Vol. 396 No. 1
1 Mr. Dukes asked the Taoiseach whether, as President of the European Council, he has any policy proposals to meet the dissatisfaction expressed by the ETUC in relation to job creation in the EC; and if he will make a statement on the matter.
2 Mr. Spring asked the Taoiseach if he will make a statement on his recent meeting with the European Trade Union Confederation; and if the European Social Charter was discussed at the meeting.
I propose to take Questions Nos. 1 and 2 together.
I had a very cordial and satisfactory meeting with a delegation from the European Trade Union Confederation on 14 February. The Social Charter was discussed. A copy of the joint statement issued following the meeting has been placed in the Library.
I informed the ETUC delegation that in respect of the social dimension, the Irish Presidency assigned priority to action to reduce unemployment, particularly long-term unemployment, and this will be one of the topics for discussion at the informal Social Affairs Council on 1-2 March, and for decision, if possible, at the formal Social Affairs Council on 29 May.
Would the Taoiseach not agree, despite the cordial and satisfactory atmosphere at the meeting which may have had something to do with the fact that it was 14 February, that the ETUC did express some very serious disquiet after the meeting and that part of the reason for this is that substantial parts of the 1992 programme, which is designed to increase employment in the Community, are now slipping behind schedule? For example, the tax harmonisation programme has gone behind schedule very badly, as has Community action on the technology side. Has the Taoiseach, as President of the Council, any proposals to get those important parts of the programme back on schedule?
First, I should say that the trade union leaders were more concerned with a different aspect of the completion of the arrangements for the Single Market, that is, that economic progress towards the Single Market should be accompanied by a social dimension. To that extent, they would be primarily concerned with the implementation of the action programme prepared by the Commission arising out of the Social Charter.
On the specific question raised by Deputy Dukes, I would not agree that the programme of completion of the Single Market is slipping behind. Of course there are difficulties, but as I said on another occasion, it is only to be expected as we come towards the end that the position will become more difficult because naturally the easier measures will be taken first and the more difficult measures will take longer to bring to completion. I would like to assure the Deputy that the Irish Presidency is awarding absolute top priority to all the different dossiers involved in the completion of the Single Market. All our Ministers are fully engaged in their respective areas in full co-operation with the Commission and their respective Commissioners, and indeed in a fruitful partnership with the Parliament and its committees to get this programme advanced as far as possible during our Presidency.
Even though the Taoiseach describes his meeting with the European Trade Union Confederation as satisfactory, is it not a fact that the leaders of the ETUC expressed serious misgivings about the perceived watering down of the Social Charter? Did the Taoiseach give any reassurances in relation to attempts to ensure that the work programme will be implemented? Is it not a fact that serious misgivings were expressed by the confederation leaders?
No, it is not a fact. Naturally they emphasised their interest in having the social action programme implemented as rapidly as possible, and again that the social dimension should be advanced in parallel with the other aspects of the completion of the Single Market. They indicated their concern about the implementation of the action programme and I outlined to them our priorities. I was also able to tell them, which they were very glad to hear, that the President of the Social Affairs Council, the Minister for Labour, Deputy B. Ahern, is engaged with his colleagues in working out a Troika type of arrangement whereby they will plan a programme of work, to be agreed now and carried out by us, by the Italians and subsequently by Luxembourg, to be completed by the middle of 1991. The idea behind this is to get away from a stop and start type situation where the Irish Presidency would do so much and then the Italians would do their bit and so on. From now on, we will work towards a specific programme which will carry us forward to the middle of 1991.
Would the Taoiseach not agree that the tax harmonisation programme, freeing up the market, is an essential part of what the 1992 enterprise can do to increase employment? Would he agree that this is now utterly stalled? Does he not remember that the President of the Commission in his programme speech to Parliament described the framework agreement on VAT as being the bodywork of a car without the engine, going nowhere? Would he not agree that far from being towards the end of that process, the Community has hardly got off the ground in terms of tax harmonisation? Would he, finally, not agree that the ETUC, in a number of statements going back over quite a period since we launched the 1992 initiative, have been extremely concerned about what they see as the lack of proper emphasis on the importance of training and the Community contribution to it and the fact that we have a non-directive Social Charter which does not make the kind of progress in the training area that we all wish to see?
The Deputy should recognise that we have moved on from the Social Charter. The Social Charter is a fact and it has been adopted as a declaration by the Eleven. We have moved on from there and the emphasis now is on the action programme prepared by the Commission. That is the area on which the Minister for Labour, Deputy B. Ahern, and his colleagues in the Social Affairs Council are concentrating. As I said, they are working out a specific programme. The ETUC people in their discussion with me were concerned mainly with the position of the long-term unemployed. We were in agreement on that aspect. They were also glad to hear of the priority that the Irish Presidency is giving to that aspect of the Social Action Programme. It is not true to say that the tax harmonisation process is being stalled. It is not, perhaps, proceeding as rapidly as everybody would wish and that is simply because of the nature of the problem. If it were an easier problem to deal with it would have been solved long ago. It is, however, concerned with things of fundamental importance to the member states, that is their national budgets, and every member state has a problem with it. Therefore it is only to be expected that it would be long drawn out and difficult. Progress is continuing and a number of advances have been made and are continuing to be made. During our Presidency we will, to the greatest extent possible, keep up the momentum on tax harmonisation and, indeed, on all the other dossiers.
In relation to the misgivings — interest as the Taoiseach puts it — expressed by the ETUC delegates, did the Taoiseach allay concerns expressed or was there, at the end of the meeting, quite a distance between his position and that of the ETUC delegates?
On the contrary, there was a very high level of agreement between us, both on the concern about the existing situation and the very specific agreement between us on what we should be giving priority to at this stage.
(Limerick East): Was the issue of a national minimum wage which might lead, in due course, to a European minimum wage discussed? What is the Government's reaction to that concept?
No, it was not discussed. I know it is of concern; it is something that is included in the action programme, but it was not specifically discussed between the ETUC and myself.
