This proposals have came up during the meeting of the public services network / 22nd of Febuary,
they have to be discussed before being proposed on the ESF2008 website so please add your comments…
Another point to discuss is whether we propose these activities as “public services network” or if we make a list of organisations (question of visibility + payment of the seminars).
PROGRAM PROPOSALS OF THE PUBLIC SERVICES NETWORK:
Central theme
Reclaiming Common Welfare and Social Justice!
Launch a campaign before the European Elections, so as to put common welfare as a central issue in Europe
1) Developing the reflexion on a regulatory framework for Public Services/Common Welfare
Necessity of having a discussion on the Europe that we want, content of the texts / which guarantees / principles for public services?
Directive for Public Services, treaties and European texts
2) Public Finances for High-Quality Public Services
Analysis of the policies undermining the public financing of public services, develop joint demands for ending tax competition among states, tax evasion and tax heavens.
organised together with networks working on tax justice/tax heavens/tax evasion/economic policies in EU
3) A future for nordic welfare models ?
The so-called Nordic model has been under attack since the 1980s and neoliberal agenda is undermining the nordic common welfare.
What are the perspectives for the nordic social model? What kind of social model do we want?
Role of public services as pillars of the social model (link with the labour and globalization network’s proposal to have a seminar on social model)
4) The role of the Global Europe strategy in the dismantling of Public Services in Europe and the world
Focus on the Global Europe competiveness strategy - Role of Europe in opening markets in public services in the south, european companies as economic champions in providing services, and how this has an impact from north to south(degradation of the quality of the services, casualisation of the workers…), impact of the European Neighbourhood Policy
5) Reclaiming Public Services and social rights, fighting against privatisations
Developing strategies to reclaim our social rights by fighting against privatisation /how to stop privatisation processes but also how to struggle when public services are already privatised. Focus on concrete experiences, exchanging on the struggles and campaigns
6) Assembly for sharing proposals for struggles and alternatives for Public Services and reclaiming social rights for all
- water : project to create a european network, proposal of a campaign against Veolia
- train / transport : german proposal to create a european network
- education: the education network will propose a range of seminars
- energy: interest to work on the energy issue. link with climate change?
- health care / health insurance
- postal sector / denouncing full market opening of 2011
Proposals which came up after the meeting:
Work between networks has been impossible during the common cross meeting of the 22th, the proposals below have been discussed between members of the different networks in the margin of the EPA.
Transversal theme - Fighting Climate Change by expanding public services ecology
Common responsibility on climate change issues, governments must face the problem and act with the “public power” to enhance, reshape, transform transport policies (for persons and goods), energy policies …, using public services as an environmental tool
Policies to identify the “carbon print” impact of public utilities
Enforcement of these policies in case of delegation or public procurement
With Climate Change Network among others
Transversal theme - labour - precarity and flexibility in the public sector employment
Statute change, introduction of flexi-security in welfare utilities,
With Labor and Globalization Network…..
Transversal theme - precarity, poverty - Common welfare for all
For a universal income (understood as living or decent wage, housing, health and transport gratuity) against poverty in Europe
With No Vox; Migrants Networks
Build a reflexion on the positive impact of public services as instruments of economic and social policy
Common welfare, public utilities represents the biggest economic activity in Europe, assessment of their economic use as social and economic tools for the benefit of collectivity
Democratize and revitalize public sector! The role of the local authorities
The public sector needs to be improved and vitalized. The main tool for this development is a democratic process engaging/involving employees and citizens
model authorities (examples in Norway)
with the networks FAL and FALP – Local Authorities Forum - Free GATS zones network
This list is long and not exhaustive, discussion is opened on the subject, we wait for the official program registration to open so as to inscribe our range of proposals.