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03.05.2005
03 May 2005
Dear Mr Reinhard,
Thank you for your letter, dated the 10th of March, concerning the proposed directive on services.
The proposal has been an issue of heated debate this year and I thank you for your initiative. I have
reviewed your concerns and suggestions with great interest and am therefore happy to share with you
recent developments in the Parliament concerning this directive, which address the protection of
social achievements and the ramifications of the Country of Origin principle.
Essentially, the Socialist Group in the European Parliament has taken the stance that the draft directive
on services, in the form currently proposed by the Commission, is unacceptable. Completing the
internal market in services would be beneficial, but the ambition to create a dynamic and competitive
European market must be realised with respect for the social cohesion of the Community and a high
level of protection for European consumers. The Socialist Group has held conference meetings with
expert law and economic panels and members of national parliaments; MEPs are well aware of the concerns
of the Member States. Rapporteur Evelyn Gebhadt has been acting very competently as liaison between
the Parliament and the Commission. As a result, the Commission has recently expressed an openness
to further modify its draft.
One can expect that the revision process will require a substantial period of time given the implications
of a directive on services. The Socialist Group - and many MEN in general - has argued that
the country of origin principle cannot be the basic principle of the internal market in services. As
you mentioned in your letter, the risk of premising the directive on the country of origin principle
is the resulting competition between law systems, which could lead to a downward spiral of legal certitude
and regulation. Harmonisation and
mutual recognition at a high level of quality should remain the objectives of this directive.
Furthermore, some in Parliament are pressing for the exemption of certain service sectors from the
directive. A recent Socialist Group conference reviewed the case for exempting healthcare and law service
sectors, and the group has taken a firm stance in asserting the imperative to protect services
of general interest by excluding them from the directive. It was argued that the competence of Member
States to organise and promote these services must be respected. The Commission has, however, provided
for the exclusion nonremunerative public authority services. It is also felt that the directive
should not limit existing and pending EU legislation, in particular on posting of workers, temporary
workers and mutual recognition of professional qualifications. A sector-by-sector re-analysis and
re-focus on harmonisation is
imperative.
As a Labour Party MEP and a member of the European Socialist Group, I can assure you that a concentrated
effort on strengthening the social and legal provisions of the draft directive is underway. The
Commission cannot move ahead with its proposals without the Parliament's - which is to say the Member
States' - approval. It would be impossible to vote to throw the directive out completely given
the goals of the directive and the recent negotiations progress.
Thank you for writing to me about this issue. I do hope you find this information helpful. If you
have any further comments or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact my office.
Yours sincerely,
Neena Gill
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