and the well-being of its peoples (Art. 3 TEU) 4 freedoms: free movement of persons, goods, services and capital

The key stages in the EU's history

The 1950s – the beginnings Post-war reconstruction 1950: Schuman Declaration on 9 May 1951: foundation of the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC) 6 Member States : Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, Luxembourg and the Netherlands 1957: Rome Treaties – birth of the European Economic Community (EEC) and Euratom

The 1960s - laying the groundwork 1960: creation of the European Social Fund 1962: launch of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) 1968: abolition of customs duties

The 1970s 1973: 1st enlargement – Denmark, the United Kingdom and Ireland join the EEC  Europe now has 9 Member States 1979: 1st election by direct universal suffrage of the European Parliament

The 1980s - consolidation Enlargement to Southern European countries: Greece (1981), Spain and Portugal (1986)  Europe now has 12 Member States 1986: Single European Act 1990: with German unification, former East Germany becomes part of the EEC

The 1990s 1993: entry into force of the Maastricht Treaty 1995: new enlargement – Austria, Finland and Sweden  Europe now has 15 Member States

First decade of the 21st century: the Euro and the biggest enlargement 1 January 2002: 12 countries introduce the euro 2004: enlargement to Central and Eastern European countries - 10 new Member States join: Cyprus, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Slovenia  Europe now has 25 Member States 2007: Bulgaria and Romania join  Europe now has 27 Member States 2013: Croatia joins  Europe now has 28 Member States

The first decade of the 21st century Need for institutional reforms European Constitution rejected in France and the Netherlands (2005) Adoption of the Lisbon Treaty and its entry into force on 1 December 2009

What does the EU do for you? A few examples Freedom to live, study and work in any Member State Youth exchange programmes: Comenius, Leonardo Da Vinci and Erasmus A single currency for 18 countries Environmental laws to combat global warming Equal opportunities Lower roaming charges And much more...

The European institutions

The European Parliament Co-legislates (with the Council) Monitors the budgets and policies of the European institutions Currently 766 members, elected by universal suffrage (751 members after the 2014 European elections) Elections every 5 years President: Martin Schulz

The European Council Provides the EU with political guidance and defines the political directions and priorities Consists of the Heads of State or Government of the Member States, together with its President and the President of the European Commission President: Herman Van Rompuy

The Council of the European Union Co-legislates with the European Parliament (amends, adopts or rejects the Commission’s legislative proposals) Consists of ministers from the 28 Member States chosen according to the agenda Rotating presidency: is chaired by a different Member State every 6 months: 1 January – 30 June 2014: Greece 1 July – 31 December 2014: Italy

The European Commission Proposes and implements laws (right of initiative, "guardian" of the Treaties) 28 Commissioners including one president: José Manuel Barroso One commissioner per country, each in charge of one policy area

Other EU institutions and bodies The Court of Justice of the European Union The European Central Bank The European Court of Auditors The European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) The Committee of the Regions

The European Economic and Social Committee

What is the EESC? It is an advisory body set up by the Treaty of Rome (1957) Represents organised civil society European Parliament Council of the European Union European Commission European Economic and Social Committee

What is organised civil society? All the groups and organisations that citizens set up to represent their interests, to achieve a goal, or to cooperate with like- minded people

What is the role of the EESC? Consultative role to the European Parliament, Council and Commission (+/- 200 opinions a year) Institutional forum for dialogue and consultation Promotion of European values, participatory democracy and the role of civil society organisations

A bridge between the EU and organised civil society Brings forward civil society’s interests Enables civil society organisations from the Member States to express their views at European level

Who are the members of the EESC? 353 members, appointed for 5 years 1 president, elected every 2 and a half years President: Henri Malosse ( ) Represent economic and social interest groups: employers, workers, NGOs and others Work on the basis of consensus Have considerable expertise on many subjects Hold +/- 9 plenary sessions a year

How does the EESC work? Drafting of an opinion 6 sections Plenary Assembly GROUP II Workers GROUP I Employers GROUP III Various Interests SECTION Study Group: Members and experts

Your Europe, Your Say!

1. Read and discuss the draft initiatives for Europe's future 2. Choose a maximum of two options from the multiple choice list (a, b, c, etc.) 3. Propose additional initiatives in English. The number of initiatives is limited to two per school 4. Prepare for Brussels 5. In Brussels: working group meeting 6. Debate and vote 7. Presentation of the vote What you have to do - 7 steps

1. Read and discuss the draft initiatives Mid-January 2014: you will receive the working document in your own language, and the instructions in English and French This working document will provide the basis for the debate in Brussels; it contains a list of 12 actions for Europe's future Discuss the various initiatives in class

2. Choose your initiatives Following your classroom debate on the proposed initiatives, choose a maximum of two options from the multiple choice list (a, b, c, etc.) Propose additional initiatives (two per school) in English. You have a limit of 70 characters per initiative (including spaces) All the schools will send their choices to the EESC

3. Prepare for Brussels The list of 14 initiatives selected by all the schools will be forwarded to you at the beginning of March Prepare to argue, negotiate and debate these initiatives so that you will be ready for the working groups in Brussels

4. In Brussels: working group meeting The 14 chosen initiatives will be discussed in the working groups: pooling ideas, debating between students

5. In Brussels: debate and vote At the plenary session, presentation of each working group's conclusions to the representatives of the different political groups of the European Parliament Electronic vote

Deadline and contacts The deadline for sending us your initiatives in English (maximum 2) and your choice of options for each initiative: 14 February Website: Your Europe, Your