This month, the issue of public services as defined by the European union has moved to the top of the agenda. The term used in Brussels to describe public services is ‘services of general interest (SGI)'. The significance of this term has grown in the aftermath of the Services (Bolkestein) directive debate. EPSU has been fighting a long battle to have public services fully respected in the EU, particularly by the European Commission and Council. This is why we launched, in April, our ‘Quality public service - quality of life' campaign.
EPSU has committed considerable resources over the next 18 months to highlighting the need for a {{framework directive on services of general interest}}. In designing this campaign, we have recognised that the route to success is through you - our affiliates. We have appointed National Co-Ordinators for the campaign in each of the 25 EU Member States, with a view to launching national events and actions and also to ensure that the local realities of public service provision are accurately reflected in our lobbying here in Brussels.
By relying on your expertise, and on our collective strengths - we have 8 million potential advocates in our membership alone! - we can utilise our credibility to garner tangible results. Our success can already be seen in the European Parliament, where the Party of European Socialists (PES) have taken the unprecedented step of drafting a draft framework directive on SGI, which they have presented to the Commission. The Green Party has also become a fervent advocate of the cause. In the first week of September, the European Parliament is due to vote in plenary on the Commission's White Paper on SGI. Between now and then, our job is to make sure Parliament knows that Europe's public service workers will be watching closely, to make sure that they send the strongest possible message to the European Commission, that the time for a framework directive is now! I wish you success in you mobilisation efforts over the coming months. Carola.
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