Activities of Olle SCHMIDT related to 2009/2222(INI)
Shadow opinions (1)
OPINION on the future for social services of general interest
Amendments (6)
Amendment 2 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 1
Paragraph 1
1. Considers that social services of general interest (SSGI) play a comprehensive role in implementation of the principles set out in Article 3 of the Treaty on European Union (TEU) and Articles 9 and 14 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU), particularly with regard to the development of a highly competitive social market economy and the promotion of social and territorial cohesion in the Union; stresses here that it is important to reinforce the social dimension of the internal market by taking better account of the special nature of SSGI, with; emphasis ones a pragmatic approach in which the accessibility, universality, quality and efficiency of such services are the prime considerations;
Amendment 9 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 2
Paragraph 2
2. Considers that, given the place which these services have in Europe, especially against a background of economic crisis, the EU should do more to promote their importance; asks the Commission, therefore, to explorefurther develop the idea of setting up a European social services observatory to collect information from various sources in the Member States and to promote good practice at European, national, regional and local level; also calls on the Commission to update the website on questions and answers concerning SSGI, making it accessible in all the EU official languages; asks the Commission to develop a general and voluntary European quality framework for public and private businesses providing SSGIs, in order to ensure fair competition and higher quality;
Amendment 17 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 3
Paragraph 3
3. Draws attention to the substantial proportion of total employment in the EU, and of public financing in the Member States, that is accounted for by SSGI; believes that, against a background of economic and budgetary crisis, a balanced approach needs to be adopted, based on preserving the quality of social services and making them more effective; considers, therefore, that discussion is required with a focus on the relationship between public procurement rules and SSGI, particularly with regard to new management approaches such as in- house procurement and increased emphasis on quality criteria in the tender selection process;
Amendment 20 #
Draft opinion
Subheading 3 a (new)
Subheading 3 a (new)
Draws the attention to the rules regulating competition for service providers; emphasizes the importance of taking these rules into account while applying competition rules for public and private businesses providing SSGI; regrets that SSGI are not included in the scope of the Services Directive;
Amendment 22 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 4
Paragraph 4
4. Emphasises the need to clarify the legal uncertainties affecting SSGI; welcomes the updating of the Commission's guide on the application of EU state aid, public procurement and internal market rules to SSGI; notes the proposals made in the Monti report, especially those concerned with a sector- based approach to use of Article 14 TFEU; considers it essential to move forward with a pragmatic approach enabling the real problems, and potential solutions to them, to be identified; calls on the Commission, in association with Parliament and the Council, to carry out in- depth research into the functioning of a pilot SSGI sector such as that of services to the elderly, which, in future, will have a major role to play; takes note of the fact that EU will face substantial demographic changes in near future;
Amendment 27 #
Draft opinion
Paragraph 4 a (new)
Paragraph 4 a (new)
4a. Asks Member States ensure that the quality requirements are met by public and private businesses providing SSGI ; calls on the Commission to gather information on national quality requirements in addition to information on good practices in Member States