CESI Secretary General: High hopes in the Belgian Council Presidency

The Spanish Presidency of the Council of the European Union in the second half of last year was a success from a trade union point of view – even if somewhat unexpectedly, with initial fears that the national parliamentary elections in July could paralyze the government on the Brussels stage. From January 1, the Belgian government now holds the EU Council Presidency for the next six months – and national elections are due there as well very soon. Nevertheless, as CESI we put high hopes in the team of Prime Minister De Croo.

An agreement with the European Parliament on a directive for new guidelines for national equality bodies on December 12, for fair working conditions in the platform economy on December 13, and for corporate sustainability due diligence (CSDD) obligations on December 14. In addition, an agreement on a reformed asylum and migration package on 20 December and a new directive on residence and work permits for third-country nationals on December 14. There is no doubt that the Spanish Presidency has delivered, and important new social and employment legislation has been introduced. Even if not every detail was solved optimally from a union’s point of view, the bottom line is that from the EU social and employment legislation perspective, the last six months have been good for workers in Europe overall.

The bar is therefore set high for the new Belgian Presidency. And the stakes are high too; agreements have yet to be reached on further important social and employment policy projects. An agreement must be reached with the European Parliament on new rules for European fiscal and economic governance. In addition, negotiations are still underway on a new net-zero industry regulation, which is intended to launch measures to expand the production capacities of climate-neutral technologies in the EU – hopefully in a socially acceptable way. In addition, new proposals from the European Commission are expected in the near future to improve the quality of traineeships and, as soon as next week, to strengthen the role of European Works Councils. A proposal to advance the coordination of national social security systems in the EU is stuck in the Council, but will be further negotiated – at least this is the hope among stakeholders and in the European Parliament.

The Belgian Presidency of the Council has made an ambitious start to the Presidency and wants to negotiate as much as possible as quickly as possible – for various reasons.

First, EU elections are due across Europe in June, and by spring at the latest, many of the current negotiating partners in the European Parliament -the MEPs- will have left the election campaign in their constituencies. If a negotiated result is to be adopted by the European Parliament still before the elections, it must be passed by the plenary in February at the latest, if possible. Until then, there is only a window of opportunity of a few weeks.

Second, it may become more difficult to launch new policies from the summer onwards. Above all, the fear is that the newly elected European Parliament could become more eurosceptic and populist during the next five years. Any file that has not been fully negotiated and decided before the elections could then be up for question again. Moreover, Hungary will take over the presidency of the Council in July. Under the leadership of President Viktor Orbán’s eurosceptic Fidesz government, it seems unlikely that there will be any form of progress on European policy. MEPs from the moderate groups, who currently have a clear majority in Parliament, share these concerns.

Finally, Belgium will also elect a new parliament on June 9. According to the latest polls, the outcome is rather uncertain – it is even possible that the Flemish separatist Vlaams Belang could win the election. The government under Prime Minister De Croo is therefore working hard to achieve as much as possible under its influence in Europe before the elections and to make a name for itself at home.

These are positive preconditions for the Council and Parliament to reach agreements even on difficult issues during the coming weeks. As European independent trade unions, as CESI, we put high hopes in the coming months.